Though I haven’t been following the Holidailiees prompts so far, this one sure jumped out at me. One of my favorite gifts for our neighbors or to take as a housewarming gift to a holiday party is cookies. They can be eaten right away or thrown in the freezer for post-holiday treats. But who wants to give away a batch of cookies when you can make a variety of deliciousness for the offering?

Each week in my newsletter I share a favorite recipe with my subscribers – and the month of December is dedicated to COOKIES.

Last week I began with a cookie containing a seasonal favorite ingredient – Cranberries and shared a recipe for Oatmeal Cranberry White Chocolate Cookies. Though I’m not a big fan of white chocolate, it’s a fabulous combination with the dried cranberries.  And, note: though I normally recommend unsalted butter, this recipe just sings with the slightly salty touch.

Here’s the recipe:

Heat oven to 350°F.

In large bowl, cream together 2 sticks of (softened) salted butter with ¾ cup of firmly packed brown sugar and ½ cup granulated sugar.  Add 2 Eggs and 1 teaspoon vanilla.

In a separate bowl, sift together 1-1/2 Cups all-purpose flour (or ¾ cup whole wheat flour and ¾ cup all-purpose flour) with  1 Teaspoon Baking Soda, 1 Teaspoon cinnamon, and 1/2 Teaspoon salt.  Combine in with butter and sugar mixture.  Don’t over-mix.

Add  3 Cups Old fashioned (or rolled oats – or for variety, you can use the Old Wessex 5 Grain Cereal) and 2/3 cup of dried cranberries and 2/3 cup white chocolate chunks or chips and stir until incorporated

Drop dough by rounded tablespoonful onto ungreased cookie sheets. Bake 8 to 10 minutes or until light golden brown. Cool 1 minute on cookie sheets; remove to wire rack. Cool completely. Cookies can be frozen for up to six months.

This coming week, I’ll be sharing a recipe for Coconut Thumbprint cookies. To  make them a little more “Christmas-y”, you can tint the coconut green and use a red jam – like strawberry or raspberry.

On December 20th, I’ll be sharing a recipe for Ginger Snap Cookies – with three kinds of ginger. And, on the 27th, I’m going to share a new cookie recipe I’ve been playing with – a Salted Chocolate Chip Caramel cookie made with those new Nestle Delight-fuls.

What’s your favorite Holiday cookie? I can’t wait to peek around everyone else’s posts!