Cookies, Roundups

Top 25 Most Googled Christmas Cookies

From old favorites to new, my top 25 Most Googled Christmas Cookies will get you ready to start baking for the holidays!
A photo of Speculaas cookies, easy sugar cookies with icing, and Pfeffernusse cookies next to each other with the title of the article overlaid.

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Hi Bold Bakers!

If you’re looking to update your holiday treat repertoire, look no further than this collection of The Top 25 Most Googled Christmas Cookies!

In my opinion, cookies are the perfect holiday treat. They can be served at holiday parties, given as gifts, or even just made for yourself. There are so many fantastic holiday cookies to choose from, but here are 25 of my favorite holiday and Christmas cookies I’ve shared along the way!

Classic Snowball Cookies

A batch of homemade Snowball Cookies are presented in a holiday tin with red tissue paper.

Snowball Cookies may be the most popular holiday cookies, and for good reason. They’re little balls of nutty, flaky, buttery heaven that couldn’t be easier to make. I like filling cute containers with homemade snowball cookies to give to friends around the holidays.

Best-Ever Sugar Cookies

Homemade sugar cookies are presented on parchment paper. The sugar cookies are cut into different shapes, including a Christmas tree, an angel, snowflakes, and gingerbread men.

For many families, it wouldn’t be the holidays without Sugar Cookies! And if you’re looking for the best sugar cookie recipe, I’d like to throw this one into the running. They’re sweet, buttery cookies that can be cut out into fun shapes and decorated with colorful icing and sprinkles. They’re the perfect way to get into the holiday spirit!

These are crunchy sugar cookies, but if you prefer Chewy Sugar Cookies or Soft Sugar Cookies, I also have recipes for those. If you want to decorate them, try my Royal Icing recipe!

Ginger Crinkle Cookies

A batch of ginger cookies are served on a plate in front of an image of Santa Claus. The cookies have crinkles and powdered sugar on top.

Crinkle cookies and gingerbread are both holiday staples, so why not put them together? These Ginger Crinkle Cookies have a great texture and a delicious flavor and are a great way to make classic holiday cookies feel brand new!

Butter Pecan Shortbread

Homemade butter pecan shortbread cookies rest on top of a festive red fleece next to a mug of hot chocolate with marshmallows.

I love regular shortbread with a nice cup of tea, but this Butter Pecan Shortbread takes it up a notch. They’re so buttery and rich, and they’re easy to make in large batches, so they’re great to make as gifts (although you may end up eating them all yourself!)

Iconic Speculaas Cookies

Speculass, beige shortbread with festive designs, rest on a wire rack next to a special Speculass rolling pin.

These Speculaas Cookies may be the prettiest holiday cookie you could make. They are Dutch shortcrust cookies packed with spices such as cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, aniseed, and ginger. Baking a batch of these cookies with all those warm spices will make your whole house smell like Christmas. They are traditionally served the night before the feast of St. Nicholas, but I say you should make them all holiday season long!

Italian Pignoli Cookies

A closeup image of Pignoli cookies show round cookies covered in pine nuts.

Pignoli Cookies are often made in Italian-American homes around Christmastime, and it’s clear to see why. They’re the perfect holiday cookie! They’re chewy and moist, packed with almond flavor, and coated in crunchy pine nuts. My recipe is also much easier to make than traditional pignoli cookies. Plus, they’re gluten-free, so they’re great gifts for all your gluten-free loved ones!

Festive Danish Butter Cookies

Homemade Danish Butter Cookies are presented in a Christmas tin. Each cookie has its own parchment paper holder.

You can often find these Danish Butter Cookies tins around the holidays, but my recipe is much better than any prepackaged cookie. They’re buttery, vanilla-flavored shortbread cookies that are tender on the inside, slightly crispy on the outside, and melt in your mouth from the first bite to the last. And if that doesn’t convince you, look how pretty they are!

Soft Sugar Cookies

Homemade soft sugar cookies are presented on a golden wire rack. The sugar cookies are decorated in different colored icing and toppings, including red, blue, and green icing, snowflake sprinkles, and Christmas tree decoration.

Everyone has their preferred sugar cookie texture. Some people like crispy sugar cookies, some like chewy sugar cookies, but these Soft Sugar Cookies may be my favorite. They’re perfectly sweet and have a soft, pillowy texture. And they’re so fun to decorate!

Lace Sandwich Cookies

Lace sandwich cookies lay on top of parchment paper. There is a layer of chocolate between the lace cookies.

Lace Cookies are thin, crispy, and absolutely delicious. The flavor is out of this world, with nuts, toffee, and chocolate coming together to create these little bites of heaven. Trust me; once you start eating these, you’ll never want to stop.

Festive Dutch Kerstkransjes Cookies

Homemade Dutch Kerstkransjes cookies on parchment paper. The traditional Dutch cookies are decorated with sliced almonds and some have a bow tied around them like a wreath.

Kerstkransjes Cookies are one of the most festive cookies around — they’re so festive that their name means Christmas wreath in Dutch! Many families even tie a ribbon through the hole in the center and hang them directly on their Christmas trees. These tender, crumbly butter cookies, packed with lemon, almond, and vanilla flavors, will complete any Christmas celebration.

Sticky Honey Greek Cookies (Melomakarona)

Homemade melomakarona cookies on a wire rack are covered in honey.

This recipe manages to pack so many different flavors and textures into one cookie, but it all works so well together! These traditional Greek cookies have a cakey texture packed with flavors like olive oil, orange juice, crushed walnuts, honey, and spices like cinnamon and clove. All that then gets dipped in a sticky honey coating! These cookies are often fried, but my recipe is for a baked melomakarona, making them even easier to make.

Buttery Jam Thumbprint Cookies

Homemade thumbprint cookies on a green platter. The shortbread cookies have a dimple of red jam in the middle.

Buttery Jam Thumbprint Cookies are the perfect cookies to leave out for Santa. The soft, buttery sugar cookies are paired with a fruity jam center, making a holiday treat that looks really impressive but couldn’t be simpler to make. And kids love them!

Crispy Gingersnap Cookies

Homemade crispy gingersnaps are served in a Christmas tin with red tissue paper with white polka dots. In the background are Christmas ornaments.

If you like crispy cookies packed with warm flavors, these Gingersnaps are for you! Although Gingersnaps are a very popular cookie around this time of year, I’d be willing to bet this is the best gingersnap recipe you’ll ever try. All the spices are balanced perfectly, and the molasses adds depth to the flavor, which results in such a pleasing cookie.

French Sable Cookies

French sable cookies are presented on a tin platter with a mug of hot chocolate. The sable cookies have a crisscross top and golden color.

These French butter cookies are a great, simple holiday cookie. They have a sandy texture that melts in your mouth, and they pair perfectly with a cup of tea. Plus, you only need 4 ingredients to make them!

Spiced Sugar Cookies

Frosted Spiced Sugar Cookies on a baking sheet. The cookies are decorated as snowmen, Christmas trees, and snowflakes.

Not only do these Spiced Sugar Cookies look festive, but they also pack a warm holiday kick. Filled with cinnamon and ginger, these have the texture of a crispy but slightly chewy sugar cookie. They are the perfect holiday cookie for adults and kids alike.

Traditional Spiced Pfeffernüsse Cookies

Homemade Spiced Pfeffernusse cookies, coated in powdered sugar, are served on a Christmas plate next to a bowl full of cookies and a Santa mug filled with hot chocolate with marshmallows.

If you love gingerbread, you’ll love these Pfeffernüsse Cookies! They’re chewy, sweet, and packed with tons of warm spices like cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, black pepper, allspice, cloves, cardamom, and anise extract. No wonder they’re a Christmas staple around the world.

Cranberry And White Chocolate Cookies

A hand holds a cranberry and white chocolate cookie above a batch of cookies resting in a red bowl with red tissue paper.

Cranberries are a classic holiday fruit, so why not add them to your holiday cookies? These red berries add a pleasing tart flavor and color to the cookies, especially when they’re paired with sweet and creamy white chocolate.

Buttery Spritz Cookies (Spritzgeback)

Homemade Sprtiz cookies are presented on a white, snowflake-shaped cutout.

Spritz Cookies are perfect for when you want a light dessert instead of a rich treat. They are so light and buttery! Careful with these — you may not realize you’ve had an entire batch until you get ready to share with friends, family, or a jolly man named Nick.

The Softest & Chewiest Snickerdoodle Cookies

A stack of snickerdoodle cookies rest on a pink napkin in front of a cup of tea in a floral teacup.

Who doesn’t love a good Snickerdoodle, especially around the holidays? These chewy, soft cookies tossed in sweet cinnamon sugar are perfect for serving at holiday gatherings.

Chocolate Shortbread Cookies

Chocolate shortbread cookies with a chocolate ganache drizzle are presented on a golden wire rack.

Shortbread is a classic Christmas cookie, but these Chocolate Shortbread Cookies are perfect for the person who thinks chocolate should (and does!) go with everything. They have the tender texture you want from shortbread cookies, with a dark cocoa flavor. Add a chocolate drizzle for a sophisticated look!

Chewy & Soft Molasses Cookies

Soft, chewy molasses cookies are piled on top of a holiday plate that's decorated with holy berries.

If you like the flavor of Gingersnaps with the texture of a soft, chewy sugar cookie, these Molasses Cookies are for you! They’re delicate, warm, sweet, full of spices, and absolutely delicious!

Crunchy Maple Cookies

Maple cookies, cut in the shape of a maple leaf, are served on a white scalloped dish.

How cute would these Crunchy Maple Cookies look on a holiday platter? Not only are these shortbread cookies shaped like maple leaves, but they’re also packed with maple flavor! If you like maple, I highly recommend giving these cookies a go.

Polvorones (Spanish Almond Cookies)

Polvorones, or Spanish almond cookies, are served on a plate decorated with holly berries. The cookies are slightly thick and covered in powdered sugar.

Polvorones are the perfect cookie to add to your holiday spread. These delicate, nutty cookies are incredible! They’re not too sweet, and their crumbly texture is just divine. I’m not surprised they’re becoming more and more popular all over the world — it’s likely you’ve already spotted them at your local holiday market!

Bredele (Alsatian Christmas Cookies)

Bredele cookies, cut in the shape of stars, are dusted with powdered sugar on top of a red baking pan layered with parchment paper. Bredele quite literally is the perfect Christmas cookie — the name itself translates to “Christmas cookie” in Low Alemannic German. These French sugar cookies are quick, easy, and delicious! They also hold their shape well, so pull out your favorite cookie cutters.

Festive Maple Pecan Bars

Maple pecan bars are cut into squares and served on top of parchment paper that reads, "Merry Christmas."

These delicious squares of heaven are a cross between a cookie, a bar, and a pecan pie. The homemade brown sugar shortbread crust topped with a praline-flavored pecan pie mixture makes the most delectable holiday treat.

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Sweet E's Bake Shop
Sweet E's Bake Shop
4 months ago

Impressive roundup of the most Googled Christmas cookies! The diverse selection caters to every taste. Practical and inspiring for those looking to bake crowd-pleasing treats during the festive season. Well-curated list for holiday baking enthusiasts.

Patricia Babbitt
Patricia Babbitt
1 year ago

The cookie making video, where is it streamed and what time?

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Meet Gemma

About Us

Meet Gemma

Hi Bold Bakers! I’m Gemma Stafford, a professional chef originally from Ireland, a cookbook author, and the creator of Bigger Bolder Baking. I want to help you bake with confidence anytime, anywhere with my trusted and tested recipes and baking tips. You may have seen one of my 500+ videos on YouTube & TikTok or as a guest judge on Nailed It! on Netflix or the Best Baker in America on Food Network. No matter your skills, my Bold Baking Team & I want to be your #1 go-to baking authority.

 

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