Merry Citrus!

I'm an admitted chocoholic when it comes to cookies (well, why stop there?) but I am a sucker for a pucker too!

Lime-Glazed Cookies

For the past few years, I've been obsessed with Lime-Glazed Cookies. It's another Martha Stewart recipe that I find dependable and delicious. I love how the cookies and the icing boast green flecks of zest. It's another slice and bake cookie too — perfect at this busy time of year — but they're shaped rectangularly, so that adds a nice twist too.

Lime Meltaways

Because I'm celebrating 20 years of Our Cookie Journal this year with 20 types of cookies, I decided to make another lime favorite, Lime Meltaways — again from Martha! — that always reminds me of my eldest niece, Michelle, back home.

I can remember squeezing more lime juice than the recipe calls for and making her a limeade with the leftovers before we started making the cookies. She always favored them (I've even mailed them to her from abroad), so I made them in her honor and thought fondly of her and the lovely times we shared when she was a girl. (The next day, I called her and we had a nice long-distance chat!)

Logs o' Lime

Fortunately, Lime Meltaways are another easy slice and bake cookie too. I made the dough the day before and rolled it into logs, which I wrapped in parchment and paper towel tubes and stashed in the fridge overnight.

Look at all that zest!

The delicate, zest-studded coins produced are cooled on wire racks, then — while still warm — coated in confectioner's sugar. They're so light and airy (there's cornstarch in the dough) that they literally melt in your mouth. Take care shaking them in the powdered sugar though — there can be casualties (which, of course, must be eaten immediately!).

Lime Meltaways

I always tend to make one lime-flavored cookie for the Christmas cookie tray but one year tried Citrus Slice 'n Bake Cookies from a recipe that Mom shared with me from Land O' Lakes. They're easy to make and the logs are rolled into colored sugars. They look very pretty and taste yummy.

Citrus Slice 'n Bake Cookies

But I saw an interesting recipe for Lemon Crinkle Cookies at Lauren's Latest blog that looked very appealing. Again, confectioner's sugar is used but these are coated before baking.

Roll Lemon Crinkles in powdered sugar

Crinkles can be baked right away, as the dough is rolled into balls, like Peanut Butter Cookies. I was mixing doughs together after dinner, though, so I wanted only to clean up, stow the doughs, and get to bed. The next day, I was raring to go and cranked out four dozen Lime Meltaways and four and a half dozen Lemon Crinkles. The kitchen was fragrant and fresh and I couldn't wait to sample both types!

I tend to heap in the zest...

The Lime Meltaways were just as glorious as ever — tangy little clouds of lime that went down a treat with a cup of tea. And the Lemon Crinkles surpassed my expectations. The sugar created a crisp exterior and the centers were lovely and chewy. The heaping tablespoon of lemon zest made them zingy and satisfying. It was impossible to have only one — but I froze the rest!

In the freezer they go...

Either of these cookies would make a perfect addition to your cookie tray — or repertoire, if you can't squeeze them into your busy schedule at Christmastime (even thought they are a snap to make). So I have a classic and a contemporary making the cut, with Lime Meltaways as Cookie No. 5 and Lemon Crinkles as Cookie No. 6 on my list of 20 Christmas cookies to celebrate 20 years of Our Cookie Journal.

Lemon Crinkle Cookies

2001 - A Team Effort

A fistful of recipes. Thanks, Mom!

Lisa's work schedule was manic again, so Mom and Lisa's three youngest daughters kicked off the baking bonanza this year. They worked at Mom's house and she had a bit of an assembly line going. She set up a card table in the living room too, so they could work in teams on different jobs. Very productive! 

One weekend, they made Butterscotch Refrigerator Cookies. I don't know whose idea they were because I've never been a big fan of butterscotch. The recipe calls for melted chips, but they decided the cookies would be better with whole chips left intact. (I think they would be better if Lisa made them like she made Un-Pumpkin Bread and leave the butterscotch out completely!) They also made Grandma Baker's Peanut Butter Cookies; Rachel and April were in charge of rolling the balls in the sugar before criss-crossing them with a fork.

While Lisa and I seem to focus on chocolate and peanut butter as our favorite cookie ingredients, Mom gets tired of all the chocolate year after year, and tends to deviate toward the fruitier alternatives. After starting solo with a batch of Pumpkin Cookies on another weekend session, she whipped up a batch of Glazed Pina Colada Bars - a new entry for her from Land O' Lakes. She made two 8-inch versions and a third, smaller one, in disposable aluminum pans, so I get to take a whole batch back with me.

Tropical Orange Coconut Drops, another new entry, were up next. However, Mom opted for Tropical Lemon Coconut Drops this time around. She and Danielle baked them while Rachel drizzled icing on the Pina Colada Bars. She recommends placing waxed paper beneath the cookies and drizzling the icing with a fork.

Danielle was in charge of the Citrus Slice 'N' Bake Cookies. They're refrigerator cookies that get formed into logs, brushed with melted butter, rolled in orange or lemon sugar, and then sliced. Very bright in flavor and appearance. I think lime would be good too. 

Raspberry Strippers, from last year, made a repeat appearance. They're neat log cookies that are filled with jam, baked, drizzled with icing, and then cut diagonally into little cookies. 

I guess to prevent an all-out revolt, she ended with Fudge Revel Bars, another newbie - but at least they're chocolate! "These smelled delicious while they were baking," she said. After she melted the chocolate, she swirled it into the batter with a wooden spoon for a marbleized effect. 

"This is my last year," she declared - again. (She says that every year!) Aside from making all these cookies, Mom also kindly copied each recipe onto a card for me. So, thanks to her, I'm going back with a suitcase full of cookies and a fistful of recipes! Thanks, Mom!

Tropical Orange Coconut Drops
2 c sugar
1 c butter
3 eggs
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
1 tsp lemon extract
3 1/2 c flour
1/2 c coconut

Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.

Combine all ingredients except flour and coconut. Beat at low-speed until creamy. Stir in flour and coconut by hand until well mixed. Drop by teaspoonfuls onto baking sheets, about 2 inches apart. Bake until edges are lightly browned, 8-12 minutes.