Russian Tea Cake Christmas Cookies

Christmas is coming!  Christmas is coming!  I am unusually excited.  Perhaps it is the new home, maybe it is my deeper faith, or perhaps, it is that I am excited to be back in the swing of life after a hard 18 months. I think I can attribute it to being the happiest, and most content I have ever been in my life.  I have a gracious heart, especially about all of you.

I am late out of the gate but I will be posting as many recipes as I can before Christmas Eve!  I work best under pressure!  I will be filming some of my recipes, as many as I can as well, so make sure you hit up my YouTube Channel and subscribe!  Here is the link: FoodThoughtsOfaChefWannabe YouTube Channel!  If you haven't hit the FOLLOW on this website, I would love for you to do that as well.  I love having you all in my life, everywhere!  You see, and learn, and experience different parts of me on my different social media outlets.  Not sure why, but, it seems to be that way!  I am weird, like so weird, but I am fun!  I mean at least I think I am! HA!

Now, on to the recipe.  These were a staple Christmas cookie as a kid.  My mom never skipped over making these.  I wasn't a huge fan of them as a child.  But, I think, these are more appealing to grown ups.  I love them now.  I of course changed mine up, just a little updating on my moms recipe, but hers were awesome as well.  As you can see in the video, I can't keep anything the same size.  I think you should get 2 doz out of this recipe, but I made a few of mine for the jolly green giant so I didn't get quite as many.

Please feel free to change the type of nuts you use to what you have on hand or love.  I wanted to just go with hazelnuts because I love them, I had some some and it was definitely the right choice.  What if you did almonds, with a WEE bit of almond extract?  Ohhhhhh!

1/2 cup softened butter
1/4 cup powdered sugar
1 cup finely ground hazelnuts
1 cup all purpose flour
1 tsp vanilla extract (maybe a heaping tsp)
pinch of salt
1 cup extra powdered sugar for dipping

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F.  Line your cookie sheet with parchment paper and set aside. 

Combine butter and powdered sugar until combined.  Add in nuts, and let it mix until completely combined.  Add in a pinch of salt, your vanilla extract and again, mix until combined.  Add in flour and mix just until it is all incorporated.  Your mixture will appear to be dry and crumbly, but I promise it will stick together!  

Using a cookie scoop, scoop out your cookies, dump into your hand and roll into a ball.  The warmth of your hands will melt that butter enough to make them roll nicely.  Do this will all of them, place on your parchment lined cookie sheet and then bake for 10 minutes!  Let cool completely and then roll in your additional powdered sugar!  Place on a platter and waaa-laaaa, time to enjoy!

PS Did I mention to just double this recipe from the start?!  DO!
PSS These will be perfect for your #nobrowncookietray Christmas cookie trays!

Blueberry Cheesecake Cookies

Hello my dear friends!  How long has it been?  TOO  long!

I am glad to be back with you, after all, it IS the most wonderful time of the year!  Right?  I am ready for holiday cheer, holiday feelings, holiday food, and everything else!  I truly find it odd, how busy things have been yet, at the beginning of such a busy time, I get to make time to share some cookies with you!

If you have been following me awhile you know I have a "Just Say NO To Brown Cookie Trays" campaign.  Well, maybe not a campaign but, I feel strongly about it.  You know the ones, don't act like you have never received them!  Hard cookies, difficult to differentiate one "flavor" from another, and not even sure what is in them.  Yes, those cookie trays.  I actually came up with these cookies, because I sell Scentsy as well.  This Blueberry Cheesecake Scent Bar came out and I was like, "oh maaaaan, I need to make that edible"!  I did!  This recipe was adapted from Get In My Belly.

This recipe makes between 18-24 cookies.  I will without a doubt double it when I make it again.  This will be on my cookie trays, and I hope they will be on yours!  My grandson helped me with these today, and he also is in the YouTube video that will accompany it!

Here is what you will need:

1/4 cup softened cream cheese
1/2 cup butter
1 cup sugar
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 1/4 cups all purpose flower
1 tsp baking soda
2 tsp cornstarch
pinch of salt
frozen or fresh blueberries

Optional:
white chocolate
vegetable oil

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F. Using a stand or hand mixer, combine cream cheese and butter.  When it is combined add in sugar and again, mix until all ingredients are combined.  Add egg, vanilla flour, baking soda, and cornstarch.  Mix until ingredients are just combined.

Refrigerate your dough for 1 hr.  I did 30 minutes and it worked fine but if you double the batch, go for 1 hr.  You can chill it up to overnight if you like.

Place balls of dough or use a cookie scoop.  Bake for 10 minutes.  Dough will spread, but if for some reason yours does not, just give it a little smoosh with your hand.  I used frozen blueberries I had let sit out for 10 minutes, but fresh will be awesome as well!  Place 4 or 5 blueberries on the top of each cookie, slightly pressing them in.  Let sit for 15 minutes.

You can enjoy as is, or you can drizzle with some melted white chocolate.  Use about 1/2 cup of white chocolate chips, melt in 30 second increments in the microwave.  Add a cap full of vegetable oil to it to make it a bit more liquid and drizzle-able!  Drizzle and let the chocolate set before serving!

I hope you enjoy these little heavenly cookies!  I think using strawberries, raspberries, etc would be awesome as well!!

ENJOY!