25 of The Best Holiday Cookies

Get a jump start on those holiday baking plans now with this collection of 25 of the Best Holiday Cookies...

I know that Halloween was just one week ago and we are all focused on making those Thanksgiving dinner plans right now, but you all- Christmas is next month! I mean, I know, I know. 

Christmas happens in December every single year (nothing new, right?), but if you are anything like me it always seems to sneak up on me even though I am very well aware of when December 25th is each year. ;)

While I am sure I will be super late on getting my Christmas cards out as usual and I will probably still be scrambling those few days right before Christmas to snag those last minute gifts, I can definitely get a jump on my holiday baking plans now. 

A couple of weeks before Christmas each year, Little Miss & I invite my sister and my mother over and we all get together to bake a whole slew of Christmas cookies and sweet treats. We crank up the Christmas carols, pour the eggnog, and get baking. It has definitely become one of my daughter and I's new favorite holiday family traditions. 

15 Fabulous Make-Ahead Holiday Cookies

Get a head start on all that holiday baking now with these 15 Fabulous Make-Ahead Holiday Cookies recipes...

This post may contain affiliate links. Purchasing through them helps support this website.

Now that all of that Halloween business is behind us for another year, it is time to focus on that most wonderful time of the year...the holiday season!

If you are like me, the holidays are jam-packed full of family gatherings, last-minute gift shopping, home decorating, and of course, cookie baking.

But just what if you could get that holiday cookie baking done and out of the way?

Like now? ;)

Before the hustle and the bustle sets in.

Yes, folks. Freezer-friendly cookie dough and perfectly baked cookies could be all nestled in your freezer just ready for you to defrost and serve and enjoy. Have cookie dough and tasty cookies at the ready for unexpected holiday guests or impromptu baking sessions with the kiddos or your girlfriends.

Easy Biscoff Snickerdoodles

These thick & soft Easy Biscoff Snickerdoodles are sure to quickly become a family favorite...

Post updated 1/10/19- These soft & thick Easy Biscoff Snickerdoodles deserved some updated photos. I did leave one of the originals down below just so you all can see for yourself why this recipe so desperately needed a little face lift. ;)

When it comes to holiday cookie baking, I like to have a few easy recipes in my arsenal to make.  I will set aside time and effort to make a few more labor intensive cookies (like cut out & frosted sugar cookies from scratch), but I also like to have a tasty variety of holiday cookies to have in the house and also to take to family and friends.  

But honestly with a toddler running circles around my ankles in the kitchen, I need a few little effort gems I can whip up in no time.

Needless to say, my Easy Biscoff Snickerdoodles will be baking in my oven this coming weekend. :) 

White Chocolate Dipped Cherry Shortbread Cookies

These buttery, crispy cookies are studded with sweet & tart dried cherries and then dipped in white chocolate- perfect for the holidays... 

This year was my first time participating in the Great Food Blogger Cookie Swap.  Last year I remember seeing food blogger friends posting all the fabulous cookies they were receiving from other food bloggers and wanting to kick myself for not signing up. So this year as soon as the sign-ups went up, I headed over and registered. :) 

What is the Great Food Blogger Cookie Swap? To participate, each food blogger donates just $4 to Cookies for Kids' Cancer. 

Then you receive the addresses of 3 other food bloggers that you will bake cookies for and send off at least a dozen to each. In return, you will get 3 different dozens of homemade cookies from 3 other food bloggers. 

Helping a great cause and getting to try cookies from other food bloggers? That is a win-win in my book, folks. ;) And this year's cookie swap raised over $12,000 for Cookies for Kid's Cancer! 

If you follow me on Instagram, you already got a peek at the delicious cookies that came my way during this year's swap. 

My cookie swap recipients received these crispy and buttery dried cherry studded shortbread cookies that I dipped in white chocolate and finished off with some holiday festive sprinkles...

Mexican Hot Chocolate Cookies

These rich, chewy Mexican Hot Chocolate Cookies are chock full of gooey marshmallows & chocolate chips with just a hint of cinnamon...  

Post updated 12/3/18- These chocolaty & chewy Mexican Hot Chocolate Cookies deserved some updated photos. I did leave one of the originals down below just so you all can see for yourself why this recipe so desperately needed a little face lift. ;)

'Tis the season for cookie baking! Am I right?

Lots and lots of cookie baking... ;)

Last month I signed up to participate in the Christmas Cookie Recipe Swap with White Lights on Wednesday, Real Housemoms, and {I love} My Disorganized Life.  Each blogger who signed up was paired with another blogger.  

They then swapped one of their favorite holiday cookie recipes via email. Then each blogger made and photographed their cookie swap partners cookie recipe, and today we are sharing them with you all!

I was fortunate enough to be paired with the fabulous Aubrey of Real Housemoms.  :) She emailed me her recipe for Mexican Hot Chocolate Cookies- a recipe that her son was the inspiration for & that is now one of her husband's new favorite holiday cookies.  And after making these myself, I can definitely understand why! ;)

Chai Spiced Gingerbread Stars

With warm chai spices and a touch of molasses, these Chai Spiced Gingerbread Stars are sure to quickly become a new classic cookie for your holiday baking...

Last week I shared with you all a recipe for a DIY Chai Spice Mix. And now I am giving you a holiday perfect recipe to use that spice mix in- these simple Chai Spiced Gingerbread Stars. :) 

I actually baked up these gingerbread cookies a couple of weeks ago to pack up & send off to the three fellow food bloggers I was matched up with for The Great Food Blogger Cookie Swap. This was my second year participating in the swap, but the swap itself is in its fifth year now. 

Basically, it is a fun way to have a holiday cookie exchange with other food bloggers from around the country and to raise donations and awareness for Cookies for Kids' Cancer. You get 3 different dozen homemade cookies delivered right to your door, and you get to support a worthy cause at the same time- that is a win-win in my book. :)

I adapted this Chai Spiced Gingerbread Stars recipe from Allie's (Baking A Moment) recipe for Gingerbread Cookies That Don't Spread in the Oven. As soon as I came across her recipe, I knew I had to base my gingerbread recipe from hers. 

Most of you are probably all too familiar with gingerbread men who become puffy, inflated, & spread out of shape as they are baking. I made a few tiny tweaks to Allie's recipe, but these cookies held their shape as you can see from the photos. 

With warm chai spices and a touch of molasses, these Chai Spiced Gingerbread Stars are sure to quickly become a new classic cookie for your holiday baking...

French Vanilla Peppermint Bark Cookies

These festive 5 ingredient French Vanilla Peppermint Bark Cookies would be the perfect addition to Santa's cookie plate... 

Post updated 12/14/17- These festive French Vanilla Peppermint Bark Cookies deserved some updated photos. I did leave one of the originals down below just so you all can see for yourself why this recipe so desperately needed a little face-lift. ;)

If you have been following my Instagram, you are probably well aware by now of my newest obsession with Hershey's Peppermint Bark Bells. One of the perks of being a food blogger is getting to try delicious new candies for free (and sometimes getting paid to do that as well).  

The Instagram posts I got paid for.  

This recipe post?  

I am not getting paid for.  

Yep. I do really love these Hershey's Peppermint Bark Bells.  ;)

35 Holiday Entertaining Recipes

Whether you are rounding out that Thanksgiving dinner menu or planning ahead for Christmas, you are going to love this collection of 35 Holiday Entertaining Recipes...

So, I warned you all earlier this week that I would be going all out Thanksgiving on the blog this week, and I am making true on that promise. ;) And with turkey day being less than two weeks away, I think you all are going to thank me (and love me!) for today's post. Because this one is a triple whammy, folks. 








I have teamed up with Aubrey of Real Housemoms and some of my amazing blogger friends to not only help you all out with that Thanksgiving menu, but we are also sharing recipes to help you get a jump start on that Christmas planning.

First up? A dozen recipe links to help you round out that Thanksgiving dinner menu...

Conversation Heart Frosted Brookies

Fudgy & chewy brownie cookies are topped with an easy to make conversation heart frosting in these Conversation Heart Frosted Brookies...

This is a sponsored conversation written by me on behalf of The J.M. Smucker Company. The opinions and text are all mine.

I know that when most people think of Valentine's Day that they think of it as a romantic holiday filled with roses and fancy dinners out with your significant other. But Valentine's Day has always been more of a family holiday to me. 

When I was growing up, my parents always made sure that my younger sister and I were included. We always received a card, a little red foil heart filled with chocolates, and other little goodies from them. And this is a tradition that I have continued on with my kiddos as well. 

In fact, I have already went out and bought all their Valentine's Day goodies for next Sunday. ;)

My youngest is now finally old enough to give her mama a helping hand in the kitchen, so this Valentine's Day we decided to whip up some special cookies for our family and her preschool classmates. 

At first we were thinking brownies, but then she suggested cookies. I happened to have a box of our favorite Pillsbury™ Chocolate Fudge Brownie Mix in the pantry, so I thought why couldn't we have both? 

With just a few simple ingredient tweaks, you can turn your favorite Pillsbury™ boxed brownie mix into fudgy & chewy cookies or what I like to call brookies (Get it? Brownies + cookies = brookies). ;) 

And to make these brookies perfectly festive for the Valentine's Day holiday, we topped them with a simple frosting made from Pillsbury™ Creamy Supreme® Frosting in Vanilla & crushed conversation hearts. I mean, what says Happy Valentine's Day better than pastel colored candy conversation hearts?

White Chocolate Cherry Macadamia Cookies

Chock full of creamy white chocolate chips, tart dried cherries, and crunchy macadamia nuts, these thick & chewy White Chocolate Cherry Macadamia Cookies would make the perfect addition to Santa's cookie plate...

So who else feels like we were catapulted straight from Thanksgiving dinner right into the Christmas season almost overnight? Granted, Thanksgiving did arrive a little later than it normally does this year, so maybe that is why I am feeling as if I have been scrambling this last full week before Christmas. 

We finally went out and picked out our Christmas tree and got it up and decorated last Friday. 

We didn't bother putting lights up outside this year because it seemed to rain almost every day that my son & I actually would have had the time to tackle the task. And by the time the weather cleared up, the lights would only be up for a couple of weeks so why bother with all that effort?

And while it may seem that I am grumbling a little (maybe there is even a little hint of bah-humbug in there?), it has been kind of nice to just be able to focus on the essentials for the holiday season for once. 

The tree may have been put up a little later than normal, but it IS up. The gift list has been checked off and the shopping is officially done. 

And I was still able to host my annual Christmas cookie baking party with my family. Things may not have went exactly according to my usual plan, but memories are being made and cherished family traditions are still being continued.

So what does the recipe for these White Chocolate Cherry Macadamia Cookies that I am sharing with you all today have to do with any of the above? ;)