Lemon-Lime Christmas Tree Cookies

December 30, 2022

We had such a joyful and memorable Christmas season in Santa Fe! The kids are at really fun ages for celebrating the magic of Christmas, and it feels like the world is starting to open up again after almost three years of hibernation. Our employers had holiday work parties this year and it was fun to see coworkers outside of work. There were so many art festivals and artisan markets around town this month that it was hard to keep up. Ady's Kindergarten class had a Christmas performance that they all worked very hard to perfect. Her favorite piece was "Feliz Navidad," complete with choreography! She also started taking piano lessons at the start of the school year and learned "Jingle Bells" and "We Wish You a Merry Christmas" in time to perform for our friends at a cocktail party we hosted. Ady had her first trip to the Nutcracker ballet and she loved the performance. We had really good seats and she was mesmerized by the dancers. Meredith loves being a helper in the kitchen lately and she's obsessed with singing Christmas carols. We went to Canyon Road on Christmas Eve for the traditional farolito walk, and hearing other carolers was her cue to belt out "Jingle Bells" while strolling down the road. We haven't had a lot of snow yet, but I took Meredith for a snowy hike a few weeks ago when we got a slight dusting over night. Both girls were thrilled for Santa to make his visit to our house. We're trying to create memories that don't revolve around presents and consumerism and to focus on connecting with friends and spending quality time together as a family. For me personally, I also work hard to not let the busy energy and expectations of the season overshadow the opportunities for happiness, and to make sure to take time to live in the moment with my kids. These days are precious, and living vicariously through children at Christmas time makes the joy come alive.

We did a lot of cooking and baking this week! I don't especially love spending long hours in the kitchen but I do love having good food to eat on special occasions and creating traditions for my kids to look forward to year after year. I made Lasagna Bolognese (Brown Eyed Baker) for Christmas Eve dinner and French Toast Casserole (Belle of the Kitchen) on Christmas morning. My carb-loving family devoured them! The girls and I baked a bunch of cookies together, from Hot Chocolate Cookies with marshmallows and my traditional Ricotta Cheese Cookies, to Blackberry Ginger Bars and Peanut Butter Blossoms, but our favorite new recipe this year was Lemon-Lime Christmas Tree Cookies from The Great Minnesota Cookie Book. The lemon and lime flavors are very subtle but add a creative taste that's different from typical sugar cookies. Ady initially said she refused to eat them if they had lime in them, but she quickly changed her mind. We used a tree cookie cutter and a star to mix it up, but you can make any shape you'd like! They're so light and refreshing (unless you load them up with icing like Ady likes to do...) that we were popping them like Wheat Thins all afternoon on Christmas. Hope you like them as much as we did!

Lemon Lime Christmas Tree (and star) Cookies

Lemon Lime Christmas Tree Cookies

From The Great Minnesota Cookie Book, by Lee Svitak Dean and Rick Nelson

Makes about 50-60 cookies

Ingredients for Cookies:

3 3/4 cups flour, plus extra for rolling dough

1 tsp baking powder

1 tsp baking soda

1/4 tsp salt

2 sticks of butter, at room temperature

1 1/2 cups granulated sugar

2 eggs

2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice

2 teaspoons lemon extract

1 teaspoon yellow food coloring

Ingredients for Icing:

3 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature

2 tablespoons butter, at room temperature

2 cups powdered sugar

1/2 tsp freshly grated lime zest

1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lime juice

1 tsp green food coloring

Decorative sugar or sprinkles for decorating

Directions:

1. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. In a bowl of an electric mixer, beat the butter for about 1 minute, then add the sugar and beat until light and fluffy. Add eggs one at a time. Add lemon juice, lemon extract, and yellow food coloring. Form the dough into two disks, wrap in plastic wrap, and refrigerate for 2 hours.

2. When ready to bake, preheat the oven to 350 degrees F and line baking sheets with parchment paper. On a lightly floured surface using a lightly floured rolling pin, roll the dough into 1/4 inch thickness. Cut the dough into shapes with your cookie cutters and place 2 inches apart on the prepared baking sheets. Bake until cookies are set but not hard, 9-10 minutes.

3. To prepare icing, beat the cream cheese and butter for about 1 minute in the bowl of an electric mixer. Reduce speed to low and add the powdered sugar, lime zest, lime juice, and food coloring. Ice and decorate the cookies.

Mixing up the dough

This girl loves any opportunity to use a rolling pin

Decorating time!

Voila!

Cookies for Santa

We hope to get more snow in January when Ady starts ski lessons with the White Tornadoes at Ski Santa Fe! I also hope to do the Santa Fe Classic snowshoe race at the end of January. Be safe and healthy out there!