A Christmas Cookie Tradition with a Twist

LOUISVILLE, Ky. — Nov. 9, 2011 — (NYSE:GE) — In these times of prepared foods and mini-marts, it’s understandable that many folks forego baking and decorating Christmas cookies and settle for store-bought instead. It’s the patient home cook who bakes dozens of cookies, one sheet at a time, in a traditional radiant heat oven. And really, how many Santas, stars and trees can you slather with icing and spot with sprinkles before your eyes glaze over?

 

Rather than let the cookie cutters gather dust in the pantry this holiday season, try holding a Christmas cookie decorating contest. By injecting a little friendly competition into your cookie decorating process, you can create an activity that brings your entire family together or adds some merriment to your cookie party. And with advances in cooking technology — such as convection ovens — the home cook can bake multiple sheets of cookies, all at the same time, with the confidence that each cookie will be come out of the oven evenly browned.

With a little imagination — and the speed and performance of a convection oven — you can turn decorating Christmas cookies into a friendly competition for cookie parties or into an activity the entire family can enjoy.

Rules:
The rules for our Christmas cookie decorating contest are simple and forgiving:

You’ll need a recipe. We’ve provided one of our favorites below, but a simple Internet search will yield a variety of sugar cookie recipes from which to choose.

There’s really no argument that convection cooking is the way to bake cookies. A convection oven uses a fan to circulate heated air throughout the oven, providing even, consistent heat over multiple racks. Because you can fill up your oven with multiple baking sheets, you’re able to bake more cookies at once, saving you time.

 

“Here in our test kitchen, we have baked tens of thousands of cookies,” said Brigid Blocker, home economist and test kitchen manager for GE Appliances. “While all of our GE ovens bake really well, convection is the best option for multi-rack baking.”

 

Not all convection ovens are alike. Many have a fan that circulates air in just one direction. GE’s PreciseAir™ convection system incorporates a third high-power heating element around the convection fan. During the cooking process, the fan periodically reverses direction, changing the air flow through the oven. The result is more consistent heat over multiple baking racks.

 

The only design rule is that the finished, decorated cookie should look nothing like its intended shape. Some competitors may have a difficult time thinking outside the cookie cutter — and that’s okay. The whole point of the competition is to breathe new life into a favorite tradition.

 

If you’re really stuck for inspiration, here are a few ideas to help get the creative juices flowing:

 

Snowman                                            Reindeer

Star                                                     Fox

Stocking                                              Bunny

Christmas tree                                    Fish

 

How do you determine who wins? It’s simple: everyone does. Make up categories and award “prizes” — real or bragging rights — for best use of the color blue. Best moose. Best race car with two wheels. As long as everyone who participates has a good time, then your competition is a success. You’ll also have a tin filled with unique edible masterpieces to bring to cookie parties or share with co-workers, guests and family throughout the Christmas season.

The following recipe yields about 5 dozen 2 ½” thin crispy cookies.

 

1. Mix together thoroughly:

½ cup soft shortening

¾ cup sugar

1 egg

2. Stir in:

1 tbsp. milk or cream

1 tsp. flavoring (vanilla or lemon)

3. Sift together and stir in:

1 ¼ cups sifted flour

¼ tsp. baking powder

¼ tsp. salt

4. Chill dough for several hours.

5. Roll very thin (1/16”) on a floured surface. Have extra flour on hand to add to the dough if it is sticky.

6. Cut into desired shapes.

7. Place on lightly greased cookie sheet.

8. Bake in 425-degree oven for 5 to 7 minutes or lightly browned.

 

We like this icing recipe from allrecipes.com:

 

1 cup confectioners' sugar

2 tsp. milk

2 tsp. light corn syrup

1/4 tsp. almond extract

Assorted food coloring

 

1.  In a small bowl, stir together confectioners' sugar and milk until smooth. Beat in corn syrup and almond extract until icing is smooth and glossy. If icing is too thick, add more corn syrup.

2.  Divide into separate bowls, and add food colorings to each to desired intensity. Dip cookies, or paint them with a brush.

 

 

1 cup butter, softened

½ cup sugar

2 cups sifted flour

1 tsp. vanilla

1 tbsp. water

2 cups pecans, finely ground

 

Cream butter and sugar until light.  Add remaining ingredients, and mix well.  Chill dough until firm.

 

Preheat oven to 325°. Shape dough into ¾” balls.  Bake on ungreased cookie sheet for 20-23 minutes, or until lightly browned.  Roll warm baked cookies in granulated sugar.  After cookies have cooled completely, store in airtight container.

 

Makes 6 – 8 dozen cookies.

About GE Appliances & Lighting
GE Appliances & Lighting spans the globe as an industry leader in major appliances, lighting, systems and services for commercial, industrial and residential use. Technology innovation and the company's ecomagination (SM) initiative enable GE Appliances & Lighting to aggressively bring to market products and solutions that help customers meet pressing environmental challenges. General Electric (NYSE: GE), imagination at work, sells products under the Monogram®, Profile™, Café™, GE®, Hotpoint®, Reveal® and Energy Smart® consumer brands, and Tetra®, Vio™ and Immersion® commercial brands. For more information, consumers may visit www.ge.com.