Pretty in Pink Chocolate Chippers

These are the prettiest chocolate chip cookies I've ever seen, and they taste amazing thanks to a slight earthiness from shredded raw beets. Guess what - they're gluten free and vegan too!

I can't believe it took me so long to appreciate the sweet, earthy deliciousness of beets. As a kid, they were "old people food" - served cold, out of the can, in a sticky-sweet sauce I couldn't stand. When I started growing my own - mom loved the taste and I loved the variety - I realized how good they were either raw or slow-roasted. No sugar or butter required, just the smooth flavour of caramelized roots or the bright, sweet crunch of raw shreds.

Of course, baking with beets has been something I've done for ages, and since they are inherently sweet they play so well in the dessert arena. Of course, dark chocolate with it's bittersweet tones is a natural pairing for beets, but for the holidays I wanted something that really let the deep magenta colour of the roots shine through. Beantown Baker had a recipe for the cutest pink vegan chocolate chippers that I had stashed away for years, and with the last of this year's beet glut I finally got around to making them!

I switched up the all-purpose flour with my Artisanal Gluten Free Flour blend (and found I needed a little more to get a "dough" consistency) but otherwise kept everything the same. During baking, the house was filled with the lovely sweet, earthy aroma of roasting beets just tinged with melted chocolate and vanilla, and the resulting cookies had a complex, not too sweet flavour that both kids and grownups enjoyed. None of my taste testers could tell it was gluten free, and those who followed that diet were glad to have a special holiday cookie in their gift baskets. Next year I might add in some chocolate chunks as well, because more chocolate is ALWAYS better!

Italian Ring Cookies #CreativeCookieExchange

Smooth, creamy cottage cheese is the base for these crisp-chewy, chocolatey ring cookies. A sprinkle of coarse sugar adds crunch.

I have a stepfamily with deep roots in Italy. Half of the adults were born in a small town in the Apulia region, and their traditions and culture are dominant (occasionally even oppressively so) in their lives here. No time is this more apparent than the holidays, where almost a whole week is dedicated to celebrations. First, there is my stepdad's "first" birthday (he has two... long story about escaping military service in the old country), where he and my mom go out for the day. Then comes Christmas Eve, the day of the Feast of the Seven Fish which is spent cooking, serving and agonizing over hostessing. While it's supposed to be a holy-based event, like Lent and "fish on Fridays" it's really more in ceremony than in substance, but observed nonetheless. Obviously, Christmas follows in all it's commercial wrappings and further feasting, and finally just around New Years we have stepdad's birthday #2. For each of these events we're guaranteed a minimum of 20 guests at the house, most of whom are proudly Italian by birth or marriage, while my sister and I are content with Rudolph and the Grinch.

I know I sound rather cynical about the holiday, and in a sense I am - I'm not a good "people person", especially in groups, and like a lot of other foodies I have little in common with anyone else. I do take solace in the fact that neither my sister nor I eat the "holiday meal", nor do we fit the "expected" mould of "married with kids". The other reason the Christmas holidays are generally not exciting for me is that there is an embargo on my cooking or baking being served at family functions. As a result, I really have nothing to do with the holiday.

While I may not be allowed to serve my treats on the actual buffet, nobody will stop me from giving out my cookies, candy and preserves as gifts. I try to pick a few things that have cultural ties for the Italians' baskets, and along with biscotti this year I chose these cheese-based, chocolatey ring cookies. The original recipe utilized ricotta in the dough, but I had none on hand at the time. What I did have, though, was an even creamier, richer tasting product: Nordica Smooth Cottage Cheese. Almost identical to the "extra fine" ricotta that costs $7 a tub, it was far easier to cream into a smooth dough and added the perfect amount of cakeyness to the inside of the baked cookies while their exterior gained a crisp, burnished shell. The ring shape is easy to hold and dunk in coffee, or stack up on a skewer for a fun presentation.

Everyone loves cookies at the holidays--no matter what holidays you are celebrating. And there are so many wonderful traditional cookies all over the world that we have decided to revisit this theme. Check out December 2014 for other choices from our first time doing it. And get inspired to get into the kitchen!

You can also use us as a great resource for cookie recipes. Be sure to check out our Pinterest Board and our monthly posts (you can find all of them here at The Spiced Life). You will be able to find them the first Tuesday after the 15th of each month! If you are a blogger and want to join in the fun, contact Laura at thespicedlife AT gmail DOT com and she will get you added to our Facebook group, where we discuss our cookies and share links.

If you are looking for inspiration to get in the kitchen and start baking, check out what all of the hosting bloggers have made:

• Winter Spice Soetkoekies from All That's Left Are The Crumbs
• Italian Ring Cookies from What Smells So Good?
• Lebkuchen from 2 Cookin Mamas
• Peppermint Pinwheels from Queen Bee Baker
• Noche Buena Chocolate Sandwich Cookies from Karen's Kitchen Stories
• Italian Vanilla Bean Pizzelles from Cream and Butter Baking
• Alfajores from The Spiced Life

Two Bite Spice Drops

Gently spiced, these soft cookies are butterless and perfect for a morning cuppa.

Spice cookies are the thing at the holidays. Unlike chocolate chippers, which are pretty season-neutral, there is really no better time to indulge in the sweet-spicy goodness of gingerbread or cardamom-laced cookies than the period between November 1 and December 31. Spice cookies are awesome this time of year because their flavour is generally not conducive to overindulging... at least not the cookies I like, which are more about the spice than the saccharine. Besides, spices like cinnamon are supposed to help with blood sugar regulation, so there's no reason you should be craving a second...third...fourth...

That said, it is the holidays and thus the season of overindulgence in everything, so with these cookies I employed cookie strategy #2: smaller cookie size. This way, you can have your two cookies and eat them too, without the guilt of polishing off a batch of shortbreads (wait, am I the only one who does that?). These cookies are also devoid of one of the season's greatest ingredients - butter. Instead, canola oil keeps them soft and moist while keeping it's flavour neutral, allowing the maple, cinnamon and allspice to shine through. The only adornment they need to take it from an "after school special" to "dessert platter worthy" is a dusting of sparkly sanding sugar - I actually used raw sugar for a more "natural" look, but for Christmas parties red and green might be nice too.

Rainbow Biscotti Bites #SundaySupper

Rainbow Biscotti Bites are kissed with hazelnut flavour, loaded with sprinkles and dunked in white chocolate for a festive finish.

I love making biscotti for the holidays because it is a combination of three things I look for in a cookie: its easy, it's variable, and it can be made well ahead of time without losing quality. Usually I go for the long, slim fingers of twice baked cookie, but when I found these rainbow cubes of crunchy biscotti dunked in luscious white chocolate on the Food Network site (courtesy of Izy Hossack) I knew they would be a hit in the Christmas gift baskets.

The original recipe calls for Amaretto and almond extract. I am personally not a fan of almond flavour (although I do like raw almonds on their own), but the notion of adding nuttiness to the cookies in some way appealed. I had a bottle of Frangelico and some hazelnut extract standing by, as well as naturally nutty tasting spelt flour, and the combination worked admirably! The only thing I will say about these cookies is that they do bake up quite hard and crunchy due to just egg whites in the dough, so they are best dunked - say into a cup of cocoa.

This week the #SundaySupper team is organizing a cookie exchange! Since I've been up to my eyeballs in holiday bakes these past few weeks, I couldn't wait to participate! See all the other treats below:

Traditional and Tasty Cookies to Share

• Candied Cranberry Walnut Oatmeal Cookies by Soulfully Made
• Cherry Chocolate Pistachio Cookies by Cindy’s Recipes and Writings
• Chewy Pumpkin Sugar Cookies by Pies and Plots
• Coconut-Key Lime Thumbprint Cookies by Gourmet Everyday
• Cranberry Pistachio Shortbread Cookies by Jersey Girl Cooks
• Flourless Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies by Our Good Life
• German Ginger Cookies (Ingwerplätchen) by Caroline’s Cooking
• Hot Cocoa Cookies by That Skinny Chick Can Bake
• Italian Rainbow Cookies by April Golightly
• Orange Cardamom Cookies by Sunday Supper Movement
• Peppermint Pinwheel Cookies by Food Lust People Love
• Pumpkin Molasses Cookies by Fantastical Sharing of Recipes
• Spiced Persimmon Cookies with Figs by The Wimpy Vegetarian
• Toffee Cookies by Hezzi-D’s Books and Cooks

 

Fun and Festive Cookie Alternatives

• Best Ever No Bake Eggnog Truffles by Bites of Wellness
• Cappuccino Crinkles by A Little Fish in the Kitchen
• Chocolate Coated Krispy Peanut Butter Balls by Positively Stacey
• Cranberry Date Bars by Palatable Pastime
• Healthy Magic Cookie Bars by Simple and Savory
• Peppermint Pizzelle by Eat, Drink & Be Tracy
• Rainbow Biscotti Cubes by What Smells So Good?

The Sunday Supper Movement is committed to bringing our readers delicious recipes that encourage them to gather and eat together around the family table. Search for your favorite ingredients on our Sunday Supper website. Also check out the Sunday Supper Pinterest boards for plenty more ideas and inspiration.

"A Bit Better For You" Oatmeal Cookies

These oatmeal cookies are "a bit better for you" - low fat and full of fruity flavour from homemade fruit butter!

While the break rooms in offices everywhere are teeming with sugary goodies this time of year (ours sure is), sometimes it's nice to just have a bit of a break from it all. I'm not talking giving up treats cold-turkey, mind you - it is the season of sugar and spice after all, but why not opt for a sweet, chewy, moreish cookie that doesn't weigh you down even while you're enjoying the indulgence?

I'll be the first to admit, these cookies are not lookers. Think of them as the hobbits of the cookie world - a little lumpy, brown and rustic. I promise you though, if you can get past the rather imperfect appearance and have a bite, you'll be rewarded with all the best parts of Christmas baking in a mouthful. Cinnamon and nutmeg are the punchy spices in the batter, while hints of sweetness from the fruit butter and raisins as well as butterscotchy Muscovado sugar and crunchy pumpkin seeds prevent things from getting too hot. Egg free mayonnaise replaces the eggs to keep things vegan, and everything is bound together with oats and half-whole grain flour. It sounds a little strange - and I agree, the description doesn't do the cookie justice. But since the original recipe came from esteemed baker Daphna Rabinovitch, I'm not going to question. I'd rather taste, anyways.

One thing I will emphasize about this, and any other oatmeal-containing cookie you may happen to make: resting the batter, even for an hour at room temperature, will make a better, more even textured cookie. It softens the oats just enough so they don't turn into glasslike shards with the heat of the oven, and the cookie stays together better because the starches and proteins in oats have a chance to mingle and bind. Many bakers will say chilling overnight is best, but I've learned through years of teaching Home Ec that 60 minutes works pretty darn well when you have a high-hydration batter like this.

Don't worry though - I haven't bailed on the Christmas cookie train completely. Stay tuned - I'm going to try and post as many of the recipes I baked this year as I can before Christmas!