Time’s running out for holiday cookies

Thanksgiving dinner has been served and the leftovers are long gone, but don’t you dare turn off that oven — you’ve got some baking to do. It’s time to hail the holidays with some homemade cookies.

You’d better get busy — you’ve got only two weeks to get the tins filled — and friends and family will be stopping by a lot sooner than that. Plus, the invites for the cookie exchanges will be arriving any day, and if you’re planning to send homemade treats to loved ones or shut-ins, you should be checking with your postmaster to make sure you beat the deadline.

If the thought of hauling out every bowl, beater, spoon and cookie sheet fills you with dread rather than calm, never fear, this doesn’t have to be complicated. With a little preparation and sage advice, you can create some beautiful Christmas cookies that everyone — including you — will love.

First, the pantry should be well-stocked with enough butter, flour, sugar, eggs, spices and nuts to get you through a day (weekend?) of baking without having to make a run to the store between batches.

Next, if you are planning to give cookies as a gift, you’ll want to put a little extra effort into the wrapping, too. So stock up on decorative tins, ribbons, paper and gift boxes to present your treats.

As for recipes, you can pass down family favorites, but it’s always nice to include a new one into the mix.

There are several cookbooks out to assist you in that endeavor; a particularly helpful one is “A Baker’s Field Guide to Christmas Cookies” by Dede Wilson (Harvard Common Press, $16.95).

Wilson knows a thing or two about making Christmas easier; she’s also the author of “Christmas Cooking for Dummies” and “Appetizers for Dummies.” In her “Field Guide,” she appeals to the baking-impaired as well as the accomplished baker by offering practical advice, tips and 75 cookie recipes from around the world. She also gives tips on hosting a cookie decorating party or a cookie swap.

Now for the good news: You really don’t have to spend all day in the kitchen if you don’t want to. In fact, there are some great recipes that call for only a few steps and no cooking required.

For instance, when making Chocolate Bourbon Balls, there’s no baking needed — although a food processor will come in handy for finely chopping the nuts and making cookie crumbs.

Nanaimo Bars, those sticky, gooey, sweetly layered bars of graham cracker crumbs, nuts, coconut and chocolate, are easy to prepare in the pan — no bowl necessary. And Chocolate Walnut Meringues, delicate and crisp, are nothing more than whipped egg whites with some sugar, vanilla, chocolate chips and walnuts folded in.

Get kids in on the act

If you’ve got little ones around, by all means let them get in on the act. Smaller children can help with the mixing, while the bigger ones can roll out the dough. Then everyone rolls up their sleeves to begin the decorating.

If time is an issue, or baking just isn’t your thing, there’s still no reason why you can’t create some delicious Christmas treats at home.

That’s why prefab cookie dough was born. At this time of year, we can use it to advantage and for good entertainment, especially where kids are concerned.

For instance, kids can cut out stencils with paper, place them on sliced cookie dough and sprinkle them with colored sugar before baking (remove the stencil first) to make original artwork cookies. Or they can frost the baked cookies to look like Santa faces or stars or other holiday-related images. (Whether to make the frosting from scratch presents yet another moral dilemma, which is solved by asking the same question and answering honestly: If I don’t use prefab frosting, will this get done?)

Let the little ones stick their thumb-prints into the middle of sliced prefab cookie dough and fill the prints with little spoonfuls of jam before baking or pop on a chocolate kiss after baking.

Teach your kids how to make balls of the cookie dough and roll them in red and green sprinkles before pounding flat with their fists or a plastic glass.

Get out the cookie-cutter collection and have kids cut shapes out of prefab cookie dough that an adult has rolled. Or, they can stick candy cane bits into cookie dough, flatten them with their hands and then bake them.

Come to think of it, adults can do all of these things, too. So don’t beat yourself up if you can’t quite get to cookie-making stage this year. But also, don’t discard the idea. If you start with a premade product, it won’t be exactly as grandmother made them, but it could be lots of fun.

These recipes use premade doughs and quick baking instructions that require no more than 40 minutes with most taking only 30 minutes.

Stained-Glass Window Cookies

From www.pillsbury.com

1 (18-ounce) tube sugar cookie dough

3 tablespoons jelly or jam or colored sugars (see note)

Remove cookie dough from bag. Working fast so that dough stays cold, use the bottom of a cake pan to press dough on all four sides to make the round tube into a rectangular tube. (As dough warms up, it will become more difficult to slice.)

Quickly slice cookie dough into one-eighth-inch thick rectangles. Use small funnel or kitchen knife to cut four tiny circles or squares to make windowpane shapes in half of cookies.

Frost other half of cookies with jelly of choice or sprinkle with colored sugar. (The colors you select will be the colors of the stained-glass windows.)

Top jelly- or sugar-frosted dough with cutout dough and place on ungreased cookie sheets. Bake in 350-degree oven for 10 to 15 minutes, or until cookies just begin to brown.

Let cool on tray.

Note: Use whatever flavors you wish to make stained-glass colors.

Yield: About 20 cookies

Nutrition per serving: Unable to calculate.

Candy-Topped Creamy Peanut Butter Bars

From Pillsbury

1 (18-ounce) tube sugar cookie dough Flour

3/4 cup margarine or butter, softened

1/2 cup peanut butter

2 cups confectioners’ sugar

2 tablespoons milk

1 cup salted peanuts

1 cup semisweet chocolate chips

1/4 cup whipping cream

1/2 cup miniature M&Ms

Break up cookie dough into ungreased 13-by-9-inch pan. With floured fingers, press dough evenly in bottom of pan to form crust. Bake in 350-degree oven for 12 to 16 minutes or until a light golden. In a medium bowl, combine 1/2 cup of the margarine or butter, peanut butter, confectioners’ sugar and milk. Beat until smooth. Stir in peanuts. Spread peanut butter mixture over the cooled crust.

In a small saucepan, combine chocolate chips and remaining 1/4 cup margarine or butter.

Cook over low heat until melted and smooth, stirring frequently. Remove from heat.

Cool 10 minutes.

Stir whipping cream into chocolate mixture until well blended. Spread over peanut butter mixture. Immediately sprinkle miniature M&Ms over chocolate. Refrigerate about 1 hour or until chocolate is set.

Cut into bars. Store in refrigerator.

Yield: About 36 cookies

Nutrition per serving: Unable to calculate.

Holiday Pinwheel Cookies

“Pillsbury: Dough Magic!” (Pillsbury, $25.95)

1 (18-ounce) tube sugar cookie dough

1/2 cup flour

3 tablespoons red sugar

3 tablespoons green sugar

Divide dough in half.

Sprinkle 1/4 cup flour onto work surface.

Roll out half of dough to 12- by-7-inch rectangle.

Repeat with remaining half of dough and ¼ cup flour.

Sprinkle 1 rectangle evenly with red sugar. Sprinkle other rectangle evenly with green sugar.

Starting with short side, roll up each rectangle jellyroll fashion.

Wrap rolls in waxed paper and refrigerate at least 1 hour for easier handling.

Cut each roll into 16 slices. Place slices 1 inch apart on ungreased cookie sheets.

Bake in 350-degree oven for 7 to 9 minutes, or until edges are a light golden brown.

Cool 1 minute, then remove from cookie sheets.

Yield: 32 cookies

Nutrition per serving: Unable to calculate.

Chocolate Walnut Meringues

From “A Baker’s Field Guide to Christmas Cookies” (Harvard Common, $14.95)

2 large egg whites

1/8 teaspoon cream of tartar

3/4 cup granulated sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 cup semisweet chocolate chips

1/4 cup walnut halves, toasted and finely chopped

Preheat oven to 275 degrees. Line two cookie sheets with parchment paper. In a medium, clean, grease-free bowl, with an electric mixer on high speed, whip egg whites until foamy. Add cream of tartar and whip until soft peaks form.

Add sugar gradually, whipping until stiff but not dry peaks form.

Beat in vanilla. Fold in chocolate chips and walnuts.

Drop by generously rounded teaspoon 2 inches apart on cookie sheets.

Bake until completely firm and dry, but still white, about 25 minutes; you should be able to lift cookies from pan.

Slide the parchment paper onto racks to cool cookies completely.

Cook’s tip: After you chop the walnuts, place them in a strainer and shake over sink to remove any powdery residue. You will be left with just firm, crunchy pieces of nuts, and the texture of your cookies will be even better than if you skip this step.

Yield: 30 cookies

Nutrition per cookie: 53 calories, 2 grams fat (1 gram saturated, 34 percent fat calories), 0.6 grams protein, 8.7 grams carbohydrate, no cholesterol, less than 1 gram dietary fiber, 4 milligrams sodium.

Quick Kissed Peanut Butter Cookies

From Pillsbury

1 (18-ounce) tube peanut butter cookie dough

18 (approximately) Hershey’s Kisses

Slice cookie dough into 1/4 -inch thick rounds.

Top each round with an unwrapped Hershey’s Kiss.

Bake on ungreased cookie sheets in 350-degree oven for 10 to 14 minutes or as directed on package.

Cool slightly, about 2 minutes, before removing from cookie sheet.

Yield: About 18 cookies

Nutrition per serving: Unable to calculate.

Chocolate Bourbon Balls

From “A Baker’s Field Guide to Christmas Cookies” (Harvard Common, $14.95)

2 1/2 cups vanilla wafer crumbs (Nilla Wafers or similar cookie)

1/2 cup confectioners’ sugar, sifted

1 cup pecan halves, finely ground in food processor

6 ounces semisweet or bittersweet chocolate, broken into pieces

1/2 cup bourbon (see note)

3 tablespoons light corn syrup

Granulated sugar

Place cookie crumbs, confectioners’ sugar and ground pecans in a large bowl and stir to combine.

Melt the chocolate in microwave or in top of double boiler over simmering water. Stir in bourbon and corn syrup. Add chocolate mixture to dry mixture and stir well to combine. Let sit for 30 minutes. Place granulated sugar in a small bowl.

Roll mixture between your palms into 1-inch balls, then roll in sugar to coat evenly. Place balls in airtight container, separating layers with aluminum foil or waxed paper, and allow flavors to develop by sitting at room temperature at least overnight. You may first place them in small fluted paper cups, if desired.

Note: For different flavors, substitute either dark rum, Grand Marnier or Kahlua for the bourbon.

Yield: 40 balls

Nutrition per serving: Unable to calculate.

Nanaimo Bars

From “A Baker’s Field Guide to Christmas Cookies” (Harvard Common, $14.95)

1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter

1 cup graham cracker crumbs (made from 8 whole crackers)

1 cup walnut halves, finely chopped

1 1/4 cups bittersweet or semisweet chocolate chips

1 cup sweetened flaked coconut

1 (14-ounce) can sweetened, condensed milk

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Place butter in 8-inch-square baking pan; put pan in oven until butter melts. Sprinkle graham cracker crumbs evenly over melted butter, stir with a spoon to combine, then pat crumbs into an even layer. Sprinkle walnuts evenly over crumb layer, then sprinkle chocolate chips evenly over nuts. Sprinkle coconut evenly over chocolate chips, then pour condensed milk evenly over all.

Bake until medium golden brown around edges and light golden brown all over the top, about 25 minutes. Middle will look a little loose; that’s OK. Place pan on rack to cool.

Yield: 25 bars

Approximate nutrition per bar: 206 calories, 12 grams fat (6 grams saturated, 52 percent fat calories), 3 grams protein, 23 grams carbohydrate, 17 milligrams cholesterol, 1 gram dietary fiber, 67 milligrams sodium.