Spiced dough, chocolate, and buttery bakes can make the house smell like a holiday kitchen. These 13 cookies bring together familiar favorites, from powdered-sugar crinkles and shortbread to pumpkin, fruit, and peanut butter batches. Pick a cookie for a quiet afternoon, a holiday tray, or a tin to share.
Chocolate Crinkle Cookies
Crackled tops and a snowy sugar coating give Chocolate Crinkle Cookies their old-fashioned look. The dough uses cocoa, sugar, vegetable oil, eggs, and vanilla, then chills before baking so the cookies split as they spread. The full batch takes about 4 hours and 27 minutes, including chilling, and yields 24 cookies. Set them on a holiday plate beside plain sugar cookies for a contrast in color and texture.
Get the Recipe: Chocolate Crinkle Cookies
Carrot Cake Cookies
Spiced, oat-studded rounds bring the familiar flavors of carrot cake to Carrot Cake Cookies. Shredded carrot, quick oats, cinnamon, ginger, cloves, and nutmeg give the dough its warm aroma, while butter and brown sugar keep the centers tender. The recipe takes about 30 minutes and makes 20 cookies, so there are enough for a cookie tin or afternoon treat. Their gentle spice pairs naturally with coffee or tea.
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Sugar Cookies Without Butter
Soft centers and lightly crisp edges make Sugar Cookies Without Butter a handy option when butter is not on hand. The dough uses flour, baking powder, salt, and oil, with coconut oil or vegetable oil as options, then bakes into simple cookies ready for decorating. The recipe takes about 50 minutes and makes 12. Add colored sugar or icing for a holiday tray, or keep them plain for a familiar snack.
Get the Recipe: Sugar Cookies Without Butter
Peanut Butter Cookies
Fork-pressed tops and chewy middles give Peanut Butter Cookies their familiar bakery-case look. Peanut butter joins butter, white and brown sugar, egg, and vanilla in a dough that bakes into rich, nutty cookies. The recipe makes 12 and takes about 26 minutes, so a batch fits easily into a relaxed afternoon of holiday baking. Serve them with a glass of milk or pack them into a tin with chocolate cookies.
Get the Recipe: Peanut Butter Cookies
Chocolate Cherry Cookies
Glossy spots of fruit and a dark, fudgy crumb make Chocolate Cherry Cookies stand out on a holiday cookie plate. The dough combines cocoa, butter, sugar, and maraschino cherries, with semisweet chocolate chips adding more chocolate in each bite. They take about 20 minutes and yield 16 cookies, giving you a quick batch when the baking schedule is full. Their chocolate-and-fruit combination looks festive beside classic shortbread or sugar cookies.
Get the Recipe: Chocolate Cherry Cookies
Pumpkin Oatmeal Cookies
Chewy texture and gentle spice bring fall flavor to Pumpkin Oatmeal Cookies. Pumpkin puree and oats join brown and white sugar, butter, maple syrup, egg, and vanilla for a soft cookie with a hearty bite. The recipe takes about 51 minutes and makes 12 cookies. Set them out with coffee after dinner or add them to a holiday tin for someone who likes pumpkin desserts beyond pie.
Get the Recipe: Pumpkin Oatmeal Cookies
Shortbread Cookies
Crisp edges and a delicate, tender crumb give Shortbread Cookies their familiar snap. Butter, powdered sugar, vanilla, flour, and cornstarch form a smooth dough that bakes into simple cookies. The recipe takes about 42 minutes and makes 16, a manageable batch for a cookie exchange or an afternoon at home. Keep them plain or pair them with jam and tea for a quiet holiday break.
Get the Recipe: Shortbread Cookies
Chocolate Chip Cookies
Golden edges and soft centers keep Chocolate Chip Cookies a favorite on holiday trays year after year. The dough combines butter, granulated and brown sugars, vanilla, eggs, flour, and chocolate chips for a classic cookie with pockets of melted chocolate. They take about 18 minutes and make 36 cookies, enough to share or freeze for later. Serve them slightly warm when the chocolate is still soft.
Get the Recipe: Chocolate Chip Cookies
Soft Pumpkin Cookies With Pecans
Pillowy texture and a mild spice aroma make Soft Pumpkin Cookies With Pecans a cozy addition to fall and winter baking. Pumpkin puree, butter, brown and granulated sugar, vanilla, and pumpkin spices create soft cookies, while pecans add a little crunch. The recipe takes about 30 minutes and yields 12. Their tender centers are especially good alongside coffee, or stacked on a plate with other seasonal cookies.
Get the Recipe: Soft Pumpkin Cookies With Pecans
Thumb Print Cookie
Jewel-like centers and delicate edges give Thumb Print Cookie its familiar look and bright fruit flavor. The buttery dough uses unsalted butter, sugar, egg yolks, vanilla, and flour, then gets shaped before baking and filled with preserves. The recipe takes about 24 minutes and makes 12 cookies. Choose a red jam for a holiday look, or mix flavors across the batch to add variety to a cookie tin.
Get the Recipe: Thumb Print Cookie
Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies
Warm spice and pockets of chocolate make Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies a seasonal twist on a familiar cookie. Pumpkin puree, butter, brown and white sugars, egg yolks, vanilla, flour, pumpkin spice, and chocolate chips form a soft dough. The recipe takes about 1 hour and 41 minutes and makes 12, including time for the dough to rest. Bake them ahead for a holiday tray or an afternoon snack.
Get the Recipe: Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies
Strawberry Cookies
A tender bite and berry-pink color make Strawberry Cookies a cheerful change from the usual chocolate and spice batches. Freeze-dried strawberry powder and pieces give the dough its fruit flavor, with butter, sugar, egg, vanilla, and flour forming the cookie base. The recipe takes about 32 minutes and makes 24 cookies. Arrange them alongside darker cookies for a colorful holiday plate, or pack a few into a small gift tin.
Get the Recipe: Strawberry Cookies
Sweet Salted Honey Cookies
A delicate crunch of salt balances the honeyed sweetness in Sweet Salted Honey Cookies. Honey and brown sugar flavor the dough, while butter, egg, vanilla, and flour help the cookies bake into tender rounds with lightly golden edges. The batch takes about 52 minutes and yields 12 cookies. Their sweet-salty finish brings something different to a holiday tin and pairs well with coffee, tea, or a glass of milk.
Get the Recipe: Sweet Salted Honey Cookies