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This December at Kitchen Stories is all about feel-good festive food! No matter what you’re celebrating or with whom, our December recipes have something for every one and for every occasion. Best of all, they’re fun and unfussy, so you can focus on winding down for the year. Stay tuned throughout the month by bookmarking <a href="https://www.kitchenstories.com/en/stories/introducing-our-feel-good-festive-issue">this article</a>, where we’ll collect all our recipes and articles. Don’t forget to <a href="https://www.instagram.com/kitchenstories_official/" rel="nofollow">follow us on Instagram</a> for even more. Happy December!

It’s finally cookie season: The time of year when we’re just about constantly surrounded by the irresistible, comforting smell of melted butter. It’s a season that elicits excitement from adults and kids alike. We’ve talked in the past about our love for <a href="https://www.kitchenstories.com/en/stories/the-best-ever-only-recipe-you-ll-ever-need-chocolate-chip-cookies">chocolate chip cookies</a>, but holiday cookies are the focus now and, this year, we thought we’d go back to basics and focus on old-fashioned icebox (or slice and bake) cookies. These cookies require just a few steps: make the dough, form it into a log, chill or freeze it, slice it, and bake!

For me, a person with limited baking talent, these are the perfect prep-ahead cookies for a laid-back holiday; you don’t need fancy equipment and the dough can stay frozen for up to a month (or according to Mark Bittman in his book How to Bake Everything, they can be frozen pretty much indefinitely). Any time you want them, all you have to do is preheat your oven, reach into your freezer, and the cookies will be ready in the blink of an eye.

You can use your favorite basic sugar cookie recipe as the base for your slice and bakes or this recipe from our archive:

Sablés (French butter cookies)

Inspiring ways to flavor your slice and bake cookies

Once you have the basic cookie dough prepared, divide the dough (or go for one big batch) and mix in a wild array of additions. Here’s some inspiration on our favorite ways to spruce up the plain dough:

Dried or candied fruits: dried fruits (like raisins, apricots, or cranberries), candied ginger, candied orange or lemon Nuts: pistachios, peanuts, <a href="https://www.kitchenstories.com/en/recipes/maple-pecan-shortbread">pecans</a>, macadamia nuts, or a full superfood mix like in these <a href="https://www.kitchenstories.com/en/recipes/breakfast-superfood-cookies">breakfast cookies </a> Spice and tea: <a href="https://www.kitchenstories.com/en/recipes/homemade-chai-spice">chai spice</a>, black tea, matcha powder, <a href="https://www.kitchenstories.com/en/stories/its-2020-and-pumpkin-spice-isnt-going-anywhere">pumpkin spice</a>, <a href="https://www.kitchenstories.com/en/recipes/double-chocolate-espresso-cookies-9ca5">espresso </a> Other ideas: fresh citrus zest, crushed pretzels, <a href="https://www.kitchenstories.com/en/recipes/3-ingredient-peanut-butter-cookies">peanut butter</a>, <a href="https://www.kitchenstories.com/en/recipes/tahini-miso-cookies-4715">tahini or miso paste</a>, <a href="https://www.kitchenstories.com/en/recipes/coconut-macaroons">shredded coconut</a>, <a href="https://www.kitchenstories.com/en/recipes/rosemary-slice-and-bake-crackers-with-chutney">herbs (like rosemary or thyme)</a>

5 festive holiday cookies we’re loving right now

Among the many cookie enthusiasts on our team, I asked (or maybe more like convinced) some of them to share their favorite version of a holiday cookie, so here they are!

My matcha cookies are a great manifestation of a running joke among the Asian community: The highest praise we could give for any dessert is that “It’s not too sweet.” In this recipe, matcha green tea powder gives a lovely green color and a slight bitterness to balance out the sweetness of sugar and chocolate.

Matcha green tea white chocolate cookies

Devan’s chocolate cookies are decorated with the christmas color palette—can you spot the red from dried cranberries and the green from pistachios?

Festive chocolate slice and bake cookies

Vanessa’s Italian mandorlini recipe is an ode to her obsession with Italian cuisine. The combination of marzipan, amaretto, and lemon zest gives the cookies a delicate and unique taste profile. Plus, they’re extremely easy to make.

Mandorlini (Italian almond cookies)

Jost’s cookie recipe truly highlights the in-season orange, with orange flavor living not only in the dough (through zest), but also in the sugar icing that uses up the juice.

Orange pistachio cookies

Andreas’s cookies are inspired by Zimtwaffeln from his hometown Saarland. Instead of a waffle shape, they are in pinwheel form. They&#x27;re easier, but equally tasty.

Cinnamon swirl christmas cookies

If you want more ideas for holiday cookies, check out these articles: — <a href="https://www.kitchenstories.com/en/stories/the-best-ever-only-recipe-you-ll-ever-need-chocolate-chip-cookies">The Best-Ever, Only-Recipe-You&#x27;ll-Ever-Need: Chocolate Chip Cookies</a> — <a href="https://www.kitchenstories.com/en/stories/how-this-community-member-turned-a-rice-pudding-tradition-into-delicious-cookies">How This Community Member Turned a Rice Pudding Tradition Into Delicious Cookies</a> — <a href="https://www.kitchenstories.com/en/stories/the-best-from-our-community-christmas-cookies">The Best From Our Community: Christmas Cookies</a> — <a href="https://www.kitchenstories.com/en/stories/how-to-make-perfect-snickerdoodles-cookies">How to Make Perfect Snickerdoodle Cookies</a> — <a href="https://www.kitchenstories.com/en/stories/christmas-cookies-that-are-accidentally-vegan-and-100-delicious">Christmas Cookies That Are Accidentally Gluten-Free and 100% Delicious</a>

And even more <a href="https://www.kitchenstories.com/en/categories/cookies">cookie recipes can be found here</a>!

What’s your favorite holiday cookie? Let us know in the comments or <a href="https://www.kitchenstories.com/en/stories/new-on-kitchen-stories-upload-your-own-recipes">upload your own recipe</a> to share with our global community!

We love these prep-ahead, holiday cookies

5 Slice-and-Bake Cookies to Keep in the Freezer This Season

Every month we’re putting the spotlight on one community recipe that catches our attention and fits in with our monthly issue. This month it&#x27;s all about <a href="https://www.kitchenstories.com/en/stories/letter-from-the-editor-a-culinary-christmas-carol">Christmas</a>. That&#x27;s why we&#x27;re featuring these <a href="https://www.kitchenstories.com/en/recipes/gluten-free-almond-crescent-cookies">traditional dark chocolate almond crescents</a> from our community member Anja.

In Germany, you might find them in your local bakery, in airtight packaging in the supermarket, or in your family cookie jar: Christmas almond crescent cookies—with or without powdered sugar—but always with flaked almonds and dark chocolate. And it’s one such a recipe with a story, a handwritten one from her mother&#x27;s collection, that our community member Anja uploaded to our app.

Although we see almond crescents as a local baked good, they have their roots in Arab cuisine. The ancestors of almond crescents came to Spain in the 9th century, and from there they eventually migrated to us via Italy.

Almond crescents are a kind of macaroon, just like the well-known coconut variety. This means that the dough is made up mainly of nuts, egg whites, and sugar. Unlike many other traditional cookies, they don’t contain flour. This also means that they just so happen to be gluten-free: making them a great option especially for allergy sufferers who often have to pass up traditional baked goods. After all, with the delicate flavor of the marzipan and the melted dark chocolate, it doesn&#x27;t feel like you’re giving up on anything at all. Anja also points this out: without having searched for a gluten-free recipe, she rest assured that she can always offer an almond crescent to certain friends.

Another plus of macaroon dough is that the almond crescents have a pretty robust consistency and don’t crumble easily. Especially in times of social distancing, this makes them perfect to package up and mail to your loved ones along with your Christmas gifts. Make sure you line your cookie tin with baking paper and pack it neatly so that the cookies don&#x27;t get shaken around too much. Finally, wrap a bow around it so the lid doesn&#x27;t come off. Done! Your almond crescents will arrive in one piece.

One last tip for those who don&#x27;t live in Europe: The raw marzipan paste you can buy here in any supermarket is different from what is often called &quot;marzipan&quot; elsewhere. The almond content of raw marzipan is usually just over 50%. In contrast, the marzipan that is often offered in the USA, for example, usually consists of about 30% almonds. An alternative for all those who can&#x27;t find raw marzipan paste or who enjoy making it themselves: homemade marzipan! It&#x27;s quick and easy and <a href="https://www.kitchenstories.com/en/recipes/homemade-marzipan">here are the instructions</a>.

What are your favorite Christmas cookies? Do you have a recipe that works every time? Let us know in the comments or <a href="https://www.kitchenstories.com/en/stories/new-on-kitchen-stories-upload-your-own-recipes">upload your own recipe to share with the community</a>.

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