With Winter Break on the horizon, students have an opportunity to spend more time at home without the additional constant stress of a heavy school workload. For many students, a major highlight of their time spent at home with family or friends is the ability to cook or bake the foods that bring them and their families the most comfort.

    The Wolf‘s sports editor Andrew Gerlach and co-editor-in-chief Kayla Vo shared the recipes that matter most to them and their reasons why.

Andrew Gerlach: Candy Cane Cookies (Graphic): 

½ cup butter or margarine, softened, ½ cup shortening, 1 cup confectioner’s sugar (powdered), 1 egg, 1 ½ teaspoons almond extract, 1 teaspoon vanilla, 2 ½ cups flour, 1 teaspoon salt

“The recipes carry meaning because I’ve always made these cookies with my family since I was little,” Gerlach said. “I remember eating the extra red hot on top of the wreath cookies and utilizing the extra candy cane cookie dough with my sister to make our own works of art and shapes.”

Kayla Vo: Mini Banana Bread Loaves (Graphic)

1⁄2 cup melted butter, 1 cup sugar, 1 teaspoon vanilla, 2 eggs, 3 ripe mashed bananas, 1⁄4 cup milk, 2 cups flour, 1⁄2 teaspoon salt, 1⁄2 teaspoon baking soda, 2/3 cup of dark chocolate chips

Just mix all the wet ingredients, and then separately mix the dry ingredients. Then slowly add the dry into the wet.

“This became a staple in my family over the years, especially around the holiday season,” Vo said. “Last year, my mom and I made mini loaves to bring to any Thanksgiving or Christmas potlucks. It’s a sweet reminder of my tight familial bond baked in a treat!”