Baking Holiday Cookies for Santa Claus

Baking Holiday Cookies for Santa Claus Waking up on Christmas morning excited for opening presents is something that a lot of kids look forward to every time this festive season rolls around. Not knowing if they have the gift that they wanted, wondering if the Santa letters they sent off would be answered that day, and slightly cranky because they didn't sleep the night before is the typical morning of Christmas day for a lot of children. So many parents have a hard time getting their little ones into bed without some sort of bribe, and it's understandable because it's such an exciting time of the year for them. However a good night's sleep is something that all children need; and saying things along the lines of them not receiving their letters from Santa if they don't sleep will dampen the mood for them. So that's when the use of legends can come in to play, and this particular one involves leaving cookies for Santa.

Almost everyone that celebrates Christmas can remember at one point staying awake to look out for old Jolly Saint Nick. Listening for the tell tale sign of something on the roof, or waiting for a man to pop out of the chimney are things that both excite and terrify. Excite because seeing Santa would mean that the presents are there, but terrify because it's not known if said present was received. A lot of children can become very caught up on the whole naughty or nice list, and that's where a lot of restlessness will come from in the night with them thinking about whether or not they have the object they wanted or a big lump of coal. One way to take away the anxiety of the final moments of the waiting is by helping them make and leave out cookies for Santa Claus. This process can really make the difference in eliminating unneeded stress from the kids. The legend of leaving cookies out for Saint Nick has somewhat of a shadowed origin, however the child that does leave Santa cookies is said to be given somewhat of a second chance if they weren't always 'nice'. The cookies basically give Santa that extra boost he needs on such a tiring night, so because of his gratitude, he'll leave behind a nicer present. Now while this needs to be a decision based on their actions throughout the year, letting them have a little extra bit of hope can do a wonder for their enjoyment of the holiday. Baking the cookies with them will not only give them something to look forward to but also serve as a bonding factor. This is something great for the family to practice together, especially because the theme is to do something nice for someone else. It's a great way for families to come together and have fun with something very simple in task, but very meaningful. Typically any type of holiday cookie, or even regular chocolate chip cookies can be used for this little tradition. Don't forget to leave the glass of milk as well! This will really assuage any Christmas Eve jitters and help the child get the proper rest that they need. They fall asleep a lot faster and easier, and once that happens, make sure to move the cookies and milk. It would be an absolute disaster if they thought Santa didn't want what they made for him! Baking Holiday Cookies for Santa Claus

Holiday Candy Cane Cookies

These holiday cookies are a great treat to make with the kids and get you in the Christmas spirit. Many people do not realize that cookie dough can be colored to make a wide variety of colors for most any holiday season. Just a few drops of food coloring in your dough can make the color desired.

So for this you will need your cookie dough and some food coloring to get started. (Caution: Food color can stain skin and clothes, be sure that you wear old clothes and some gloves on your hands to protect your skin.) Start off by getting enough bowls for the different amount of colors you will be working with. Next begin the process by mixing the dough and the food color into the bowl start off with just a touch of food color to make sure you do not go to dark. You can always go darker from to light but not the other way around. Next kneed the dough thoroughly till you get the desired color you are looking for. Now take the dough out of the bowls and roll it into 12 inch by inch strips. You can use two pieces of wax paper here if you do not want to over saturate the cookies with to much flour which can dry them out a bit. Take each rope and conform it into a candy cane. Now you can make so many different colors, you can go with your traditional red and white, or a red and green, yellow and blue, whatever you want. After forming the candy canes bake in the oven for about 10 minutes or until brown. Hopefully you will enjoy these cookies as much as me and my children did. Enjoy.