60 Utterly Delicious Christmas Cookies to Make this Season

It’s cookie season! Are you ready to roll, drop, shape, and cut out cookies to your heart's content? Here are some of our favorite holiday recipes!

Utterly Delicious Christmas Cookies

Simply Recipes

Growing up, I loved Christmas time! For obvious reasons (Yes, the presents!) but I always enjoyed leaving out cookies for Santa too. We typically had two traditions in my house which involved Chocolate Chip Cookies and a tin of Royal Dansk Danish Butter Cookies.

We would bake some Chocolate Chip Cookies (snack on a few) and leave a cookie out along with a glass of milk for Santa Claus and his reindeer. To be honest, as an adult I’m surprised my parents actually let me keep a cup of milk out by the Christmas tree all night, but that’s neither here nor there. I would also then carefully select a cookie or two from the Danish Butter Cookie tin to leave out as well as an extra special treat (I think it was my attempt to get more presents).

As an adult, my love for cookies during the holiday season has not wavered. The chocolate chip cookie tradition lives on, sometimes as classic cookies, but when I’m feeling fancy I love making a batch of brown butter chocolate chip cookies.

I also love stepping out-of-the-box when I’m bringing cookies to a holiday party (and this list has a ton of great ideas). Red velvet cookies, black and white cookies, and eggnog cookies are among the recipes that will make this holiday season extra special (and extra delicious).

 Whether you’re a cookie traditionalist during the holiday or you like to mix things up, there is a cookie (or three!) for everyone on this list.

  • Christmas Cookies

    holiday sugar cookies

    Claudia Cash

    It’s not Christmas until there’s sugar, sprinkles and flour all over the kitchen, right?! Sweet sugar cookies are a classic way to spend a cold afternoon during the holiday season.

  • Candy Cane Cookies

    Finished Candy Cane Cookies on Baking Pan
    Irvin Lin

    Festive red and white twists with a sweet peppermint flavor! Kids love making them as much as they do eating them.

  • Gingerbread Cookies

    Gingerbread Man Cookies
    Elise Bauer

    Ok, so you can make men, women, and really, any other shape out of this dough! Whatever shape your cookies take, this recipe is a snappy, gingery classic for the holidays.

  • Thumbprint Cookies

    Classic thumbprint cookies spread on parchment paper and a spoonful of jam next to them.
    Simply Recipes / Mihaela Kozaric Sebrek

    Here’s a cookie that's a lot of fun to make with kids. Roll the dough in nuts, sanding or sanding sugar and fill the centers with your favorite jam (think apricot, raspberry or strawberry).

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  • White Chocolate Peppermint French Macarons

    Overhead view of peppermint macarons with white chocolate filling on a baking sheet.

    Simply Recipes / Cambrea Gordon

    These whimsical French macarons are so festive, and they are even gluten free! The shells are made with almond flour and meringue then sandwiched together with a peppermint white chocolate ganache filling. These small sandwich cookies taste like Christmas in every bite. Make a batch or two and give them as gifts this season!

  • Spritz Cookies

    Spritz Cookies
    Elise Bauer

    It’s impossible to imagine a cookie tray around the holidays without these buttery pressed cookies, popular in Germany and Scandinavia. They can be decorated any way you like (sugar, sprinkles, and frosting) are all a go here!

  • Rum Balls

    Irvin Lin

    The ultimate in simplicity, these rum balls don’t require baking, they’re highly adaptable and get better with age. Roll half of them on powdered sugar and the other half in cocoa powder.

  • Easy Marshmallow Fudge Recipe

    Easy fudge recipe cut into squares and stacked.
    Alison Bickel

    Nutty, creamy, chewy—how many adjectives can we squeeze in here to describe these decadent treats? This recipe makes a ton, so it's great for sharing!

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  • Walnut Snowball Cookies

    Walnut Snowball Cookies
    Elise Bauer

    These wintry looking cookies go by several names, but this one gets the point across pretty easily. You may know them by alternate names—Russian Tea Cakes or Mexican Wedding cookies.

  • Holiday Pinwheel Cookies

    Holiday Pinwheel Cookies
    Irvin Lin

    Some holiday cookies are all about gathering a bunch of people in the kitchen and taking turns mixing, shaping, and baking batch after batch. And then eating the delicious results. This is just such a cookie, and it is a MUST for the holiday dessert table.

  • Chocolate Crinkles

    Chocolate Crinkle Cookies on Plate
    Elise Bauer

    Anything sprinkled or coated with powdered sugar automatically looks festive. These cookies are soft and cakey, and look so fun on a cookie platter.

  • Best Sugar Cookies

    Royal icing for sugar cookies piped into a variety of patterns and sent on a cooling rack.
    Irvin Lin

    Get your frosting, royal icing, and sparkling sugar because you’ll be decorating Christmas cookies this year like no other.

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  • Stained Glass Cookies

    stained glass cookies
    Elise Bauer

    You can't resist the appeal of a cookie you can hang in the window or on your tree. So pretty! These are a little delicate, though, so not necessarily ones to ship to your friends and family.

  • Pfeffernüsse Spice Cookies

    Pfeffernüsse Spice Cookies
    Irvin Lin

    If you want the best holiday flavors wrapped up into one cookie—spicy and sweet, with a snowy cap from a powder sugar glaze this is the cookie for you! Even better, these keep well for a week or two and ship well.

  • Chocolate Florentine Cookies

    Chocolate Florentine Cookies
    Irvin Lin

    Between the toffee-like taste and a layer of chocolate sandwiched in the middle, these delicate and beautiful cookies also hard to resist. Make some for yourself (or gift them this year as gifts).

  • Lofthouse-Style Soft Frosted Sugar Cookies

    A small stack of red and white frosted cookies set next to a glass of milk.
    Cindy Rahe

    These soft and cakey Lofthouse-style cookies will be calling your name this season. Add a layer of frosting and festive sprinkles, and it’s time to get the party started.

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  • Slice-and-Bake Pistachio Butter Cookies

    Slice and Bake Pistachio Butter Cookies
    Sheryl Julian and Emma Christensen

    These rich cookies are the ultimate in convenience, with a green jewel-like appearance on the edges. This batter comes together in a flash in the food processor, and keeps in the fridge for last-minute cookie emergencies—like extra house guests.

  • Almond Crescent Cookies

    Elise Bauer

    Amazing with a cup of tea or a mug of cocoa! They're sturdy, keep well, and are great for shipping. Instead of buying traditional gifts this year, ship your family and friends some cookies.

  • Christmas Cracker Candy

    Christmas Crack
    Irvin Lin and Emma Christensen

    Chocolate, brown sugar and saltines come together in a whole new addictive way. This confection keeps forever, and ships and freezes well, which is great because portion control is a real concern with these cookies.

  • Pecan Pralines

    Pralines
    Steve-Anna Stephens

    Pralines are a traditional Southern treat: pecans held together with a thick, sugary glaze. Like candied nuts, but better. They are an easy to make edible holiday gift.

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  • Peppermint Bark Chocolate Cookies

    Chewy, Brownie Peppermint Bark Cookies
    Elise Bauer

    If you find yourself trying to decide between minty or chocolatey, you can have both with these indulgent drop cookies that combine chocolate cookies with peppermint bark (yup, you heard that right!)

  • Peanut Butter Balls (Buckeyes)

    Peanut Butter balls or Buckeye balls
    Irvin Lin

    This one is for all the chocolate and peanut butter lovers in your life. This treat keeps well in the fridge, so shipping it during the chilly holiday season should be easy to accomplish. You can also make them ahead of time and freeze them. Cross one cookie off the list!

  • English Toffee

    Easy English Toffee in Bowl
    Irvin Lin

    Gift alert! Gift alert! Pack shards of this toffee in glass jars or cute boxes and ship to friends. It keeps forever, but we bet it won’t last that long.

  • 7-Layer Magic Bars

    Overhead shot of magic cookie bars ready to eat
    Irvin Lin

    When you can’t decide what you want, make these bars: butterscotch, nuts, chocolate, coconut, all come together for some make-ahead, ahem, magic.

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  • Chocolate Gingerbread Cookies

    Chocolate Gingerbread Cookies
    Irvin Lin

    Chocolate and gingerbread may initially seem like odd bedfellows, but give it one bite and the pairing makes a whole lot of delicious sense. Dunk these in milk (or even coffee in the morning). Don't worry your secret is safe with me!

  • Peppermint Meringue Cookies

    Peppermint Meringue Cookies
    Elise Bauer

    Light and minty, meringues are great treats for anyone with allergies—there are no nuts or flour. Plus, these look especially festive, mimicking a candy cane swirl.

  • Brown Butter Chocolate Chunk Cookies

    Browned Butter Chocolate Chunk Cookies
    Elise Bauer

    There’s no such thing as having too many chocolate chip cookie recipes, and this one is nutty from the browned butter and creamy and from milk chocolate.

  • Chocolate Orange Shortbread Cookies

    Chocolate Shortbread Cookies
    Elise Bauer

    Chocolate and orange is a very British kind of flavor pairing. The thin texture and flavor combo make for a sophisticated little number that may surprise your guests.

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  • Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies

    Homemade Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookie split in half.
    Marta Rivera

    Leaving out chocolate chip cookies for Santa always happened in my house every year. This year I’m thinking about an upgrade with these extra fluffy and chewy peanut butter cookies.

  • Black and White Cookies

    Overhead view of black and white cookies on a piece of parchment.

    Simply Recipes / Cambrea Gordon

    If you’re throwing a holiday party this year, then these Black and White Cookies need to be at the center of your dessert spread. These cookies have a cake-like texture and are sure to impress everyone at first bite.

  • Hungarian Butterhorn Cookies

    Overhead view of Butterhorn Cookies Filled with Walnut Meringue in a pink bowl.
    Coco Morante

    Meet the cookie that will blow your holiday gift exchange out the water. These cookies are rolled up and filled with a walnut meringue and dressed in a snowy glaze that makes for a jaw dropping cookie that is both beautiful and delicious.

  • Coconut Chocolate Chip Cookies

    Coconut Chocolate Chip Cookies
    Aaron Hutcherson

    This cookie is a cross between a chocolate chip cookie and a coconut macaroon. They’re soft, chewy and packed with chocolate chips (yum!) and coconut.

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  • Oatmeal Raisin Cookies

    Overhead view of Oatmeal Raisin Cookies cooling on a rack.
    Ciara Kehoe

    Here’s another classic for you: Oatmeal Raisin Cookies packed with brown sugar, handfuls of raisins, and old-fashioned oats. It's nostalgia at first bite.

  • Thin and Crispy Chocolate Chip Cookies

    Best Crispy Chocolate Chip Cookies Recipe
    Cindy Rahe

    Okay, there are people who LOVE chewy cookies and then there are people who LOVE crunchy cookies. I am on team chewy cookies, but if you so happen to be on team crispy cookie—then this recipe is for you!

  • No Bake Chocolate and Peanut Butter Cookies

    Chocolate Peanut Butter No Bake Cookies drizzled in peanut butter
    Cindy Rahe

    Sometimes, you just don’t want to turn your oven on and that is totally okay! Here is an extra special no bake cookie recipe loaded with cocoa powder, oats, peanut butter, and milk. When assembled, it’s drizzled with even MORE peanut butter.

  • Nut-Free “Peanut Butter” Chocolate Chip Cookies

    Sunflower Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies
    Megan Gordon

    Do you love nutty cookies, but have a nut allergy? This cookie recipe is made with sunflower butter and other allergy friendly ingredients is the perfect option for allergy prone friends and family. Make sure to add these to your cookie spread this season!

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  • Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies

    Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookie Recipe
    Elise Bauer

    Brown butter is the secret ingredients to these insanely delicious Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies. The brown butter adds extra nuttiness—if you haven't tried brown butter cookies, here is your chance!

  • Red Velvet Cookies

    Red Velvet Cookies with White Chocolate Chips
    Irvin Lin

    If you’re a lover of red velvet cake, then you’ll love this take on red velvet cookies made with cream cheese and white chocolate chips which provides both tang and sweetness for a perfectly balanced cookie.

  • Flourless Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies

    Flourless Peanut Butter Cookies with Chocolate Chips cooling on a rack.
    Sally Vargas

    It's always nice to have options for special diets around the holidays. It's even better when those options taste amazing regardless of your food restrictions. A bowl and a fork is all you need to make these oh-so-easy flourless, gluten-free cookies.

  • Double Chocolate Chip Cookies

    Easy chocolate chocolate cookies on a white plate.
    Hannah Zimmerman

    It’s chocolate on chocolate! These Double Chocolate Chip Cookies are chewy on the inside and crispy on the outside (it’s the best of both worlds).

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  • Peanut Butter Blossom Cookies

    Easy Peanut Butter Blossom Cookies
    Megan Gordon

    I don’t know about you, but this is definitely one of my favorite childhood cookies and I enjoy making them EVERY holiday season. A peanut butter cookie base gets "kissed" with a chocolate kiss to create a to-die-for flavor combination.

  • Gluten-Free Chocolate Chip Cookies

    Gluten-free Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies
    Alison Conklin

    Chocolate chip cookies are a staple for the holiday season and just in case you were on the hunt for a gluten-free version, we’ve got you covered! These are made with oat flour and rolled oats for a nutty twist on a classic cookie.

  • Brookies (Chocolate Chip Brownie Cookies)

    Brookie Cookie
    Cindy Rahe

    It’s a brownie, no it’s a cookie. Wait. It’s both! It takes a bit of time to create the two doughs, portion them out and roll them together, but this dessert duo is totally worth it.

  • Butter Pecan Cookies

    Butter Pecan Cookies Recipe served on a plate
    Elise Bauer

    I LOVE butter pecan ice cream and I am totally down to always make anything that mimics that flavor. These cookies melt in your mouth and only take 15 minutes to make.

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  • Pecan Meringue Cookies

    Pecan Meringue Cookies
    Elise Bauer (leads) and Sally Vargas (method shots)

    All you need for this cookie recipe is 3 ingredients: Egg whites, sugar, and pecans. The earthy sweetness of the pecans offsets the crispy sugary bit from the meringue.

  • Oatmeal Almond Breakfast Cookies

    Breakfast Cookies Recipe
    Marta Rivera

    If you want a cookie recipe that doubles as a breakfast snack for Christmas morning, then this treat is for you. Oatmeal, almond butter, and chocolate chip cookies sounds like the perfect breakfast to me.

  • Brown Sugar Snickerdoodle Cookies

    brown sugar snickerdoodles next to a glass of milk

    A snickerdoodle is both crisp with a little chew and has a signature crackled topping with cinnamon sugar. A great holiday cookie (but honestly, I keep this in my rotation year round, don’t tell anyone). It’s our little secret.

  • Molasses Spice Cookies

    Molasses Spice Cookies
    Elise Bauer

    Think gingersnap cookies, but chewier and thicker. The star of these cookies are all of the wonderful spices: ginger, cloves, allspice, and cinnamon and when you combine that with sugar and molasses, you've got a cookie that just became a new holiday favorite.

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  • Peppermint Lofthouse Cookies

    peppermint lofthouse cookies

    Lofthouse cookies have to be the softest most tender sugar cookie around. They take a seasonal spin with a touch of peppermint. With such a classic holiday flavor you can't go wrong.

  • Eggnog Cookies

    Egg Nog Cookies

    Eggnog is great on its own, with a little rum or whiskey, and, believe it or not, it makes great cookies. The tender crumb lasted with hints of nutmeg create a delectable holiday dessert.

  • Butterscotch Cookies

    Butterscotch Cookies piled high on plate
    Elise Bauer

    Are you in love with butterscotch? Add these cookies to your must make list. These crisp and crunchy cookies are made with browned butter and brown sugar. Grab a glass of milk and get ready to dunk 'em.

  • Oatmeal Lace Cookies

    Oatmeal Lace Cookies

    The Spruce / Elaine Lemm

    These aren't your traditional oatmeal cookies. When making them (it's less like cookie dough) and more like cookie batter. And when they bake in the oven, they'll spread and become a thin and crisp cookie that will look wildly impressive on your cookie tray.

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  • Oat and Tahini Breakfast Cookies

    Tahini Breakfast Cookies

    Simply Recipes/Sally Vargas

    Cookies for Christmas morning breakfast?! Sign me up! I'll take any excuse to nosh on dessert for breakfast. These cookies oatmeal based cookies are chock full of dried fruit, tahini, and nuts.

  • Oatmeal Raisin Chocolate Chip Orange Pecan Cookies

    Oatmeal Raisin Chocolate Chip Orange Pecan Cookies
    Elise Bauer

    Take a basic cookie like oatmeal raisin and raise the steaks with dark chocolate chips, pecans, and orange zest. Oh, and let’s not forget the brown butter. As the cookies come out of the oven and cool they become crisp around the edges and soft in the middle—I'm sure you can taste them already.

  • Cream Cheese Pecan Cookies

    Cream Cheese Pecan Cookies
    Elise Bauer

    Try these buttery and tangy slice and bake cream cheese cookies studded with chopped pecans this year. You can make the dough ahead of time pop it in the freezer then slice and bake them when ready.

  • Orange Poppy Seed Cookies

    Orange Poppy Seed Cookies
    Elise Bauer

    I’m a huge fan of lemon poppy seed EVERYTHING, so having a cookie with orange zest and poppy seeds, just takes my poppy seed cookie love to the next level. You get bright citrus flavor from the orange and a textural contrast from the poppy seeds that makes an out of this world cookie,

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  • White Chocolate Macadamia Nut Cookies

    White Chocolate Macadamia Nut Cookies
    Elise Bauer

    If you couldn’t tell by now, I love cookies! But I do have to say this is probably one of my favorite cookie recipes. Not only do I make them for the holidays, but I make them any chance I get really.

  • Giant Ginger Cookies

    Giant Ginger Cookies
    Elise Bauer

    Ginger cookies are good, but extra-large ginger cookies are even better! Impress the cookie monsters in your life with a giant ginger treat made with warm spices like ground ginger, clove, and and cinnamon.

  • Maple Cookies

    Maple Cookies
    Elise Bauer

    Maple syrup isn’t just for French toast. It's used in these cookies to make a soft and chewy holiday treat. Oh, and let's not forget about the chopped walnuts here that add crunch and flare.

  • White Chocolate Cranberry Cookies

    Brandied Cranberry White Chocolate Chip Cookies
    Elise Bauer

    Are you looking for a show stopping cookie this season? Look no further than these White Chocolate Cranberry Cookies. They’re tart from the sweet dried cranberries and have loads of sweetness from the white chocolate pieces.