Friday, December 24, 2010

Staying Up for Santa

So, Christmas Eve, eh? I don't know how many of you fall into the same trap I did this year, when it comes down to (literally) the eleventh hour and all of a sudden - gasp - you realize that you haven't wrapped a carefully - hidden gift you bought ages ago, or that you need to be at a potluck in four hours and you, planning to be the source of the desserts, discover that some cookie-monsters have eaten all the shortbreads on the platter!
 
Thankfully, cookies are fast, and if you get those sneaky elves to help you out with the little bits and pieces, you can boast not only a beautiful plate of sweets but a few leftovers to keep for Santa. Considering that he has the whole world to deal with in one night (can we say overbooked?) he'll need a bit of a boost!

Stay - Awake - For - Santa Cookies
Makes 20
1/4 cup sugar
1/3 cup brown sugar
5 tbsp canola oil
1 tbsp Kahlua
1/4 cup brewed cold coffee
1 1/4 cups flour
1 cup whole wheat flour
1/4 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp baking soda
Pinch salt
3 tbsp fine-grind coffee (not instant)
1/3 cup chocolate sprinkles
1/3 cup toffee bits
  1. Preheat oven to 350F, line baking sheets with parchment or silicone.
  2. In a bowl, combine sugars, oil, Kahlua and brewed coffee, beating well.
  3. Add flours, baking powder, baking soda, salt and ground coffee, mixing well.
  4. Fold in chocolate sprinkles and toffee bits.
  5. Drop 1 1/2" apart on sheets and flatten slightly.
  6. Bake for 12-13 minutes. Cool completely on the sheets.
Amount Per Serving
Calories: 138.7
Total Fat: 5.5 g
Cholesterol: 2.7 mg
Sodium: 22.5 mg
Total Carbs: 21.6 g
Dietary Fiber: 1.1 g
Protein: 2.0 g

And of course, if coffee and chocolate just aren't your thing (wait... who is that?), or your guests are sick of the stuff after months of truffles and mid-shopping espressos, why not bust out the green? Sure, green tea has caffeine, and these are sugar cookies, but these are laced with coconut too, and aren't anything like what you'd pick up at the grocery!

Green Tea and Coconut Sugar Spritz
Makes 28
1/3 cup sugar
2 tbsp whole green tea leaves
½ cup shortening
¼ cup water
1 tbsp vanilla
½ tsp coconut extract
1 ¼ cups flour
1/3 cup coconut flour
1 tbsp cornstarch
½ tsp baking powder
¼ tsp salt
green decorating sugar, optional
  1. In a coffee grinder or small food processor, combine sugar and green tea until tea is finely ground.
  2. In a large bowl, cream shortening and green tea sugar mixture until fluffy.
  3. Add water, vanilla and coconut extract, beat well.
  4. Mix in flours, cornstarch, baking powder and salt until well blended.
  5. Preheat oven to 375F, line cookie sheets with parchment or SilPat.
  6. Scrape batter into a spritz gun or piping bag fitted with a large star tip and deposit cookies on the prepared sheets.
  7. Sprinkle with sugar if desired.
  8. Bake 8-9 minutes. Cool on sheets 5 minutes, then move to a cooling rack.
Amount Per Serving
Calories: 68.9
Total Fat: 3.7 g
Cholesterol: 0.0 mg
Sodium: 0.2 mg
Total Carbs: 8.0 g
Dietary Fiber: 0.7 g
Protein: 0.8 g

2 comments :

  1. I love those cookies, either variety would work for me! The flavor the texture, just incredible!!
    Have a Very Merry Christmas!
    Dennis

    ReplyDelete
  2. Lol, how about when you realize you didn't wrap those hidden gifts in the middle of unwrapping. I love both cookies, and maybe the coffee and Kahlua might have jogged my brain with those last minute to-do's. Lovely post!

    ReplyDelete

Thanks for the feedback!