*Start early. Christmas has a way of sneaking up. Don't wait for the holiday spirit to motivate you to bake. By then, you'll have plenty of other things to do and may not have the time.
*Be realistic about what you can do. Although it might be nice to make three dozen types of Christmas cookies of all shapes, sizes and flavors, not many people have the time to do this. Come up with a cookie-making plan you can live with.
*Adopt a cookie-making strategy. Making cookies will be much easier if you do it in steps. When possible, make the cookie dough one night and chill or freeze it. When convenient, bake the chilled dough. (Bake in portions if it is more convenient.) Store in a tightly sealed container or freeze until it is convenient for you to decorate them.
*Make recipes do double duty. Start with a basic cookie dough recipe, such as that given in our Festive Spirals recipe and substitute different flavors such as almond or rum for the peppermint. Add variety to your cookies by tinting one portion of the batter a different color. Add nuts to one batch, raisins or candied fruit to another. Vary the shape of the basic dough by rolling it in a single spiral or other shapes.
*Make it enjoyable. Have fun and make cookies at the same time by holding a cookie bee. Invite a few other cooks - or another family - to a cookie-making party. If your children are too young to get involved with baking cookies, let them try their hand at decorating. Here's a favorite recipe to try:
Moravian Spice Cookies
1 cup dark molasses
1/3 cup brown sugar
4 cups sifted flour
1 teaspoon salt
¾ teaspoon baking soda
¾ teaspoon ground cloves
1 teaspoon ground ginger
¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
½ teaspoon ground allspice
confectioners' sugar frosting
In a large saucepan, melt margarine and molasses. Remove from heat, add sugar and stir to mix.
In a medium-sized bowl or on a sheet of wax paper, sift together remaining ingredients through allspice and mix into molasses mixture.
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