Thursday, December 30, 2010

New Year Care Packages

At the end of every year, my mother and I make cookie care packages for family members.  Sometimes even my husband helps out!  We send these out instead of sending Christmas gifts.  This way, people get something homemade to enjoy during the holidays.  We spend so much more time with these care packages than we would have spent purchasing a gift.  They are made fresh with love and care!


Honey butter cookies

The days spent baking are always crazy, as I try to get it all done in two days so the cookies stay fresh. Everything must be made, packaged, boxed and mailed in two days flat. This year we made 17 cookie care packages. It was a baking frenzy.  And I loved every minute of it!


Every year I try out different recipes to see what everyone likes best. I've used many different cookbooks. All the goodies are packaged separately and labeled, so everyone knows what they are eating.





This year we made honey butter cookies, walnut chocolate chip cookies, Swedish butter cookies, oatmeal caramel bars, oatmeal raisin cookies, macaroon brownies, and chocolate covered pretzels.

The honey butter cookies took the longest to make. The honey dough had to be chilled, rolled, cut with cookie cutters, and iced with a sweet honey icing. They were very honey-ey. I don't think we'll be making them again. They took too much time.




Oatmeal raisin cookies


The walnut chocolate chip cookies were from the standard Toll House Recipe on the back of the chocolate chip package. I used both semi-sweet and milk chocolate chips and crushed walnuts. I always make these cookies.


The oatmeal raisin cookies were from recipe on the the oatmeal box.  Standard oatmeal raisin cookies.  Good old faithful cookies.

The Swedish butter cookie recipe came from a cookbook.  They were oh-so-buttery, light, sweet, and just melted in your mouth.  They were by far my favorite cookie this year.  I was quite impressed with them and will be making them again!  Not only were they delicious, but they were simple and super fast to make.

Swedish butter cookies



 
Macaroon brownies




The macaroon brownie recipe came from a cookbook, too. They were basically homemade brownies with coconut in the center. Although they were good, I wasn't too impressed with how they turned out. This recipe will probably not be used next year!










Chocolate covered pretzels



The chocolate covered pretzels are always excellent. I can't mess them up - who doesn't love them, no matter how they look?!













More chocolate covered pretzels




The oatmeal caramel bars were made from a cookbook recipe.  This one was chosen by Randy.  They had oatmeal, caramel, and chocolate chips inside.  They turned out very good.  They were my second favorite treat this year.   

More oatmeal caramel bars

After all the cookies and treats were baked and cooled, each type of treat was individually packaged and labeled.


Cookie packages

More cookie packages



The care packages then were packed with all the delicious treats.  They were mailed out yesterday.  One day I'll open a bakery and everyone can get some treats anytime they wish!  Until then, I hope the people who get them enjoy them.  They were packed with love!


Happy New Year, everyone!

14 comments:

Lilla said...

Wow, everything looks so yummy! All that baking is a lot of work. I am sure the recipients will love not only the treats but the sentiment behind your care packages.

Happy New Year!

Farm Girl said...

That is a huge job!! The baking and the mailing. Maybe you should open a bakery. It looks so yummy too.

John Going Gently said...

I would pay good money forthose honey butter cookies

Razzberry Corner said...

Lilla, It was alot of work! but it was fun!!! Happy New Year to you too!

Farm Girl - I would love to open a bakery one day! :) Thanks for the encouragement!

John Gray - The honey butter cookies were yummy! They tasted like rich honey! They were alot of work, too! But worth every minute!

~Lynn

Gail said...

I'm drooling!!

Terry said...

Oh my goodness! You must be exhausted! I love homemade gifts; they are the best.

AJ-OAKS said...

Holy smokes!!! That is a lot of baking. And a lot of packages.
Now you have made me hungry for cookies! :)
Everyone enjoys food!
And you are so right. These are so much better than any store bought gift.
Happy New Year!

Robin said...

Yum that looks good. My tongue is hanging out drooling. :P

CaliforniaGrammy said...

I know how much work this undertaking involved. My daughter and I made six different "favorite" recipes, and made up only six cookie plates. Of course with all those cookies made and only six plates to share meant there were a whole lot of cookies left over for all of us to enjoy...actually too many! The Swedish butter cookies look sensational. I think they would be my favorite too.

What a loving thoughtful gift to receive!

Knatolee said...

WOW! A festival of baking!! Makes my mince tarts and one type of cookie look kinda pathetic. :) The lucky recipients!

Razzberry Corner said...

Gail - It WAS good! :)

Terry - I'm glad all the work is done! But now I have leftover cookies, and can't stop eating them!

Cindy - Happy New Year!

Robin - Do you guys have an oven yet? I thought about your woodstove cooking blog post from long ago when I looked at your blog last, and thought about how tough it would be without a traditional oven. Recently we've been warming up food on top of our woodstove, but that's about the only "cooking" that gets done on it! I couldn't have done all this baking, that's or sure. Hope you guys have a great New Year!

CAGrammy - trust me, I have lots left over! I think I've gained 20 lbs!! :)

Knatolee - Oh, this only happens once a year! But it has made me want to do more baking now! I'm dieing to make a pie! Maybe I'll make a mince tart!!! :)

Happy New Year all!
~Lynn

Verde Farm said...

How wonderful. What a big undertaking. I would love a package like that. Your cookies look and sound fabulous. Open the bakery--I will buy!!
Happy New Year

Genny said...

Wow, Lynn, that's an impressive amount of baking and packaging! I think that care packages are always so special. I know that all the folks who received them must be so surprised and delighted. I didn't bake any cookies at all but I used to do a lot of baking when my kids were small. They all sound so good!

Cindy Marlow said...

May I help next year? I loved the Swedish Butter cookies and would appreciate the recipe...