The Sweetest Season 2023 Great Cookie Round-Up

Looking for the best cookie recipes to serve for the holiday season and beyond? We’ve got 45 delicious holiday cookies to try. Whether you’re looking for drop cookies, cut out cookies, chocolate cookies and more, we’ve got all kinds of variations and flavors.

collage of four images of cookies with the text 40+ cookie recipes for the holidays

Our annual Sweetest Season Cookie Exchange was a smashing success! 

I’m thrilled to report that this year, we have 45 new (and updated!) holiday cookie recipes from bloggers all over the world. 

Not only are there classic cookies, like chocolate crinkle cookies, gingerbread men, snowball cookies, and more, but there are more unique ones, too! Some of our participants have shared gluten free cookies while others have shared vegan recipes. 

There are plenty of flavors shared in this year’s exchange, from chocolate to white chocolate, red velvet to hot chocolate, lemon to raspberry and more. 

We’ve got easy cookies, as well as some that are a little more complex and time consuming. They all deserve a place in this year’s cookie platter.

join our party!

get our latest recipes delivered to your inbox every week — plus all my entertaining tips and tricks!


    We respect your privacy. Unsubscribe at any time.

    If you’re looking for a new favorite cookie recipe, some tried and true holiday favorites or want to bake something different, there’s a little bit of everything here for a home cook to try.

    And we’ve broken them down into categories, like Brownies and Bar Cookies, Hand-Formed Cookies, No Bake Cookie Recipes, Drop Cookies, Cut Out Cookies and more. We’ve even got a few confections and non-cookie sweet treats to share with the people you love this holiday season, too.

    First, let’s talk about what this year’s Sweetest Season was all about and one of the reasons I love to bake this time of year.

    a banner that has a dark background with gold writing that says the sweetest season

    Let’s talk about The Sweetest Season and Cookies for Kids Cancer!

    The Sweetest Season is my annual holiday cookie week.

    In 2011, I decided to share my favorite Christmas cookies… then invited other bloggers to join me. The celebration grew, we changed the name to make it more inclusive, my friend Susannah stepped up to help and the rest is history.

    And now, every year, food bloggers get together to share new holiday cookie recipes.

    This year, we’re raising money in support of Cookies for Kids’ Cancer, a recognized 501(c)3 non-profit organization dedicated to funding research for new, innovative and less-toxic treatments for childhood cancer.

    Since 2008, Cookies for Kids’ Cancer has granted nearly $18 million to pediatric cancer research in the form of 100+ research grants to leading pediatric cancer centers. More than 35 treatments available to kids battling cancer today were stemmed from these grants.

    We’d love for you to help us raise money for this cause! You can donate through our fundraising page.

    Currently, Cookies for Kids’ Cancer is in a matching window with their friends at OXO. This means OXO will match every dollar up to $100,000 raised through the end of 2023. So whatever money we raise will automatically double!

    A platter holds colorful Christmas cookies

    Where can I share cookies?

    That depends on you and what you’re into. But during the Christmas season, I feel like it’s never a bad idea to share holiday cheer in cookie form.

    Here are some occasions you can make and bake ’em to share:

    If you’re looking for things to help you with your cookie baking, I recommend checking out my favorite tools for cookies.

    You’ll definitely need a baking sheet to bake cookies, as well as a mixing bowl, a hand mixer and more for any holiday baking experiments this year!

    What are the best Christmas cookies?

    That’s up to you, my friend!

    We’ve got more than 40 cookie recipes below for you to peruse, bake and then decide which is superior.

    So whether you love classic sugar cookies, gingerbread or ginger cookies, chocolate (or white chocolate), peppermint, peanut butter blossoms, cream cheese, citrus or any flavor in between, we’ve got a little something for everyone. 

    Whether you’re baking the cookies for Santa, your family, friends, neighbors, teachers or anyone else, there are SO many excellent options, thanks to the participants in this year’s Sweetest Season Cookie Exchange!

    Happy baking and happy holidays! Here are our best holiday cookie ideas for this year…

    bake better cookies!

    download our holiday cookie cheat sheet to build the perfect cookie platter this season. you’ll also get our best cookie recipes, baking tips, tricks and more!

      We respect your privacy. Unsubscribe at any time.

      2022 | 2021 | 2020 | 2019 | 2017 | 2016 | 2015 | 2014 | 2013 | 2012 | 2011

      The Sweetest Season Great Cookie Round-Up 2023

      Looking for the best cookie recipes to serve for the holiday season and beyond? We've got 45 delicious holiday cookies to try. Whether you're looking for drop cookies, cut out cookies, chocolate cookies and more, we've got all kinds of variations and flavors.

      Brownies & Bar Cookies

      If it's baked in a bar form, you're sure to find find holiday cookie inspiration in this section!

      Confections / Non-Cookie

      If you're looking for confections and sweet treats to add to your cookie platter or gift box, we've got some ideas for you here...

      Cutout and Shaped Cookies

      Any cookie that requires a cookie cutter or a special tool to form it is in the section below. Think: festive sugar cookies, snowflake cookies, spritz cookies and everything in between!

      Drop Cookies

      These drop cookie recipes are a little easier to make than the cutout cookies (and generally take less time!) Instead of forming them with a cookie cutter and chilling for a portion of time, you drop these cookies onto the baking sheet, and let 'em bake!

      Hand-Formed Cookies

      Any cookie that needs your hands to form them are listed below! Generally speaking, you'll roll these cookies with your hands or shape them to form them before you bake them.

      No Bake Cookies

      These are cookies that don't need an oven to be made or enjoyed!

      A woman with dark curly hair wearing a black tank top in front of a white wall

      About the Author:

      Erin Parker is a Southern gal living in Texas with her husband and two daughters. She started The Speckled Palate to share what she was cooking as a newlywed… and over the years, it’s evolved to capture her love for hosting. Specifically, the EASIEST, lowest key entertaining because everyone deserves to see their people and connect over good food. Learn more about her

      Similar Posts

      Before leaving a comment or rating, ask yourself:

      • Did you make the recipe as directed? If you didn’t or made an ingredient swap, please do not leave a rating. Recipe results are not guaranteed when changes have been made.
      • Is your comment helpful to others? Rude or hateful comments will not be approved. Please remember that this website is run by a real person.
      • Are you complaining about ads? I develop these recipes and provide them to you for free. Advertising allows me to continue to do so at not cost to you. It is also unavoidable on the internet and in everyday life. If you want recipes without ads, please purchase a cookbook or borrow one from your local library.

      2 Comments

      1. So wonderful you’ve been hosting the Cookie Exchange again this year. I didn’t have the bandwith to participate this year, but I am definitely bookmarking this page for future reference. So many great cookie recipes for a good cause. Thanks Erin!

        1. Aww, San. Thank you for your comment and your kind words. I’m so sorry you weren’t able to participate, but I totally understand and will keep you in the loop for next year’s event. I hope you’re able to bake a few of these before the season is over.

      Leave a Reply

      Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *