A Collection of My Favorite Holiday Bakes
Happy December 1st, friends! It's that time of year again where we put on the comfy clothes, press 'play' on our favorite Christmas movie, roll our sleeves up and bake all of our favorite things. Today I'm sharing several of my favorite Christmas and Holiday recipes with you. These are the recipes I keep coming back to each year and the ones that family and friends hint about as baking season approaches. I have so many more recipes to share this month but this a fun handful that will get you started.
Speaking of Christmas movies, I think my favorite to watch over and over again would be Home Alone. I always watch it right around Thanksgiving and again during the month of December. I think it's the nostalgia and the concept that the Home Alone house is the very pinnacle of the dream home, at least in the nineties.
My all-time favorite Christmas movie is A Christmas Carol, particularly the one starring Jim Carrey. I've loved A Christmas Carol since I was a child and it really does send such a message of the need for kindness, humility and the importance of being present in the moment. The Christmas season can easily become very materialistic and Scrooge teaches us that money may bring wealth and affluence but it cannot bring joy. I think that's something to hold onto all year long, if you ask me.
Let's jump right into these recipes! There's a little bit of everything for everyone here: some chocolate, some warm cinnamon and spice, vanilla bean, chocolate, and of course, sprinkles- a very important touch this time of year. But first-
Pick Your Favorite Christmas Movie:
- Home Alone
- National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation
- The Grinch
- It's a Wonderful Life
1. Peppermint Hot Cocoa Cookies
These cookies are big and round and filled with chocolate. The marshmallow cream is not sickly sweet but makes this cookie what it is. Drizzled with melted chocolate and topped with (soft) crushed peppermint candies, it's hard to eat just one! They're fairly simple to make so have the littles join in!
2. Molasses Spice Gingerbread Cookies
You've had a molasses spice cookie but have you had these molasses spice cookies? Perfectly soft and chewy and filled with a generous but well balanced mix of warm spices, these are ideal in every way. I like to say they're a little bit gingerbread, a little bit gingersnap and sort of a crinkle cookie. These are one of my favorites. Check out the recipe to learn a little bit about why these are one of my favorites and of course to bake them!
Since these stack so well, they make a perfect gift and are easy to package. Use pretty parchment, some string or place them in a box, in rows with a pretty ribbon on top.
3. Christmas Sugar Cookie Blondie Bars
If you're short on time and don't feel like rolling out cookie dough and getting flour everywhere, you should make these sugar cookie blondie bars. They feed a crowd, have sprinkles and are frosted so there's no way these won't be a hit!
4. Peppermint White Mocha Shortbread Tart with Chocolate Ganache
A tart shell made of shortbread, rich chocolate ganache and a white mocha filling make up this decadent dessert. Need I say more? This tart is pretty simple to make but sure to impress anyone you make it for!
5. Snowflake Berry Almond Sandwich Cookies
These are it! These are my absolute favorite Christmas cookie...if not all-time favorite cookie ever. The dough is fragile and these take time to make but are so, so worth it! They are versatile as you can put any jam flavor in them or skip the jam and put frosting between. I have to say, even though I have a deep love for sandwich cookies, these stand perfectly well on their own. Bonus: you can make these gluten-free. Check out the recipe to see how!
6. The Richest Chocolate Crinkle
I'm not sure who wouldn't love a chocolate crinkle cookie this time of year. I always see them come up every year as the number one holiday cookie. I think they are too! These are made with a Dutch-processed cocoa for an even richer flavor. I recommend Rodelle's Baking Cocoa for it's rich flavor without the harshness and acidity other darker cocoas tend to have.
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Well that's my little list of holiday bakes! I hope you do try any or all of them. If you happen to bake one of these recipes, please make sure to share it on Facebook or Instagram using #thecrassycookie because I would love to see it! Make sure to share these with a friend, through e-mail or on your social media. Happy Holidays to each of you and Happy Baking!