If you’re anything like us, the holiday season is synonymous with two things: watching cheesy Hallmark movies and baking cookies—approximately 2,000 batches, give or take. We know you already have your yearly lineup (gingersnaps, snowballs and peanut butter blossoms, natch), and we would never suggest you break your traditions…but surely you can make room for one more recipe? Maybe a list of the 85 best Christmas cookies this side of the North Pole will convince you that there’s no such thing as too many treats. (Seriously, Santa told us so.)
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The 85 Best Christmas Cookies to Make This Holiday Season (All Cookie Swap and Santa Approved)
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1. Chocolate-Peppermint Linzer Cookies
- Time Commitment: 50 minutes
- Why We Love It: special occasion–worthy, make ahead, crowd-pleaser
Cookie texture meets brownie flavor in these festive sandwich cookies. Jam is traditional, but we’ve swapped it for a vibrant pink peppermint ganache.
2. Brown Sugar Cookies with Dulce de Leche
- Time Commitment: 25 minutes
- Why We Love It: <30 minutes, kid-friendly, beginner-friendly
Oh hi, 25-minute frosted and decorated cookies. (Royal icing could never.)
3. Sweet Potato Sugar Cookies with Marshmallow Topping
- Time Commitment: 30 minutes
- Why We Love It: beginner-friendly, <10 ingredients, crowd-pleaser
Vegetables in a cookie? You better believe it. Here, the sweet potato lends moisture and color for a soft, bright cookie that’s better than any marshmallow-topped casserole.
- Time Commitment: 3 hours, 10 minutes
- Why We Love It: make ahead, beginner-friendly, crowd-pleaser
Icebox cookies are a holiday savior because you can make the dough ahead of time and bake the cookies whenever a craving strikes.
5. Cookies-and-Cream Shortbread Cookies
- Time Commitment: 40 minutes
- Why We Love It: crowd-pleaser, kid-friendly
It’s a cookie within a cookie! They’re like our favorite store-bought sammies, only a little classier and a lot tastier.
6. Chocolate Gingerbread Cookies
- Time Commitment: 45 minutes
- Why We Love It: crowd-pleaser, beginner-friendly
If a soft molasses cookie and a good old chocolate chip number had a very delicious baby, it would be one of these treats.
7. Gingerbread Lattice Cookies
- Time Commitment: 2 hours, 30 minutes
- Why We Love It: special occasion–worthy, crowd-pleaser
The time you would’ve spent frosting is spent weaving instead—and the result is a hundred times more sophisticated.
8. Chocolate-Peppermint Icebox Cookies
- Time Commitment: 3 hours, 10 minutes
- Why We Love It: make ahead, kid-friendly, beginner-friendly
Here’s an ingenious way to make good use of all those candy canes. (C’mon, no one ever finishes a whole one.)
9. Vanilla Bean Thumbprint Cookies with Dulce de Leche
- Time Commitment: 3 hours
- Why We Love It: special occasion–worthy, crowd-pleaser
Here’s a nifty baking trick: Gently simmer a can of sweetened condensed milk and it’ll turn into homemade dulce de leche like magic.
10. Pecan Brittle Bark Cookies
- Time Commitment: 1 hour, 50 minutes
- Why We Love It: special occasion–worthy, crowd-pleaser
So you have to make the pecan brittle bark ahead of the cookies. We promise the results are worth the effort.
11. Butterscotch Icebox Cookies
- Time Commitment: 3 hours, 10 minutes
- Why We Love It: <10 ingredients, beginner-friendly, make ahead
These come together with seven ingredients. We repeat: seven ingredients.
12. Easy Cranberry-Pecan Sandwich Cookies
- Time Commitment: 2 hours, 20 minutes
- Why We Love It: special occasion–worthy, crowd-pleaser
The buttery, almost salty cookies are the perfect foil to the tart filling. Take a batch to Aunt Jackie’s house and you’ll win major brownie (er, cookie?) points.
13. Matcha-Cranberry Linzer Cookies
- Time Commitment: 2 hours
- Why We Love It: special occasion–worthy, crowd-pleaser
Food dye who? These adorable Christmas cookies are colored with matcha powder for a seasonably appropriate hue and a toasty flavor.
- Time Commitment: 42 minutes
- Why We Love It: gluten free, crowd-pleaser, <10 ingredients
No one will know that they’re gluten free, even when they go in for round two.
15. No-Bake Sugar Cookie Truffles
- Time Commitment: 1 hour, 30 minutes
- Why We Love It: no cook, make ahead, kid-friendly, crowd-pleaser
Are they a cookie or a candy? Who cares? They’re delicious, and you can totally start with store-bought.
16. Vanilla Bean Icebox Cookies
- Time Commitment: 3 hours, 10 minutes
- Why We Love It: beginner-friendly, kid-friendly, make ahead, crowd-pleaser, <10 ingredients
Vanilla isn’t boring, it’s underrated. One cookie and you’ll understand.
- Time Commitment: 1 hour, 30 minutes
- Why We Love It: make ahead, special occasion-worthy, crowd-pleaser, <10 ingredients
Is it really the holidays if you aren’t swimming in a sea of snowflake and reindeer cutouts?
- Time Commitment: 30 minutes
- Why We Love It: kid-friendly, crowd-pleaser, beginner-friendly
These will be a hit with your Gen Z cousin who’s all over the latest trends. (Or she’ll scoff and say tie dye is *so* last year, but whatever.)
- Time Commitment: 3 hours, 10 minutes
- Why We Love It: beginner-friendly, make ahead, crowd-pleaser
Last-minute cookie swap? We’ve got your back. This dough can be made up to three months in advance.
20. Ina Garten’s Black and White Cookies
- Time Commitment: 1 hour, 5 minutes
- Why We Love It: crowd-pleaser, kid-friendly
No, Ina Garten isn’t coming to your Secret Santa party, but her cookie recipe will suffice.
21. Maple-Pecan Icebox Cookies
- Time Commitment: 3 hours, 10 minutes
- Why We Love It: make ahead, crowd-pleaser, <10 ingredients
You had us at three little words: pure maple syrup.
22. Caramel-Stuffed Gingerbread Crinkle Cookies
- Time Commitment: 3 hours
- Why We Love It: kid-friendly, crowd-pleaser, special occasion–worthy
Chewy, spicy cookies are filled with molten caramel…and the results are glorious. You’ll want a few napkins for these babies.
23. Cinnamon Roll Cookies with Cream Cheese Glaze
- Time Commitment: 1 hour
- Why We Love It: special occasion–worthy, crowd-pleaser
Go ahead, eat a few cookies for breakfast. (’Tis the season, right?)
24. Pumpkin Cheesecake Cookies
- Time Commitment: 1 hour, 30 minutes
- Why We Love It: crowd-pleaser, kid-friendly, beginner-friendly
Pie? Way too much work. These cookies offer the best of both dessert worlds (and leave you more time to watch A Christmas Story).
- Time Commitment: 50 minutes
- Why We Love It: special occasion–worthy, crowd-pleaser
They look like little works of art, but don’t let that stop you from eating one, or a few.
26. Espresso Chocolate Chip Cookies
- Time Commitment: 1 hour
- Why We Love It: <10 ingredients, crowd-pleaser
Caffeine and sugar? This has afternoon snack written all over it.
- Time Commitment: 2 hours, 30 minutes
- Why We Love It: <10 ingredients, gluten free, crowd-pleaser
We love a good ol’ jar of Nutella, but bonus points if you make your own.
- Time Commitment: 30 minutes
- Why We Love It: <30 minutes, kid-friendly, beginner-friendly, crowd-pleaser
Everyone needs a 30-minute cookie on their Christmas list. Especially when it involves chocolate and marshmallows.
29. Giant Brown Sugar Snickerdoodle Cookies
- Time Commitment: 25 minutes
- Why We Love It: <30 minutes, <10 ingredients, kid-friendly
The bigger the cookie, the closer to Santa—or so they say.
30. Coconut Cookies
- Time Commitment: 30 minutes
- Why We Love It: <30 minutes, beginner-friendly, crowd-pleaser
Sugar cookies and macaroons happen to make a fantastic pair.
31. Cheesecake Thumbprint Cookies
- Time Commitment: 30 minutes
- Why We Love It: <30 minutes, crowd-pleaser
We’ve never met a person who can say no to cheesecake. Just saying.
- Time Commitment: 35 minutes
- Why We Love It: special occasion–worthy, crowd-pleaser
Psst: Those bagged cookies have been on the grocery store shelf since last Christmas. You can do better.
33. Itty-Bitty Sandwich Cookies
- Time Commitment: 1 hour, 5 minutes
- Why We Love It: kid-friendly, crowd-pleaser, special occasion–worthy
Honey, we shrunk the Oreos. And good thing, too. Now you can eat them by the handful.
34. Roasted Almond and Chocolate Chunk Cookies
- Time Commitment: 26 minutes
- Why We Love It: gluten free, dairy free, <30 minutes
You wouldn’t know it, but these babies are gluten free and dairy optional.
- Time Commitment: 40 minutes
- Why We Love It: kid-friendly, special occasion–worthy, crowd-pleaser
Forget the little lad: There’s a big man up north who loves this flavor combination.
- Time Commitment: 40 minutes
- Why We Love It: <10 ingredients, crowd-pleaser
These cookies have a secret: They’re packed with crushed freeze-dried raspberries for a sweet-tart punch of flavor.
- Time Commitment: 1 hour, 5 minutes
- Why We Love It: special occasion–worthy, kid-friendly, crowd-pleaser
They’re. So. Cute! (And you can fill them with any flavor you please.)
38. Aran Goyoaga’s Peanut Butter–Banana Cookies
- Time Commitment: 30 minutes
- Why We Love It: <30 minutes, gluten free, dairy free
A cookie that’s kinda good for you? Be still our sugar-loving heart. These are flourless, not to mention dairy and egg free.
39. Pumpkin Cookies with Cream Cheese Frosting
- Time Commitment: 30 minutes
- Why We Love It: <30 minutes, beginner-friendly, crowd-pleaser
Just because the leaves have fallen doesn’t mean pumpkin season is over, people.
40. 4-Ingredient Lemon Cookies
- Time Commitment: 15 minutes
- Why We Love It: <10 ingredients, beginner-friendly, <15 minutes
We get it: You have a thousand presents to wrap. But we bet you can still craft a batch of these cookies.
- Time Commitment: 40 minutes
- Why We Love It: crowd-pleaser, <10 ingredients, gluten free
Meet your new favorite holiday cookie: They’re sweet but not cloying, play nice with chocolate and are easy to pack into cookie boxes.
42. 3-Ingredient Peanut Butter Cookies
- Time Commitment: 20 minutes
- Why We Love It: gluten free, <10 ingredients, beginner-friendly, <30 minutes
The Christmas season is a marathon, not a sprint. These 20-minute, three-ingredient beauties will get you through the busiest parts.
- Time Commitment: 40 minutes
- Why We Love It: special occasion–worthy, crowd-pleaser
No, it’s not Valentine’s Day. The heart shape is because we love Christmas, duh!
44. Pumpkin Black and White Cookies
- Time Commitment: 45 minutes
- Why We Love It: crowd-pleaser, beginner-friendly
Hot tip: If you bite down the middle, you get a bit of every flavor.
45. Tiny Coconut Cookies with Hibiscus Glaze
- Time Commitment: 35 minutes
- Why We Love It: crowd-pleaser, special occasion–worthy
How’d you like to spend Christmas on a tropical island? Well, these cuties are the next best thing.
- Time Commitment: 1 hour, 5 minutes
- Why We Love It: kid-friendly, crowd-pleaser
If there’s a time to take things OTT, it’s the holidays. Pair these cookies with a scoop of vanilla ice cream if you’re really committed.
- Time Commitment: 1 hour, 5 minutes
- Why We Love It: beginner-friendly, crowd-pleaser, <10 ingredients
But if you want to keep things simple, we don’t blame you. These six-ingredient cookies are unexpectedly sophisticated.
48. Cranberry Spice Cookies with Eggnog Icing
- Time Commitment: 1 hour, 15 minutes
- Why We Love It: crowd-pleaser, one bowl, <10 ingredients
The eggnog icing is optional, but we know you have an open carton lingering in your fridge.
49. Gingerbread Spiced Snowflake Sugar Cookies
- Time Commitment: 40 minutes (+ chilling time)
- Why We Love It: special occasion–worthy, crowd-pleaser, make ahead
Let it snow…cookies, that is.
- Time Commitment: 38 minutes
- Why We Love It: crowd-pleaser, beginner-friendly, kid-friendly, <10 ingredients
Polvorones, Russian tea cakes, snowball cookies: Call ’em what you want, just don’t inhale as you take a bite.
- Time Commitment: 20 minutes
- Why We Love It: <30 minutes, beginner-friendly, crowd-pleaser
These cookies are flavored with vanilla, but you can swap in anise if you want to be traditional.
52. Vanilla Biscuit Christmas Cookies
- Time Commitment: 35 minutes
- Why We Love It: kid-friendly, crowd-pleaser
You can’t go wrong with a Santa-approved classic.
53. Eggnog Cookies
- Time Commitment: 32 minutes
- Why We Love It: crowd-pleaser, beginner-friendly
They’re soft, rich and lightly spiced. Would pairing them with a glass of eggnog be overkill?
- Time Commitment: 25 minutes
- Why We Love It: <30 minutes, crowd-pleaser
The snappier, the better. (As an added bonus, these are easily made gluten free.)
- Time Commitment: 40 minutes
- Why We Love It: kid-friendly, crowd-pleaser, beginner-friendly
We can’t explain it, but these are a Christmas classic.
56. Christmas Linzer Cookies with Raspberry Preserves
- Time Commitment: 1 hour
- Why We Love It: special occasion–worthy, crowd-pleaser
Everyone knows the best Christmas cookies are covered in confectioners’ sugar.
- Time Commitment: 30 minutes
- Why We Love It: <30 minutes, special occasion–worthy, crowd-pleaser
Deck the halls with sugar, butter and frosting.
- Time Commitment: 1 hour, 25 minutes
- Why We Love It: kid-friendly, crowd-pleaser, special occasion–worthy
These are—dare we say?—better than the real thing.
59. Chewy Ginger Molasses Cookies
- Time Commitment: 25 minutes
- Why We Love It: <30 minutes, crowd-pleaser, kid-friendly
Snappy, crunchy cookies aren’t for everyone. For those of you who prefer pillowier treats, these soft, spiced cookies are just like what Grandma use to make.
60. Bourbon-Soaked Cherry Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies
- Time Commitment: 1 hour, 30 minutes
- Why We Love It: crowd-pleaser, special occasion-worthy
If you don’t already have a stiff cocktail at the holiday party, grab one of these guys.
61. Spritz Cookies
- Time Commitment: 1 hour
- Why We Love It: crowd-pleaser, special occasion–worthy
You’ll need a cookie press to make these classic Christmas cookies, but look how pretty they turn out.
- Time Commitment: 22 minutes
- Why We Love It: kid-friendly, crowd-pleaser, <30 minutes
Unlike Frosty, these won’t melt on you.
- Time Commitment: 1 hour, 10 minutes
- Why We Love It: crowd-pleaser, kid-friendly
They’re made with actual hot cocoa mix for the full effect.
- Time Commitment: 1 hour, 20 minutes
- Why We Love It: crowd-pleaser, kid-friendly
It’s two treats in one, and what could be bad about that?
65. White Chocolate Maple Pecan Cookies
- Time Commitment: 26 minutes
- Why We Love It: <30 minutes, crowd-pleaser
A sweet-salty number is just what your cookie plate needs to be complete.
66. Pink Peppermint Sugar Cookies
- Time Commitment: 2 hours
- Why We Love It: crowd-pleaser, kid-friendly, special occasion–worthy
Red and green are givens, but we have a soft spot for this millennial-loved color.
- Time Commitment: 2 hours, 10 minutes
- Why We Love It: crowd-pleaser, gluten free, <10 ingredients
Who’s the winner of the cookie swap? You are.
68. Cookie Brittle
- Time Commitment: 45 minutes
- Why We Love It: crowd-pleaser, kid-friendly
It’s buttery and tender like a shortbread but studded with chocolate chips and baked like a bar. Basically, it has everything.
70. White Chocolate Ginger Cookies
- Time Commitment: 25 minutes
- Why We Love It: <30 minutes, crowd-pleaser, special occasion–worthy
Christmas tree sprinkles on everything, we say.
- Time Commitment: 23 minutes
- Why We Love It: <30 minutes, kid-friendly, crowd-pleaser
The sour cream ensures these cut-out cookies are ultra-tender and just a little tangy.
- Time Commitment: 25 minutes
- Why We Love It: <30 minutes, crowd-pleaser
Psst: They’re spiked with rum. Need we say more?
73. Salted Gingersnap Mallomars
- Time Commitment: 35 minutes
- Why We Love It: special occasion–worthy, crowd-pleaser
Replace the usual shortbread base with store-bought gingersnaps, and suddenly you have a party-ready version of the grocery fave.
- Time Commitment: 38 minutes
- Why We Love It: special occasion–worthy, crowd-pleaser
The cookie dough is flavored with vanilla and orange for a tart twist.
75. Brown Butter Biscoff Snickerdoodles
- Time Commitment: 55 minutes
- Why We Love It: special occasion–worthy, kid-friendly, crowd-pleaser
Cookie butter, meet snickerdoodle cookies. (Now meet our mouth.)
- Time Commitment: 30 minutes
- Why We Love It: beginner-friendly, kid-friendly, <30 minutes
Go ahead and leave them out with a note for Santa, but save us one from the batch.
77. Brown Butter Bourbon Pecan Chocolate Chunk Cookies
- Time Commitment: 45 minutes
- Why We Love It: crowd-pleaser, special occasion–worthy
Brown butter, toasty pecans, boozy bourbon: These are a few of our favorite things.
- Time Commitment: 1 hour, 5 minutes
- Why We Love It: crowd-pleaser, special occasion–worthy
They look so fancy, but they’re actually super easy to pipe and bake.
- Time Commitment: 45 minutes
- Why We Love It: kid-friendly, special occasion–worthy
They’re almost too cute to eat…but we’re not about to hold back.
80. Chai, Chocolate Chip and Coconut Cookies
- Time Commitment: 55 minutes
- Why We Love It: beginner-friendly, crowd-pleaser
Merry Christmas to all, but especially to these spicy, chocolatey cookies that take less than an hour to make.
81. Cranberry Curd Thumbprint Cookies
- Time Commitment: 55 minutes
- Why We Love It: crowd-pleaser, special occasion–worthy, make ahead
Since the holidays are busy even without a baking project, you can (and should!) make the curd a couple days ahead of time and refrigerate it until you’re ready to bake.
82. Ina Garten’s Cinnamon-Spiced Shortbread
- Time Commitment: 1 hour, 2 minutes
- Why We Love It: special occasion–worthy, beginner-friendly, <10 ingredients
Not only are these cookies delicious, but according to the Contessa, the house smells amazing when you make them.
83. Claire Saffitz’s Raspberry Almond Thumbprints
- Time Commitment: 2 hours, 30 minutes (includes chilling)
- Why We Love It: make ahead, special occasion–worthy, crowd-pleaser
These chewy-yet-crisp jewels are vying for the top spot at your cookie exchange, and with their sweet-tart fruit flavor, they just might win.
84. Gooey Triple-Chocolate Cookies
- Time Commitment: 1 hour
- Why We Love It: beginner-friendly, kid-friendly
If you’ve ever been torn between baking cookies or brownies, this is the decadent mashup of your dreams.
85. Mini Chocolate Chip Cookies
- Time Commitment: 45 minutes
- Why We Love It: crowd-pleaser, kid-friendly, beginner-friendly, one bowl
These babies are meant to be eaten in multiples (or better yet, by the handful). And since our motto is “more cookies, fewer dishes,” we made sure that the dough can be made using a single bowl.
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