3 Delightful Herbal Holiday Cookie Recipes (2024)

Cookies:
½ cup butter or coconut oil
¼ cup honey
¾ cup molasses
¼ teaspoon ground cloves
½ teaspoon ground nutmeg
1 heaping teaspoon ground cinnamon
½ to 1 teaspoon freshly grated ginger, adjust the amount depending on how spicy you like your gingerbread]
Sprinkle of ground black pepper, optional
Zest from 1 organic orange
½ teaspoon baking soda
¼ cup hot water
2 ¾ cups of whole wheat flour

Icing:

1 cup powdered sugar
1 to 3 tablespoons of milk, any kind that suites your fancy
1 teaspoon of flavoring such as vanilla, almond or even consider trying a hydrosol like rosewater or orange flower water
Beet powder for coloring

Decoration ideas:

Crystallized ginger
Dried candied orange peel
Papaya chunk
Raisins
Shredded coconut
Goji berries
Dried cherries and blueberries
Dark chocolate chips
Crushed natural candy cane

• To make the cookies: Start by placing the butter/oil, honey, and molasses in a bowl and blend until creamy.
• Mix in the spices.
• In a separate bowl, mix the baking soda and hot water together making sure the baking soda is dissolved then add to the first mixture, blending well.
• Finally add the flour and stir well to blend.
• Chill the dough for at least 30 minutes.
• Preheat oven to 325 degrees and grease your cookie sheet.
• Then roll it out on a floured surface to ¼” thick. If it is too sticky, you can add a little extra flour to make it easier to roll.
• Cut into shapes and bake for 15 to 20 minutes, they will firm up as they cool.
• To make the icing: Simply mix all the ingredients together using a whisk or fork to blend until smooth. Adjust liquid levels to adjust thickness of icing. The have fun decorating with your choosen toppings!

2 sticks room temperature salted butter
¼ cup honey
2 cups flour
Zest from one organic lemon or orange
1 tablespoon fresh, minced rosemary
1 pinch of dried lavender, well crumbled
Optional goodies such as chocolate chips or jam for making thumbprints. Tasty flavors to consider: blackberry, strawberry, blueberry or even orange marmalade and lemon curd (add after baking)

Directions

2 cups whole wheat pastry flour
1 cup almond meal
1 ½ teaspoon baking powder
Sprinkle salt
3 teaspoons anise seeds, crushed with a mortar & pestle if possible
¾ cup turbinado or sucanat sugar
6 tablespoons melted butter
2 teaspoons vanilla
Zest from 1 big organic orange
3 eggs
1 cup of roasted, roughly chopped nuts such as hazelnuts, almond, pecans, or walnuts
⅓ cup goji berries
12 to 16 ounces of dark chocolate chips

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and grease and flour a cookie sheet.
• Whip together butter, sugar, and vanilla.
• Add eggs and orange zest and beat until well blended.
• Stir in the flour, almond meal, baking powder, anise seeds, and salt.
• Fold in the chopped nuts and goji berries.
• Form the dough into 2 logs that are about 10” x 3” and place on cookie sheet.
• Bake for about for 25 minutes or until the logs are brown on the edges and firm in the center.
• Let cool while reducing the oven temperature to 250 degrees.
• Slice the logs at an angle into biscotti that are about ½” thick.
• Carefully return the biscotti to the cookie sheet, they may be crumbly.
• Bake for 10 to 15 minutes until the cookies start to firm up then turn them over to toast the other side.
• While the cookies cool and harden, prepare the chocolate.
• Place the chocolate chips in a bowl and then put that bowl over a pan of water with the bowl suspended above the water.
• Melt the chocolate chips and mix the chocolate until smooth.
• Dip the biscotti in the chocolate or use a spoon to spread the chocolate on the biscotti. Then set the biscotti on parchment paper to harden.
• When the chocolate has harden, store in an airtight container.