I love cookies! I love Christmas! So it would make a lot of sense that I love Christmas cookies. I am not sure what makes a cookie a Christmas cookie to you but I know what it means to me. Christmas cookies are cookies that are special because family or friends share them with you around the holidays. The idea came to me to host a cookie party. I know that some cookie parties mean you come over to someone’s house and make cookies there and share stories and fellowship with them. I can’t do that. Have you seen my kitchen? Wife, son, two dogs and I barely fit in there as it is. So as an alternative, I thought it would be cool to have everyone just bring their own cookies over to share and we would provide milk and other cookie and non cookie related beverages.

So I want to share my cookie stories here with you all. I did not make cookies that involve icing, a press, or anything fancy, just ones that mean something to me. Looking at the attached picture I am going to start in the upper left and work my way around clockwise. If you guessed that means I am starting with a peanut butter cookie, you would be correct. Peanut butter cookies seem to be a St. Louis staple. Each year my mom and sister would make these cookies. To me they are some of the best things my sister ever made. I know she made some other good things like buckeyes and many sweets, but these were my favorite. I remember dunking peanut butter cookies at my sister’s house on New Year’s Eve.

Next is a cookie my wife got from a friend of ours from church. They are even flourless. Peanut butter chocolate chip cookies. Earlier this year the St. Louis area was hit with a tornado. We found out that part of our friend’s neighborhood was hit so we went out to the St. Charles area and asked to help. We ended up mostly at another friend’s house and did a lot of limb and tree removal. At the end of the day they shared some cookies, and these are our version of these cookies. My wife calls them one of her favorites.

Next is a cookie my Grandma taught me how to make. My mother actually made them more. Have you ever had a cookie with vinegar in it? I suggest you try these Imperial butter cookies. They are supposed to be made with Imperial margarine but any butter will do. They are thin, crispy, sugary, buttery goodness. These are some of my favorite cookies ever. Yummy dunked in milk or by themselves.

Going full circle on the plate are cookies I never thought I would like. Some years ago a friend of ours in our church small group made them for some reason. She wouldn’t give me the recipe so later I asked her to make them again. Then she told me that they were just Cindy McCain’s Oatmeal Butterscotch cookies. See when each party gets their nominee for President the wives make a competing cookie to raise money for charity. Who knew? These are great cookies and I even keep them in the freezer so they are extra crunchy.

I know that all of you are not going to be able to come over and enjoy these cookies, but at least now you will know the stories behind mine. I would like to thank my sister, mother, grandma, Dana, and Jennifer for the inspirations behind this year’s cookies. Merry Christmas to all!