When do you start your Christmas baking?

Dear users, dear designers,
when do you get started with baking for Christmas?

Have you already joined the discussion in the bakery thread?
Bakery, Part 3. (No advertising)

Oh, dear Josefa, now that you mention it, I’m suddenly craving some delicious Christmas cookies. But it’s still too early for that for me. I’m trying to hold off until November. For me, it’s always a rule that homemade gingerbread cookies are allowed—or rather, a must—on the first Sunday of Advent. If you make them any earlier, you lose the anticipation of Christmas treats. But you can certainly start collecting recipes ahead of time.

By the way, I’m passionate about collecting cookie cutters. I add a few new ones every year. Maybe we should start a separate thread about them sometime, so everyone can show off their favorite cutters. But it’s not quite the right time for that yet.

Best regards, Ina

That’s a great idea.
Would you like to start the thread about cookie cutters when the time is right?

I’m also waiting until November. Last year I baked some really delicious stollen, and I definitely want to make that again. And a few Guzzle cookies—but we don’t have those until the first Sunday of Advent either.

Since I usually bake the same kinds—at the kids’ request—the recipes are already waiting in the folder. 

Seriously? Already? Then there won’t be any left by October!😆😋

I tend to start a bit late—probably after the second Sunday of Advent. And I won’t be baking too much then either; it just goes straight to my hips ;-) 

For me, real Christmas baking doesn’t start until December 1st—or rather, on the first Sunday of Advent with a quark stollen....
But I bake cookies every now and then throughout the year.... Something to nibble on with my coffee every now and then, while I cozy up with my knitting on the side. Simply wonderful....

Do you have enough baking ingredients?

We’d like to bake my mother-in-law’s cinnamon cookies tomorrow. But first, we have to go shopping. My husband loves them, and his mom can’t bake this year for health reasons.

But when I look at the recipe: 360 grams of sugar…… so much sugar…… but he just loves the taste…… 

Oh, Christmas cookies—I still have to bake those, too. But not just yet.
We still have gingerbread and speculoos. I’ll bake when I have a day off or an early shift.
Right now I have five late shifts, so I won’t have time.
I still need to pick up the baking ingredients. Since we moved, our supplies are running low.

Petra, that sounds delicious, but what are cinnamon pitten? Stars?

Well then, I hope you all enjoy the anticipation of Christmas :-))

I wanted to bake cookies and cakes again this year. No, my husband doesn’t want any. “The few we eat, we can just buy. You don’t need to go to all that trouble.” Fine, then I won’t, but I’m not buying any either.
Somehow, he’s really good at ruining my anticipation this year.

But I’m still enjoying all the wonderful things you guys are baking.

Love, Marlies

Oh Marlies....
Don’t let that spoil it for you. HE doesn’t have to eat any of it!
My husband is one of those “types” too, and I’ve said “okay, then don’t” so many times. Now I don’t care what he says about it 🙈 and if he doesn’t want any, then there’s more for me. He does look a little “silly” sometimes, though.
Last year, I baked a gingerbread house all by myself, just for me..... The scent that “wafted” through the house was soooooo wonderful 💖
I still have to pick up a few little things tomorrow, and then I’ll be in the kitchen all day making a mess 🙈🍩😂🙈

My husband is baking the Christmas cookies this year—he told me he needs something to keep him busy. I don’t mind if he takes that off my hands :-) He already ordered the spices he still needs from Amazon today; he brought everything else home yesterday during our big grocery run. :-) I didn’t really want to bake any Christmas stollen, but my husband said we have to bake at least two—if not, I do have a recipe for them, so I’ll bake them :-)

Love, Inge

I did a little baking today. I tried Monika’s sheet pan gingerbread—but haven’t cut into it yet.

And the cinnamon cookies—a recipe from my mother-in-law.

Andrea, here’s a picture for you 

Oh, that looks so delicious, Petra!
Mmmhhh... I could really go for some of that right now.

Here’s another picture of my cookies. My husband could polish them off without even looking. I always have to “ration” them so there’s something left for guests.

It’s a dough that doesn’t stick, so it’s perfect for baking with kids.

  I just can’t seem to get the picture to go at the end of the post. I’m not very good at posting from my phone.

Best regards, Ina

I moved the image down.

That looks sooooo delicious. I put something in the oven today, too—a quark stollen 😍. I hope it “lasts” for a week 🙈 

Actually, I didn’t plan on baking at all this year to shed a few pandemic pounds. But seeing all this is making my mouth water....

In 2019, I needed to lose weight.... My nutritionist said we’d start after Christmas. Because forcing yourself not to eat Christmas treats doesn’t work anyway.... It’s better to mindfully snack on a few cookies every now and then. Otherwise, you’ll get cravings, and then all that “giving up” was for nothing..... 

I’ve also started baking.

With so many Christmas treats, tomorrow is sure to be a wonderful first Sunday of Advent 🎄

I’d definitely try all of your delicious treats here in this thread. They look great.

Just a quick question to “throw out there”....
Do you use butter or margarine for your Christmas baked goods????
Quite apart from the fact that it doesn’t have to be “cheap butter from factory farming”.... I mean taste-wise.
I remember from my great-grandmother that she always baked with butter at Christmas...

I use margarine—mainly because otherwise my cholesterol levels would go off the charts, and neither my doctor nor I would like that :-)

Best regards, Inge

I use margarine too. My grandma baked with "good butter," and I never really liked the cookies. Today I know it was the buttery taste that always bothered me. I don’t like the taste of butter in baked goods.