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To download my Gingerbread Cookie Sticks recipe now as a free PDF, click here.
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Eat with holiday joy!
~ Cleo
A Note from Cleo
Our readers may remember this festive cookie from Once Upon a Grind, our 14th Coffeehouse Mystery and a wonderful read for the fall season. The story kicks off with a Fairy Tale Festival in Central Park, where the first crime scene occurs.
Our readers may remember this festive cookie from Once Upon a Grind, our 14th Coffeehouse Mystery and a wonderful read for the fall season. The story kicks off with a Fairy Tale Festival in Central Park, where the first crime scene occurs.
Our amateur sleuth Clare is working at the festival with her merry band of baristas, who give her shop's coffee truck a Jack-in-the-Beanstalk makeover. Unfortunately for Clare, her coffee hunter ex-husband Matt brings his own "magic beans," coffee beans sourced from a legendary (but very real) area of Africa, and they bring Giant trouble.
These cookies, on the other hand, are designed to bring joy. Drizzle them with melted white chocolate or make my vanilla glaze (recipe included). A final sprinkling of white (coarse) sparkling sugar will create a treat as pretty as a winter snowfall. May you bake them with love and eat with holiday joy!
~ Cleo
Makes about 4-5 dozen cookie sticks, depending on size
~ Cleo
To learn more about Cleo Coyle's
Coffeehouse Mystery ONCE UPON A GRIND
(a Fairy Tale Murder in Central Park),
click here.
Coffeehouse Mystery ONCE UPON A GRIND
(a Fairy Tale Murder in Central Park),
click here.
Cleo Coyle's Iced
Gingerbread Cookie Sticks
☕ Elegant, Edible Coffee Stirrers for Holiday TraysMakes about 4-5 dozen cookie sticks, depending on size
For cookies:
2-1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon table salt
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
2 teaspoons ground ginger
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground allspice (or 1⁄8 teaspoon ground cloves)
10 tablespoons (1-1/4 sticks) unsalted butter, softened to room temperature*
2/3 cup dark brown sugar, firmly packed
1/4 cup molasses (unsulphured, not blackstrap)
1/3 whole milk (or brewed coffee)*
To finish:
Vanilla Glaze (see recipe below) and
White (coarse) sparkling sugar (about 1/4 cup)
*Note: To make this recipe dairy free replace butter with non-dairy margarine and the whole milk with coffee or almond milk.
Step 1— Assemble the dry ingredients. In a mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, salt, baking soda, ginger, cinnamon, and allspice (or cloves). Set aside.
Step 2—Make the dough. Using an electric mixer, cream the softened butter and dark brown sugar; add the molasses and milk (or coffee) and blend again. While continuing to beat at a low speed, slowly add in your dry ingredients, blending to make a smooth dough. Do not overbeat, but be sure all of the flour mixture is incorporated.
CLEO TIP #1: The dough should be sticky and in the next step you will chill it to harden up the butter, but you may need to adjust the dough slightly, depending on your climate. If your dough seems very wet, beat in a bit more flour. But don't overdo it because too much flour will toughen up your cookie.
Step 4—Roll the dough. First, preheat the oven to 350°F. Remove the chilled dough disks from the fridge and (if too hard) allow to warm just enough to become pliable. Place the dough between two sheets of lightly flour-dusted parchment paper. (This is a great method for rolling cookies because you will only need the lightest dusting of flour, which will keep the cookies from toughening up.)
Roll your dough thin, about the
thickness of a pie crust, around 1/8 inch.
Step 5—Cut the cookies. Remove the top layer of parchment paper. Use a pizza cutter to clean up the edges of your rectangle and slice into sticks. Do not move the sticks off the bottom parchment layer. Simply slip the entire sheet of parchment onto a cookie sheet.
Step 6—Bake. Bake for 10 to 13 minutes. When the cookies are finished baking, you will need to recut them and you must do this while the cookies are still warm.
Gently slide the entire sheet of parchment paper onto a cutting board or a sturdy counter surface and use your original slicing lines as a guide. The pizza cutter will make quick work of it, roll from the top down, as you see in my photo below, so you can easily follow your lines.
Step 7—COOL: You must allow the cookie sticks to cool completely before handling. If you try to move them while they are warm, they are very likely to crack and break (ask me how I know).
Step 8—Drizzle with glaze. Once cool, you can make the glaze (recipe below) or melt white chocolate and drizzle it on the sticks. Finish with a sprinkling of white (coarse) sparkling sugar.
Cleo's Vanilla Glaze
Ingredients:
2 tablespoons butter or margarine
1 tablespoon milk or cream (or almond milk)
1 cup powdered sugar, sifted
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract (for a whiter glaze, use clear vanilla)
Directions: In a small saucepan, over medium-low heat, melt the butter. Add milk and whisk in the powdered sugar, a little at a time. When all the sugar is melted into the butter and milk, remove from heat and stir in the vanilla.
TEST ON A PLATE: Before drizzling on your cookie sticks, use a fork and drizzle a bit on a plate. If you’re having trouble drizzling it nicely, then it’s too thick, whisk in a bit more milk. If the glaze doesn’t harden fairly quickly after cooling, then it’s too thin. Add a bit more powdered sugar and continue to cook it down until it’s thick enough.
To download these recipe
in a free PDF document with
additional step-by-step photos,
click here, and print, save,
or share it.
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Quickie Decorating Tip
A little reminder of a common way you can make your tables appear more festive and romantic during the holiday season. Choose pretty glassware, making sure it's thick, sturdy glass. Fill or partially fill the containers with water and float tea candles in them.
We use plain and scented tea candles: apple-cinnamon, berry, and French vanilla are all beautiful aromas for the holidays. Marc and I always have fun searching thrift stores for retro glassware of all shapes and sizes.
May your holidays be bright!