When we think of festive season, wreaths, baubles and pine-cones come to mind. So do carols, and Christmas movies. Mostly, we think of Christmas baking. This year, we made cranberry and mixed spice cookies that are buttery and taste just like Christmas. They are easy to prepare with our one-bowl recipe and make for a fun family baking activity. The white chocolate drizzle on top is entirely optional, but holiday baking deserves a little extra decadence, don’t you think?
Our cranberry and mixed spice cookies were fit to hang onto our Christmas tree as part of the decor. We turned them into edible ornaments by poking a hole in the cookies with a skewer when they were still warm. You could also use a piping nozzle tip to cut a tiny circle from the the cookie prior to baking.
For a variation on these cookies, our orange, pistachio and cardamom cookie dough work wonderfully. Cut them using festive cookie cutters and decorate as per this recipe. Both cookies are winners in our book!
Cranberry and Mixed Spice cookies
Ingredients
For the cookie
- 200 g flour (cake or all purpose), sifted
- 110 g butter
- 60 g sugar
- 30 g dried cranberries, chopped
- 2 tbsp honey
- 1 tsp mixed spice
- 1/2 tsp ground ginger
For the chocolate drizzle
- 25 g white chocolate
Instructions
For the cookie
- Place the softened butter and sugar in a bowl. Whisk until well combined and slightly fluffy.
- Add in the rest of the cookie ingredients- sifted flour, honey, mixed spice, ground ginger and chopped cranberries.
- Mix and gather the cookie dough into a ball. Flatten the ball into a disc and place in cling wrap in the fridge for 30 minutes.
- Preheat oven to 175°C (fan off).
- Roll out the disc between 2 pieces of wax/baking paper until it is 5-6 mm thick. Cut out festive shapes using cookie cutters of your choice.
- Place cut shapes on a baking tray lined with a silicone baking mat (use baking paper if you don't have a mat) and bake for 12-14 minutes or until golden. Remove from the oven and allow to cool on a rack.
For the chocolate drizzle
- Melt the white chocolate in the microwave or on a water bath.
- Using a skewer, or piping bag, drizzle on the melted chocolate over the cookies. If using a skewer, dip the skewer into the melted chocolate before drizzling over the cookies.