Christmas cookies are supposed to be rich, melty, and eat-in-five-seconds-worthy. You’re not supposed to count the calories for this kind of dessert, you’re supposed to grab a hot mug of cozy hot chocolate, put six holiday cookies on your plate, and go watch Home Alone.
At least that’s what I think about when I make Christmas cookie recipes. I don’t wanna think about how these aren’t very healthy. They’re not supposed to be nutritious, they’re supposed to be eaten. And these festive cookies below are perfect for doing just that.
So grab a few of these holiday cookie recipes, start baking, and share them with good friends or enjoy solo.
1. Glazed Chocolate Gingerbread Cookies
Pillowy, brandy-glazed Christmas cookies. I honestly don’t know how you couldn’t make these this holiday season. These sound absolutely perfect for a holiday spread or even a cookie swap. Up to you!
GET THE RECIPE2. Shortbread Cookies With Chopped Christmas Chocolate
Five ingredients and ten minutes, that’s all you need for these special-occasion cookies. Also the rich, melty caramel and chocolate look like it would pair perfectly with a cup of coffee.
GET THE RECIPE3. No Spread Sugar Cookies
Pretty cookies with intentionally simple icing makes for a simple, nostalgic recipe for the busy holidays. This could also be a fun cookie decorating project you do with teenagers or children.
GET THE RECIPE4. Chocolate Peppermint Cookies
These cookies look so rich, chewy, fudgy, and perfect. They also kind of look like peppermint hot chocolate in cookie form which might make this one of the best Christmas cookies on this list. Honestly, the perfect recipe for a coffee and cookie-fueled evening with friends and/or family.
GET THE RECIPE5. White Chocolate Peppermint Cookies
Perfectly tasty white chocolate peppermint cookies. I felt like this was the perfect baked goods recipe to follow the dark chocolate cookies above. They just look so soft and like they’d have that nice little bit of crunch from the candy cane.
GET THE RECIPE6. Toblerone Cookies
I love Tolerbone chocolate so these Christmas cookies were an immediate yes for me and got onto this list right away. Also, I’m a sucker for anything with melted chocolate on top.
GET THE RECIPE7. Sage Cookies With Cranberry Buttercream
If you’re a bit of a foodie, then I think you might like these sage and cranberry buttercream cookies. I mean that flavor combo sounds really good. Also, this might be a nice packable holiday cookie recipe you gift to people on Christmas day!
GET THE RECIPE8. Christmas Light Cookies
Whether you have kids or not, these are one of the cutest ideas for a Christmas cookie recipe I’ve ever seen!
GET THE RECIPE9. Matcha Chocolate Chip Cookies
I remember the first time I had matcha + chocolate. It was in Bangkok and it was so good! And besides it tasting really good, I feel like these are the perfect Christmas cookies to make if you wanna go with something that feels a bit Grinch-themed.
GET THE RECIPE10. Peppermint Brownie Cookies
Fudgy brownie cookies + a peppermint filling looks like a perfectly crowd-pleasing Christmas cookie recipe to me. Also, I feel like these would be fun to put in cookie boxes and give to people as they’re leaving.
GET THE RECIPE11. Festive Vegan Linzer Cookies
These look like the kind of Christmas cookies you’d make while living in a cottage with a roaring fire. I mean, how cute are these? Also, it’s just a great option if you, a friend, or a family member are vegan.
GET THE RECIPE12. Fudgy Hot Chocolate Cookies
Fudgy hot chocolate cookies sound like the perfect thing to bake this holiday season. I mean can’t you just imagine these coming out fresh from the oven on a cold day? Or they’re the holiday cookies you bake and hand out as everyone’s opening gifts!
GET THE RECIPE13. Chocolate Peppermint Snowball Cookies
I feel like these snowball cookies are a necessary and delicious recipe to have on this Christmas cookie list. They’re a classic and look super tasty and fun to eat!
GET THE RECIPE14. Christmas Crack Cookies
Super cute and festive, and super delicious cookies for Christmas day. And if you’re a Christmas crack and cookie lover, then this is kind of the perfect recipe combination for you.
GET THE RECIPE15. Florentines
These cookies look ridiculously crisp and delicious! Also, she goes into how to make sure they come out perfect so I think this is a great Florentines recipe to check out.
GET THE RECIPE16. Linzer
I think one of the first times I ever had these cookies was when I was visiting an elderly couple in the English countryside. I came to their home and they had these (plus other cookies) and tea ready for us. It was honestly such a good memory and it makes me really wanna bake these for the holidays.
GET THE RECIPE17. Gluten-Free Pumpkin Crumb Cookies
I think pumpkin cookies sound so good and these have to be the prettiest ones I’ve ever seen. And while I know this is more of an autumnal recipe, I feel like there’s a bit of an overlap with the seasons. This dessert has some of the same warming spices you’d get in certain holiday recipes, so I’d say make these cookies anyway!
GET THE RECIPE18. Ginger Melted Snowman Cookies
These have to be one of the cutest Christmas cookie recipe ideas I have ever seen! They look so cute and they’re perfect if you’re celebrating the holidays with kids.
GET THE RECIPE
Grace Moser is the author and founder of Chasing Foxes, where she writes articles to help women create a life they love in big and small ways. She's been a full-time traveler since 2016 and loves sharing her experiences and exploring the world with her husband, Silas. Her lifestyle and travel advice can also be seen on sites such as Business Insider, Glamour, Newsweek, Huffpost, & Apartment Therapy.
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