What would Christmas be without cookies? From cookie parties and exchanges to those favorites the little ones leave on Christmas Eve for Santa, cookies have always been a big part of the holiday.
My mom used to make the same ones year after year: old-fashioned oatmeal, ice box, chocolate chip, peanut butter and sugar cookies, as well as ginger snaps. She took a cardboard box and lined it with fresh linen dish towels and divided each type of cookie with waxed paper. The chocolate chip cookies were always the favorite and the first to disappear. The ones that lasted longest were usually the ice box cookies, and my dad was happy about that since they were his favorite. So, he usually finished off the last of the ice box cookies, eating some with his coffee for breakfast in the morning and for a snack before going to bed at night.
While there was no doubt who made all those delicious cookies over the years, it took me a little while to figure out who really put up and decorated the Christmas tree and then put the presents under it. I finally came to the realization after my dad told me one year that old St. Nick probably would rather have coffee instead of the usual glass of milk I left with the plate of cookies on Christmas Eve.
If you’re looking for a new cookie recipe to try this Christmas, you can bet Santa (or his helper) will like the following cookies, whether with milk or coffee.
CARAMEL THUMBPRINT COOKIES
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter (Do not use substitute)
1/4 cup packed brown sugar
1 egg yolk
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup flour
Granulated sugar
15 caramel candies, unwrapped
2 tablespoons milk
Powdered sugar
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a cookie sheet with a silicone baking mat.
Cut butter into small pieces. Combine butter and brown sugar in a medium size mixing bowl, and using a pastry blender (like you use to cut shortening into a pie crust), blend until creamy. Then add egg yolk and vanilla. Continue to use pastry blender until mixture is smooth and well combined.
Add salt and flour to butter-sugar mixture and blend until a soft dough forms. Divide mixture into 18 pieces. With your hands, roll into 18 balls. Place a small amount of granulated sugar in a saucer, then dip top side of each ball into sugar and place sugar side up on Silicone baking mat.
Press the back of a plastic 1-inch rounded scoop (as you’d measure coffee for a coffeemaker) into the top of each cookie, dipping into the sugar first if necessary.
Bake for 9 to 11 minutes or until edges begin to brown.
Meanwhile, combine caramels and milk in a microwavable glass bowl, place in microwave and microwave for 90 seconds, stopping to stir mixture every 30 seconds.
Remove cookie sheet from oven when cookies are done, transferring cookies to a cooling rack. Then spoon caramel into wells of each cookie.
Let stand for 3 minutes and sprinkle with powdered sugar. Makes 18 cookies.
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