These recipes are for meant for sharing, but be a pal and don’t sell ‘em or forget to give me some credit! That would be mean.
classic holiday cookies
These recipes are for meant for sharing, but be a pal and don’t sell ‘em or forget to give me some credit! That would be mean.
cookienotes
oh boy! cookies! In the pantheon of holiday imagery and trad-
tions, cookies and the baking of said cookies is pretty high up on
the list of classic sh*t. So I thought what better set of recipes to
compile than some of the holiday cookies I make every year in my
kitchen at work and at home? I put this little bundle together as a
gift especially for you, my most loyal pastry fiends of the DFK na-
tion. This has been a special year, the birth of devil’s food kitchen,
and it’s only from the support of all of you that I can keep this ball
rolling.
Although I’m giving you a good variety of cookies in flavor and
style, there are some universal truths that can be applied to all of
them. It just so happens I have outlined those truths below...
1. For a crispy cookie, baking on a single sheet pan is just fine, but
for chewier or softer cookies, bake on two sheet pans, one stacked
onto the other (and referred to by yours truly as double-sheeted).
Parchment paper will work for baking your cookies on (no wax
paper!) but a non-stick baking mat will add more heat insulation
and further prevent burnt bottoms.
2. Pretty much every cookie dough ever benefits from a good,
long rest in the cooler (fridge) before baking. All sorts of special
things happen when the dough rests; flavors meld, leavners begin
chemical reactions, starch and protein in flour hydrates, sugar dis-
solves to create a semi-fluid network that helps the cookies bake
better...in short, it’s worth the wait.
3. By far the best tool for portioning cookie dough is a standard
ice cream scoop (the kind with a spring-loaded release assist, not
the single piece of metal variety). They come in a wide range of
sizes, denoted by a number that universally represents the num-
ber of scoops you can expect to get from a quart of ice cream. A
number 50 scoop will generally yield a cookie with about a 2 inch
diameter (depending on the spread of the dough) and a number 16
will give you a 3 1/2 inch cookie. For holiday cookies, my prefer-
ence is a smaller size, so I recommend something around a num-
ber 50.
4. As always, the quality of your cookie is only as good as the
quality of your ingredients. Your friends, family, coworkers, ran-
dom strangers deserve the best from your kitchen! Don’t buy the
imitation flavors if the real stuff is available. Get the good choc-
olate. Go for the nice butter (always unsalted) this time around.
The holidays come but once a year, so now’s not the time to pinch
pennies.
5. The best part of making cookies, especially during the holidays,
is that it’s fun and brightens someone’s day. Do a little planning
and don’t overcommit yourself, because this should never be a
chore or a burden. Bake happy and it will shine through in your
product.
Cheers - Chef Scott
These recipes are for meant for sharing, but be a pal and don’t sell ‘em or forget to give me some credit! That would be mean.
ingredients
280g almond flour
200g sugar
377g butter unsalted
30g egg yolks
16g whole eggs
8g vanilla extract
8g almond extract
490g all-purpose flour
120g powdered sugar
3g baking powder
3g salt
almond thumbprint cookies
method
1. Toast the almond flour at 350F/176C for 6min. and
let it cool, reserving to use later.
2. Combine the butter, egg yolks, whole eggs, vanilla
extract, almond extract, powdered sugar and almond
flour and mix in a stand mixer with a paddle attach-
ment until combined.
3. Combine and sift the all-purpose flour, baking
powder and salt.
4. Add the sifted dry ingredients to the butter
mixture and mix until combined.
5. Portion the dough into 30g pieces and roll them by
hand into spheres.
6. Slightly flatten the cookie dough and create a small
indentation into the center of each portion of dough
using the base of a whisk or your thumb. At this
point you can freeze the dough if you plan to bake the
cookies later.
7. Pipe jam into the center of each indentation before
baking (I like raspberry).
8. Bake: 350F/176C for 10min, rotating the baking pan
halfway through the baking time.
notes
These recipes are for meant for sharing, but be a pal and don’t sell ‘em or forget to give me some credit! That would be mean.
cookie ingredients
300g all-purpose flour
7g baking powder
2g salt
2g nutmeg
1g cinnamon
175g butter unsalted
95g sugar
100g light brown sugar
40g egg yolks
5g vanilla extract
5g dark rum
125g eggnog
frosting ingredients
25g eggnog
5g rum
390g powdered sugar
eggnog cookies
method
1. Bring the butter and egg yolks to room
temperature before starting.
2. Combine and sift the all-purpose flour, baking
powder and spices and reserve them for later.
3. Combine the butter, sugar, light brown sugar, salt,
vanilla extract and rum and mix with a paddle
attachment in a stand mixer until fully combined.
4. Add the egg yolks and mix until emulsified.
5. Add the sifted dry ingredients to the butter
mixture and mix until just combined.
6. Add the eggnog and mix until combined.
7. Chill the dough for a minimum of 1 hour.
8. Portion the dough using an ice cream scoop.
Dust with cinnamon before baking.
9. Bake: 350F/176C for 10 minutes.
10. To make the frosting, combine the ingredients
and whisk them together. Brush the frosting over
the cookies after removing them from the oven.
notes
These recipes are for meant for sharing, but be a pal and don’t sell ‘em or forget to give me some credit! That would be mean.
ingredients
1125g all-purpose flour
22g ginger
40g baking soda
9g cinnamon
12g salt
795g shortening
900g sugar
225g whole eggs
270g molasses
*cinnamon sugar mix
*500g sugar/25g cinnamon
ginger snaps
method
1. Before starting, bring the butter and whole eggs to
room temperature.
2. Combine and sift the all-purpose flour, baking soda,
cinnamon and salt and reserve.
3. Soften the shortening with a paddle attachment
in a stand mixer.
4. Add the sugar to the shortening and mix until well
combined and light, about 3-4min.
5. Add the sifted dry ingredients to the shortening
mixture and mix until just combined.
6. Scoop the dough with a #50 ice cream scoop and
roll them in the cinnamon sugar mixture.
7. Let the scooped dough rest overnight (8-12hours).
8. Flatten the scooped dough slightly before baking.
9. Bake: 350F/176C for 8min.
notes
These recipes are for meant for sharing, but be a pal and don’t sell ‘em or forget to give me some credit! That would be mean.
ingredients
120g molasses
60g honey
50g shortening
55g butter unsalted
100g whole eggs
500g pastry flour
150g sugar
110g brown sugar
3g cardamom
3g nutmeg
2g clove
1g ginger
9g anise
5g cinnamon
3g black pepper
7g baking soda
3g salt
pfeffernussecookies
method
1. Before starting, bring the butter and whole eggs to
room temperature.
2. Combine and sift the pastry flour, baking soda, salt
and spices and reserve.
3. Melt the shortening and combine it with the
butter, molasses and honey in a stand mixer with a
paddle attachment.
4. Add the whole eggs and mix until emulsified.
5. Add the sugar and brown sugar and mix until com-
bined.
6. Add the sifted dry ingredients to the butter
mixture and mix until just combined.
7. Portion the dough with an ice cream scoop and
let them rest, wrapped, overnight (8-12 hours) in the
refrigerator.
8. Bake: 325F/162C for 10min., double sheeted.
notes
These recipes are for meant for sharing, but be a pal and don’t sell ‘em or forget to give me some credit! That would be mean.
ingredients
275g butter unsalted
250g sugar
300g molasses
50g whole eggs
625g pastry flour
7g salt
5g baking powder
5g baking soda
5g cinnamon
5g clove
5g ginger
5g nutmeg
ginger bread
method
1. Before starting, bring the butter and whole eggs to
room temperature.
2. Combine and sift the pastry flour, baking
powder, baking soda and spice. Reserve to use later.
3. Combine the sugar, molasses, whole eggs and
butter and mix in a stand mixer with a paddle attach-
ment until combined.
4. Chill the dough for a minimum of 1 hour up to
overnight (8-12 hours).
5. Roll and cut the dough as desired. For gingerbread
men, I roll the dough to about 1/8”/ 3mm for cripsier
cookies to 1/4”/6mm for chewier cookies.
6. Bake: 375F/190C for 8 min., rotating the pan after
5min.
notes
These recipes are for meant for sharing, but be a pal and don’t sell ‘em or forget to give me some credit! That would be mean.
ingredients
115g butter unsalted
170g sugar
200g whole eggs
315g pastry flour
13g baking powder
2g salt
230g hazelnuts
30g frangelico
12g vanilla extract
15g orange zest
orange hazelnutbiscotti
method
1. Toast the hazelnuts at 350F/176C for 6min.
Let them cool and give them a very rough chop.
2. Combine and sift the pastry flour and baking pow-
der and reserve.
3. Combine the butter, salt, sugar, vanilla extract and
orange zest and cream the mixture in a stand mixer
with a paddle attachment.
4. Add the whole eggs and sifted dry ingredients
alternately in two additions.
5. Add the chopped hazelnuts and Frangelico.
The dough will be wet!
5. Shape the dough onto plastic wrap into a rough log
shape. Rest the dough overnight (8 to 12 hours) in the
cooler.
6. Egg wash the log of dough before baking.
7. Bake: 350F/176C for 18 minutes.
8. Let the biscotti cool completely and cut into 1/2”
slices.
9. Bake: 300F/148C for 6 minutes or until dry.
notes
These recipes are for meant for sharing, but be a pal and don’t sell ‘em or forget to give me some credit! That would be mean.
ingredients
715g cake flour
15g baking powder
7g salt
282g butter unsalted
315g sugar
250g whole eggs
15g vanilla extract
sugarcookies
method
1. Before starting, bring the butter and whole eggs to
room temperature.
2. Combine and sift the cake flour, baking powder and
salt and reserve.
3. Combine the butter and vanilla and cream in a
stand mixer with a paddle attachment.
4. Add the whole eggs in three additions, mixing until
emulsified with each addition.
5. Add the sifted dry ingredients and mix until
just combined.
6. Chill the dough for a minimum of 1 hour up to
overnight (8-12 hours).
7. Roll and cut the dough as desired. For most cookies,
I roll the dough 1/4” /6mm.
8. Bake: 350F/176C for 6min.
notes