What I have found to be the perfect gift for these people is something consumable that will not clutter their home or office or have to be dusted, causing more work. Most folks also love to receive homemade goodies, which shows thoughtfulness and a personal touch, even to those you may not know so well. Faces always light up at the sight of cute little boxes filled with cookies, tied up with adorable gift tags.
I like to put 2-3 cookies of 2-3 different types in each box. They look so cute stacked together, and with a variety, you are sure to have at least one of their favorites. Stick with traditional cookies, like chocolate chip or peanut butter, but be sure to have a showy cookie on top, like sugar or thumbprint cookies.
Depending on the size of the cookies, you can fit 6-8 in a box. Sometimes, I use tissue or wax paper to fill in the empty space behind the cookies to be sure you can see them all through the little window of the box.
To me, there is nothing more satisfying than finding the perfect gift for someone and seeing their reaction upon receiving it - except maybe cooking for someone and watching them enjoy the food I’ve prepared. Giving cookie boxes does both! I hope you enjoy preparing and giving cookie boxes as much as I do!
If you do choose to bake your own cookies, here’s one of my favorite recipes:
Cranberry White Chocolate Oatmeal Cookies
1 cup butter, softened
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1 1/2 cups firmly packed brown sugar
3 large eggs
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
3 cups quick-cooking oats
1 cup white chocolate chips
1 cup sweetened dried cranberries
Preheat oven to 350°. Grease baking sheets.
In a large bowl, beat butter and sugars at medium-high speed with an electric mixer until light and fluffy. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add vanilla, beating to combine. Sift together flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, nutmeg, and cinnamon. Gradually add flour mixture to butter mixture, beating until combined. Add oats, white chocolate chips, and cranberries, beating until combined. Scoop or drop batter by heaping tablespoonfuls onto prepared baking sheets. Bake until lightly browned, 10-12 minutes. Store in an airtight container for up to 5 days.
**A great tip: If you want to make this cookie dough ahead of time, scoop the batter onto a baking sheet and cover with plastic wrap. Place baking sheet in the freezer overnight. Remove the frozen scoops of dough and store in freezer bags until ready to bake.
Enjoy!
Click below for a printable version of this recipe!

cranberry_cookies.pdf |