It has been a baking marathon at my parents’ house this week. I have made four separate, brand new, types of cookies AND have the components of a trifle in the works right now. Doing the math, I actually won’t have to bake again until the end of January. And you’ll get new cookie recipes for a month! Which, really, is better than making all four types of cookies at the same time. Because my family is getting dangerously close to kicking me out from what I can tell, since everyone’s main food group has now been cookies for 3 days. Sorry, guys!

I debated which ones would best kick off the series of posts, and decided on these ginger cookies because they were by far the prettiest, and probably also the most festive. So you can still make them before tomorrow if you’re looking for something to do on this lazy Christmas Eve!

I have spent the day building BB-8 Legos (Thanks, Teddy and John!) and watching Star Wars. So really its been a pretty perfect morning. But, if you’re still stressing about dessert tomorrow, and want something in addition to the standard trifle, or you just need some easy cookies to box up for neighbors and friends, these come together quick and stack well – important qualities in a Christmas cookie.

First, in a small bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, salt, ginger, cinnamon, cloves, and nutmeg. Set aside. In a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the butter, 1/2 cup sugar, and brown sugar on medium speed until light and fluffy. Beat in the egg until incorporated. Add the molasses and vanilla extract and beat to incorporate. Add the dry ingredients in two additions, scraping down the sides each time. Cover and refrigerate the dough for one hour. When ready to bake, roll about 1 1/2 tablespoons of dough into a ball, roll in the remaining sugar to coat, and place on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper, about 2 inches apart. Flatten each ball with the bottom of a glass. Bake at 350°F for about 10 minutes, until tops look dry and sides are browned. Allow to cool on baking sheet for 2 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely. To decorate, melt one cup of white chocolate with 1 tablespoon of shortening in the microwave on high in 10 second intervals, stirring after each interval, until very liquidy. Dip cookies into white chocolate and place on parchment paper to harden. Finally, to add a little more Christmas cheer, melt some red and green candy melts and decorate each cookie with some holly!

Store in an airtight container and the cookies will stay nice and chewy.

Enjoy!

White Chocolate Ginger Cookies

Ingredients:

• 2 1/4 cups flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 2 teaspoons ginger
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon cloves
• 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
• 3/4 cup butter, softened
• 1/2 cup + 3 tablespoons sugar, divided
• 1/2 cup light brown sugar, packed
• 1 egg
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1/4 cup molasses
• 3 cups white chocolate chips
• 3 tablespoons shortening
• red and green Candy Melts

Directions:

1. In a small bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, salt, ginger, cinnamon, cloves, and nutmeg.
2. In a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat butter, 1/2 cup sugar, and brown sugar on medium speed until light and fluffy.
3. Beat in egg.
4. Beat in vanilla extract and molasses.
5. Beat in flour mixture in two additions, scraping down sides of bowl each time.
6. Cover dough and refrigerate for 1 hour.
7. When ready to bake, roll 1 1/2 tablespoons of dough into a ball and roll in remaining 3 tablespoons of sugar. Place balls about 2 inches apart on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Flatten each ball with the bottom of a glass.
8. Bake at 350°F for 10 minutes, or until tops are dry and edges are browned. Allow to cool 2 minutes on baking sheet before transferring to wire rack to cool completely.
9. When ready to dip in white chocolate, melt 1 cup of white chocolate chips with 1 tablespoon of shortening at a time in a microwaveable bowl. Microwave on high for 10 second intervals, stirring after each interval, until smooth.
10. Dip cookies in white chocolate and place on parchment paper to harden.
11. To add holly, melt Candy Melts according to package directions. Pipe onto cookies.