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5 Favorite Holiday Cookie Recipes

holiday cookies everyday parisian

Five Favorite Holiday Cookie Recipes

A few years ago, I started the tradition of making cookie tins. It was one of my favorite memories from growing up. My dad brought home a massive tray of cookies from his office every year around Christmas. Our family would gather around the cookie tray, grab our favorite cookies, and nibble on them over time. There are always a few new recipes to try each year. I always turn to these five favorite holiday cookie recipes when baking over the holidays.

everyday parisian kitchen

Once things slow down with work, I look forward to baking for our neighbors, friends, and family. This is a great way to spread holiday cheer. Our UPS and FedEx package guys will also get one and their holiday tips.

For the cookie boxes, I buy these tins from Target. Sometimes, I mix up the patterns, but I went all the same this year. My husband saw these cookie cutters and thought smaller was better for those bite-sized cookies perfectly paired with coffee in the morning.

Auntie Cookies

Auntie cookies Five favorite holiday cookie recipes

These have become a family favorite with my niece and nephew. This recipe from Dorie Greenspan is the dough I use. The recipe calls for the edges to be coated in sanding sugar, but I prefer sprinkles!

It would be best to roll them in sprinkles for the full effect. I change up the sprinkles depending on the season. Red and pink for Valentine’s Day and red and green for Christmas. You can use whatever sprinkles that catch your eye. It does get messy, but that is part of the fun. I have been making these for years, and the adults love them too!

You can see a breakdown of the Auntie cookie recipe here. If you make them, I would love it if you would tag me so I can see them.

Chocolate Chip Biscotti

five favorite holiday cookie recipes biscotti

I don’t know when I started making this recipe, but it was after I moved in with my husband during the pandemic. These are easily one of my family’s favorite cookies. I added dark chocolate chips to the recipe, which have been a hit since day one. My dad requests them regularly, and I typically split a batch with my dad and father-in-law and mail them out a few times a year. They pair well with coffee. The recipe is via NYT and may require a subscription.

Christmas Cookies

Christmas cookies everyday parisian

I started making these Christmas cookies after seeing the recipe from The Crillon Hotel in Paris during the pandemic. They shared the recipe on Instagram, and I was inspired to make them. My husband loves them and requests them each year. The cookies have the perfect amount of sugar and cinnamon in them.

We prefer these to be made with smaller cookie cutters over the larger ones from experience. It is a bit of a project to make and cut out the dough, so be prepared to spend an afternoon or evening cooking and cleaning up. It’s part of the fun of the holidays.

World Peace Cookies

world peace cookies

My aunt first introduced me to Dorie Greenspan and these World Peace Cookies. The trick to making them is to measure the ingredients, especially the flour, with a scale. Chicago can get very dry in the winter, and the dough is different in the summer vs the winter. I also noticed this when making them in Chicago vs. my sister’s Florida kitchen. Once you get the right combination, you will jump for joy.

My nephew has been making these with me since he was a baby. I love adding dark chocolate to these; the cocoa powder also makes a big difference. Quality ingredients are essential for the extra flavor boost.

Sugar Cookies with Frosting

five favorite cookie recipes everyday parisian

Don’t underestimate a simple sugar cookie with sprinkles and frosting. I prefer to go lighter with the frosting and use a squeeze bottle to make my designs. You can get really creative and have fun with this. The recipe is simple with powdered sugar.

sugar cookies with frosting

Five Favorite Holiday Cookie Recipes French Madeleines

French Madeleines aren’t technically cookies but I love making them and adding them to the cookie tins. A few years ago, I dressed them up with sprinkles and chocolate for a fun holiday twist. This was easy to do with melted chocolate and a bowl of sprinkles. You can get the recipe here.

If you have a favorite peppermint or cinnamon recipe. I would love the link! Drop your favorite holiday cookie recipe below to share with the EDP community.

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  1. I made the Hôtel Crillon cookies, but the consistency seemed off. I wonder if I made an error in the conversions from the European measurement system. Is there a list of ingredients available in cups and spoons form?

    • Hi Elaine,

      I am sorry to hear this! I typically use a scale for baking everything so I am not sure of the cups and spoon measurements. I highly recommend purchasing a kitchen scale for baking. It is a game changer! You will probably notice it most with flour and how dry or wet your dough when it is finished. Keep me posted with an update! xo

  2. This peppermint biscotti has been a favorite of our family and friends for many years. I crush the peppermint that goes in the dough very fine so it incorporates well.
    Happy Holidays.

  3. Joyeuses Fêtes tout le monde. I made rectangular sugar cookies for my local Alliance Française and painted them to look like little French “tricolore” flags. They were a huge hit (and very easy to make). After glazing with white powdered sugar glaze, I diluted blue and red food coloring with a little vodka (the alcohol evaporates). You simply paint a blue stripe on the left and a red stripe on the right. (The glaze is already white in the middle). Voilà—-the blue, white and red French flag.

  4. This year I got the baking calendar from Williams Sonoma with almost all cookie cutters, I icing paper and sugar powder sprinkler. Perfect for sugar cookies. But I also got their luxury calendar on sale. OMG.

  5. Can’t wait to start making your auntie cookies for my niece who is now three and soon to arrive nephew (when he’s older).

    • They are going to LOVE them!! It’s such a special thing to do for them. I can’t wait to hear how it goes. Congrats on the new nephew auntie Natalie! xo