Dueling Holiday Cookies


Every year Tucker and I make the classic holiday butter cookies with his family. The kind you roll out and make into traditional holiday shapes like snowmen, trees, wreaths, menorahs, dreidels, and dinosaurs. But every year we argue about which recipe to use. MY recipe comes from Joan Nathan's The Children's Jewish Holiday Kitchen, which was given to me when I was 8 years old and I've been using every since. Tucker's family recipe is of unknown origin, but is written out in their family cookbook and memorized by basically everyone in the Morgan clan. On the surface they are very similar, buttery, delicious, not too sweet. But I believe my cookies hold a slight edge in stability (less crumbly) and taste. Of course Tucker and his family don't agree.

Whose is better? Obviously I prefer mine, but I'll let you decide! First, my recipe :) I'll post Tucker's soon.


Rachel's Traditional Holiday Cookies
Adapted from Joan Nathan's recipe

INGREDIENTS
1/2 pound (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
3/4 cup sugar
2 eggs
Dash of salt
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
3 1/2 cups flour


PREPARATION

  1. In a mixer, cream the butter and sugar and light and fluffy. 
  2. Add (in this order) eggs, salt, vanilla, and flour (a little bit at a time if you don't want to make a mess). 
  3. Mix until JUST combined, then wrap up in cellophane in two bricks and rest for about 30 min in the fridge.
  4. Preheat oven to 350°F.
  5. Roll out the dough to 1/8-inch thick. Cut into fun shapes with cookie cutters
  6. Place them on untreated baking sheet. 
  7. Bake for about 10 minutes, or until golden brown. 
  8. Use a metal spatula to gently remove each cookie from the baking sheet to a cooling rack.
  9. Frost liberally and colorfully

 

Comments

Amy Dines said…
Thanks for sharing - Chanukah cookies, on their way!