6 Easy Holiday Cookies to Make with Kids
Put all their extra energy to good use!
Matt Armendariz
If there’s one thing that I've learned to be true, it’s this: There is nothing that I can do to get my daughter to sit still, use her "inside" voice or stop bouncing off every piece of springy furniture in the house during the holidays. And, truth be told, I’m not sure I would anyhow (Christmas spirit is one-part pure joy and another part generous kindness — and who am I to mess with that?!)
What I do instead is channel all that extra energy into a task from my to-do list: baking holiday cookies. Rather than have her run laps around the living room, I have my daughter dart around the kitchen gathering up ingredients and measuring tools. Instead of boinging off the ottoman and rolling onto the couch, she twirls balls of cookie dough through cinnamon-sugar. And rather than worrying that she’s too loud, I put on a holiday playlist and we sing so loud they can probably hear us at the North Pole.
It’s a win-win: she gets to be a kid and I get some of my holiday baking done.
The key to this strategy? Choosing the right recipes: ones that don’t require a lot of waiting (patience not required!) and ones that are relatively easy (success is guaranteed!) — like these.
Renee Comet, 2016, Television Food Network, G.P. All Rights Reserved
Want to add a touch of holiday magic to your cookies? Break out the red and green sprinkles. These treats look festive with their holiday colors and white chocolate drizzle but they’re easy to make. The cookies come together in a few simple steps (measure, mix, scoop, flatten and bake) and the white chocolate decoration is a cinch — just microwave until smooth and then drizzle over the cookies with a spoon.
Teri Lyn Fisher
You only need four ingredients to make these fudgy cookies (a boxed brownie mix, butter, egg and chocolate chunks) but you can easily dress them up for the holidays by adding a few crushed candy canes to the mix.
Turn on some holiday music and preheat the oven — it’s time to make (and eat!) snickerdoodles. This classic cookie is so easy to make that even the littlest of kiddos can help shape the cookie dough into balls — and roll them in cinnamon-sugar.
Matt Armendariz
These chocolate treats technically aren’t cookies but we’re certain that Santa would approve if he found a few of these left out on Christmas Eve! A welcome addition to any holiday cookie plate, these no-bake goodies come together fast — and with just 6 ingredients.
Tara Donne
Too cold to play in the snow? These sweet, five-ingredient treats are shaped just like snowballs — but they taste a lot more delicious!
Matt Armendariz
This is the perfect recipe for bigger kids who want to learn to bake from scratch. You’ll find that, as long as you keep a watchful eye and handle the cookie sheets going into and out of the oven, older kids will be able to tackle just about everything else. Let them measure and mix, shape and roll the dough and carefully press the unwrapped candies into the warm cookies.
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