My Swedish grandmother’s signature Christmas cookie was called Pepparkokar - a snappy little ginger cookie - sprinkled with pearl sugar or parlsokar (dang, where’s my umlaut key when I need it?) They were what Christmas tasted like.

I read this article on the front page on Thanksgiving. It’s about a grandmother who passed down her recipes, secrets, and techniques to the next generation - and it made me feel a pang of regret. I wish we had a roll up your sleeves and roll out the dough Pepparkakor 101 session before grandma became too ill. My grandmother told my mother the key technique to her Pepparkokar during her last days. “Roll them thin,” she said, “paper thin.” My mom and aunt are trying to keep the recipe going. I’m going to attempt to learn along with them when we go home for the holidays. I admit - I’m intimidated by the recipe. The pressure to do her proud is too much for me to do without a support system.

Well, this past weekend I turned on my Chrismix playlist on the old iPod and tried a new ginger cookie recipe along with Ben. I experimented with a thicker and more succulent gingerbread recipe that a friend shared with me recently. (Gingerbread Snowflakes recipe here) We made a floury mess, rolled out the dough and did cut-outs with some good ‘ol Vince Guiraldi in the background. Ben loved it. The cookies turned out so fabulous I don’t think they need any icing. Perhaps we just found our own little recipe to become a tradition and pass down.

Trying to sneak some dough.

BTW: If you are looking for more ideas and inspiration for cookie recipes - Taste staffers Lee Svitak Dean and Rick Nelson just launched a holiday cookie blog called the Cookie Exchange. They are featuring a cookie recipe a day through the holiday season. Check it out here: COOKIE EXCHANGE.

Do you have a sentimental cookie favorite you make each year? Or what cookies do you find easy to create with the little ones? Do share.

This entry was posted on Monday, December 1st, 2008 at 10:15 am and is filed under Family Life, Food, Holidays, Related Articles. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.