Countdown to Christmas!
Christmas is just days away! I love the buildup to the holidays just as much as the actual day with all of the festivities, the endless baking, and the coziness of all the twinkly lights and decorations. If only we would get some snow here in the Twin Cities…oh well!
It’s been a busy week as I try to get through my holiday baking bucket list. It’s been tough getting there, but I am thankful to have the kids both off/home from school now so I have extra “elves” to help me in the kitchen which is really what I cherish most about this time of year. To me, there’s nothing better than having the kids home and keeping our Christmas traditions alive–many of which revolve around food.
Two activities at the top of my list are making lefse and decorating sugar cookies! I hope you will read my past posts (linked below) and be inspired to spend time in the kitchen this season with your family and friends.
Lefse Love
I grew up eating lefse but never had the opportunity to make it until I married into a family with a bonafide “lefse lady.” I am so grateful to my mother-in-law Mary Lou for sharing her love of lefse as well as her expertise and lefse-making tools with me. If you have ever wanted to learn to make lefse or want to read more about our family’s lefse tradition, please read this post I shared a few years ago which includes the recipe I use to this day!
Sugar Cookie Cut-Outs
Decorating sugar cookies is always at the top of our family’s holiday checklist. It’s one of my favorite traditions from my childhood, sitting around the dining room table with my brothers and the finger-licking access to all the colored frostings and sprinkles. My mom, who always makes Christmas so special for our family, was and still is a passionate baker who makes so many treats for the holidays. But I loved that she’d call in the troops (us kids) to do the heavy lifting of decorating the sugar cookies! I continue this tradition today, leaving the decorating to my kids who don’t seem to mind one bit. You can get the recipe we use for sugar cookie cut-outs and glaze here.
Do you have holiday treats you make together with your loved ones at this time of year? I would love to hear about your holiday traditions!
In closing, here are a few of my other favorite recipes that we make each year in case you are looking for some festive treats to add to your own holiday table:
- Chocolate-Covered Cherry Bars; also in cookie twist I call Cherry on Top Chocolate Shortbread Cookies
- French Creme Chocolate Mint Bars
- Nut Goodie Bars
- Russian Tea Cakes (aka Snowballs aka Mexican Wedding Cakes)
- My mom’s famous Christmas Jell-O!
Wishing you a holiday season that is merry and bright!