Baking Christmas cookies is a wonderful holiday tradition for a lot of families! Whether you love baking with grandchildren, hosting an adult Christmas cookie-baking extravaganza, or you have another group you love mixing up treats with, cookies can be a pivotal part of the holiday season.
And this doesn’t have to go away simply because you’re in an RV! We’ll show you how to continue this tradition, and share a few tasty recipes as well.
Baking Christmas Cookies
Just because you’re not in a sticks-and-bricks house doesn’t mean you can’t participate in many of the same holiday traditions that everyone else does! Baking Christmas cookies is a fun family activity and a great way to get in the festive spirit if you’re traveling during the holidays.
Most RVs come equipped with ovens – some of them pretty fancy! – making your baking extravaganza as easy as pie. Or, well, cookies. But even if you don’t have an oven, don’t worry. We’ve included some easy, no-bake recipes too, so everyone can get in on the fun.
Easy Christmas Cookies
Looking for some easy and fun Christmas treats? Hankering for some award-winning, old-fashioned holiday classics? Here are our favorite Christmas cookie recipes to whip up this winter.
1. Gingerbread Men (and lots of other fun shapes)
Gingerbread is a quintessential holiday treat. And it’s extra fun when you experiment with creative shapes from a collection of Christmas cookie cutters.
Follow this highly-rated recipe over at The Taste of Home.
2. Holiday Thumbprint Cookies
Thumbprints are some of the most traditional Christmas cookies out there, and they’re simple to make.
This great recipe from Kristyn over at Lil’ Luna will have you noshing on these festive treats in twenty minutes flat thanks to pre-made dough and a simple sugar frosting — though she also includes optional recipes to make everything from scratch!
3. No-Bake Christmas Wreath Cookies
No oven? No problem. These Christmas classics require little more than marshmallows, breakfast cereal, and a tiny bit of patience — and they’re as adorable as they are tasty!
Get the full recipe at bettycrocker.com.
4. Snow-Covered Power Balls
This easy holiday cookie recipe is sugar-free, protein-packed, and doesn’t require an oven. And the coconut shavings make them look just like they’ve been rolled in snow!
Get the full recipe at The Daily Meal.
5. Triple Chocolate Cookies
If you’re anything like me, there’s no such thing as too much chocolate — especially around Christmas time.
What better excuse to bake up these decadent delights, whose ingredients list calls for not two, but three different types of chocolate?
Head over to the Food Network for full details.
Decorating Christmas Cookies
Not all types of Christmas cookies require decorating, but many do, especially classics like gingerbread and shortbread. Get creative from the start with a diverse set of Christmas cookie cutters. They come in just about every shape you can imagine, from ninjas (yep! ninjabread men) to these inventive Christmas light bulbs.
You can make your own icing with confectioner’s sugar, water, and food coloring, but there are also a ton of pre-packaged options available in the baking aisle at your local grocery store. Don’t forget about fun extras like snowflake-shaped sprinkles and candy eyeballs to bring your goodies to life!
Keeping Christmas Cookies Fresh
Obviously, the sooner you make your cookies, the sooner you can eat them! Even if you plan on baking several times this holiday season, you’ll want to keep your confections fresh and ready for gift-giving or holiday cookie swaps.
Depending on the type of cookie you’re making, there is different advice on how to store your Christmas cookies to ensure they stay fresh for as long as possible. Some soft cookies need little more than an airtight container with an apple slice or piece of bread added in to help keep them moist. Crisp cookies might need to be re-crisped briefly in the oven.
Finally, it’s good to be strategic about timing the decorating of Christmas cookies as well. Icing is yummy and decorating with it is fun, but once it hits the cookie’s surface, the dough will begin to soften and break down more quickly.
Of course, if worst comes to worst and you notice your goodies getting stale or soft too far ahead of time, you’ll simply have to eat them quickly!
