This week it was time to mail our packages for the second round of Secret Baker. The theme for this round was Christmas cookies and I had plenty of resources in which to search for recipes. Have I mentioned my obsession with holiday baking magazines this year? It seems that every time I head to the store the selection grows and I find yet another magazine I simply must have π I don’t remember feeling the need to buy so many magazines last year so hopefully this problem will resolve itself before next year!
I found this recipe for candy cane cookies in Martha Stewart’s Holiday Sweets magazine. They’re essentially sugar cookies (with either a little almond or peppermint extract for flavoring) and I just thought they were adorable and so appropriate for the season. The recipe only calls for a few ingredients but it is a bit time consuming, between shaping the cookies and the multiple chill times required for the dough. I even roped Shane into helping me shape the cookies so I could get it done faster.
When it comes to tinting the dough, be patient – it will take time and a fair amount of kneading to get the color worked in, but you will be rewarded. I used the no taste red coloring from Wilton and needed a relatively small amount to achieve the pinkish color in my cookies. The dough is fairly easy to work with, though I did have more trouble with the tinted dough than the untinted. While forming the candy canes, the untinted dough had to be repaired several times. If you look closely at the pictures, you can see cracks that formed in the untinted dough as it baked – mainly at the spots where I’d repaired it. Next time I might try kneading the untinted dough just a bit as the kneaded tinted dough gave me no trouble at all. That said, once the cookies cooled completely they were solid and sturdy so I’m not too worried about it.
The cookies are tasty – a very good sugar cookie. I used almond extract in mine so they had just a hint of almond flavor, which is my favorite kind of sugar cookie. The recipe only makes 6 candy canes, but they are quite large. I hope my Secret Baker recipient enjoys these treats. I think they’d be perfect for your holidays gatherings, especially for the kids who will enjoy the fun candy cane shapes!
Candy Cane Cookies
from Martha Stewart Holiday Sweets
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
1 cup sifted confectioners’ sugar
1 large egg
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon almond or peppermint extract
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting work surface
red food coloring, preferably gel-paste
coarse sanding sugar, for decorating
In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream butter and confectioners’ sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in the egg, both extracts and salt. With the mixer on low speed, add the flour and beat until combined.
Divide the dough in half and knead the red food coloring into one half until you reach your desired color. Form both halves of dough into disks, and wrap in plastic. Chill at least 20 minutes, or overnight. The dough can also be frozen for up to 1 month.
Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper. Divide the untinted dough into 6 pieces. On a lightly floured surface, shape each piece into a 12-inch log. Repeat with the tinted dough. Chill the logs for 10 minutes, until firm but pliable. Twist one tinted and one untinted piece together and bend at one end to form a cane. Repeat with all of the logs until you have 6 candy canes. Arrange the candy canes 2 inches apart on the prepared baking sheets. Chill at least 1 hour, or up to overnight, covered in plastic.
Preheat oven to 325 F. Bake, rotating the sheets halfway through, until the cookies are firm but not taking on any color, about 2o-24 minutes. Transfer the baking sheets to wire racks and let the cookies cool completely.
To Decorate: Brush the untinted stripes of candy cane with water. Sprinkle with sanding sugar; tap off excess. Cookies can be stored for up to 1 week at room temperature in an airtight container.
So cute Tracey! I don’t have the skill or patience to make such delicate cookies…so I’ll just enjoy yours! π Great job – mary
Too cute!! There is a lucky baker other there.
I saw these in that Martha Stewart magazine too. You did such a great job – they look just like hers! I was contemplating making them, but I usually make mini goodies and it seems like they would turn out huge. Maybe I’ll play around with a mini version – though I’m sure that’s tacking on a lot more time!
oh my parents used to make these when i was a kid π i loved them! so festive!
oh my parents used to make these when i was a kid π i loved them! so festive!
I love your candy cane cookies! And at least you’re using the magazines –
I’m sure I bought that baking issue too; it’s probably buried under the other Dec magazines that I impulsively bought. I’m blaming you, btw, for this obsession this year!
These are so cute! I made some like this last year. I would love some with peppermint extract mixed in.
We should start a support group for people who can’t stop buying holiday baking magazineS!!!
Oh! These candy cane sugar cookies are so cute…such a patience to make them π
Thumbs up on this one!
Joyce
What cute cookies! So festive! My secret baker cookies weren’t nearly so holidayish…
oh wow! these are so incredibly cute! =)
Hey, i can mail you some of those chips, if you’d like! I totally don’t mind. Email me about it, if you’d like me to do so! jlong10@gmail.com
Very cool. :o)
I made something similar with my kids a couple years ago, they loved them!! Yours look great!
Those look really cute, I’ve been looking for some Christmassy biscuits and these definitely work!
The cookies are so cute! I like the colors! Great job! I would encourage my kids to help me make some for Christmas!
So cute! I’m not good at packing, so my secret pal is getting some sturdier cookies/bars.
So cute! At least you’re using the magazines; I bought the same MS one and have made nothing from it.
The cookies are so fun! Great job!
These remind me of the cookies my grandmother used to make. They are so pretty! I’ll have to make some this year… I’m sure my dad will appreciate them since she passed away last year.
These are too cute, Tracey! I’ve been very tempted by the holiday baking mags too but know I don’t have time to use them.
I have that magazine, too, but haven’t made anything from it yet. There are lots of yummy things in there, but I haven’t had time with all of my other cookie baking. Maybe next week.
Tracey – these cookies are just spectacular… truly! They look straight off the pages of the magazine. You can see the attention to detail is all there… beautiful!
These look so pretty!
My mom has been making these cookies for as long as I can remember. They came from the Gold Medal 100th anniversary cookbook. That cookbook was the most coveted book in our home, we all said we wanted it. Thankfully my mom found copies for all of us (I must say it was the best birthday present ever! -a used, beat up copy of that book) anyway, we always sprinkle ours with crushed candy cane. I actually just made my first batch of the season on Sunday. Christmas time is finally here!