OK y’all:  you need to procure yourselves some cookie cutters and start baking.  Bonus points if you make a bigger mess than I did when I made the biggest batch of Christmas cookies ever seen in Trinidad and Tobago:

The details:

Two parties, one afternoon.  Two recipes, one big rainstorm.  Nine cookie cutters, one floury camera.  One pregnant woman delighted with cookies, one first-time cookie-cutting baker satisfied with her newly-found mad skillz.  Oh yeah, and 200-some mini cookies.

The recipes:

Ha, like I’d try my hand at making my own cookie recipe! I know my limits and rely on others to get such important things as measurements and temperatures right:

• Jenna ‘s Old-Fashioned Gingerbread Cookies with a Twist
• Rachel’s Mom’s Perfect Sugar Cookies (to which I added the zest of a small lime on its last leg)

The evidence:

The verdict:

The doughs were both incredibly easy to work with–I just floured everything (and myself).  I managed to make ALL the batter–all 200-something cookies–without burning a single batch!  I loved how simple yet festive they were, and the baked-for folks were pretty happy with their cookie presents, too.  Next time, I’ll be adding a bit more baking soda at the suggestion of a trusted baker–the humidity turns them a bit smooshy and spongy after sitting out for more than fifteen minutes–but that goes for ALL my cookies here.

Oh yeah… And I now want cookie cutters for every single occasion.