When I was younger my aunt used to always drop packages off at Christmastime filled with sorts of cookies. That inspired me to make this post for five Christmas cookies one dough. I made one basic cookie dough and added in several different things to make them a whole new cookie. It's a great way to get creative and have a little fun too!
All of the different cookies look so gorgeous in the gift box. This cookie dough tastes amazing too. It has a crispy bottom and a chewy top. They do spread some regardless of whether you chill it or not. The cookies tend to be thicker with things in them like chocolate chips, candies, and sprinkles. They are slightly thinner if you make them into thumbprints, topped with a chocolate, or plain so you can frost them.
You know what makes the perfect gift boxes for a large box of tiny cookies? Those adorably decorated shirt boxes that you can find at the Dollar General. They might have them other places, but that's my go-to place to pick them up. They are the perfect height and so affordable. There's always festive tissue paper and raffia string there to fancy the packages up even more too. Plus if you tie the boxes up, you don't have to worry about them coming apart while traveling.
I sent a box of these down to my husband's work yesterday. He came home and said as he was walking through the door that the guys were hammering them and he didn't know if there were even any left. I had all intentions on asking him when he came through the door how the cookies went over, but he must have read my mind. I guess these sorts of things are bound to happen after spending over 11 years together.
Five Christmas Cookies One Dough
Ingredients
- ¾ cup butter room temperature
- ¼ cup shortening
- 1 ½ cups granulated sugar
- 2 eggs
- 2 tsp. vanilla extract
- 2 ½ cups all-purpose flour
- 1 box (3.4 oz) vanilla instant pudding mix
- 1 tsp. baking powder
- ½ tsp. salt
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- In a mixing bowl, add in the butter, shortening, and sugar. Mix on medium until light and fluffy.
- Add in the vanilla and the eggs one at a time until incorporated. Scrape down the sides and beat to combine any remaining egg mixture.
- Add in the flour, pudding mix, baking powder, and salt. Beat on medium until incorporated.
- Divide the cookies into 5 portions or more. Each will be a different cookie.
- First dough, scoop using a small cookie scoop and roll in sprinkles.
- Second dough, scoop using a small cookie scoop, bake, and frost.
- Third dough, scoop out. Press your finger into the center of the cookie and form a nice hole to add jam in. Add in desired jam. I used strawberry.
- Fourth Dough, add in chocolate chips, white chips, m&m's, snicker bites for baking, cinnamon chips, whatever you prefer. Scoop and bake.
- Fifth Dough, scoop out and bake. Once baked, remove from the oven and let cool for 3 - 5 minutes. Place chocolate candies on top to decorate them.
- Place the scooped dough into the oven and bake for 10 minutes. Remove from the oven and let cool 10 minutes before placing on a piece of paper towel to cool.
- Wrap up in your homemade cookie boxes and send to your friends and family.
Nutrition
(Nutrition facts are an estimate and not guaranteed to be accurate. Please see a registered dietitian for special diet advice.)
Judy Glasson says
What is the difference between butter and shortening please. I'm from Australia and don't know what you mean by shortening.
Miranda C. says
Hi Judy! Great question. Shortening is made by whipping air into an oil and stabilizing it. It is usually made with vegetable oil and is super white in color. Butter is a fat that comes from milk. It is made from churning cream until thick and yellow. Shortening is 100% fat while butter is usually about 80% fat (and the rest protein). Hopefully this answer helps!
Kiki Johnson says
Christmas baking can get pretty stressful so this recipe is absolutely perfect - so many varieties with minimal effort! Love this!
Kim says
What brand of shortening did you use? Crisco or Tenderflake?
Miranda says
Crisco
Yogesh says
Looking soo testy ?
Pam says
Need to put it in weight e.g oz lb not cup
pam says
they look yummy and easy. I am a butter girl. can you make these with butter? will they come out
Marita says
Hi Pam, did you try it with just butter?
LoriAnne says
Do you add the jam before or after the cookie is baked?
Miranda C. says
Add the jam before baking- enjoy!
Ruth Oberly says
Can these be made with margarine?
Miranda C. says
Hi Ruth! I would stick to the butte and shortening. Margarine is more like an oil than butter. It will change the recipe and make the cookies very very soft and they will spread a lot when baked. In this case, butter is best! Enjoy.
Alida | Simply Delicious says
Such a great holiday recipe!
Pat Latona says
The dough came out very dry. They tasted good. Not sure what happened.
Miranda says
Did you sort of "fluff" the flour before measuring it? The flour could have been packed too tightly in the measuring cup which would lead to too much flour being added to the recipe and dry dough.
Toni says
This is such an amazing idea! A perfect treat for the holidays!
Michele says
Omg!!!! The best cookies ever!!! The dough was so easy to work with. Soft centre and a crunchy crust. They won’t last long!! I’ll be making them all year long!
Thanks for posting this wonderful recipe!!
Lynda Bennett says
I’ve never seen a recipe that used both butter AND shortening. Is that necessary? Can I just use all butter? Will it ruin the cookies? Will it change the consistency of the dough and/or of the cookies? Thank you
Miranda says
The shortening helps the cookies hold their shape because of the higher melting point. If you use all butter, they will become flatter and crispier.
Marvella Godwin says
Can you use self rising flour instead of all purpose flour ?
Miranda says
I haven't tried it, but since self-rising flour already has leavening agents in it so you might want to cut back on the baking powder or cut it out completely.
Chasity says
Followed this recipe to a tee. Cookies came out stuck together and not cooked all the way, so sad 🙁
Miranda says
Hi Chasity. It sounds like you just needed to bake them longer and spread them farther apart before baking.
Alyssa Brantley says
Love the variety and all from one dough! They all look delicious!!
Toni says
Such a smart idea for the busy holidays!
Lindsay Cotter says
So great to get 5 cookies from one dough!
Gabriela says
How can i replace the pudding?
Miranda C. says
Hi Gabriela- You could use 2 Tablespoons of custard powder in place of the vanilla pudding. However, I recommend using the pudding as it adds lots of flavor and keeps the cookies very soft.
Sandi says
Can you freeze these for Christmas?
Miranda C. says
Hi Sandi! Yes you can freeze either the dough or the baked cookies. That is a great way to get ahead during the holiday season! Hope they taste deliocus.
Jonelle Shiel says
I needed to bake longer than 10 minutes ~ 15. And dividing into 5 is a stretch- I would double recipe if I were doing that. I divided into 2. Very yummy!
Denise says
What can be used instead of the vanilla instant pudding mix ?
Miranda says
Any other instant pudding mix will work as well.
Nandini Sivanesom says
Can I replace the vanilla instant pudding mix with corn flour or custard flour?
Miranda C. says
Hi Nandini- Custard flour would work in place of pudding mix as they are very similar. Corn flour would not work as well and make the dough very dense and dry. Add a little vanilla extract to your batter if you go with the custard flour, this will give the cookies a better flavor! Enjoy.
Brenda says
Can I freeze the dough?
Miranda C. says
Yes! You can freeze the dough. Wrap it well in plastic wrap and then take it out to thaw at room temperature about 4 hours before you are ready to bake. Enjoy!
V Yacks says
How do you freeze these cookies once baked for max freshness?
Miranda C. says
After the cookies have baked, place them in a gallon sized zippered bag. Push all the air out of the bag and seal it closed. You can even double bag the cookies for extra protection! This will keep them fresh for up to two months. Thaw them at room temp whenever you are ready to eat!
Marcy says
Could you post link to frosting recipe that was used to decorate cookies?
Miranda C. says
Hi Marcy- you can really use any buttercream or royal icing frosting. Give this birthday cake buttercream frosting a try for some extra flavor. https://www.cookiedoughandovenmitt.com/cake-batter-frosting-3/
Jsne says
can you make dough and decorate and bake the next day? (sometimes my work schedule has me on call outs during holidays). should the dough be chilled and put at room temperature whenI get ready to bake? will cookies taste just as if i baked same day?
Miranda C. says
You can definitely make the dough in advance. Wrap it well in plastic wrap and store it in the fridge. Take it out about an hour before you are ready to use the dough to let it soften. Enjoy!
Lynn Stoll says
Best cookie recipe ever! Thanks so much for sharing. By this time, I have made over 300 cookies with this recipe. The feedback was the best from any cookie I have made in my life.
Definitely will be making these for Christmas. So easy, quick and delicious.
Sheila Dattoo says
Thank you for sharing your recipe. Baking cookies for Christmas will be so much easier now,
Kenn Hudak says
The thing is...it is one cookie...despite various ad ins...they pretty much taste the same
Alyssa says
What cookie scoop do you use? I haven't made the cookies yet, but I can't wait to try!
Miranda says
I use a 1 tablespoon cookie scoop! 🙂
Gayle says
Can I use sugar free pudding if you figure out the quantities so it is equal? Thanks!
Miranda C. says
Yes! You can definitely use sugar-free pudding mix.
Sue Nieciecki says
I baked this recipe with the jam for 10 minutes and they were still pretty raw. I put them back in for another few minutes, then another 5. Total about 17 minutes. I did freeze my dough a few days ago and just defrosted it and made them now. Could that be the reason of taking longer to bake? Thanks! Does this dough brown normally? I haven't seen any browning yet.
Miranda C. says
This dough does brown around the edges when the cookies are done. If the dough was completely thawed, it should work fine! The cookies may take longer to cook if your oven temperature is too low- maybe it wasn't fully preheated or the door to the oven was opened too many times. Baking one tray of cookies at a time also helps improve the air flow in the oven and brown the cookies evenly. It takes longer to bake only one tray at a time but the cookies will turn out better! Hope this helps.