National Cookie Day
Talk about a post that writes itself! A quick glance through my recipes index gives us 18 cookie recipes, many Polish, many not. Our family’s love of cookies is apparent, and December 4th is the perfect time to share recipes for National Cookie Day! In time for you to plan your Christmas baking.
Our love of cookies goes way back. Many years ago when we were a young Air Force family, we attended a squadron Christmas party. Santa brought presents for the kids; there was a buffet table full of Christmas cookies.
I was a staying at home with our twins, taking college classes at night, I didn’t have much of a social life, so I didn’t really know most of the people there.
More concerned about what other people thought than I would be today, I was horrified to look down to see one of our three-year olds grabbing hands full of cookies and stuffing them in mouth. As I’m saying “no-no, one cookie at a time,” she quickly responded, “but mommy, I’m the Cookie Monster; me love cookies, num num num!”
Several decades later, when I asked the Cookie Monster’s twin sister what she would like for breakfast Christmas morning, her answer was, “homemade cookies!”
You should know that the Hazelnut Chocolate Chip cookies below also have bits of toffee, and they were the ones requested by our youngest daughter in a care package when she went to collage in Florida.
In the cookie of life, friends are the chocolate chips!
Cookie Tables at Weddings
Have you ever been to a wedding in Pittsburgh or Youngstown, Ohio? I’ll bet there was a cookie table. It’s a great western PA tradition that dates back to Catholic weddings during the Great Depression. Today every wedding is expected to offer guests a grand assortment of cookies. If you aren’t familiar with the yummy concept, you can read more about it on this post from Tastecooking.com.
Our daughters have grown up in Arizona, but having enjoyed the cookie tables when their cousins married, I know that if there are weddings in our future, cookie tables will be expected.
Cookie Varieties
I love the variety of cookies; there are so many options: drop cookies like chocolate chips, bar cookies or tray bakes as they’re called in other parts of the world, rolled cookies likeĀ pierniczki the famous Polish gingerbread cookie.
Pierniczki is so well-known and popular that there are shops selling nothing but pierniczki, plain pierniczki, jam filled pierniczki, chocolate covered pierniczki, and my favorite marzipan filled and chocolate covered pierniczki, all presented with a variety of packing and gift box ideas.
The great thing about cookies is that they’re small, so you can sample more than one kind. Whatever you choose, I hope you and yours will enjoy these recipes for National Cookie Day.
Smacznego!
Lois
Polish cookie recipes
1. Polish Almond Crescent Cookies
All my other cookie recipes
1.Peanut Butter Blossom Cookies
5. Pretzel Potato Chip Cookies
6. Hazelnut Chocolate Chip Cookies
7. The Perfect Chocolate Chip Cookie
An accountant by trade and a food blogger since 2009, Lois Britton fell in love with Polish cuisine during the years she lived in PoznaÅ, Poland. As the creator of PolishHousewife.com,Ā she loves connecting readers with traditional Polish recipes. Lois has a graduate certificate in Food Writing and Photography from the University of South Florida. She is the author of The Polish Housewife Cookbook, available on Amazon and on her website.
johnny suitch
hi lois! i made your polish ground beef cutlets (kotlety wolowe siekane). they were delicious! the next day the noodles and gravy from the cutlets with the mushrooms vanished! they were a real hit and should be tried by anybody who is looking for a wonderful uncomplicated meal,
.. thank you again. johnny
ps. these recipes are priceless to some one like me who never got his moms old country recipes. the cutlets the next day tasted like moms left over meatloaf which was to die for. i believe i will make a meatloaf from this rec., and i cant wait to try the poppy seed bread. thanks again. so simple sooooo gooooood!!
polishhousewife
Hi Johnny! Thanks for your kind words. I’m delighted to connect you with some happy memories! š
Sandra Morrissey
I saw the recipe for the cutlets but not gravy and noodles. Where is that recipe
polishhousewife
https://polishhousewife.com/creamed-mushrooms-grzyby-w-sosie/
johnny suitch
sandra i made the noodles just as a side and combined the mushrooms cutlets and gravy. the cutlets crate their own gravy with the flour butter and beef stock. this dish is stupid goooood!! it was a smash hit at the house. it vanished. thank you again lois!!
polishhousewife
I’m so happy to hear you liked it!
johnny suitch
lois i also made the polish potato cake. i made it to the recipe and it was delicious. yesterday i went big and used 1 lb of bacon 5 links of kielbasa, 4 vadalia onions and 13 medium potatoes. i used a cast iron dutch oven to cook the babka in! i fed the neighbors, and the rest vanished!! i cant tell you how much i appreciate your recipe posts. they really are old world good. the marjoram is such a wonderful spice. thank you again. poppy seed bread and nut roll are on the agenda next along with a visit to the cardiologist, lol.
polishhousewife
LOL, you are too funny Johnny! Happy cooking! š