Recipes Holidays & Events Christmas Recipes Christmas Cookie Recipes 8 of Martha's All-Time Favorite Christmas Cookies These are the holiday cookie recipes she prizes the most—and they're sure to become your holiday hits, too. By Lynn Andriani Lynn Andriani Lynn Andriani is a New York City-based writer with 24 years of experience working in professional publishing and communication roles in addition to being a food writer for six years with MarthaStewart.com. Editorial Guidelines Updated on October 29, 2024 Close Photo: Romulo Yanes One of our favorite ways to celebrate the holidays? By baking up a storm, of course! And there's no better place to start than with Martha Stewart's favorite Christmas cookies, a treasure trove of seasonal classics, beloved family recipes, and fresh takes on tradition. No wonder they top Martha's list of beloved holiday treats. From sugar cookies rolled and cut into fanciful shapes, like stars, reindeer, and Santa, to old-school gingerbread cookies with rich cinnamon, cloves, ginger, and molasses, to icebox cookies garnished with pistachios, these yuletide delights are sure to tempt every sweet tooth in your circle. You may want to make some batches for (or with) the little ones in your life, while others, like our festive sandwich cookies dusted with confectioners' sugar, are perfect for gifting or cookie swaps. Let the baking begin! 12 Classic Christmas Sugar Cookie Recipes to Help You Get in the Holiday Spirit 01 of 08 Sugar Cookies These buttery cookies are best for making cutouts in all kinds of festive shapes. Make your dough, chill for at least an hour (or overnight), then you're ready to roll! Martha always turns to royal icing for decorating—and you can, too. View Recipe 02 of 08 Gingerbread Snowflakes It just isn't Christmas without gingerbread! Martha uses the spice-forward dough to make snowflakes of all different sizes—those pictured here are made with a large snowflake-shape cookie cutter, but she makes smaller iterations, as well. She pipes her cookies with royal icing and sprinkles them with fine sanding sugar. View Recipe 03 of 08 Noel Nut Balls Joseph De Leo When she makes these delicious pecan cookies, a Kostyra family favorite, Martha portions the dough into larger balls than her mother's recipe calls for. She prefers her cookies with more nuts and less confectioners' sugar. View Recipe 04 of 08 Old-Fashioned Lemon Sugar Cookies Martha loves lemon, and it's sure to be one of yours, too, once you bite into these crisp, citrusy cookies. To get the crinkly tops, the cookies are sprinkled with sanding sugar, lightly brushed with water, and sprinkled with more sanding sugar before they are baked. View Recipe 05 of 08 Chewy Chocolate-Gingerbread Cookies Joseph De Leo Rich and robust, these decadent cookies are made with fresh ginger instead of the usual powdered spice. Semisweet chocolate and cocoa powder put a smile on chocolate lovers' faces, while dark-brown sugar and molasses provide that scrumptious chewy texture. View Recipe 06 of 08 Shaped Icebox Cookies Martha has a handy technique for forming logs of cookie dough: She uses a sushi mat, a device usually reserved for forming rolls of rice and fish. Our founder turns to Sicilian pistachios for these cookies because they have the best color and contrast beautifully with dried apricots, cranberries, and other bright dried fruits. View Recipe 07 of 08 Brown-Butter Cookies Chris Court Here's another simply exquisite cookie that's sure to become a family favorite. Browned butter—or butter that's been gently cooked until golden brown—seems to enhance anything it's added to, and this holiday treat is no exception. View Recipe 08 of 08 Hazelnut Sandwich Cookies Romulo Yanes Crisp, buttery hazelnut cookies sandwich apricot or raspberry jam and melted chocolate—a heavenly combination. The cutouts on the cookies are made with tiny star-shaped cutters. (We bet they'll be the most sought-after cookies at any holiday swap.) View Recipe Updated by Randi Gollin Randi Gollin Randi Gollin is a freelance food writer and editor who has been covering food, travel, and fashion for over 20 years. Was this page helpful? Thanks for your feedback! Tell us why! Other Submit