Christmas 2023 Countdown: 4 Tasty Cookie Recipes To Your Holiday Season

'Tis the season to indulge in the sweet magic of Christmas cookies! Embrace the winter warmth with these delectable recipes that will transform your kitchen into a festive wonderland. Elevate your taste buds with gingerbread cookies, perfectly spiced and intricately decorated. 

1. Nutella Stuffed Cookies

Recipe by Parmi Shreeram at The Tamara Coorg. Everybody loves Nutella and these cookies have some right in the centre. A delightful treat for all ages.

Ingredients:

Method:

• Scoop heaped teaspoons of Nutella onto a lined tray and freeze until solid. This usually takes 30-60 minutes.
• Once the Nutella has frozen, make the cookie dough.
• Preheat your oven to 190C/170C Fan.
• Beat together butter and sugar until fluffy, and then add in vanilla and egg and beat again until smooth.
• Whisk together flour, salt, soda bicarbonate. Add into the butter and egg mix.
• Add in the finely chopped chocolate and mix until combined.
• Use a cookie scoop to portion the dough.
• As you scoop each cookie, flatten the dough slightly into a disc shape, and place a frozen lump of Nutella in the middle. Wrap the cookie dough around the frozen Nutella to cover it completely. The cookies will be ball-shaped.
• Line 2-3 large baking trays with parchment paper. Place 6 cookies on each tray.
• Bake for 11 to 12 minutes.

2. Oats & Raisins Cookies

Recipe by Chef Nitish Chandra Phani, Executive Chef at The Tamara Kodai.

Ingredients:

Method:

• Beat sugar, butter, egg and vanilla essence in a mixer.

• In a big bowl mix oats, whole wheat flour, raisins, cinnamon powder and baking soda

•Add beaten sugar and egg mixture to this and mix well to make a soft dough

•Divide dough into small balls of 25 grams each. Flatten them and arrange them on a baking tray lined with butter paper. Place approximately 15 cookies on a tray

•Bake in a preheated oven at 1700 C for 12 to 15 minutes. Remove the cookies from the sheet when still warm to prevent them from sticking.

Benefits: Oat and raisin cookies are low glycemic. Oatmeal, and whole wheat form complex carbohydrates which prolong physical endurance and keep energy levels balanced.

Other benefits: Oatmeal cookies contain significant amounts of minerals like calcium, iron, and magnesium which are required for overall physical health. Raisins also act as antioxidants and enhance immunity. It reduces cholesterol levels making it good for the heart too.

3. POOKIE

Chef Akshay Mote, Sous Chef at Hilton Goa Resort shares, "Pookie, the magical fusion of 'Poie' and 'Cookie,' is our culinary ode to the rich Goan flavours. By infusing Wheat Bran and Pearl Millet, we've not only crafted a delightful treat but also embraced the essence of Goa's healthy bread culture. This creation not only pays homage to our local roots but also aligns with the government's millet initiative, showcasing our commitment to healthier living. Pookie isn't just a cookie; it's a healthier revelation, adding nutritional value to every bite." Pookie is a magical clone of ‘Poie’ (the local Goan bread) and ‘Cookie’. We have used Wheat Bran and Pearl Millet fusing two interesting ingredients thus giving birth to an interesting dish – Pookie.

Ingredients:

• 150 grams of Pearl Millet/Bajra Flour
• 100 grams Whole Wheat Flour
• 50 grams Wheat bran
• 5gms baking powder
• 180 grams of Jaggery Powder
• 200 grams Ghee (at room temperature)

Method:

Prep Time: 5 minutes mins

Cook Time: 15 minutes mins

Total Time: 20 minutes mins

Servings: 45 cookies Calories: 200 kcal

Instructions

• Measure ghee and add powdered jaggery to it

• Start rubbing till it mixes and resembles bread crumbs

• Measure and mix both flours and add them to the ghee-sugar mixture. Make a dough

• Roll the dough and shape cookies

• Bake them at 170°C for 13-15 minutes until the sides start browning. Baking time will be less for the square-shaped cookies

4. Seven Spice Cookies

Recipe by Chef Lloyd Trinidade at Pastry Chef Incharge at Novotel Goa Candolim. It is Christmas season, it’s all about using the right mixes to create something special, and especially in winter the spices go well with cookies, you can have them with tea, coffee, cheese and even wine, and one can see the glue wine is sipped with love by these spiced cookies by the side.

Ingredients:

a) Butter – 160gms

b) Brown Sugar -190gms

c) Vanilla – 1tsp

d) Egg – 1 No

e) Flour – 370gms

f) Grainy cashew nuts – 60gms

g) Baking Powder – 5gms

h) Caraway seed chopped- 3gms

i) Star Anise powder- 1 Pinch

j) Cloves Powder – 1 Pinch

k) Cinnamon Powder – 1pinch

l) Ginger Powder- 1 Pinch

m) Cardamom Powder – 1 Pinch

n) Nutmeg – 1 Pinch

o) Candid Orange Peels – 5gms

p) Candid lemon peels – 5gms

Instructions

• Preheat the oven to 180°C and line a baking tray with parchment paper
• Place butter, sugar, vanilla and egg in the bowl and whisk until creamy
• Add flour, and baking powder to the egg mixture
• Prepare the spice mix by grinding cloves, star anise, cinnamon, ginger, cardamom and nutmeg to a fine powder
• Add chopped peels and cashewnuts to the bowl.
• Add the spice mix to the flour in the bowl. Mix well and knead into a dough.
• Roll about a tablespoon and half of the cookie dough into a ball and flatten slightly against your palm to form a cookie with a flat base and a rounded top.
• Place the cookies 4 cm apart on the baking tray.
• Bake in the preheated oven for 15-18 minutes until golden.
• Remove from the oven and cool completely on wire racks.