6 recipes for the High Season of Cookies

Celebrate the High Season of Cookies. The protocol for observing the season includes eating cookies, baking cookies, reading about cookies and giving cookies for gifts.

This collection of a half-dozen recipes includes drop cookies to make with kids, a light meringue that is kind to any diet and a rich, old-fashioned tartlet flavored with rum. Pick one or two to add to your holiday repertoire. Or try all six!

Remember: Spending time with your family baking a batch of cookies is a gift to everyone.

These recipes were assembled by Alison Ladman for the Associated Press.



Sandwich cookies look harder than they are

We created a simple, but divine peanut butter sandwich cookie that uses peanut butter in the cookie dough and the creamy filling. The result is an impressive cookie that looks like you spent more time on them than you really did.

For an extra surprise, add a dot of jelly to the center of each sandwich before placing the second cookie over the filling. Peanut butter chips can be found in the baking aisle alongside the chocolate chips.

Peanut butter sandwiches



For the cookies:

1 cup peanut butter
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature
3/4 cup granulated sugar
3/4 cup packed brown sugar
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
3/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
11/2 cups all-purpose flour

For the filling:

10 ounces peanut butter chips (found alongside the chocolate chips)
1 cup peanut butter
Colored sprinkles, to decorate

Heat the oven to 350 degrees. Lightly coat two baking sheets with cooking spray.

To make the cookies, in the bowl of an electric mixer combine the peanut butter, butter and both sugars. Beat on medium until well combined and creamy. Add the eggs and the vanilla and beat again. Add the baking powder, salt and flour and beat on low to combine, scraping down the sides of the bowl to ensure thorough mixing.

Using a teaspoon-size measuring spoon, scoop the dough onto the prepared baking sheets. Use the palm of your hand to slightly flatten each cookie.

Bake for 12 to 15 minutes, or until just golden around the edges. Let cool for 5 minutes on the baking sheets, then transfer to a rack to cool.

Meanwhile, make the filling.

In a medium microwave-safe bowl, heat the peanut butter chips in 20-second intervals, stirring frequently until melted. Add the peanut butter and stir to combine.

Let the cookies and the filling cool to room temperature. Once cooled, spoon a small amount of filling onto the bottom side of 1 cookie, then top with a second cookie. Roll the edges of each cookie in colored sprinkles so they stick to the filling along the sides. Store in an airtight container at room temperature.

Makes 36 sandwiches. Per sandwich: 196 calories; 111 calories from fat (57 percent of total calories); 12 g fat (4 g saturated; 0 g trans fats); 19 mg cholesterol; 18 g carbohydrate; 6 g protein; 1 g fiber; 116 mg sodium.



Easy chocolate drop cookies

For the unskilled baker, drop cookies are among the easiest cookies to handle. These rich, crunchy and thin cookies come together in just about 10 minutes of mixing, 15 minutes of baking, a few minutes of cooling and as much eating as you can manage.

And because these cookies contain no flour, they are a good choice for people who avoid gluten.

To ensure the cookies contain no gluten, use a variety of cornflakes labeled “gluten-free” (some brands use barley malt as a sweetener, which contains gluten).

Chocolate corn flake lace cookies recipe

1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 egg
11/2 cups lightly crushed corn flakes
1/4 cup cocoa powder
1/2 teaspoon salt

Heat the oven to 350 degrees. Lightly coat two baking sheets with cooking spray, or line them with parchment paper.

In a medium bowl, use an electric mixer on medium to beat together the butter, brown sugar and granulated sugar. Add the vanilla and egg and mix until thoroughly combined. Stir in the cornflakes, cocoa powder and salt.

Using a tablespoon-size measuring spoon, scoop the mixture onto the prepared baking sheets, leaving about 2 inches on all sides. Use the bottom of a glass lightly coated with cooking spray to gently press down on and slightly flatten each cookie. Bake for 12 to 15 minutes. Allow to cool on the baking sheets for 5 minutes before using a spatula to transfer them to a rack to cool completely.

Makes 24 cookies Per cookie: 80 calories; 38 calories from fat (48 percent of total calories); 4 g fat (3 g saturated; 0 g trans fats); 19 mg cholesterol; 11 g carbohydrate; 1 g protein; 0 g fiber; 83 mg sodium.



Linzer cookies with a new twist

Traditional linzer cookies are filled with black currant, red currant or raspberry jam. But we decided a richer version was called for.

So we blended raspberry jam with melted dark chocolate, a delicious pairing for the chocolate cookies it is sandwiched between.

While baking and craft stores sell linzer cookie cutters (a single cookie cutter fitted with both the larger and center cutters), it's just as easy to use two standard round cutters. And don't hesitate to get decorative and use fancy cutters.

The dough for these cookies can be prepared and refrigerated several days or frozen for a few months. Prepare the filling at the time of baking.

Double chocolate linzer cookies

2/3 cup hazelnuts, toasted and cooled
2 cups all-purpose flour
1/3 cup cocoa powder
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground allspice
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1 egg
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 cup seedless raspberry jam
4 ounces dark chocolate bits
Powdered sugar, for dusting


In the bowl of a food processor, combine the toasted hazelnuts, flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, salt, cinnamon and allspice. Pulse until the nuts are finely chopped.

In a large bowl, use an electric mixer to beat together the butter and brown sugar until light and fluffy. Add the egg and vanilla and beat again. Add the flour-nut mixture and mix on low until thoroughly combined, scraping the sides of the bowl to ensure all the ingredients are incorporated.

Divide the dough in half and form each piece into a disk, then wrap them in plastic wrap and refrigerate until firm, about 2 hours.

While the dough chills, prepare the filling. In a small saucepan over low heat, combine the jam and the chocolate bits. Heat, stirring continuously, until the chocolate is melted and combined with the jam. Set aside to cool.

When the dough is chilled, heat the oven to 350 degrees. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.

One at a time, on a lightly floured counter roll out each piece of dough to 1/8 inch thickness. Use a 2 1/2-inch round cookie cutter to cut a total of 24 rounds from the dough, gathering the rerolling the scraps once. Use a 1-inch round cutter to cut out the center of 12 of the dough rounds.

Use a spatula to transfer the cookies to the prepared baking sheets. Bake for 10 minutes, or until just starting to color around the edges. Transfer to a rack to cool completely. Repeat with the second piece of dough to produce another 24 cookies, 12 of them with the centers cut out.

To assemble the cookies, spread a teaspoonful of the jam mixture onto each of the 30 solid cookies. Lightly dust the cut-out top cookies with powdered sugar, then gently press onto the bottom cookie. Store in an airtight container.

Makes 24 sandwiches. Per sandwich: 164 calories; 81 calories from fat (49 percent of total calories); 9 g fat (5 g saturated; 0 g trans fats); 23 mg cholesterol; 20 g carbohydrate; 2 g protein; 1 g fiber; 45 mg sodium.



Add nuts to shortbread for holiday treat

Shortbread alone is great. Top it with a rich caramel studded with pecans, pistachios and dried cranberries and you're talking some serious holiday cheer.

Pecan diamonds

For the dough:
1/2 cup granulated sugar
12 tablespoons (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter
1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour

For the topping:
1 cup (2 sticks) butter
11/4 cups packed brown sugar
1/2 cup honey
1/4 cup heavy cream
2 cups chopped pecans
1 cup pistachio meats
1 cup chopped dried cranberries

Heat the oven to 350 degrees. Line a 9-by-13-inch pan with foil.

In a large bowl, use an electric mixer to blend the sugar and 12 tablespoons of butter until creamy. Mix in the flour on low speed until well combined. Press the mixture — it will be crumbly — into the prepared pan. Prick all over with the tines of a fork, then bake for 20 minutes. Set aside to cool, but leave the oven on.

Meanwhile, prepare the topping. In a medium saucepan over medium-high heat, bring the butter, sugar, honey and cream to a boil. Simmer, stirring frequently, until the mixture reads 240 F on a candy thermometer. Stir in the pecans, pistachios and cranberries. Pour the mixture over the baked crust, then bake for 25 to 30 minutes, or until the mixture is bubbly all over. Let cool completely.

To cut, use the foil to lift the entire slab from the pan. Trim the edges with a sharp knife. Cut the bars into 1-inch strips. Cut each strip diagonally to form diamonds.

Makes 60 cookies. Per cookie: 138 calories; 85 calories from fat (62 percent of total calories); 10 g fat (4 g saturated; 0 g trans fats); 16 mg cholesterol; 13 g carbohydrate; 1 g protein; 1 g fiber; 1 mg sodium.



Meringues offer a lighter cookie

Time to lighten up the holiday cookie scene.

We took a healthy-ish turn and opted for meringues, a crisp-chewy fat-free cookie made from whipped egg whites and sugar. We flavored them with raspberry extract, but you could use any flavor you like.

The recipe calls for using a piping bag, which is a bag which can be fitted with a metal tip and used to squeeze the whipped egg whites into mounds on the baking sheets. These are widely available at baking and craft shops, as well as in the baking aisle of many grocers.

If you don't have a piping bag, simply spoon the mixture into mounds. If you opt for this method, add the food coloring at the same time as the extract.

Meringues
4 egg whites, room temperature
1/2 teaspoon cream of tartar
1 cup superfine sugar
2 teaspoons raspberry extract
Red or pink gel food coloring

Heat the oven to 250 degrees. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.

In a large bowl, use an electric mixer fitted with a whisk attachment to beat the egg whites and cream of tartar until frothy. A tablespoon at a time, add the sugar while continuing to beat. When all the sugar has been added, continue to beat until the whites form stiff, glossy peaks. Stir in the extract.

Fit a piping bag with a large star pastry tip. On the inside of the piping bag, brush a couple stripes of the gel food coloring. Spoon the meringue into the bag. Add a little dab of the meringue under the corners of the parchment paper to prevent the paper from moving on the baking sheet.

Pipe 1 1/2-inch stars onto the prepared sheets, then place in the oven.

Bake for 20 minutes, then turn off the oven. Leave the meringues in the oven (without opening the door) overnight.

In the morning, peel the meringues from the parchment paper and store in an airtight container.

Makes 48 cookies. Per cookie: 11 calories; 0 calories from fat (0 percent of total calories); 0 g fat (0 g saturated; 0 g trans fats); 0 mg cholesterol; 3 g carbohydrate; 0 g protein; 0 g fiber; 5 mg sodium.



Rum raisin tartlets offer a bit of cookie variety

Flat cookies are fine, but we decided to go for a bit of depth.

As in a cup-shaped cookie made from a rich cream cheese and butter-based dough, then filled with a creamy brown sugar custard and raisins. The result is an intensely good mini tart cookie.

Rum raisin tartlets
1 8-ounce block cream cheese
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, plus 2 tablespoons melted
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup raisins
2 eggs
1 cup packed brown sugar
Pinch salt
1/4 cup rum

In a large bowl, use an electric mixer to blend the cream cheese and 1 cup of butter until smooth. Mix in the granulated sugar and vanilla. Add the flour and salt, then mix until a dough forms.

Transfer the dough to a lightly floured counter, then divide it in half and shape each piece of dough into a disk. Wrap each with plastic wrap, then refrigerate for at least 2 hours.

Heat the oven to 350 degrees. Spray a mini-muffin tin with cooking spray. A non-stick muffin tin does not need to be sprayed.

On a lightly floured counter, roll out one piece of the dough to 1/8-inch thickness. Use a 3-inch round cookie cutter to cut circles from the dough. Press each circle into one of the muffin tin cups. Place 1 teaspoon of raisins into the each tart shell.

In a medium bowl, whisk together the eggs, brown sugar, salt, rum and melted butter until well combined. Pour a bit of the mixture over the raisins in each shell.

Bake for 15 to 20 minutes, or until the custard is set and the crusts are lightly browned. Let cool 10 minutes and then remove from the pan. Repeat with remaining dough and fillings.

Makes 30 tartlets. Per tartlet: 167 calories; 88 calories from fat (53 percent of total calories); 10 g fat (6 g saturated; 0 g trans fats); 41 mg cholesterol; 18 g carbohydrate; 2 g protein; 0 g fiber; 52 mg sodium.