Make Cherry Yuletide Crisps

4 Parts:

Ingredients

Directions

Tips and Hints

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Making Christmas cookies is one of the best things about the holiday season, but sometimes it seems that there isn't enough time to get everything done, let alone spend hours baking dozens of cookies. If you want to have a life outside your kitchen, there are many kinds of cookies that take a minimal amount of effort and still look so beautiful that friends will wonder where you found the time to bake them. Some of the easiest cookies to prepare are those that you shape by hand and these wonderful, bite sized cookies are no exception. Topped with red and green maraschino cherries, they fit right into the Christmas theme, as well as into your hectic schedule. Makes 5 dozen cookies

• 1 cup of butter, softened to room temperature
• 6 oz. of cream cheese, room temperature
• 1 cup of sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon of almond extract
• 2 cups of all-purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons of baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon of salt
• 1 1/2 cups of crispy rice cereal, crushed
• 30 maraschino cherries (red/green, or both), cut in half and gently dried with a paper towel

1. 1
   Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

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2. 2
   In a very large mixing bowl, cream together the butter, sugar, and cream cheese.

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3. 3
   Add the almond extract and mix well.

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4. 4
   In a second bowl, combine the baking powder, salt, and flour.

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5. 5
   Add slowly to the creamed ingredients until well combined

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   Dough will be sticky.

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6. 6
   Cover with plastic wrap and place in refrigerator until dough is firm enough to handle

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   That should take about an hour.

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7. 7
   Using your hands, shape the dough into 1 1/4 inch balls and roll each of them in the crushed cereal.

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8. 8
   Place each cookie onto an ungreased cookie sheet leaving 2 inches between each ball.

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9. 9
   Bake for 13-15 minutes or until slightly browned.

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10. 10
    As soon as the cookies are removed from the oven, press a cherry half into the center.

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• If you don't like maraschino cherries, you can substitute dried fruit for the center.
• Try adding different spices to your cookie dough for a whole new taste.
• Use cocoa flavored rice cereal for rolling the cookies, it adds just a hint of chocolaty flavor.

If you have problems with any of the steps in this article, please ask a question for more help, or post in the comments section below.

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