Week of December 20, 2020

The week for Christmas means it is time for our TAProots CHRISTMAS COOKIES, an annual tradition for several decades. The highlight this year are some new cookie presses made for us by Karen, who used to work for Bluegill Restaurant in Gainesville and who is a ceramics artist who can custom make the clay cookie presses for new characters and themes. This year added several farm animals and Granddaughter Maisie’s press with her name on it. I now have around 45 and have many options depending on who I think will be eating the cookies. The dough is a standard almond sugar cookie with flour, sugar, almond paste and extract. It makes into a dough that becomes very stiff and less sticky with cooling, so small balls can be rolled in the hand then pressed with the cookie presses, creating a relief that then can be painted with a fine brush and food coloring, mixed to create the right colors. The dough takes the dye without it running or smearing. The sheets of colored cookies are then cooked for 12 minutes or so to a golden brown and cooled on a grate. Some themes this year are the UF Gator cookies, products of TAProots farm, grandchildren’s names, and new and old farm animals. Delivery is in small boxes and tins right before Christmas. It is a good way to get in the holiday spirit.