5 Delicious Christmas Cookies to Bake and Share

Baking for friends during the holidays is a great way to show you care. It's also budget friendly. Today, I'm sharing five of my favourite Christmas Cookie Recipes for baking and sharing this holiday season.

1) Soft and Chewy GINGER MOLASSES Cookies - I've been making these cookies with my kids since they were little... and they are always a kit with family and friends.

2) Melt in your mouth SHORTBREAD cookies - These cookies come together quickly with a few ingredients, and they are delicious. They are wonderful plain OR with a bit of buttercream icing.

Recipe for the perfect melt in your mouth shortbread cookies

Ingredients:

2 cups softened butter

2 cups powdered sugar

2 egg yolks

4 cups flour

1 cup cornstarch

Directions:

In a large bowl, cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add egg yolks and mix well. Add flour and cornstarch until combined.

Then, refrigerate the dough in the fridge for 30 minutes. 

Roll dough between two sheets of parchment, cut with a cookie cutter, and place on an ungreased cookie sheet.

Bake at 350 until cookies are lightly brown on the bottom... approximate 10 - 12 minutes.

3)  PEANUT BUTTER reindeer cookies - Bake your favourite peanut butter cookie recipe. Then, after you've taken them out of the oven, add broken pretzel piece antlers, googly eyes, and a red candy nose.

4) Red & Green Christmas M&M Cookies - Your favourite chocolate chip cookie recipe can be a festive treat--just substitute red and green M&Ms for the chocolate chips. You can find my favourite recipe here.

5) Peanut butter CHOCOLATE KISS Cookies - There is nothing better than the combination of chocolate and peanut butter... and these cookies are simple to make and totally delicious. You can find my recipe here.

All of these cookies are perfect for enjoy at Christmas... and for sharing!

♥
Gina Bell (aka East Coast Mommy)

24 Days of Easy and Inexpensive HANDMADE Christmas Gifts

This year, I want to help you give thoughtful and budget-friendly gifts, so I'm sharing 24 days of HANDMADE Christmas gifts. I'll keep adding to this post every day of December, so keep coming back to check what's new. Click on the titles to see the step-by-step instructional videos, get all the DIY details, and grab the free tags.

DAY 1 - COZY CHRISTMAS MOVIE WATCHING KIT

DAY 2 - HOMEMADE SIMMER POT KITS

DAY 3 - DISPOSABLE DISHES AND FREE PUNNY TAGS

DAY 4 - ADORABLE EDIBLE GIFTS FOR ADULTS & KIDS (and FREE printable tags)

DAY 5 - DOLLAR STORE FRAME FILLED WITH TICKETS... FREE GIFT TAGS INCLUDED

DAY 6 - CREATIVELY (AND ADORABLY) WRAPPED CHOCOLATES... WITH WARM WISHES GIFT TAGS INCLUDED

DAY 7 - HOMEMADE CHRISTMAS COOKIE MIX

Day 8 - HANDMADE, PERSONALIZED ORNAMENTS (4 different options)... and a free printable gift tag

Day 9 - HANDMADE SOAPS THAT ARE NOSTALGIC AND BEAUTIFUL... and free printable gift tags

Day 10 - ADORABLE EDIBLE GIFTS THAT KIDS WILL LOVE.

Day 11 - "REINDEER POOP" COOKIES (RECIPE AND FREE PRINTABLE GIFT TAGS INCLUDED)

Day 12 - A FUN WAY TO GIFT WINE (INCLUDING FREE PRINTABLE GIFTS TAGS)

Day 13 - PERSONALIZED SNOWBALL KIT

Day 14 - "WE WHISK YOU A MERRY CHRISTMAS" GIFT... WITH FREE PRINTABLE TAGS

Day 15 - PERSONALIZED, INEXPENSIVE DOLLAR STORE BLANKS

Day 16 - A SMALL AND USEUL GIFT. PERECT ON ITS OWN OR PAIRED WITH A GIFT CARD

To download the "Mistletoe Ready" tags I designed (FOR FREE) - Click on the picture of the tags below, right-click, save it to your computer, and print it like a regular 4x6 photo.

Day 17 - FUN WAY TO GIVE A GIFT CARD. It's super-easy to make, and you can find the step by step instructions here.

Day 18 - SHARING PLATE

Day 19 - SIMPLE CHARCUTERIE BOARD

Day 20 - DIY CHRISTMAS GAME

Day 21 - CUSTOM HOT CHOCOLATE BASKET

Day 22 - A CUTE WAY TO DELIVER A LITTLE FESTIVE CHEER

Day 23 - THE BEST HOMEMADE GOODIES TO BAKE AND SHARE

Day 24 - A CREATIVE WAY TO WRAP A GIFT

DIY Gifts that will add MAGIC to Christmas… including free tags / Budget friendly Christmas DIYs made using Dollar Store Supplies 🎄

I believe it's the little moments and thoughtful gifts that make Christmas special. Today, I'm sharing DIY gifts that will add MAGIC to the season. I'm also including FREE downloadable tags that you can use (below).

1) My Cozy Christmas Movie Watching Kits - I love these little kits. They are a perfect way to make an evening at home special... and they are a great party favour for larger celebrations with family and friends. Find out how to make them here.

And you can download the inserts I designed for FREE. Just click on the picture below, right click, save it to your computer, and print it like a regular 4x6 photo.

2) Simmer Pot Kits - What's better than a useful gift that is also festive and fun? Check out how easy these kits are to make here, and download the FREE printable tags below.

To download the inserts I designed for FREE: click on the picture below, right click, save it to your computer, and print it like a regular 4x6 photo.

3) Christmas Eve Kits - What's more magical that Christmas Eve? And these kits are the perfect way to share the magic. Find out how easy they are to make here.

4) Personalized Christmas Eve Gift Boxes - These Christmas Eve Gift Boxes are the perfect way to gift treats and Christmas PJs. Who would guess that they started as plain white gift boxes from Dollarama? Check out the step by step instructions here.

For a closer look, take a look at the short video I made below.

Wishing you a MAGICAL CHRISTMAS!!!

💗
Gina (aka East Coast Mommy)

Easy (and adorable) CHRISTMAS CRAFTS the whole family can do together... using dollar store supplies

Christmas crafting is a great way to spend time with family and friends... away from screens. Today, I'm sharing easy (and adorable) crafts that can be made using dollar store supplies. I even made a step by step video for you, which you can view here.

1) Pipe Cleaner Wreath

2) Jenga Block Snowman Hat

3) Wood Round Santa

For a step by step instructions, check out the YouTube video I made.

Thanks for watching and crafting with me!

💗

Gina (aka East Coast Mommy)

Creating a Magical Christmas on a Budget: Gorgeous DIY Decor for $5 or LESS

This Christmas, I'm all about enjoying the holidays and not stressing about money. To help you do the same... I created a YouTube video series called "Creating a magical Christmas on a BUDGET". This week, I'm featuring DIY Decor Ideas that you can make for $5 or LESS.

1) Felt Bow Garland - Soooo easy to make... and very inexpensive. My garland only used TWO pieces of felt. You can see the step by step tutorial here.

2) Large Nativity Candle - A large Christmas candle can be expensive, but you can make my version for only $5. You can see the step by step tutorial here.

3) Custom (budget) Christmas Artwork - I love this custom artwork because it's inexpensive and TOTALLY customizable. You can see the step by step tutorial here.

4) Dried Oranges - I love old fashioned, vintage decor... and dried oranges are easy to make and really versatile. You can use them to decorate ornaments, vases, garlands, wreaths, and more. You can also string them and use them as tree ornaments. You can see the step by step tutorial here.

To get a closer look at all these DIYS (and MORE), you can watch the video I made here.