Easy-to-make Christmas Cookies

Christmas is almost here, and what better time than now to start baking cookies. Using two basic cookie dough recipes, you can create two festive holiday treats for snacking or for gift-giving. Fudge Tarts feature chocolate sugar cookie dough as the shortcut for making these small-in-size, rich-in-taste tarts. If you have children, they'll delight in creating their own Christmas Snowmen. The simplest and sweetest way to decorate these snowmen cookies is with a glaze of confectioners' sugar-icing, miniature chocolate chips for the eyes and buttons and a gumdrop piece for the nose.

Fudge Tarts Recipe

Makes 24 Tarts

Ingredients:

• Nonstick cooking spray
• 1/2 of an approximately 18-ounce roll refrigerated Chocolate Cookie dough (recipe follows)
• 1/2 cup semisweet chocolate, cut into small pieces
• 1/4 cup sweetened condensed milk

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Spray twenty-four 1 3/4-inch muffin cups with nonstick cooking spray; set aside.
2. For the tart shells, cut the roll of Chocolate Cookie dough into 6 equal pieces. Cut each piece into 4 equal slices. Place each slice of dough in a muffin cup.
3. Bake the slices in the oven for about 9 to 10 minutes, or until the edges are lightly browned and the dough is slightly firm but not set. Remove the tart shells from the oven. Gently press your thumb to make a shallow indentation into each tart shell.
4. Return the tart shells to the oven and bake for 2 minutes more or until the edges of the tart shells are firm and light golden brown. Let the tart shells cool in their cups on a wire rack for 15 minutes. Carefully remove tart shells from the cups. Cool completely on a wire rack.
5. For the chocolate filling, in a small saucepan, combine the chocolate with the sweetened condensed milk. Cook and stir over medium heat until the chocolate is melted. Spoon a slightly rounded teaspoon of filling into each cooled tart shell. Cool, allowing the filling to set.

Chocolate Cookie Dough

Ingredients:

• 3 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 1/2 cups unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 3/4 pound (3 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature
• 2 1/2 cups sifted confectioners' sugar
• 2 large eggs, lightly beaten
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

Directions:

1. In a large bowl, sift together flour, cocoa and salt. Set aside.
2. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream together butter and sugar until the mixture is light and fluffy. Beat in the eggs and vanilla.
3. Add the flour mixture; mix on low speed until the flour is thoroughly combined. Shape the dough into a long cylinder and wrap well in plastic wrap. Chill the dough in the refrigerator until ready to use.

Christmas Snowmen Recipe

Makes 18 Snowmen

Ingredients:

• 1 18-ounce roll refrigerated Sugar Cookie dough (recipe follows)
• 1 cup sifted confectioners' sugar
• 1/4 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 1 to 2 tablespoons milk
• Gumdrops, for decorating
• Miniature semisweet chocolate pieces, for decorating

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Cut the cookie dough into 18 equal pieces. Divide each dough piece into three balls: one large (about 1 1/4 inches in diameter), one medium (about 1 inch in diameter), and one small (about 3/4 inch in diameter). Assemble each set of balls about 1/4 inch apart in the shape of a snowman (largest on bottom, shortest on top) on a parchment-lined baking sheet, placing the snowmen about 2 inches apart so the snowmen don't bake into each other.
2. Bake for about 8 to 10 minutes or until the edges are very lightly browned. Cool on the baking sheets for 3 minutes. Gently transfer the cookies to a wire rack; cool.
3. For the white glaze, in a small mixing bowl, stir together the confectioners' sugar, vanilla and 1 tabblespoon of milk. Stir in additional milk, 1 teaspoon at a time, to make the glaze reach a drizzling consistency. Spoon the glaze over the snowmen. Decorate as desired with gumdrops and chocolate pieces.

Sugar Cookie Dough Recipe

Ingredients:

• 1/4 pound (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 egg
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 2 cups all-purpose flour

1. In an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream the butter and sugar until fluffy on medium speed for 30 seconds. Add the baking powder and salt. Beat until combined.
2. Add the egg and vanilla and beat well. Add the all-purpose flour a little bit at a time and mix until well blended. Shape the dough into a long cylinder and wrap well in plastic wrap. Chill the dough in the refrigerator until ready to use.

Fudge Tarts

Christmas Snowmen

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