Baking Interlude: Christmas Cookies

I don't generally post about baking, but with the magnitude of cookies that have been made in the kitchen lately, it deserves a mention. Here they are! The L&J Christmas Cookies:

Look at all those fabulous cookies! 

I'll be the first one to admit that we sort of went a little overboard this Christmas. Okay. We went a lot overboard! The picture doesn't even have all of the kinds that L and I made. Sort of starting at the top, this is what we made:

- Gingerbread [J&L] (Two kinds. One butter, one shortening. I wanted to do a taste test and FYI - butter won. Thank God.)

- Peppermint Brownies. [L]

- Peanut Butter Marshmallow bars [J] (I made these b/c my Grandma makes them.)

- Vanilla Meringue [J]

- Sugar Cookie [J] (the snowflake)

- Hazelnut Linzer with Nutella filling [J]

- Peppermint Bark [J]

- Pumpkin Spice [J]

- Lemon with cream cheese icing [J] (Round cookie on the right)

- Lebkuken [J] (rectangle cookie. I had to make freaking candied orange peel to go in this cookie! That was on ordeal let me tell you!)

- Chocolate Pistachio [J] (They are Christmas trees, although you can't tell in this picture)

- Chocolate Toffee [L]

- Vanilla bean Jam thumbprint [L] (These are fabulous. I ate 6 in one sitting.)

- Cherry Chocolate chip Drops [L]

(Not shown: Nanaimo Bars[L] & Pistachio White Chocolate Biscotti[L])

Did I say overboard? Yes. Yes I did. 

Can I say, I gained 10lbs already this Christmas? Okay, I could say that, but it would be a lie. Although maybe not by much. 

The freezer is is so empty now that they are all gone. L and I packaged them up in chinese food boxes, and when we ran out of those red paper bags. Aren't they cute? Our company is small, so we only had to make 30 bags, but they were FULL to the brim. We actually had more cookies than could fit in the boxes/bags.

(I wasn't lying when I said overboard!)

Then we handed them out at work today. That's just us helping to keep the BMI high. I think we did a very, very, very good job of that. If I never see a stick of butter again, that's fine by me. Or maybe at least until next November. 

Okay! Who am I kidding? I still haven't gone home for Christmas. There will be more cookies there and I still won't say no. Especially to gingerbread! 

But that's what New Years resolutions are for. Right?

(Still waiting on my exchange cookies. I hope they get here before Friday! Otherwise, L will be eating all of them. I at least want to see them...)