Season’s Eatings> Delicious, attractive sweets fulfill promise of ‘Cookies for Christmas’, Recipes prove fit for army of elves

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COOKIES FOR CHRISTMAS, by Jennifer Dorland Darling, Meredith Press, 1999, 240 pages, hardcover, $24.95.

I love Christmas. I love cookies.

That means I probably wasn’t going to dislike “Cookies for Christmas,” a hefty cookbook with enough recipes to satisfy an army of elves.

I was no exception. The first time my mother, sister and I paged through the book we had a list of more than 20 cookies we thought we might try.

My sister and I refrained from baking all 20 in one weekend, but we did whip up eight of the recipes to see if they lived up to their mouth-watering pictures.

With the intoxicating scents of orange, cinnamon and chocolate tempting us, let me say that by the time we finished we were intimately acquainted with the concept of a “sugar high.”

For the most part, author Jennifer Dorland Darling hit the mark with the recipes we made. Darling is a cookbook editor who has worked in the Better Homes and Gardens Test Kitchen, which is where all of the recipes were tested.

The book’s eight chapters range from “Cutouts for Christmas” to “Slices of Delight” to “Old World Favorites.” Each recipe is illustrated with a color photograph and has detailed nutritional facts. Most recipes have a helpful hint attached, often about ingredients or how to make gifts out of your creations, and some recipes are marked “Great Kid Cookies” because children will have fun with the decorating.

So stock up on butter, plug in the mixer, and cajole a few of Santa’s helpers into the assembly line with a vision of the sugarplums to come at the end of their shifts. —-

I found a few things to change in the Orange Snowballs recipe. First, if you don’t want to bother with a food processor to mix the sugar and orange peel, don’t; mixing it with a fork and a lot of enthusiasm worked. Second, you can use yellow-colored sugar instead of gold edible glitter. And finally, there was no way the snowballs would coat with the sugar mixture after baking. It worked before baking, but it only worked after baking if the cookie was dipped in melted butter first.

Orange Snowballs

1 cup butter, softened

3/4 cup sifted powdered sugar 1 tablespoon finely shredded orange peel 2 teaspoons finely shredded orange peel (set aside) 1 tablespoon orange juice 2 2/3 cups all-purpose flour

3/4 cup granulated sugar (set aside) 1 teaspoon gold edible glitter (optional)

Beat butter with an electric mixer on medium to high speed for 30 seconds. Add powdered sugar. Beat until combined. Beat in orange juice until combined. Beat in as much of the flour as you can with mixer. With a wooden spoon, stir in 1 tablespoon orange peel and remaining flour.

Shape dough into 1 1/4-inch balls. Place 2 inches apart on an ungreased cookie sheet.

Bake at 325 degrees for 15 minutes or until bottoms are lightly browned. Cool on cookie sheet for five minutes.

Meanwhile in a food processor or blender, combine the 3/4 cup granulated sugar and the 2 teaspoons orange peel. Cover and process until mixture is combined. Stir in edible glitter. Roll the baked cookies, still slightly warm, in the sugar mixture. Transfer to wire rack; cool. Makes about 48 cookies. —-

The one thing I like about decorating cookies is that you can add your own ideas. The one thing I did differently was to give a few of my reindeer a mane of shredded coconut in between their pretzel antlers.

Chocolate Reindeer

1 cup butter, softened 1 1/2 cups sugar 1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder 2 teaspoons cream of tartar 1 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt 3 eggs 1 teaspoon vanilla 3 1/4 cups all-purpose flour 72 small pretzels 72 candy-coated milk chocolate pieces 36 small gumdrops

Beat butter with an electric mixer on medium to high speed for 30 seconds. Add sugar, cocoa powder, cream of tartar, baking soda and salt. Beat until combined. Beat in eggs and vanilla until combined. Beat in as much of the flour as you can with mixer. With a wooden spoon, stir in remaining flour.

Divide dough into six equal portions, forming them into a ball. Wrap in wax paper or plastic wrap. Chill for three hours or until dough is easy to handle.

On a lightly floured surface (or in between sheets of wax paper) roll each dough portion into a circle 6 inches in diameter. With a knife, cut each circle into six pie-shaped wedges. Place 2 inches apart on an ungreased cookie sheet.

For antlers, lightly press a pretzel into the upper corners of each triangle. Press in chocolate pieces for eyes. For a nose, press in a gumdrop about 1/2 inch from the point.

Bake at 375 degrees for seven to nine minutes or until edges are firm. Do not overbake. Cool on cookie sheet for one minute. Transfer to wire rack; cool. Makes 36 cookies. —-

The next two recipes are similar in looks but totally different in taste. One is fruity, one is spicy, and both are delicious.

Italian Fig Spirals

1/3 cup butter, softened 1 cup sugar

1/2 teaspoon baking powder 1 egg 3 tablespoons milk

1/2 teaspoon vanilla 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour 1 cup finely snipped dried figs 1/3 cup orange marmalade

1/4 cup orange juice

Beat butter with an electric mixer on medium to high speed for 30 seconds. Add sugar and baking powder. Beat until combined. Beat in milk and vanilla until combined. Beat in as much of the flour as you can with mixer. With a wooden spoon, stir in any remaining flour. Cover; chill one hour or until dough is easy to handle.

Meanwhile, for filling, in a saucepan combine figs, marmalade and orange juice. Cook and stir just until boiling. Remove from heat and cool.

Divide dough in half. On waxed paper use a floured rolling pin to roll half of the dough at a time into a 10-by-8-inch rectangle. Spread half of filling over dough to within 1/2 inch of edges. From short side, roll up jelly-roll style, removing wax paper as you roll. Pinch edges to seal. Wrap filled roll in plastic wrap or waxed paper. Repeat with remaining dough and filling. Chill in refrigerator for four to 24 hours.

Line a cookie sheet with foil. Grease foil; set aside. (I lined pans with waxed paper, which worked as long as the cookies were removed immediately.)

Using a sharp knife, cut rolls into 1/4-inch-thick slices. Place 2 inches apart on cookie sheet.

Bake at 375 degrees for nine to 11 minutes or until edges are firm and bottoms lightly browned. Transfer to wire rack; cool. Makes 60 cookies.

Snickerdoodle Pinwheels

1/3 cup sugar 1 tablespoon ground cinnamon

1/2 cup butter, softened 1 3-ounce package cream cheese, softened 1 cup sugar

1/2 teaspoon baking powder 1 egg 1 teaspoon vanilla 2 2/3 cups all-purpose flour 1 tablespoon butter, melted

For cinnamon-sugar mixture, combine the 1/3 cup sugar and the cinnamon in a small bowl; set aside.

Beat the 1/2 cup butter and cream cheese with an electric mixer on medium to high speed for 30 seconds. Add the 1 cup sugar and baking powder. Beat until combined. Beat in egg and vanilla until combined. Beat in as much of the flour as you can with mixer. Use a wooden spoon to stir in the rest.

Divide dough in half. Roll one half between two sheets of waxed paper into a 12-by-8-inch rectangle. Remove top sheet of waxed paper. Brush dough with half of the melted butter. Sprinkle with 2 tablespoons of cinnamon mixture.

Starting from one of the short sides, roll up jelly-roll style, removing waxed paper as you roll. Seal edges. Repeat with remaining dough, butter and 2 tablespoons of cinnamon mixture.

Roll each log in remaining cinnamon-sugar mixture. Wrap each log in plastic wrap or waxed paper. Chill in the refrigerator about four hours or until firm.

Using a sharp knife, cut dough into 1/4-inch-thick slices. Place 1 inch apart on an ungreased cookie sheet.

Bake at 375 degrees for eight to 10 minutes or until edges are firm. Cool on cookie sheet for one minute. Transfer to wire rack; cool. Makes about 60 cookies. —-

The last three recipes are something of a package deal. From one basic cookie dough, you can make three different cookies — or you can divvy it up however you like. I split the dough between Santa’s Whiskers and the Chocolate-Mint Thumbprints and adjusted those recipes accordingly.

Trio Cookie Dough

3/4 cup butter, softened

3/4 cup shortening 1 1/2 cups sugar

1/4 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 teaspoon salt 1 egg 1 egg yolk 3 tablespoons milk 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla 4 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

Beat butter and shortening with an electric mixer on medium to high speed for 30 seconds. Add sugar, baking soda and salt. Beat until combined. Beat in the egg, egg yolk, milk and vanilla. Beat in as much of the flour as you can with the mixer. With a wooden spoon, stir in any remaining flour.

Divide dough into three equal portions. Use it to make the three following recipes.

Santa’s Whiskers

3/4 cup maraschino cherries, drained and finely chopped 1/3 recipe Trio Cookie Dough Few drops red food coloring (optional)

1/2 cup coconut

Pat cherries dry with paper towels. Combine the cherries, dough, and food coloring. Mix with a wooden spoon until thoroughly combined.

Shape dough into 10-inch-long roll. Roll dough in coconut until covered. Wrap in plastic wrap or waxed paper. Chill for at least four hours or until firm.

Using sharp knife, cut dough into 1/4-inch-thick slices. Place 2 inches apart on an ungreased cookie sheet.

Bake at 375 degrees for eight to 10 minutes or until edges are firm and bottoms are lightly browned. Transfer to wire rack; cool. Makes about 36 cookies.

Chocolate-Mint Thumbprints

1/3 recipe Trio Cookie Dough 2 ounces semisweet chocolate, melted and cooled 2 teaspoons milk 1 recipe Peppermint Filling

1/4 cup chopped candy canes or hard peppermint candies

Combine dough, chocolate and milk. Mix until thoroughly combined (I had to knead it by hand).

Shape dough into 8-inch-long roll. Wrap in plastic wrap or waxed paper wrap. Chill for at least one hour.

Using a sharp knife, cut dough into 3/4-inch-thick slices. Cut each slice into quarters and roll each quarter into a ball. Place 2 inches apart on an ungreased cookie sheet. Press down in center of each ball with your thumb.

Bake at 375 degrees for eight to 10 minutes or until tops look dry. Transfer to wire rack; cool.

Spoon a scant teaspoon of Peppermint Filling into the center of each cookie. Sprinkle cookie with chopped candy (I used colored sugars and other edible holiday decorations). Makes about 48 cookies.

Peppermint Filling: Beat 1/4 cup butter with an electric mixer on medium to high speed about 30 seconds or until softened. Gradually add 1 cup sifted powdered sugar, beating until combined. Beat in 2 tablespoons milk, 1/4 teaspoon peppermint extract and a few drops of red or green food coloring, if desired. Gradually beat in 1 cup sifted powdered sugar until smooth.

Lemon-Almond Tea Cookies

1/3 recipe Trio Cookie Dough 2 teaspoons finely shredded lemon peel 1 teaspoon almond extract 1 recipe Lemon Frosting

1/2 cup sliced almonds, toasted

Combine dough, lemon peel and almond extract. Using a wooden spoon, mix until thoroughly combined.

Shape dough into 8-inch-long roll. Wrap in plastic wrap or waxed paper. Chill for at least four hours.

Using a sharp knife, cut dough into 1/4-inch-thick slices. Place 2 inches apart on an ungreased cookie sheet.

Bake at 375 degrees for eight to 10 minutes or until edges are firm and bottoms are lightly browned. Transfer to wire rack; cool.

Spread about 1 teaspoon of the frosting atop each cookie. Sprinkle with sliced almonds. Makes 32 cookies.

Lemon Frosting: Beat 1/4 cup butter, softened, with an electric mixer for about 30 seconds. Gradually add 1 cup sifted powdered sugar, beating until combined. Beat in 4 teaspoons milk, 1 teaspoon lemon juice, 1/4 teaspoon vanilla and a few drops almond extract. Gradually beat in 1 cup sifted powdered sugar until smooth.