If your family is anything like mine, the holidays aren’t just about getting together with family and friends. For us, the holidays are about the food. Every holiday season, my mom has made holiday treats just as her mom taught her, and these days I carry on the tradition with a few twists of my own.
I have scoured the web to find the most delicious holiday treats of the year and am sharing them with you, so you can make them for your family and friends. Whether you are a confectionery goddess or a baking novice, these recipes are sure to keep Santa coming back for more.
For the Festive Baker: You will be sure to put your guests in the Holiday Spirit with these treats!
- Gingerbread Men – Is anything more festive than Gingerbread Men? Try your hand at making this holiday classic and have your friends and family decorate their own.
- Red Velvet Cake Balls – Just as the name implies, these balls of cake are sure to be a hit. Cake balls can be made with basically any kind of cake, but the red velvet makes an especially festive treat.
- Peppermint-Chocolate Sandwich Cookies – Peppermint can only fully be enjoyed in the winter. Combining peppermint and chocolate in these cookies adds a decadent but refreshing flavor to a fairly simple dessert.
For the Chocoholic Baker: If you’re anything like me, you will want chocolate to be the star of your holiday dessert tray. Here are some of my favorite decadent holiday treats!
- Chocolate Chip and Marscapone Cupcakes – Chocolate cupcakes with chocolate chips and a chocolate ganache frosting. Need I say more?
- Candy Bar Brownies – If you ask me, brownies are a necessity at any holiday celebration. This variation on the classic recipe includes snickers, but feel free to experiment with your favorite candy.
- Fudge Puddles – These peanut butter and chocolate goodies are the epitome of decadence. Bake a peanut butter cookie crust in mini muffin tins and fill them with a rich chocolate ganache.
For the Non-Chocoholic Baker: Whether you just don’t like chocolate or feel the need to have a little variety on your dessert plate, here are some great chocolate-less options.
- Cinnamon Twists with Cardamom-Honey Dipping Sauce – By using puff pastry as the base of this recipe, these cinnamon goodies make for deliciously sweet snacks for any time of day.
- Holiday Biscotti – This is one of my favorite biscotti recipes that I’ve tried. Use pistachios and cranberries so that your biscotti are red and green to fit in with your festivities.
- Royal Raspberry Bars – These layer cookies combine lots of different flavors and textures to create a wonderful treat! They have a cookie crust, a raspberry jam filling, and are topped with fluffy meringue.
For the “Healthy” Baker: Dieting during the Holiday Season can be nearly impossible since most of your friends and family will be postponing their diets until after the New Year. Here are a few lighter options to keep you going through the holidays.
- Angel Food Cake with Lemon-Honey Yogurt Sauce – Angel Food Cake is a great go-to dessert if you’re trying to cut back, but don’t want to cut out sweets entirely. It’s light, fluffy, and just sweet enough to keep you going. The Lemon-Honey Yogurt Sauce adds a special touch for the holiday season.
- Chocolate Chip Angel Cupcakes – Again, using an angel food cake base cuts back a bunch of calories. At only 69 calories each, these cupcakes will be a sure hit with all of your guests – even the ones who are watching their waistlines!
- Macadamia Butter Cookies with Cranberries – These cookies are as thick and satisfying as peanut butter cookies but with fewer calories and half the fat. Adding cranberries adds a pop of festive color and flavor!
For the Inexperienced Baker: Even if you are an inexperienced baker, you can still wow your friends and family with your holiday treats! Pillsbury has a bunch of great recipes on their website that use their easy-to-make products to create a dessert that looks like you’ve slaved for hours.
- Christmas Tree Sandwich Cookies – Buy break-and-bake cookies, some vanilla frosting, and sprinkles to create an incredibly festive treat.
- Snickerdoodles – Want to impress your guests with cookies that don’t seem easy to make? Try this recipe for snickerdoodle cookies! Instead of using store-bought cookie dough, this recipe calls for white cake mix and a few other ingredients. Everyone will think you are a pro-baker after eating these!
- Jingle Bell Cookie Pizza – This cookie pizza is easily made with store-bought chocolate chip cookie dough and a few of your favorite toppings! This recipe calls for mini-marshmallows, hot fudge topping, and M&Ms but feel free to experiment with pretty much anything you would put on an ice cream sundae.
Have any other favorite holiday recipes? Share them in the comments below!