#cookie week

📝 Ingredients For the dough (makes about 10 knots): • 250 g all-purpose flour • 30 g sugar • 1 pinch of salt • 1/2 packet of dry yeast (approx. 3.5 g) • 100 ml lukewarm milk • 30 g soft butter • 1 egg (room temperature) For the vanilla filling: • 50 g soft butter • 1 tbsp vanilla extract • 30 g sugar (adjust to taste) For brushing: • 20 g melted butter (for brushing the shaped knots before baking) For topping: • Pearl sugar 🤍 Instructions: 1. Put the flour into a bowl and create a well in the center. Add the dry yeast, 1 tsp of sugar, and 2–3 tbsp of the lukewarm milk into the well. Stir lightly and let it rest for about 10 minutes until it starts to bubble. 2. Add the remaining milk, sugar, salt, soft butter, and egg. Knead into a smooth dough that pulls away from the sides of the bowl. Cover and let rise in a warm place for about 1 hour or until doubled in size. 3. For the filling, mix the soft butter with vanilla extract and regular sugar until smooth. 4. Once the dough has risen, roll it out into a large rectangle on a floured surface. Spread the vanilla butter filling evenly over the dough. 5. Fold the dough: bring one side to the center, then fold the other side on top. Cut into even strips. 6. Slice each strip lengthwise into three parts without cutting all the way through. Braid them and twist into knots. 7. Place the knots into a greased muffin tin or on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Let rise again for 20–30 minutes. Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 180°C (350°F). 8. Sprinkle with pearl sugar. 9. Bake for 15–18 minutes until lightly golden. Brush the knots with melted butter and let cool slightly before serving. Enjoy! 🤗🤍

How to Make Italian Lemon Knot Cookies | Elena Rossi

Ingredients

2 cups all-purpose flour

3/4 cup granulated sugar

1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened

1 large egg

2 tablespoons lemon juice

1 tablespoon lemon zest

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/4 teaspoon salt

Powdered sugar for dusting

Ready to embark on our baking adventure? Here’s a step-by-step guide to crafting these delightful cookies:

Preheat your oven to 350°F (175°C).

Cream together softened butter and sugar until light and fluffy.

Beat in egg, lemon juice, lemon zest until mixture is well combined.

In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt.

Gradually add dry ingredients to wet mixture, mix until dough forms.

On a lightly floured surface, divide dough into small pieces & roll each piece into a rope about 6 inches long.

Shape each rope into a knot, place them on parchment lined pan.

Bake for 12-15 minutes or until lightly golden.

Let them cool before dusting with powdered sugar.

Enjoy your delicious Italian lemon knot cookies!

Castagnole. Italian carnival snacks that are meant to resemble chestnuts. Often flavored with citrus and various cream fillings.

Ingredients: Dough: 1 cup ricotta 1 cup ap flour (plus 3 tbsp for adjusting) 1 tbsp cornstarch 1 egg 4 tbsp sugar 1 tbsp baking powder Small pinch salt

Ricotta: 1/2 gallon whole milk 1 cup heavy cream 1/4 cup lemon juice

Mascarpone Filling: 1 cups mascarpone 4 tbsp powdered sugar 1 tbsp lemon syrup (from sweetened lemon zest) 1 tbsp vanilla paste

Ingredients

Coconut Macaroons Details

Just 5 ingredients in the base recipe

Can leave plain or add toppings/add-ins

Dough comes together in 1 bowl

No cookie dough chilling required

Naturally gluten free and dairy free

And remember, these are coconut macaroons, not macarons. If you want to learn how to make those delicate sandwich cookies, I have an in-depth French macarons tutorial.

3 Notes About The Coconut:

Use Sweetened Coconut: Sweetened coconut is extremely moist and a little sticky, which is exactly what you want for these cookies. Unsweetened coconut can work instead, but you may need to increase the egg whites and add more sugar. For best results, use sweetened.

Measure Accurately: You need 4 and 3/4 cups (about 385g) of sweetened shredded coconut, which is a little less than a standard 14-ounce package.

Chop It/Pulse It: Pulse the coconut shreds in the food processor a few times to chop up the pieces. Why? Smaller pieces of coconut help the cookies hold their shape better—the cookies will be more compact this way. If you don’t have a food processor, spread the coconut onto a cutting board and give it all a rough chop.

Here are the ingredients you need:

Finer pieces of coconut help the macaroons hold shape better; I pulse it with a food processor a few times to break down the shreds:

Make the Coconut Macaroons Dough

Even though the process is really easy, I want to walk you through a few steps so you can have success on the first try. This has been my favorite recipe for decades, and I’ve picked up on several tricks (learn from my mistakes!).

In addition to coconut, egg whites are a main ingredient in this dough. More specifically, beaten egg whites. In a large bowl using a handheld or stand mixer, you’ll beat the egg whites, sugar, vanilla extract, and almond extract together on medium-high speed until foamy and the sugar is mostly dissolved. The trick here is to not over-beat the egg whites—this should really only take 1 minute.If you over-beat the eggs, you’ll end up with a stiff meringue-like mixture, and the baked macaroons will be very dry.

Fold the chopped coconut shreds into the egg white mixture. After that, use a medium cookie scoop to shape 1.5 Tablespoon portions of dough onto a lined baking sheet. I usually fit 12 on a standard 12×17-inch half baking sheet.

Coconut macaroons do not spread much while baking. Sometimes they can leak a little sugar/egg white liquid, but if you chopped the coconut up enough, this shouldn’t really happen. Bake until a little toasty on top, about 20 minutes at 325°F (163°C).

Avoid Over-Baking Bake for only a precise 20 minutes, or until lightly browned. Over-baking will dry out your coconut macaroons.

Can I Have Add-Ins or Toppings? Yes, absolutely! Macaroons can be dressed up in so many different ways. While they’re absolutely incredible plain, I love dipping the bottoms in melted dark chocolate. Other varieties:

Chocolate almond macaroons: Pictured below! These remind me of an Almond Joy candy bar. Instructions in the recipe notes.

Sprinkle loaded macaroons: Carefully fold 1/3 cup (about 57g) sprinkles in coconut macaroon dough before scooping and baking. Avoid nonpareils (the little balls).

White chocolate cranberry macaroons: Add 3/4 cup (about 100g) of dried cranberries to the dough when you add the shredded coconut. Melt 4 ounces of pure white chocolate and drizzle over cooled macaroons.

Strawberry macaroons: Here’s my strawberry coconut macaroons recipe.

Almond butter macaroons: Here’s my almond butter coconut macaroons recipe.

If you’re looking for a moist and chewy coconut macaroon with a toasty exterior, you’ve come to the right place. When you’re feeling fancy, dress the simple recipe up with any of my suggested varieties in the recipe notes. Be sure to try my almond butter coconut macaroons, too!

More Coconut Recipes

Coconut Cake

German Chocolate Cake

Coconut Cream Pie

Dark Chocolate Coconut Blondies

Coconut Chocolate Easter Cupcakes

Ingredients

4 large egg whites, at room temperature

1/2 cup (100g) granulated sugar

1 tsp pure vanilla extract

1/2 tsp almond extract

4 and 3/4 cups (385g) chopped shredded coconut (a little less than one 14-ounce package, see note)*

optional: two 4-ounce semi-sweet chocolate bars (226g), finely chopped

Instructions

Preliminary Note: I recommend pulsing coconut in processor a few times to cut it down & break it up. Finer pieces of coconut make a tighter, more compact coconut macaroon that will hold its shape. Measure 4 and 3/4 cups after it’s been pulsed. If you do not have processor, spread onto a large cutting board & roughly chop it.

Preheat oven to 325°F (163°C). Line two large baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone baking mats. (Always recommended for cookies.) Set aside.

Make macaroons: In a large bowl using mixer, beat egg whites, sugar, vanilla extract, almond extract together until foamy & sugar is mostly dissolved, ~1 minute. Do not over-beat. Fold in chopped coconut, making sure coconut is evenly moistened.

Using a medium cookie scoop or a spoon, scoop 1.5 Tablespoons (about 30g) of the mixture & arrange on prepared baking sheets at least 2 inches apart. (For smaller cookies, measure 1 Tbsp (about 18-20g) per cookie.)

Bake until lightly browned around edges & tops, about 20 minutes. Make sure to rotate pan to help ensure even baking.

Cool for 10 minutes on baking sheets, transfer to a wire rack to cool completely. Bottoms may be sticky, use thin spatula to help release them from mat/parchment.

Dip in chocolate (optional): Melt chopped chocolate, either in a double boiler. Dip each cooled coconut macaroon in melted chocolate & place back onto baking sheets. Allow chocolate to set in refrigerator or at room temperature.

Macaroons stay fresh covered at room temperature for up to 3 days or in the refrigerator for up to 1 week.

Ingredients

150 grams self-rising flour 125 grams salted butter, room temperature 100 grams brown caster sugar (or light brown sugar)

Directions

Mix ingredients in large bowl. Knead by hand until dough is formed.

Form dough into a disc & cover with plastic wrap. Chill for 20 minutes.

Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 305F (150C). Line a baking tray with parchment.

Form dough into 25 small round balls and place them on the prepared baking tray.

Use a fork to gently press a criss-cross pattern into the tops of cookies.

Bake in the preheated oven for 20 minutes.

150-Year-Old Family Cookie Recipe

3 Ingredient Almond Butter Cookies || Jan 7, 2026 by Maria Doss

Ingredients

▢ 1 cup creamy almond butter, no-stir almond butter like Barney) ▢ 1 large egg ▢ ½ cup brown sugar, light or golden not packed ▢ white sugar as needed for finishing

Instructions

Prep. Preheat oven to 340°F & line with parchment paper and set aside.

Make dough. Mix with electric beater for 30 to 40 seconds or until mixed well. It will be crumbly yet moist.

Roll into balls. Scoop about 1 tablespoon of dough, roll it into a ball

Press with fork. Place some white sugar in a small bowl, dip a fork into sugar, and gently press each dough ball to flatten, creating a crisscross pattern.

Space cookies about an inch apart.

Bake. Bake in preheated oven for 14–18 minutes, or deep golden color, be careful not to overbake as this can cause excessive browning on bottoms.

Cool. Place baking pan on a wire rack to cool completely. The cookies will be soft when hot, but they will crisp and firm up as they cool.

Notes:

Don't over bake. It tends to get dark brown on the bottom if baked too long. Check on them after 20 minutes; if the edges turn golden, you know they’re done. And keep in mind cookies will continue to harden as they cool on the baking sheet.

Google Trends revealed that Peanut Butter Blossoms are the top-trending Christmas cookies in the U.S. this holiday season.

The classic recipe, featuring a thumbprint peanut butter cookie topped with a Hershey’s Kiss, dates back to 1957.

Spritz Cookies and Peanut Butter Balls are also top-trending holiday treats right now.

The verdict is in. There’s a new top Christmas cookie in town, and it’s an oldie but a goodie. Google Trends has announced that Peanut Butter Blossoms are the top-trending Christmas cookies in the U.S. right now, according to search data from the last month.

This old-school recipe features a thumbprint-style peanut butter cookie topped with a Hershey’s Kiss that’s pressed into its center just after baking. The recipe was invented by an amateur baker named Freda Smith, who entered the cookie in a national bake-off in 1957, according to Hershey’s. She didn’t win, but her recipe was a runner-up—and given its enduring popularity through the decades, it’s safe to say her recipe is a true winner after all. (Peanut butter and chocolate? Come on, it’s a shoo-in!)

The news that Peanut Butter Blossoms are trending this Christmas has me in a nostalgic mood. Growing up, my family usually celebrated the holiday at home in Georgia. My mom’s side of the family would join us for a small and cozy gathering. But some years we drove to St. Louis to celebrate with my dad’s side of the family. The likelihood of a white Christmas in the Show-Me State made these trips exciting, but being away during the festive season also made me feel a little homesick.

Peanut Butter Blossoms had a way of making me feel at home on these trips—and not just because they were delicious.

My dad’s Uncle Kenny had a tradition of making a huge batch of these cookies every year for the annual family Christmas party. These parties were massive and a little overwhelming. But then my cousins would take me under their wing and usher me into the kitchen to get a Peanut Butter Blossom. My great-uncle would be holding court in the kitchen, positively basking in the glow of how much everyone loved his signature dish. Suddenly, I would feel completely at home.

In Country Living’s take on the recipe by Tori Cox, you can use any bite-size miniature candy bar you like. But for me, at Christmastime, there’s no substitute for the original Hershey’s Kiss. Try it below!

Also check out our recipe for old-fashioned Spritz Cookies. They’re a top-trending holiday treat this year, too, as are Peanut Butter Balls (which I know as Buckeye Candy). For something a touch more sophisticated and adult, mix up this year’s top-trending tipple—a Poinsettia Cocktail!

Ingredients

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour, spooned and leveled 

3/4 tsp. baking soda

1/2 tsp. baking powder

1/2 tsp. kosher salt

1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, at room temperature

3/4 cup creamy peanut butter

1/3 cup granulated sugar

1/3 cup packed light brown sugar

1 large egg

1 tsp. pure vanilla extract

1/2 cup sanding sugar

40 chocolate kisses, unwrapped

Directions

Preheat oven to 375°F. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper. Whisk together flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt in a bowl. 

Beat butter, peanut butter, granulated sugar, and brown sugar with an electric mixer on medium speed until light and creamy, 1 to 2 minutes. Add egg and vanilla; beat until combined. Reduce the mixer speed to low and gradually beat in flour mixture just until combined, scraping bowl to incorporate if needed.

Place sanding sugar in a bowl. Scoop dough into 40 balls using a 1 tablespoon cookie scoop. Roll each ball in sanding sugar and place 2 inches apart on prepared baking sheets. Press thumb gently into center of each cookie to indent.