My Christmas Cookie Tradition Story
RWC tutor Gricelda Cerpa shares a baking tradition she has with her family.
The Christmas cookie-making tradition started about seven years ago when my kids were young. I decided to start doing this because, growing up in a low-income family, we did not have the money to buy all the ingredients, and I have a cookie addiction! I have a friend who also made cookies each year for her family, and it sounded like a great idea at the time. So, I began to buy all the stuff to make these cookies. I am not much of a baker, so I searched for recipes on Pinterest and pinned a few ideas. For my first time making cookies, I got adventurous and made about eight cookies. The list was: Crinkle cookies, snickerdoodle, chocolate chip cookies, peanut butter blossoms, sugar cookies, thumbprint cookies, macaroons, and... Oh, it was seven, not eight different cookies! Anyhow, it was a journey, and let me say that it took me all day and some part of the night to finish all these cookies.
How It All Began
My kitchen looked like a war zone; flour, chocolate, and batter were everywhere. Pieces of batter were spread all over the floor and my sock. I had cuts and burns on my fingers, and my shirt was filthy. I was tired and grumpy and said, “I’m never making these cookies again!”. Years later, here we are, making them each year, but a shorter list of cookies this time. My brother always asks me two months in advance if I am making Christmas cookies, to which I respond, “Of course!” but inside, I dread the long day and night of baking.
Throughout the years, I have shortened the list to some of my favorites, and of course, chocolate chip cookies are a no-brainer. You cannot leave out the classics! Next is my second favorite, and my son's, the Crinkle cookies. This cookie is the simplest to make; you only need a box of brownie mix and powdered sugar, and you have your cookie. The third is peanut butter blossoms. And lastly are Snickerdoodle cookies. These four types of cookies take up my day and some part of the night, but the result is seeing happy faces when I bring them to our Christmas party. Although the struggle is accurate, the happy faces make it all worth it! I am not a baker, but on Christmas eve, I am.