While in elementary school, my brother and I followed the same routine almost every Christmas Eve. First, we slipped on our fancy clothes, usually a collared shirt for him and a shimmery dress for me, and attended the early evening church service (geared towards kids, so fairly short with lots of hymns!). Afterwards, we drove through a few neighborhood streets to look at the festively twinkling holiday lights strung up on people’s houses.
When we arrived back at our own house, we changed into PJs, and Mom let us eat the last little piece of milk chocolate from our advent calendars. We also helped her set out our special Christmas stockings. My grandma had sewed them by hand, and each one had unique felt figures and sparkly sequins stitched into its front.
Finally, before the dreaded walk upstairs (we never wanted to go to bed on Christmas Eve!), we arranged a plate of cookies for Santa and a handful of baby carrots for his reindeer. With our incredibly hectic holiday schedules — school plays, church choir rehearsals, visiting relatives, you name it! — we usually set our store-bought cookies, like crunchy little gingerbread men or mint Milano’s, because we rarely had time to bake our own.
Besides… Back then, my grandma always brought multiple loaves of her famous homemade fruitcake for Mom and Dad when she and my grandpa flew into town for the holidays, and our parents looked forward to that a lot more than homemade Christmas cookies!
The next morning, my brother and I woke up by 5 am and impatiently waited in his room until the clock struck 6 (our parents’ rule!) to race downstairs and see what Santa had left for us. After a quick peek at our stockings, we dashed into the kitchen to make sure he ate all of the cookies… And sometimes he even wrote a little thank you note!
Later in life, I realized that Santa probably had a little help with the gifts in our Christmas stockings… And knowing about the people who probably helped him…
I can guarantee that these Extra Special Thumbprint Cookies would’ve been Santa’s favorite! They’re deliciously sweet, soft and chewy, and filled with fruity jam. The cookie dough also includes a secret ingredient that makes them so festive and irresistible!
I’m pretty sure Santa’s helpers would also appreciate the fact that they’re 42 calories… Because it’s nearly impossible not to finish every last one on the plate! 
Continue reading & see the rest! ›› Santa’s Favorite Thumbprint Cookies
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