My Family’s Favorite Christmas Cookies
These are tried and true Christmas cookie recipes, which is why I call it my “best ever” collection.
Plate of assorted special cookies
One of my favorite holiday traditions is baking special cookies- cookies that I don’t make any other time of the year. Another tradition is eating them! Albeit, I should be a little less enthusiastic in my celebration of that beloved activity. In no way do counting calories put a damper on baking, however, since there are always plenty of happy recipients who can step in for me.
Good thing, because these family favorite cookies must be made with real butter, delicious flavors and additions such as jam or cream cheese, and warm inviting spices such as cinnamon, nutmeg, and cardamon. A great Christmas cookie should not skimp on ingredients for the sake of calories. Let the New Year take care of those considerations!
Additionally, links to the Top Five Cookie Baking Essentials for all cookie baking activities are sprinkled throughout. I hope you make some of these recipes your own best and beloved baked traditions.
The Best Christmas Cookies
…a few cookie baking notes
Bar Cookies
Three of my favorite Christmas chocolate cookies are the easy bar type. Baked in one pan, then cut into bars. Most will pack and ship well; the “Chocolate Cherry Squares” are an exception- those need to be refrigerated.
Molded Cookies
Special shapes, often rolled in confectioners sugar or nuts, these are fun and easy to bake. The “Kris Kringles” are an example of those.
Kris Kringles, Cookies with Cardamon
Kris Kringles, pretzel shaped cookies
Kris Kringles
Ingredients
Method
- Preheat oven to 375° F. Lightly grease cookie sheets.
- In medium bowl, with wooden spoon: beat butter, sugar, egg yolks, cardamom, and lemon peel til well blended
- Stir in flour; mix with hands to blend.
- On lightly floured surface roll out 1 of two parts of dough to a 7x6 inch rectangle.
- Cut each rectangle in half, and then cut crosswise into 12 strips (you will have 48 strips in all).
- With palms of hands, roll each strip 4 inches long. Form into a ring or pretzel shape, pinch to seal.
- Place on cookie sheets and brush with egg white beaten with 1 TBSP water.
- Make topping: Combine almonds with sugar. Sprinkle over tops of cookies.
- Bake cookies 10-12 minutes til golden brown. Remove to wire rack to cool
Delicate, Melt-In-Your-Mouth Goodies
Auntie Mary’s delicious cookies
Auntie Mary Cookies
Ingredients
Method
- Mix on medium speed, butter, cream cheese, and sugars until well creamed and fluffy.
- Add egg and vanilla, beat. Stir in flour, baking powder, and salt.
- Divide dough into quarters and wrap. Chill overnight or minimum of 2 hours.
- Make filling: in saucepan cook sweetened condensed milk with chocolate until melted together. Remove from heat, stir in nuts and cool.
- Heat oven to 350° F and grease cookie sheets.
- On floured surface, roll each quarter of dough to 10'' by 6'' rectangle.
- Spread 1/4 amount of filling down the center of rectangle. Fold in thirds over the filling and place seam side down on cookie sheet
- Bake 20 minutes until light brown. Cool on racks.
- Sprinkle with confectioners sugar once completely cool, and cut into slices.
In the Top Five Cookie Baking Essentials:: Excellent Spatula
OXO Good Grips Silicone Cookie Spatula, Gray, 3 inches
Get a good silicone spatula- I replace mine every few years! Scraping the bowl is essential for mixing dough well. Needed for every recipe listed here, to scrape the batter from the bowls, help form the dough ball, fold in the chocolate. You get a lot of use from a spatula and don’t want it getting all shredded and cracked at the edge.
Softened
Recipes that call for softened butter or cream cheese simply mean that the stick is at the temperature of a warm kitchen, it does not mean to melt it, or liquefy.
brownie type cookies
Chocolate Walnut Sensations
Chocolate Walnut Sensations
Ingredients
Method
- Preheat oven to 375° F.
- In small bowl mix flour, baking soda and salt; set aside
- In large mixer bowl, beat brown sugar, butter, and vanilla til creamy
- Beat in egg; gradually add flour mixture;
- Stir in the Chocolate morsels and the walnuts
- Spread into greased 9 inch baking pan. Bake for 23-25 minutes.
- Remove from oven and immediately sprinkle with remaining cup of morsels, let soften and spread evenly over top. Garnish with some coarsely chopped walnuts
- Cool; chill briefly in refrigerator and cut into 2 x 1 1/2 inch bars.
Linzer Squares
Linzer Squares are bar cookies with panache. Rich and very delicate, my dad’s favorite!
Rich and Delectable Bar Cookies
Linzer Bar Cookies
Linzer Bar Cookies
Ingredients
Method
- Heat oven to 375° F. Grease 9 in. square pan.
- In large mixer bowl add 1 1/2 cups flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, nuts, and butter. Mix til well-combined. Add lemon peel and egg, stir til ingredients are moistened.
- Reserve 1/2 cup dough. Pat remaining dough into pan and set aside.
- To reserve dough add 2 Tblsp. flour. Roll between two sheets of waxed paper into 9 in. square. Freeze for 5 minutes to firm.
- Spread jam over dough in pan leaving a 1/4 in. border.
- Take reserve dough, peel paper off and cut into 18 strips 1/2 in. wide. Make lattice top with 9 strips parallel and 9 crosswise over the top.Stir egg yolk and water together in small bowl; brush strips. Bake 30 minutes until top is golden brown.
- Cool completely, cut into 36 little squares.
In the List of Top Five Cookie Baking Essentials:: Rolling Pin
OXO Good Grips Non-Stick Rolling Pin
Nothing matters more than a good rolling pin. If you can chill it, and it has a the right weight- those qualities are a plus. That feature is wonderful for the Linzer Square dough. A decent rolling pin will help produce results of thinly rolled cookies like my Moravian Spice. I also crush graham cracker crumbs for the Magic Cookie Bars by enclosing them between sheets of waxed paper and rolling over the crackers ’til crushed..
Cutouts Are Favorites
Bake a variety of cookies to create a festive treat for friends and family
The Moravian Spice Cookie
Cut-out: Moravian Spice Cookie recipe
I always try to bake a “gingerbread” type of cookieChristmas page on decorating with a gingerbread motif and my favorite is the Moravian Spice, which is a hard cookie, wonderful as a keeper and for dunking in a warm drink.
They deserved their own featured recipe article,”The Moravian Spice Cookie“.
Make Bunches of Cookies
Hungarian Style Cookies
Kifli are Hungarian favorites and I had this cookie listed on my Famous Hungarian Food post.
There are so many recipes for Kifli, each truly delicious, but the one for this collection of recipes is my easiest one. “Hungarian Apricot Foldovers” have just a few ingredients, and are easier than pie!
Hungarian Cream Cheese Foldovers
These Hungarian Pastries (Kifli) are tender cream cheese dough with delicious filling.
This was given to me by a friend. Fast, easy, rich, delicious. She used apricot filling, which is a perfect pairing with the cream cheese dough, but any of your favorite preserves or a nut fillings would be delicious.
Surprise Fillings in Tender Cooky Envelopes
Foldovers are a Kifli type of pastry
Hungarian Apricot Foldovers
Ingredients
Method
- Cream butter and cream cheese together with large spoon.
- Add flour, mix and roll out thin. Cut into rectangles or use circle cookie cutter
- Fill rounds with spoonful of jam. Pinch closed and place on ungreased cookie sheet
- Bake at 350° F. til golden (10 min.?) Don't overbake, adjust time to your oven.
- Cool.Turn over in confectioners sugar to coat
Notes
Top Five Cookie Baking Essentials:: Timer
Whether it is a classical shaped timer like this, or one of the cute ones that match your kitchen decor, using a timer that alerts you prevents the dreaded burnt cookies. You always believe you will pay attention and remember the moment to take those lovingly rolled, formed, delectable cookies out of the oven when baking time is done. But trust me, without a dependable timer…. you won’t. I know you mean well, but it is just human to walk away and get distracted by something you thought would take just a minute. Save yourself waste of perfectly wonderful cookies and buy the timer.
Is It a Cookie or a Candy Bar? A Bit of Both!
Magic Cookie Bars
Magic Cookie Bars
Magic Cookie Bars
Ingredients
Method
- Preheat oven to 350° F. In 13x9 in. baking pan, melt butter
- Sprinkle crumbs over butter; pour sweetened condensed milk evenly over crumbs.
- Top evenly with layer of coconut, then chocolate morsels, then nuts; press down gently.
- Bake 25 to 30 minutes til lightly browned. Cool thoroughly before cutting into bars.
Notes
Chocolate Cherry Squares
– with the taste of chocolate cheesecake.
This came from an old Hershey cocoa ad, years ago. It won’t keep long without refrigeration, but it is too yummy not to have on hand.
Chocolate Cherry Squares
Chocolate Cherry Squares
Ingredients
Equipment
Method
- Combine flour, brown sugar, and butter (cut into chunks) in large mixer bowl.
- Blend on low speed to form fine crumb, about 2-3 minutes. Stir in nuts.Reserve 3/4 cup of crumb mixture for topping; press remaining crumbs into ungreased 9 inch square pan.Bake for 10 minutes @ 350° F until lightly browned.
- Combine cream cheese, sugar, cocoa, milk, egg, and vanilla in small mixing bowl; beat until smooth. Fold in chopped cherries.Spread mixture over warm crust. Sprinkle reserved crumb mixture over top; garnish with cherry halves evenly over the surface.Return to oven and continue to bake for 25 minutes @ 350° F until lightly browned and filling is set.
- Cool. Cut into squares. Store in refrigerator.
Notes
Mrs. Janssen’s Pecan Drops
Mrs. Jansson’s pecan drops
Rich, Easy, Delicious
One of the easiest Christmas cookies I bake- the whole pecans on top make them special. A drop cookie that is really something special, especially for those who love pecans.
This recipe can be doubled.
Pecan Drops
Ingredients
Method
- In large mixer bowl cream butter and sugar. Add egg yolk and vanilla, beat til light and fluffy. Beat in cream of tartar.
- Stir in flour and chopped pecans.
- Drop by heaping half teaspoonfuls 1 inch apart on lightly greased cookie sheet. Press pecan half into center of each.
- Bake in preheated oven at 300℉ until golden brown (23- 25 minutes) Remove at once to wire racks to cool.
In the Top Five Cookie Baking Essentials:: Tiered Backing Rack
This space saving wire rack cools the cookies quickly and keeps their shape. When baking dozens of cookies, or layered cakes, etc. this saves space and cools baked goods nicely.
I Never Have Too Many Cookie Recipe Books!
Cookbooks yield great cookie recipes. Classic favorites of mine were Good Housekeeping, McCalls, Church Cookbook collections and many of the favorite recipes were clipped from magazines or newspapers over the years.
- Starring Your Favorite Spice Cookies
The smell of cinnamon, nutmeg, and cloves, allspice, mace and molasses fills the air when you bake these well loved cookies. The crunch, the chewiness, or melting softness when dunked in your coffee, it tastes like Christmas and brings memories to…
Finding Good Recipes
How important is it to have tested and recommended recipes? In baking, especially, it means the difference between disappointment and waste of expensive ingredients and success and satisfaction.
Old-fashioned, Tested Recipes
Once I had baked for a few years, it became apparent from looking at a recipe whether it was a winner or not. Before that I tried many and collected from old recipe books and magazines. I still buy cookie recipe magazines every year.A few good ones were handed to me from friends, including both my Kifli recipes.
I think a wonderful gift for a new bride or for someone who likes to bake would be a cookie collection written out in a pretty recipe book. I think I should do that for my children this coming Christmas!
Jam Crescents
Another cream cheese dough- this time with jam filling. You can tell how much I prize the richness and delicate nature of a cream cheese-based dough.
Jam Crescents
Ingredients
Method
- Mix flour with sugar and salt. Cut in the cream cheese and butter to cornmeal-like crumbs.
- Stir in sour cream with fork until dough holds together, form into ball.
- Wrap and chill for an hour.
- Heat oven to 325° F and grease 2 cookie sheets. Work 1/4 dough at a time.
- Roll dough into 10 inch square on floured surface, then cut into medium size circles. Place 1 teaspoon filling in center of each circle.
- Moisten fold, seal, prick top. Bake for 18-20 minutes until light brown
- Cool and roll in confectioners sugar if you wish.
Notes
Everyone Recommends This Mixer – The KitchenAid
KitchenAid Classic Series 4.5 Quart Tilt-Head Stand Mixer
For good reason, everyone has this mixer on their list! If you don’t’ have one yet, I think you should add a Kitchen Aid Mixer to your list of essentials. Add it to your wish lists and give hints for holidays and birthdays until you get one!
This heavy duty mixer will make you very happy, if you are a person who bakes and cooks anything that needs mixing. I can’t hype it enough.
If you have dreams of baking or cooking on a large scale, this mixer is solid, dependable, and comes in professional sizes. It is easy to keep clean, and the design works and looks good. There is a reason it is the top of the line in mixers.
I can vouch for all the good things people say about it. One of my sons bought one for me for Christmas, a number of years ago. It has been terrific to work with and I especially like the way it whips cream and stirs dough for my sweet rolls.
I also use the meat grinder attachment to make fresh cranberry relish. I get a lot of use from this one machine during the holidays.
Many recipes from old cookbooks
Another Dessert Recipe Collection
You might also like: Ilona’s Favorite Chocolate Desserts
Everyone seems to love chocolate desserts , including me. That is why I put together m family’s favorites: the best dessert recipes , tested through the years and found to be delicious.
© 2011 Ilona Erwin
