30 Amazing Christmas Cookies
This post may contain affiliate links. Please read my disclosure policy for more details.
Nothing says Christmas like a tray of delicious and festive Christmas cookies!
From the classic sugar cookies to the most decadent and creative treat, your family’s annual cookie swap will be amazing.
Published Nov 2022/updated Dec 2024
Join my newsletter for free weekly recipes!
Something about baking feels extra special to me, especially this time of the year. It’s all the luscious chocolate, the spices, the sprinkles, and the beautiful and festive Christmas cookies.
Not only are they super delicious, but they are all about the joy of giving and sharing with family and friends, which makes everything more magical.
And if you are looking for a new recipe this year, you’ll find amazing Christmas cookie recipes featuring nuts, chocolate, figs, peppermint, and spices just waiting to be baked here.
I’ve gathered my cookie recipes that are easy to make and transport in this collection. But I’ve also added tested recipes from the kitchens of fellow food bloggers, including a few gluten-free and vegan recipes to make sure there’s something for everyone!
Get ready to bring the best treats to your next cookie exchange in 2023. Browse through this gorgeous collection of festive cookie recipes that your family and friends will love!
Enjoy. x
Christmas cookies
Easy Almond Cookies
These are the easiest and most delicious almond cookies ever! Simple ingredients, no stand mixer, but just a straightforward amazing almond cookie that turns out perfectly every time. A real treat for any almond lover!
Reindeer Cookies
Kids and young bakers will love these delicious reindeer cookies with crispy pretzel antlers. The dough is easy to make in a food processor in just seconds, no kneading required.
Cocoa Cookies
Full of cocoa flavour, hints of coffee, and crackly tops, these simple cocoa cookies are outrageously delicious, easy to customize, and perfect for the holidays.
Fig cookies (Italian Cuccidati)
It’s not Christmas for us without these amazing Italian fig cookies (aka Sicilian cuccidati). They’re made with a thin pastry filled with a fragrant mixture of figs, toasted almonds, dark chocolate, cinnamon and orange zest. The combination of flavors and textures is incredible!
Marzipan Cookies
These gorgeous marzipan cookies are slightly crisp on the outside and soft and moist on the inside. The recipe is quick and easy, requiring only 5 ingredients, and it's naturally dairy-free, gluten-free, and just amazing!
1-Bowl chocolate orange cookies
These beautiful orange cookies will make Christmas more magical! They’re made using fresh orange juice and zest and they’re dipped in scrumptious dark chocolate. Plus, they are SUPER EASY to make and require only 1-BOWL!
Coconut cookies of your dreams!
Amazingly delicious,. soft and chewy, these gorgeous coconut cookies are easy to make and taste divine. Bake them up for the holidays or anytime you want a decadent treat to share with family and friends.
Christmas Tree Cookies
These beautiful Christmas tree cookies will be just perfect on your cookie tray. Easy to make, quick to decorate with delicious dark chocolate, and sure to impress!
Lemon Biscotti
These gorgeous, crispy lemon biscotti have all the sweet goodness of classic biscotti, but with a sophisticated lemon flavor. They're delicious, economical and keep extremely well.
Gingerbread Cookies
When we think of Christmas cookies, Gingerbread cookies are a must. Their spice, their molasses flavor, their lovely smiles, and their charm are irresistible.
Almond biscottiI (Italian Cantucci)
You can’t resist these addictive Italian almond biscotti, they’re super crispy and packed with flavor, with lovely hints of orange, honey, and delicious toasted almonds. These amazing biscotti last up to 2 weeks and are perfect to give as a homemade Christmas gift.
Coconut Chocolate Chip Cookies
Chewy with a melt-in-your-mouth center and gooey chocolate in every bite, these wonderful coconut cookies with chocolate chips are a real treat for coconut lovers!
Polish Gingerbread Cookies
This recipe makes a European spin on a holiday classic! These traditional Polish gingerbread cookies use a sticky sweet substitute instead of the conventional molasses. They look beautiful.
Chocolate Biscotti
Crispy and delicious, these chocolate biscotti with hints of honey, orange and velvety dark chocolate make the perfect treat for the holidays and look sophisticated. They taste amazing with a cup of coffee.
Dark Chocolate Candy Cane Cookies
The classic combination of chocolate and peppermint make these Dark Chocolate Candy Cane Cookies the perfect treat for the holidays!
Chocolate Hazelnut Cookies (No Sugar)
These soft, decadent, chewy chocolate hazelnut cookies are made with wholesome, nourishing ingredients: perfect to satisfy your chocolate cravings. A guilt-free treat that you won’t be able to stop eating!
Chocolate Sugar Cookies
These lovely cookies bake up beautifully with defined edges and the best flavor! The recipe includes an easy and shiny sugar cookie icing that is almost impossible to mess up!
Vegan Biscotti with Almonds
So crunchy and full of flavors, these cookies are vegan and delicious for dunking in coffee or dessert wine and perfect to give as a homemade Christmas gift.
Pumpkin Chai Crinkle Cookies.
Pumpkin chai crinkle cookies are the perfect cookie for fall! Spiced, pumpkin crinkles rolled in powdered sugar and baked until chewy, light and fluffy. They are super easy to make and absolutely delicious!
Spritz Cookies
Spritz cookies are buttery and sweet and hold their intricate shape when baked. These delicious Spritz cookies are shaped with a cookie press and look so pretty.
Brown Butter, Pistachio and Chocolate Chunk Shortbread Cookies.
Look at those melty puddles, that flaky salt, those crunchy pistachios! These cookies are absolutely gorgeous and decadent!
Chocolate Chip Biscotti
This is another delicious version of the lovely, crispy Italian biscotti. You'll have the amazing crispy texture, orange flavor and the wonderful chocolate chips.
Chocolate Thumbprint Cookies
These chocolate thumbprint cookies are going to be your new Christmas cookie favorite. They are rolled in sugar and filled with wells of dark chocolate ganache (and a hint of bourbon!); these are irresistibly festive and simple but decadent cookies.
Peanut Butter Espresso Cookies
The espresso shortbread cookie is delicate yet full of espresso flavor, while the peanut butter filling is sweet and creamy. Together they make a wonderful pair, perfect for Christmas.
Grain Free Chocolate and Hazelnut Cookies
Chocolate and hazelnuts is a marriage made in heaven! These crunchy, toasted hazelnut cookies dipped in dark chocolate make a great Christmas treat to give away to friends and family. Plus, they’re gluten free and vegan!
Chewy Cardamom Spice Cookies
These easy cookies taste like a cross between a classic sugar cookie and a snickerdoodle. Soft, chewy, filled with just the right amount of spice. Perfect for Christmas and the holidays!
Mini Chocolate Thumbprint Cookies
These mini fudgy chocolate cookies are adorable, easy to make and they look gorgeous on a Christmas table.
Vegan Chocolate Amaretti Cookies
These irresistible gluten-free, vegan chocolate amaretti cookies are incredibly easy to make. Crunchy on the outside, soft and crumbly on the inside, they are the perfect homemade cookies for Christmas!
Healthier Gingerbread Cookies
Here’s a healthy version of your favorite classic gingerbread cookies! This recipe substituted whole wheat pastry flour for all purpose flour, coconut oil for butter and coconut sugar for brown sugar. They’re crisp, spiced and delicious.
Tahini Cookies
These tahini almond cookies are such yummy little treats… they also happen to be vegan and gluten free.
more Christmas recipes you’ll love!
And for more collections of recipes perfect for your holiday, you might be interested in these delicious:
I hope you make and love at least one of these Christmas cookies.
For more recipe updates, follow me on Instagram, Pinterest, and Facebook.
30 Amazing Christmas Cookies
Ingredients
- 1 large egg
- ½ cup + 1 Tbsp (110 grams) regular or caster sugar
- ⅓ cup (80 ml) light olive oil (or your fav vegetable oil)
- 3 tablespoons (45 ml) orange juice (approx from 1/2 orange)
- 2 tablespoons orange zest
- 1 teaspoon orange extract (or vanilla extract)
- 2 ⅓ cup (290 grams) all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- ½ scant teaspoon fine salt
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon ground ginger
Dark chocolate
- 3 oz (80 gram) dark chocolate chips or bar (break the bar into small pieces)
Instructions
- Whisk egg and sugar together in a medium bowl until the batter becomes lighter and pale and the sugar is dissolved. Add the vegetable oil, orange zest, orange juice, and orange extract and combine.
- Mix flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt (½ scant teaspoon, not more), and spices in a bowl until well combined. Then, stir the dry ingredients into the liquid mixture. Mix everything with a spoon or a whisker until most of the flour is incorporated. Then, gently bring the dough inside the bowl into a smooth ball using your hands. There is no need to transfer the dough onto a work surface.
- Preheat the oven to 350°F/175 °C and place the oven rack in the middle position. Line 2 large baking sheets with parchment paper.
- Gently roll each portion of dough between your hands into a smooth round ball (about 1.5 inches in diameter/each ball should be about 26 grams/0.9 oz each). Make sure they all have the same sizes, and place them onto the baking sheets, leaving a couple of inches around each cookie. Flatten them with your fingers.
- Bake them for about 13-15 minutes until they are barely golden brown on the edges and still soft (in my oven, the baking time is 13 minutes). Transfer them onto a wire rack to cool completely.
- Melt the chocolate on the stove: fill a medium saucepan with 3cm/1 inch of water, place over medium heat, and bring to a very gentle simmer. Place a heatproof bowl on top of the saucepan so that it fits snuggly but doesn’t touch the water. Add chocolate to the bowl, then leave to melt for a few minutes. Stir regularly until smooth and glossy; turn the heat off, then transfer the bowl from the stove to a work surface. For the microwave: melt the chocolate in short steps (10-15 seconds each time) and stir with a spoon after each step. Repeat until it looks melted and smooth. Remember that chocolate seizes quickly and fast; don't overheat it.
- Dip the cookies into the melted chocolate halfway and place them on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper, or drizzle the chocolate over if you wish. If you use sprinkles, you want to sprinkle the cookies straightaway while the chocolate decoration is still soft. Place cookies in the refrigerator for a few minutes until chocolate hardens. Ready!
