Top 5 Retro Christmas Cookies
It is no secret that I love retro recipes. I’ve collected cookbooks over the years from as far back as 1890. To help you out with your Christmas baking, here are my top five Christmas cookies recipes from decades gone by.
Grandma Gig’s Oatmeal Walnut Cookies circa 1952
My step-mom’s famous recipe. They won a blue ribbon in the 1950’s in the Traverse City, MI county fair. All three of my boys can’t stop eating these! When shopping for ingredients, don’t forget powdered sugar to roll them in before baking.
Cream:
2 C brown sugar
2 sticks real butter, softened
Mix in:
2 eggs
1 t vanilla extract
In another bowl mix:
2 C all-purpose flour
1 t salt
1 t baking soda
3 C quick oats
1 C chopped walnuts
Blend well and chill dough, covered, for four hours or overnight. Roll into 1 1/2 inch balls. Roll in powdered sugar. Place on ungreased cookie sheet and bake 10-13 minutes at 350 degrees or until lightly golden. Do not over-bake.
Church Window Cookies circa 1960
A classic cookie that has adorned holiday trays since the 1960’s. I make them every year.
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter or margarine
1 package (12 ounce) chocolate chips
1/2 cup walnuts, chopped
1 package mini colored marshmallows
3 C. flaked coconut
In a large saucepan over very low heat, melt butter and chocolate chips together. Cool. Gently stir in nuts and marshmallows until blended.
Divide mixture into three parts. Place flaked coconut on a sheet of waxed paper. Spread chocolate over coconut to form three “logs”. Sprinkle coconut over top and sides of logs. Wrap in wax paper and twist ends shut with twist ties.
Chill in refrigerator overnight. Unwrap, slice and package as desired.
Chocolate Cherry Drop Cookies circa 1978
Reminds me of a chocolate-covered cherry. I got this recipe from my good friend back Suzy in the 1990’s.
In a large bowl cream:
1 stick butter
1 C sugar
1 1/2 t vanilla
1 egg
In a separate medium bowl mix:
1 1/2 C flour
1/2 C cocoa powder
1/4 t salt
1/4 t baking soda
1/4 t baking powder
Gently mix the dry ingredients into the creamed butter mixture. Batter will not be stiff, but moist.
Drain one large jar maraschino cherries setting aside juice.
Drop dough into heaping tablespoons on an ungreased cookie sheet. Push a cherry down into each. BEFORE baking frost with frosting below.
Frosting:
Over very low heat melt:
6 ounces semi-sweet chocolate chips
Add:
1/2 C sweetened condensed milk
4 t reserved cherry juice
BEFORE BAKING top each cookie with a teaspoon frosting. Bake at 350 degrees for 10-12 minutes. Do not over bake.
Iced Gingerbread Cookies circa 1940
Super easy and super delicious! It just isn’t Christmas without some sort of gingerbread. These will do the trick!
In a large saucepan boil:
1 stick butter
2/3 C white sugar
1 T vinegar
1/2 C blackstrap molasses
1 1/8 t ground ginger
1/2 t cinnamon
1/8 t allspice
Remove from heat and add:
1/2 t baking soda that has been dissolved in 2 t hot water
Add:
1 egg
1 t baking powder
3 C all-purpose four
Cool and cover. Chill in fridge for three hours. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Roll into 1 1/2 inch balls. Place on ungreased cookie sheet and bake 10-13 minutes or until lightly golden. Do not over-bake. Cool slightly. Then, drizzle icing over.
Icing:
1 C powdered sugar
1/2 t vanilla
Thin with a few tablespoons milk until it is of a consistency that can be drizzled over the cookies. Drizzle and let cool completely.
Merry Berry Cheesecake Bars circa 1986
I found this recipe in a magazine when I was first married. Great for the cranberry lover.
2 C all-purpose flour
1 1/2 C quick oats
3/4 C firmly packed brown sugar
2 sticks butter, softened
1 block cream cheese, softened
1 can sweetened condensed milk
1 16 ounce can whole berry cranberry sauce
1/4 C real lemon juice
2 T corn starch
Beat first four ingredients until well blended. Reserve 1 1/2 C mixture and press remaining in a greased 9 x 13 inch pan. Bake 15 minutes at 350 degrees until golden brown. Remove from oven. Beat cream cheese until fluffy and add canned milk and lemon juice. Spread over crust. Combine cranberry sauce and corn starch. Spread over cream cheese. Top with remaining flour mixture crumbled over the top. Return to oven for 40-45 minutes or until lightly golden. Cool and cut into bars.
Enjoy!
Want more recipes? Grab my fave Christmas appetizers and desserts HERE.
always looking for cookies for my cookie exchange
These look amazing. You need to write a cookbook That way my daughter and I can make many of you amazing cookies and other treats.
These look yummy,
Those Church Window cookies are definitely a blast from the past. I bet my kids will have fun making those with me.
Ok these look yummo
my grandma and aunts would always make an assortment of cookies at Christmastime – they weren’t these recipes, but it reminds me of that. need to try these out before next Christmas!
Definitely saving this for next Christmas!! You seem to have recipes for every season. That would be a great cookbook theme. ;)
I cannot believe you have recipes on your site! And here I thought you had them locked away in a recipe box for safekeeping. Now I want to just go through and bake all of these cookies!
Karen, WHEN ARE YOU GOING TO WRITE A COOKBOOK?!?!? Seriously. :-D
With the collection of recipes you share, you should put a cookbook together!
My granddaughter s and I have an annual cookie baking day each December. We’ll be sure to use these recipes next year! Thanks, Karen!
I really wish I could buy a cookbook of all your yummy recipes!!!!
These cookies look amazing! Thank you for sharing your recipes, Karen!
See? Now I need to start Christmas all over again, because these recipes are screaming my name like a frustrated toddler!! Are these recipes available in a cookbook (because I loathe having to remember which blog I found something on)? If so, where can we buy a copy of your cookbook? I’m a cookbook lover (*I just can’t call it hoarding, because, well, they’re often used cookbooks, not trash… ;-) )
The church window cookies look good. I would love to try them. Have you thought about putting together a cookbook so we can make some of the recipes you show? I’m not very good at thinking up new things to make.
Oh my yum!! These look delicious!
Those gingerbread cookies look tasty!!
Karen, you need to put all your recipes together into a cookbook!
Love your recipes and I love old recipe books! Thank you so much for sharing! Perhaps these should be brought together under a Karen Ehman book
Cookie recipes! Yes! Score!
Oh my! I just found new cookie recipes to try! You seriously need to put out a cookbook!!
wonderful and easy recipes! You should write a cookbook (with photos of course)!
I would love to see you write a retro cookbook, Karen! These are fun recipes and posts!
Old recipies are my very most favorite
I read your Chocolate Cherry Drop Cookie recipe repeatedly and couldn’t quite figure out what to do. It is a little confusing as written. Sounds like a delicious idea, though.