What’s your favorite part of celebrating Hanukkah and Christmas? Is it the time spent with friends and family? Or is it the delight of watching children open their presents? Of course, it could be those things, but no one will be surprised if you admit that it’s the food that you love. 

The holiday season brings with it many treats. Pies and cakes are amongst the favorites, but perhaps the most popular has to be cookies. If you won’t be making a family recipe this year, and you’re looking for something new to bake, here are some delicious cookie recipes that won’t disappoint.

• Rugelach: These cookies look like mini croissants and can be filled with a wide variety of flavors – anything from chocolate to fruits and nuts. This recipe has a simple filling of walnuts, sugar, raisins, and cinnamon – which makes them perfect for eating with a cup of coffee or tea. 

• Hanukkah Jelly Cookies: This cookie recipe will have you getting out your favorite holiday cookie cutters and choosing a delicious jam (or even Nutella) to sandwich between your cookies. A light dusting of powdered sugar is the final touch on these festive sweets.

• Melt-In-Your-Mouth Hanukkah Gelt Cookies: These cookies will definitely melt in your mouth with their cream cheese and butter, and when you top them with a piece of gelt, you’ll have a cute and tasty Hanukkah cookie.

• Chocolate Crinkle Peppermint Blossom: Peanut butter blossoms are often made around the holidays, but this Chocolate Crinkle Peppermint Blossom is a great twist on the original. Chocolate and mint pair well together, and you’ll find yourself quickly reaching for a second (or third cookie) when you make these.

• Eggnog Biscotti: Biscotti are delicious Italian cookies meaning “twice baked,” and this recipe incorporates one of the season’s traditional flavors – eggnog. With eggnog both in the batter and in the glaze, you’ll love the taste!

• Classic Shortbread Cookies: Shortbread cookies are a classic, and they’re great for the holidays. And with only three ingredients – they are incredibly simple to make. If you want to make them a bit more “fancy” try  dipping them in some melted chocolate.

• M & M’s Christmas Cookie Bars: Cookies are good, but bar cookies are awesome! No need to bake out individual cookies when you can just bake them in a 9”x13” pan. This recipe uses holiday M&Ms, but feel free to makes these throughout the year and swap in your favorite seasonal candies.

• No-Bake Penguin Cookies: How about making this cute penguin cookie that requires absolutely no baking? Crackers, peanut butter, chocolate, and a few decorations are all it takes to make these! So easy the kids can do it!
• Turtle Snickerdoodles: Do you know how you make a classic Snickerdoodle even better? You add a Rolo and pecan to it – and you make these Turtle Snickerdoodles. They look pretty and taste even better! Perfect for those Christmas cookie trays.
• Decorated Christmas Cutout Cookies: You can’t celebrate the holiday without making cutout cookies! This simple dough is flavored with vanilla and will have you cutting out all of your favorite shapes for frosting!

• Christmas Gooey Butter Cookies: This is another excellent cookie if you are short on time, as it uses a cake mix as its base. Just add a few key ingredients and some flavored extract, and you’ll have these cookies baked out in no time.
• Grinch Cookies: Why not watch “How the Grinch Stole Christmas” and make these adorable green cookies? The kids will love them!

If cookies are your favorite part of the holiday season, then you’ll love these recipes. They are delicious and perfect for the season.