A question the Sage hears often
Every December I tell myself I'll bake all the family favourites, and every year I end up baking until midnight on the 23rd. How do I enjoy Christmas baking without it taking over my life?
In short: Bake less, start earlier, and use your freezer. Choose your family's true favourites, freeze dough or baked cookies in November, and invite others to bake with you.
The Sage replies…
First, shorten the list
Ask your family which three or four treats would truly be missed. Not which ones you've always made, but which ones they'd notice if they were gone. You may find that the fussy one you spend a whole day on is nobody's favourite, and that everybody really just wants your shortbread.
Fewer kinds, made well and with joy, beat twelve kinds made in a rush.
Let the freezer be your elf
Many cookie doughs freeze beautifully. Shortbread, chocolate chip, sugar cookie and gingerbread doughs can be shaped into logs or scooped into balls, frozen on a tray, then bagged. Most baked cookies, squares and loaves also freeze well for a couple of months in airtight containers.
Things that are better made close to the day include anything with fresh cream or delicate icing, and crisp meringues, which can soften in the freezer.
Label everything with the name and date. You will not remember in December what that mysterious log was in November. Trust me.
Make it a party, not a chore
Invite a friend, a daughter or the grandchildren for a baking afternoon. Put on music, make a pot of tea, and divide the jobs. Or host a cookie swap: everyone bakes one big batch of a single recipe, and everyone goes home with a variety.
The baking was never really about the cookies, was it? It was about the people and the smell of home.
With a wink and a twirl,
— The Dancing Sage
Try this
Make your shortlist today
Write down the treats you usually bake. Circle the three or four your family would truly miss. Choose one dough to make and freeze this weekend, and enjoy knowing it's already done.
A question to take with you: What would make this December feel calm instead of rushed?
From The Dancing Sage's bookshelf: 30 Days Back to You
A gentle journal for slowing down, reconnecting, and finding your way back to yourself, one small day at a time.
Get the journal on Amazon →Keep reading: Why Do My Cookies Spread Flat? · Passing the Holiday Torch
Have a question of your own? Ask the Sage →
The Dancing Sage offers friendly, everyday advice, not professional counselling, medical, legal or financial advice. For anything serious, ongoing or urgent, please reach out to a doctor, counsellor or someone you trust. If you or someone else may be in danger, contact local emergency services.