The First Love Cookie Club

What’s more fun than falling in love during the holidays? There’s something about that chill in the air that makes sharing Halloween scares with your sweetie more thrilling. Or the coziness of sitting down with the family on Thanksgiving to introduce your new love to the clan amidst delicious smells and decadent treats. And then there’s Christmas. Holding hands while walking through the snow. Sharing a mug of spiced cider. Decorating the tree. Caroling White Christmas.

The town in The First Love Cookie Club celebrates all things romantic, particularly around the holidays. Each year Twilight, Texas celebrates Dickens on the Square, where for one weekend the town square is magically turned into Victorian era England. And the whole thing is run by the good-hearted ladies of The First Love Cookie Club. Their holiday celebration culminates with a community tree decorating project and a Christmas cookie swap sure to please taste buds.

The five rules of Cookie Club are:

1)      No men allowed

2)      All cookies must be homemade

3)      Holiday attire must be worn to each meeting

4)      Flour must be the main ingredient in the cookies

5)      Whatever is said at cookie club, stays at cookie club

Cookie Club is all about sharing, caring and sisterhood. And one of the things they share is the legend of the kismet cookies. On Christmas Eve, if bake kismet cookies and sleep with them under your pillow, you will dream of your one true love.

To get into the spirit of the season, I’m sharing Gramma Mia’s special kismet cookie recipe.

Kismet Cookies

Ingredients
1 3/4 cups unbleached all-purpose flour

1/2 teaspoon baking soda
14 tablespoons unsalted butter
1/2 cup granulated sugar
3/4 cup packed dark brown sugar
1 teaspoon table salt
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 large egg
1 large egg yolk
2 cups rolled oats

¾ cup shredded coconut

1 ½ cups dried cranberries
3/4 cup chopped macadamia nuts toasted (optional)

Directions
Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 375 degrees. Whisk flour and baking soda together; set aside.

Heat 10 tablespoons butter in 10-inch skillet over medium-high heat until melted, about 2 minutes. Continue cooking, swirling pan constantly until butter is dark golden brown and has nutty aroma, 1-3 minutes. Remove skillet from heat and, using heatproof spatula, transfer browned butter to large heatproof bowl. Stir remaining 4 tablespoons butter into hot butter until completely melted.

Add both sugars, salt and vanilla to bowl with butter and whisk until fully incorporated. Add egg and yolk and whisk until mixture is smooth with no sugar lumps remaining, about 30 seconds. Let mixture stand for 3 minutes, then whish for 30 seconds. Repeat process of resting and whisking 2 more times until mixture is thick, smooth and shiny. *

*Yes, it’s painstaking but don’t skip this step!

Using rubber spatula or wooden spoon, stir in flour mixture until just combined, about 1 minute. Stir in rolled oats, coconut, dried cranberries and macadamia nuts, giving dough a final stir to ensure no flour pockets remain.

Bake cookies 1 tray at a time until cookies are golden brown and still puffy, and edges have begun to set but centers are still soft, 10-14 minutes, rotating baking sheet halfway through baking. Transfer baking sheet to wire rack; cool cookies completely before serving.

Sleep with them under your pillow on Christmas Eve and dream of your one true love.

Do you have a favorite Christmas Cookie recipe you’d like to share? Or tell us about your most romantic Christmas.