This holiday season I bring you big gifts in small packages. Three small ornaments of holiday goodness, and the best part is they are easy to make, easy to eat utilizing similar ingredients to many and awesome to share with friends and family. I have great memories growing up making holiday cookies and into my adulthood, in Alaska many of those times were at the local Moose Lodge kitchen baking with amazing ladies, swapping tales, wine and laughter like nobody’s business. This year’s recipes are dedicated to those ladies (you know who you are!!) So gather around, invite some friends over, pick a few ingredients, have a few cocktails and have an amazing cookie making session. Divide and celebrate at the end, it’s so much better than just a cookie exchange, it’s the process that bonds us and creates lasting friendships, which in Alaska are so special in creating a sense of community and family often times away from home. From my festive table to yours,
Enjoy

Rum Balls

  • 2 ½ cup crushed vanilla wafers
  • 2 tbls coca powder
  • 1 ¼ powdered sugar
  • ½ cup dark spiced rum (I love Kraken, Captains Black or Appletons anything you’d like to drink straight)
  • 1 cup pecans crushed
  • 2 tbls vanilla simple syrup (or Kahlua)

Sift the cocoa with 1 cup sugar. Stir in the spiced rum mixed with the syrup.
Add crushed vanilla wafers and nuts. Mix thoroughly.
Shape mixture into walnut sizes balls and dredge with remaining sugar or leave them plain.
Store in a tin.
Makes 2 dozen, just try not to eat a ¼ of them, I dare you!

  • Coconut Snowballs
  • 1 3/4 cups unsweetened shredded coconut ( I like Bob’s Red Mill)
  • 3 tsp coconut oil
  • 3 tbls maple syrup
  • 2 tbls unsweetened coconut milk
  • 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
  • 1/8 tsp smoked salt (Sitka Saltworks)
  • Organic dark chocolate as needed

Place 1 cup shredded coconut and 3 tsp coconut oil into the bowl of a food processor.  Process on high speed, scraping down the sides every once in a while, until it reaches a butter consistency.
Add the maple syrup, coconut milk, vanilla extract, and salt and process on high speed until all of the ingredients have combined.
Add 3/4 cup of additional shredded coconut and process on high speed until all of the ingredients have combined and formed a batter.
Shape the coconut mixture into 1” balls and coat with the additional shredded coconut. Refrigerate for at last an hour or up to a week.
Bring to room temperature before serving.

Chocolate version of Coconut Snowballs
If you’d like to make these extra special, omit the final coating of shredded coconut in from above. Allow the shaped coconut balls to firm up in the refrigerator, preferably overnight.
Once the coconut balls have firmed up, melt the dark chocolate in a small saucepan over medium heat. This should only take a minute or two.
Once the chocolate is melted, dip the coconut balls into the melted chocolate and sprinkle them with the shredded coconut. Allow the chocolate to harden by placing the coconut balls back into the refrigerator for 5-10 minutes.

Italian Christmas Cookies

  • 1/2 cup butter, softened
  • 3/4 cup organic sugar
  • 4 eggs (room temperature)
  • 2 tsp vanilla extract
  • 3 cups all-purpose flour
  • 3 tsp baking powder (non-aluminum)

Glaze:

  • 3-3/4 cups confectioners’ (powdered) sugar
  • 1/2 cup warm milk
  • 2 tsp vanilla extract
  • Nonpareils (sprinkles) for decorating

Using a heavy-duty mixer, beat your eggs for about 5 minutes, until they are light and foamy, and then set them aside. Next, combine the flour, sugar, and baking powder on low speed. Gradually beat in your butter and vanilla extract. Mix until your flour mixture resembles find crumbs. Next, gradually add your eggs.
Roll your dough into 1/2 inch balls. (These little guys will expand during baking!) Your dough will be sticky, but that is what keeps the cookies from cracking during baking.
Bake your cookies at 350 degrees, for about 10-12 minutes.
Meanwhile, in a small bowl, combine the powdered sugar, milk, and vanilla extract until smooth. As soon as cookies are removed from the oven, you want to place your cookies on a cooling rack.
Now, the fun part of baking: the decorating! While the cookies are still on the cooling rack, use a spoon to pour the glaze over the cookie.
Next, before the glaze hardens, apply your sprinkles (the tiny multi-color nonpareils which now you can find organic!!).