Then the real heavy lifting (wink, wink) was left to a panel of judges, including some L.A. Times journalists.<\/p>\n
Yes, many cookies were eaten on your behalf, but a top 10 was announced.<\/p>\n
Here\u2019s a sampling from that selection<\/a>.<\/p>\n (Catherine Dzilenski \/ For The Times)<\/p>\n Roxanne Lecrivain\u2019s Clementine Stollen Cookies<\/p>\n Every year the high school French teacher creates a new holiday cookie and throws an exchange party with friends.<\/p>\n Last year\u2019s holiday cookie was a mini version of stollen, the traditional German Christmas bread studded with dried and candied fruit, filled with marzipan and coated in melted butter and powdered sugar.<\/p>\n Originally from Toulouse, Lecrivain says she wanted to replicate it as a cookie.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019ve never had any issues with making stollen,\u201d she says. \u201cIt\u2019s not hard if you follow the steps.\u201d<\/p>\n Her stollen cookies have a California touch: She makes candied citrus with clementines from a neighbor\u2019s tree. You could purchase candied orange or lemon peel at the store, she says, which works great too, but \u201cthe candied clementine segments are so good and very easy to make!\u201d<\/p>\n (Catherine Dzilenski \/ For The Times)<\/p>\n Jake Hagen\u2019s Winter Cookie with Cardamom, Citrus and Almond<\/p>\n Born and raised in Granada Hills, Hagen grew up baking cookies with his grandmother for the holidays, including classic snowballs and sugar cookies with sprinkles and icing.<\/p>\n \u201cMy grandma always had the four grandkids over to bake,\u201d Hagen says. \u201cShe and I were always looking for recipes.\u201d<\/p>\n Now a professional baker, Hagen creates a holiday cookie board<\/a> every year: \u201cI always had a creativity that burned inside me to expand the normal five or so cookies, and that grew to eight, then nine and that got to 25.<\/p>\n \u201cThis cookie is what made me fall in love with cardamom to begin with. It\u2019s an old recipe we have been making for years for Christmas, and I never celebrate a Christmas without this cookie. It looks so beautiful and snowy with the icing, and a little orange zest really adds a pop.\u201d<\/p>\n (Catherine Dzilenski \/ For The Times)<\/p>\n Vanessa Galindo\u2019s Sweet Potato Whoopie Pie with Maple-Orange Cream Cheese Filling<\/p>\n This is a big, fun bun of a cookie \u2014 soft and cakey and fragrant with warm holiday spices.<\/p>\n Put two together, filled with an orange-and-maple take on cream cheese frosting, and you have whoopie pie. Traditionally made with moist chocolate cookies, Galindo\u2019s version leans into the season with freshly roasted sweet potatoes, baked until they release their caramel-y juices.<\/p>\n \u201cI like cakey cookies,\u201d Galindo says. \u201cI like a good, crisp biscuit cookie too. But what I really like is a cakey cookie that\u2019s warm and spicy.\u201d<\/p>\n A month ago, Galindo launched her own micro-bakery, Tender Batch<\/a>, creating weekly drops of cakes, pies, cookies and other baked goods for pickup. \u201cI\u2019ve always loved food,\u201d she says. \u201cI\u2019m originally from Guadalajara, and I remember waking up to the smell of my mom\u2019s pound cakes, simple things. In the summers she would take us to the Mercado de Abastos. She had connections in the market for the best stuff.<\/p>\n \u201cWhat I\u2019ve learned through her was how organized she was in the kitchen. Also quality. She believed if you had really fresh quality products, you don\u2019t have to create complicated recipes. That\u2019s why I roast my sweet potatoes. That really does make a difference.\u201d<\/p>\n For all the entries, check out the full list<\/a>.<\/p>\n You’re reading the Essential California newsletter The week\u2019s biggest stories (Ulrich Baumgarten\/U. Baumgarten via Getty Images)<\/p>\n Health and vaccinesCrime, courts and policingInternational conflicts and policiesMedia happeningsWhat else is going onMust readsOther meaty readsFor your downtime (Hugo Martin\/Los Angeles Times )<\/p>\n Going outStaying inL.A. Affairs<\/p>\n Get wrapped up in tantalizing stories about dating, relationships and marriage.<\/p>\n Have a great day, from the Essential California team<\/p>\n Jim Rainey, staff reporter How can we make this newsletter more useful? Send comments to essentialcalifornia@latimes.com<\/a>. Check our top stories<\/a>, topics<\/a> and the latest articles<\/a> on latimes.com<\/a>.<\/p>\n <\/a> <\/p>\n
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Hugo Mart\u00edn, assistant editor, fast break desk
Kevinisha Walker, multiplatform editor
Andrew J. Campa, weekend writer
Karim Doumar, head of newsletters<\/p>\n