i'd rather be baking

I couldn’t be much more excited about how close we’re getting to Christmas. In a week and a half my sweet husband and I will be on a plane, headed home to spend some time with our parents, sisters, and any and all extended family we can round up. I fully anticipate being stuffed, spoiled, and hugged within an inch of our lives, and I can’t wait. It’s going to be a lovely week.

And now, because I’ve been listening to way too much Taylor Swift, because I’m in love with my peppermint mocha creamer and therefore drinking a lot of coffee, and because I’m dangerously close to being done with my Christmas shopping, I’m stepping out of my comfort zone. Between now and the big day, I’ll be sharing twelve gift-ready recipes, starting today! I know I’m getting a slow start at this, but you aren’t really done with your holiday baking yet, are you? We can all always use one more good recipe.

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Holiday cookie baking is upon us! I love this time of year and I’d be lying if I said that the sweets weren’t part of it. This is the one time of year when piles of cookies and candies are expected and completely understood, and I’m quite happy to take advantage of it.

This recipe is one of my favorites any time of year, but it seems especially appropriate at Christmas. I originally posted it last year but wanted to update the photos as well as to share it with new readers! This is a fabulous little cookie that continues to be one of our favorites. It’s simple and unassuming but packs a wonderful punch of holiday spice.

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For weeks I’ve been reading about dough balls. I couldn’t go to the Foodbuzz Festival due to a friend’s wedding (why do all my friends get married the same weekends as blog conferences?!), but oh, I read all about it and about Annie the Baker‘s famed dough balls. Then I read along as one after another of my favorite food bloggers began recreating them, mostly following Mama Pea‘s lead. And finally, once Thanksgiving was over and I didn’t need to worry about pie or quinoa or vegan green bean casserole, I set about making some dough balls. And I failed.

I think my failure was a combination of altitude and not chilling the dough quite long enough, because as you can see, my dough balls are more like, well, cookies. In fact they are cookies. But I really don’t care, mostly because they are quite possibly the most delicious cookies I’ve ever made. And let me just say, I’ve made a lot of cookies.

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I’ve been a biscotti-maker for awhile now. I don’t think there is any simpler and yet more awe-inspiring cookie on the planet. Biscotti is deceptively simple to make, and yet somehow, its recipients always seem to be amazed that “really, you made that yourself?” Yes, yes I did. And you wouldn’t believe how easy it is.

The secret to that crispness that lends itself so well to coffee-dunking is twice-baking (it’s not just for potatoes). The basic idea is to bake the dough in a long loaf, let cool slightly, slice on the diagonal, and bake again. And you’ll be happy to know that neither baking time is very long. I know, you have a life. Not to worry.

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About two weeks ago, I dragged a seriously unattractive version of myself to the grocery store on a Saturday night, in search of ginger ale and crackers for dinner thanks to a mild case of food poisoning. As I walked through the produce section those cute little pie pumpkins caught my eye and I thought I’d check the baking aisle for pumpkin puree. Low and behold, there it was. I’ll be honest; I bought five cans.

And then this weekend, we saw some at one of those super-nice Walmarts out in the suburbs, and Ryan instantly grabbed two more. What can I say, we now have that depression mentality when it comes to pumpkin. Or you could call it hoarding. I don’t really care.

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