Making the best of the holidays is what I have always tried to do. During my marriage, my ex would ruin each holiday with telling me how I didn’t pick the right gifts, or his mother would impress the importance of how much I spent on her rather than looking at the time and effort I’d put into finding the right gift. Once, she talked about a Lenox dish she had always wanted and never received. She said she saw it when she first got married and admired it and couldn’t purchase it at the time. She looked for the piece years later and it the dish was discontinued and hard to find. I searched high and low and two years later, I found it! I was at an antique dealer in Connecticut and there it was sitting on the shelf in a display of other Lenox pieces. I purchased it in July and anxiously waited for December to come so I could watch her face as she unwrapped it. December 24th came, we always went to my in-laws to celebrate with all our family. We would celebrate with a huge Italian dinner, the feast of the seven fishes, and then off to midnight mass we would go, and afterwards we would come back to their home and open gifts. This year we came home from mass and I was so excited as I handed her the gift. She opened it, saw it, and a smile came across her face, but only for a split second. Then she looked at me and said, “where did you get this? It is discontinued, I hope you didn’t buy it at a yard sale, I’d hate to have used junk for Christmas.” She then handed it back to me and said, honey we don’t give used gifts in this family. My heart sank.
Since my divorce, I have tried to make each Christmas for my children special and fun. I have taken the warm memories we had from past Christmases and incorporated them into new traditions and one of them is my Christmas cookies. Another new tradition is my annual cookie swap. I get together each year with my friends and we make cookies, swap them at our party, this year I made Nona’s Christmas Butterball Cookies. They are light, tasty, and so easy to make.
Christmas Butterball Cookies:
¾ cup confectioners’ sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon almond extract
1 ½ cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 pinch salt
¼ cup confectioner’s sugar
1 cup of chopped nuts (I like to use pecans, but you can use walnuts or hazelnuts if you prefer)
2 Bowls
baking sheet and parchment paper
Prep time: 15 mins.
Cook time: 10 mins.
Ready in 55 mins.
- Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F and line baking sheet with parchment paper or grease your baking sheet
- In your first bowl, Beat together the butter and ¾ cups confectioner’s sugar with an electric mixer in a large bowl until smooth. Add the egg, vanilla extract, and almond extract.
- In your second bowl stir together the flour, baking powder, and salt. If you choose to add chopped nuts incorporate it into the bowl of dry mix.
- Incorporate the dry ingredients with the batter.
- Shape the dough into 1-inch balls and arrange on the baking sheet with a 2-inch space between each ball.
- Bake in the preheated oven until firm, approximately 10 minutes.
- Cool on the baking sheet for about 10 mins. Then remove the cookies to a wire rack and allow them cool completely.
- Once the cookies are completely cooled, spread the ¼ cup confectioners’ sugar on a plate, and roll the cooled cookies in the confectioner’s sugar to coat.
If you try the recipe write to me and let me know how they came out! Enjoy!
P.S. the picture was taken the next day after the swap. I brought 6 dozen to the cookie swap and left 2 dozen home from the boys.. these poor cookies didn’t stand a chance left alone with them.
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These Cookies are delicious, thanks for sharing.
You’re welcome.. I’m glad you enjoyed them!