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1. A Hamilton Beach stand mixer you can use to crank out pretty much any holiday carb — especially if you plan on making many batches, since it does all the heavy lifting for you. And don't forget the homemade frosting for decorating!
2. Or, a cordless KitchenAid electric hand mixer that reeeally comes in handy when all of your outlets are being occupied by other cooking appliances. It has seven speeds for everything from easy stirring to intense whipping, and can mix dough for dozens of cookies on a single charge.
3. A kitchen measurement conversion magnet you can stick on your fridge as an easy reference whenever you need to know how many tablespoons are in 1/3 cup. No more having to look it up on your phone with butter-coated hands!
4. A silicone baking mat that'll end any spatula versus cookie sheet battles for good. No sticky residue, and just think of all the money (and trees!) you'll be saving by cutting down on parchment paper. Plus, they're great for rolling out pie and cookie dough when you don't want to make a mess of your counter.
5. An adjustable rolling pin for when the recipe says to roll out the dough to a quarter of an inch thick, and you really don't want to have to measure that yourself. This set comes with four sizes of removable rings you can screw on depending on how thin or thick you want your dough to be, and has measurement markings right on the roller itself, so you can easily gauge the length and width of your dough as well. *Genius*
6. A set of dual-sided measuring spoons with both rounded and ovular ends to fit inside jars of all shapes and sizes. They're also magnetic and can be stacked atop one another to take up less space — plus, this set comes with a handy leveler to give you clean measurements.
7. A reusable bowl cover that's perfect for covering bowls of cookie dough that require a chill in the fridge before shaping and baking (and also for bread proofing!). It's an eco-friendly alternative to plastic wrap, and can be cleaned in the washing machine.
8. A Tovolo silicone spatula you'll be reaching for pretty much every time you whip up yet another batch of holiday cookie dough (or cake, or brownies, etc.).
9. A handy Oxo dusting wand to achieve the perfect coating of powdered sugar or spices for a special touch.
10. A pair of extra-long oven mitts, because as someone who used to bake for a living, take it from me: Your wrists and forearms are the most vulnerable when it comes to oven burns, so it's wise to keep that area as covered-up as possible! Plus, a little extra protection will boost your confidence when it comes to taking piping hot baking vessels in and out of the oven.
11. A chic crossback apron (with pockets!) to protect your clothing from the inevitable flour clouds and batter explosions you'll encounter during your marathon baking sesh. It's so cute that you'll *almost* want to wear another apron over this one, but you can just toss it into the washing machine when it's time to clean. My favorite part? The fact that it won't dig into the back of your neck the whole time you're in the kitchen!
12. An unassuming bowl scraper that looks like a simple piece of flexible plastic but will help you get your cookie dough out from the bottom of your mixing bowl in one go. It's also important to incorporate everything that gets stuck to the sides of your bowl when mixing, and this handheld tool gets the job done quickly.
13. A seriously genius Wilton three-tiered collapsible cooling rack to cool up to three dozen cookies at a time without taking up a ton of counter space. You can also use it for cakes, pies, or anything else that would benefit from air circulation while cooling down.
14. Some sturdy Oxo mixing bowls equipped with nonslip bottoms so you can stir even the thickest dough without worrying about everything flying off the counter. They also have convenient pouring spouts and are BPA-free and dishwasher-safe.
15. An easy-to-grip Oxo cookie scoop to ensure your balls of cookie dough are consistent in size. Not only will they look prettier that way, they'll all finish baking at the same time, too!
16. A lace-patterned rolling pin for imprinting intricate designs onto cookie dough. Yes, you can pretend it took you hours when everyone starts complimenting your handiwork!
17. A set of Ateco offset spatulas, which will become your new best friends when it comes to frosting baked goods or spreading brownie batter in an even layer. An offset spatula is super helpful when it comes to achieving that professional-looking smoothness — even at awkward angles and in hard-to-reach places — since your hand/the handle aren't on the same plane as the blade.
18. A jumbo-size box of Ateco piping bags so you can practice writing in frosting and creating edible flowers until the cows come home. You can even fill them with certain types of cookie dough and use them to pipe cool shapes! While they're meant to be disposable, I find that I can get multiple uses out of these bags when I hand-wash them, as long as they don't have any holes.
19. And, to use with your piping bags, a set of metal piping tips to create pretty much any sugary shape you could imagine. This kit also comes with two couplers, which allow you to switch between tips even when your piping bag is filled with frosting, as well as two reusable piping bags.
20. A small but mighty bench scraper that will basically become an extension of your arm the more you keep baking. When I was baking professionally, my bench scraper was what I reached for most often, after my scale. Whether you're scraping up dough that's stuck to the counter, portioning out smaller pieces, or gathering excess flour and residue while cleaning up, a bench scraper will make your life *so* much easier.
21. Some visual measuring cups, because not only do they look cool, they'll also speed up your baking. No more having to check tiny markings to see if it's a half or third of a cup — just look at the shape and grab!
22. A set of pantry labels to stick onto your dry ingredient canisters, because the last thing you want to do is mistake salt for sugar. They're water-resistant, and can be customized to accommodate the vast collection of alternative flours you've been wanting to experiment with.
23. An Oxo cookie press set, because no cookie swap is complete without those of the spritz variety. Just fill it with your spritz cookie dough and press the lever to effortlessly stamp festive shapes, like flowers, trees, and wreaths.
24. A Wilton gel food coloring set for richer, more vibrant hues than you'd get with your standard liquid dyes. What's great about gel food coloring is that a little goes a long way, and unlike liquid dyes, it's less likely to alter the texture of your dough or frosting.
25. A pastry decorating kit that turns your piping bag into a pen, giving you a steadier grip when it comes to creating more detailed designs and writing messages with icing. Just be prepared for everyone you know to start requesting custom goodies once you've gotten comfortable with it.
26. Or, some *actual* food-coloring pens for even more stability. They're made of edible ink and come dual-sided with both wide and fine tips.
27. A digital scale that'll give you the most accurate measurements, especially when it comes to ingredients like flour. Scooping flour into a measuring cup can yield wildly different results depending on how tightly it's packed, which is why using a scale can keep your end product from being too dry (the WORST!).
28. A 101-piece Wilton cookie cutter set to get those perfectly clean and crisp edges for a pro look. It comes with number, alphabet, and holiday shapes!
29. Some Nordic Ware half-sheet trays, because any baker will tell you they can never have too many of these bad boys. Plus, they're great for savory cooking, too!
30. An Oxo cookie spatula to help lift your freshly baked cookies from the pan with ease.
31. A cheery recipe binder, because the method for making your famous snickerdoodles should be protected at all costs. It comes with blank pages you can use for jotting down instructions for making all of your favorite treats, as well as protective sleeves for safekeeping any heirloom recipe cards.
32. A delightful sprinkle mix, so in case *gasp!* there are a few sliiightly wonky batches, no one is the wiser. Just cover up any imperfections with these babies and you're good to go.
33. Mini pastry boxes, because those cookies aren't going to transport themselves! Plus, these come with see-through tops so everyone can admire your handiwork.
34. Along with some tissue paper for lining the boxes — it'll provide decoration and help keep everything from shifting around in transit. No broken edges to see here!
35. And, some colorful ribbons, because no matter how good your cookies taste, great packaging is *everything*.
Reviews in this post have been edited for length and clarity.
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