I think I say this every year, but I absolutely love biscotti. It’s actually one of my favorite Christmas cookies, and sitting down with a cup of tea and a cookie is truly one of life’s simple pleasures.

In the past I’ve made traditional almond biscotti and festive candy cane biscotti, but this year I decided to try a decadent chocolate version.  I didn’t think anything could surpass the candy cane version, but I was wrong. These are incredible.

They have an intense chocolate flavor,  the perfect crunchy (but not too crunchy) texture, and would be delicious dipped in tea or coffee. Even before they went in for their second bake, I couldn’t stop nibbling at all the ends and broken bits. And of course, after they were completely done (and I drizzled them in even more chocolate…), I immediately made myself a cup of tea, took a few pictures, and enjoyed one of my new favorite Christmas cookies.

P.S. You can see all of my Christmas treat recipes from over the years at this Christmas Cookies tag. Enjoy! And, as always, let me know if you try any and how you liked them.

Double Chocolate Biscotti

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup butter, softened
• 2/3 cup white sugar
• 1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1 teaspoons baking powder
• 2 eggs
• 1/2 tsp vanilla
• 1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 4 (1 ounce) squares white chocolate, chopped
• 3/4 cup semisweet chocolate chips
• extra chocolate, for drizzling

Directions:

1. In a large bowl, cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add the cocoa and baking powder and beat for 2 minutes. Beat in the eggs one at a time. Stir in flour by hand. Mix in the white chocolate and chocolate chips. Cover dough and chill for about 10 minutes.
2. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Divide dough into two parts, and form each part into a 9 inch log. Place logs on lightly greased cookie sheet, about 4 inches apart. Flatten slightly.
3. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes, or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Remove from oven; reduce oven temperature to 325°F. Cool 10 minutes on cookie sheet.
4. Carefully remove logs to cutting surface. Cut into 1/2-inch slices with sharp serrated knife. Arrange pieces on same cookie sheet, cut-side down and bake at 325 degrees for 9 minutes. Turn cookies over, and bake for 7 minutes. Cool completely, then drizzle with melted chocolate.

adapted from All Recipes

It’s just hitting me now how many different types of chocolate cookies I’ve included in this year’s Christmas treats! What can I say, I like chocolate! Plus anything with chocolate in it is generally a crowd pleaser, and I really like it when people eat what I bake. 🙂 Which leads me to these chocolate gingerbread cookies.  These are so good!

The cookie is thick and soft and chewy, and they really do taste like gingerbread. The addition of chocolate, however, really makes this cookie stand out. The gingerbread flavor is really rich and strong, but the chocolate adds a nice burst of sweetness. The outside is coated in coarse sugar which adds a nice crunch as well.

If you like gingerbread, please make these cookies – you will love them!

P.S. You can see all of my Christmas treat recipes from over the years at this Christmas Cookies tag. Enjoy! And, as always, let me know if you try any and how you liked them.

Chocolate Gingerbread Cookies

Yield: makes about 30 cookies

Ingredients:

• 1 3/4 cups All-Purpose Flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 2 teaspoons ground ginger
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
• 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 tablespoon unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1/2 cup (8 tablespoons) unsalted butter, at room temperature
• 1/2 cup packed dark brown sugar
• 1/2 cup molasses
• 1 cup semisweet chocolate mini chips
• coarse sugar, for rolling

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 325°F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper. In a medium sized bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, spices, salt, and cocoa.
2. In a separate bowl, beat the butter with the sugar until light and creamy. Add the molasses and beat until combined. Beat in the dry ingredients, then stir in the chips.
3. Scoop the dough a tablespoon at a time, form into a ball, and roll in the coarse sugar. Bake the cookies for 10 to 12 minutes, until their surface begins to crack. Remove from the oven, cool on the pan for 5 minutes, then transfer the cookies to a rack to cool completely.

from The Baking Sheet

In the short time it’s been since I first made these chocolate peppermint crinkle cookies, I’ve become obsessed.

I’ve always loved chocolate crinkles, but the addition of peppermint really takes these over the top. Plus, the texture of these is just incredible – they are almost fudge-like inside! The cookies flattened out nicely into pretty little circles, while still staying perfectly thick and chewy.

I also learned something new from baking these. If you roll the cookie dough balls in a little bit of granulated sugar before adding a nice coating of powdered sugar, the granulated sugar will keep the powdered sugar from soaking into the cookie while it bakes, resulting in crinkles cookies that are nice and pretty.

These peppermint chocolate crinkle cookies would certainly be a beautiful (and delicious) addition to your Christmas cookie tray!

P.S. You can see all of my Christmas treat recipes from over the years at this Christmas Cookies tag. Enjoy! And, as always, let me know if you try any and how you liked them.

Chocolate Peppermint Crinkle Cookies

Ingredients:

• 1 3/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 8 ounces semi-sweet chocolate, finely chopped
• 2 1/2 cups sugar
• 1/4 cup of canola oil
• 3 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and warm, not hot
• 2 tablespoons light corn syrup
• 2 large eggs
• 1 large egg yolk
• 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
• 1 1/2 teaspoons peppermint extract
• 1/4 cup sugar, for rolling
• 1 cup powdered sugar, for rolling

Directions:

1. In a medium sized bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt and set aside.
2. In a separate, microwave-safe bowl, melt the chocolate in the microwave on 50 percent power for 1 minute, stir, and continue and microwaving in 15 second increments until melted and smooth.
3. In a large bowl, beat together the 2 1/2 cups of sugar, the oil, butter and corn syrup until blended. Beat in the eggs, egg yolk, vanilla and peppermint extract. On low, beat in the melted chocolate. Add the flour mixture and mix on low speed. Cover and refrigerate several hours or overnight.
4. Heat oven to 325 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with parchment. Roll the dough into 2 inch balls. Roll each dough ball lightly in granulated sugar first, then very heavily in confectioners’ sugar. The granulated sugar will keep the powdered sugar from soaking into the cookie while it bakes.
5. Arrange cookies 2 inches apart and bake 12 to 14 minutes. For chewy cookies, let them cool completely on the baking sheet.

from Bakers Royale

I really don’t think you can go wrong with something called Salted Caramel Pretzel Bark. Although, I did my best to mess it up – if you look closely at the pictures you can tell that the caramel part of the bark looks more like a grainy mess than actual caramel.  This was my first time ever making caramel and I definitely got it wrong. I did better the second time I made this, but unfortunately didn’t think to re-take the pictures. If you are having trouble with the caramel, watch this video and it should help. 🙂

However… even with grainy caramel, this still tasted amazing!  Seriously – don’t be afraid of messing it up because no matter what, it will taste good. I just told people it was supposed to be all sugary and wonderful, and no one questioned it.

If you are big into sweet and salty desserts, you will not be able to stop eating this! Enjoy 🙂

P.S. You can see all of my Christmas treat recipes from over the years at this Christmas Cookies tag. Enjoy! And, as always, let me know if you try any and how you liked them.

Salted Caramel Pretzel Bark

Ingredients:

• 1/2 bag of mini pretzel twists
• 2 sticks of butter
• 1 cup of brown sugar
• 1 bag of chocolate chips
• Sea salt

Directions:

1. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees. Line a large jelly roll pan with aluminum foil and lay a single layer of pretzels down.
2. In a medium saucepan, melt the butter and the brown sugar until the sugar is dissolved. Let it boil gently (without stirring) just until it starts to stick to the bottom and it forms a nice smooth caramel. Let it bubble a little and get really thick.(If this confuses you, try watching this video. The instructions are a little different, but it seems to work)
3. Remove from heat and pour evenly over the top of the pretzels. Put in the oven for five minutes. Remove from the oven and sprinkle the chocolate chips over the top. Put it back in the oven for 1 minute, then spread the chocolate chips around with a spatula until mostly melted. Sprinkle generously with salt.
4. Let cool on completely. If the chocolate doesn't firm up, place it in the refrigerator until it does. Break it up into uneven chunks with your hands and serve.

from Mama Say What

It’s pretty much a given that I will post a molasses ginger cookie at some point during the 12 Days of Christmas Treats.  Each year, without fail, I can’t help but make a new version, and actually, I’ve got another version coming in a few days!

I love the spicy taste of these types of cookies, and I’m always looking for one that’s just a little bit thicker and chewier than previous versions. Well, I think I hit my soft and chewy limit with these cookies! I re-named them molasses ginger pillow cookies because they are so fluffy and thick. The spice mixture is perfect, but the texture of these is really what sets them apart. If you love thick and chewy cookies, these will be right up your alley!

*Note: I didn’t realize it until I was about to hit “publish”, but these are very similar to some that I posted last year – White Chocolate Topped Gingerbread Cookies. Either plain, or topped with white chocolate, these are sure to be a hit. 🙂

P.S. You can see all of my Christmas treat recipes from over the years at this Christmas Cookies tag. Enjoy! And, as always, let me know if you try any and how you liked them.

Ginger Molasses Pillow Cookies

Ingredients:

• 3 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 2 teaspoons ground ginger
• 1 and 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
• 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 3/4 cup (1.5 sticks) unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
• 3/4 cup dark brown sugar
• 1/3 cup dark molasses
• 1 egg, at room temperature
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1/3 cup granulated sugar, for rolling

Directions:

1. Whisk together the flour, baking soda, ginger, cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg, and salt in a large bowl and set aside.
2. In a large bowl, beat the butter and sugar together until light and fluffy. Add the molasses, egg, and vanilla and beat well, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed. With the mixer on low, slowly add the flour mixture, mixing just until combined. Cover and chill for 4 hours or overnight.
3. Preheat oven to 350F and line a large baking sheet with parchment paper. Shape dough into 1-inch balls and roll in granulated sugar. Place balls 2 inches apart and bake for 8-10 minutes, or until the edges are just turning brown – cookies will be puffy and still appear soft in the middle.

from Sally's Baking Addiction

Two cranberry cookies in one Christmas season is a big deal around here. I wasn’t planning to make anything with cranberries since I didn’t think Mike would be a big fan,  but thankfully he overcame his supposed cranberry aversion to talk about these cookies for days. Seriously, I gave him some in his lunch a few days in a row, and every day he came home talking about how much he loved these cookies. Even now he says they’re his favorites that I’ve made this year! That’s pretty amazing if you ask me. Although, I have to say it make sense, since these cookies are pretty amazing as well.

They are classic oatmeal cookies crammed full of chopped cranberries and three types of chocolate chips. Add a white chocolate drizzle on top, and you’ve got a classic cookie that’s been turned into a wonderful Christmas treat.

You can bet that if Mike has anything to say about it I’ll be making another batch of these triple chocolate cranberry cookies before Christmas. I hope you like them as much as we did! 🙂

P.S. You can see all of my Christmas treat recipes from over the years at this Christmas Cookies tag. Enjoy! And, as always, let me know if you try any and how you liked them.

Triple Chocolate Cranberry Oatmeal Cookies

Ingredients:

• 1 cup all purpose flour
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 10 tablespoons (1 1/4 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1/2 cup (packed) golden brown sugar
• 1 large egg
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 cup old-fashioned oats
• 1/2 cup semisweet chocolate chips
• 1/2 cup milk chocolate chips
• 1/2 cup white chocolate chips
• 1/2 cup coarsely chopped fresh or frozen cranberries
• 2 ounces white chocolate, chopped (for drizzling)

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Line 2 large rimmed baking sheets with parchment paper. In a medium sized bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt. In a large bowl, beat butter and both sugars until smooth. Beat in egg and vanilla. Add flour mixture and oats and stir until blended. Stir in all chocolate chips and cranberries.
2. Drop batter by rounded tablespoonfuls onto prepared sheets, 2 inches apart. Bake cookies, 1 sheet at a time, until edges are light brown, about 15 minutes. Cool on sheets 5 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
3. Melt the chopped white chocolate and drizzle over the cooled cookies.

from Bon Appetit

I’m pretty sure it is an acknowledged fact that if a recipe has the words “double chocolate” in the title, I will be making it as soon as possible. That’s exactly what happened with these double chocolate brownie bites. I saw the recipe, realized I had all the ingredients, and immediately set to work.

I love how you can taste just the slightest hint of honey in the cookie, and of course the melty chocolate throughout each cookie is wonderful. The texture is soft and chewy, similar to a brownie, but I would honestly say these taste more like brownie batter than an actual brownie. And who doesn’t like brownie batter?

Also, don’t cheat and use chocolate chips instead of chopped baking chocolate. I tried that on the first batch, and the end result wasn’t nearly as good. Don’t worry, though, we didn’t let them go to waste.  🙂

P.S. You can see all of my Christmas treat recipes from over the years at this Christmas Cookies tag. Enjoy! And, as always, let me know if you try any and how you liked them.

Double Chocolate Brownie Bites

Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/4 cup cocoa powder
• 3/4 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon coarse salt
• 1 stick unsalted butter, room temperature
• 1/2 cup packed dark-brown sugar
• 1/2 cup honey
• 7 ounces semisweet chocolate, coarsely chopped (1 1/2 cups)
• 1/4 cup granulated sugar

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Whisk together flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, and salt in a medium sized bowl and set aside.
2. In a large bowl, beat butter and brown sugar with a mixer on medium speed until pale and fluffy. Add honey, and beat until fluffy. Reduce speed to low. Gradually add flour mixture, and beat until well combined. Mix in chocolate. Refrigerate for 1 hour.
3. Drop heaping teaspoons of dough into granulated sugar. Roll to coat, shaping into balls. Transfer to parchment-lined baking sheets, spacing about 1 inch apart. Bake until tops are cracking and cookies are just set, about 9 minutes.
4. Transfer sheets to wire racks, and let cool.

from Martha Stewart

I am so excited to share these hot cocoa cookies with you! You may have seen this picture on Facebook already – they turned out just as I was hoping they would, and I was so happy with them I just had to share a picture right away. 🙂

These cookies are exactly what you’d expect – hot cocoa in cookie form. Complete with warm, runny chocolate and a melting marshmallow on top, they are absolutely delicious!

Of course they’re best warm out of the oven when everything is nice and gooey, but we found that just a few seconds in the microwave (or a few minutes in the oven if you’re serving a bunch) will bring back that perfect melty texture.

Mike (who, by the way, will not actually drink hot chocolate without lots of mini marshmallows on top) absolutely loved these as well. I can’t comment on if anyone else liked them or not because, well, we didn’t exactly share. 🙂

*Note: These can successfully be frozen. I sacrificed for you and ate one from the freezer before posting this. A few seconds in the microwave and it was warm and melty. 🙂

P.S. You can see all of my Christmas treat recipes from over the years at this Christmas Cookies tag. Enjoy! And, as always, let me know if you try any and how you liked them.

Hot Cocoa Cookies

Yield: ~60 cookies

Ingredients:

• 1 stick unsalted butter
• 12 oz. semisweet chocolate, chopped
• 1 1/2 cups flour
• 1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 1/4 cups (packed) light brown sugar
• 3 eggs, at room temperature
• 1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
• 7.5 oz. semisweet chocolate, cut into 1-inch squares
• 30 marshmallows

Directions:

1. In a medium saucepan, melt the butter and chopped chocolate, stirring frequently, over medium heat. Let cool for 15 minutes.
2. In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, cocoa powder, baking powder and salt. Set aside. In a large bowl, beat the sugar, eggs and vanilla at low speed until smooth, 2 minutes. Mix in the cooled chocolate mixture just until blended. Add the flour mixture in 2 batches, mixing on low speed until just combined.
3. Refrigerate the dough for at least 1 hour. (If making the dough a day ahead, let sit at room temperature for 30 minutes before shaping.)
4. Position a rack in the upper third of the oven; preheat to 325 degrees. Line a large cookie sheet with parchment. Using a tablespoon, scoop the dough and roll between your palms to form 1-inch balls. Arrange about 16 balls 2 inches apart on each cookie sheet, flattening slightly. Bake until the tops of the cookies crack, about 12 minutes.
5. Meanwhile, snip 8 marshmallows in half crosswise and stick 1 square of chocolate onto each of the cut sides.
6. Remove the cookie sheets from the oven; gently press a marshmallow half, chocolate side down, into each cookie. Bake until the marshmallows are just softened, about 4 minutes. Transfer the pans to racks to cool for 5 minutes; Using a spatula, transfer the cookies to the racks to cool completely. Repeat the process with the remaining dough, marshmallows and chocolate, baking each batch on a clean sheet of parchment.

from Rachael Ray Magazine, December 2011

It just wouldn’t be the 12 Days of Christmas treats if I didn’t post a truffle recipe. In the past I’ve posted oreo truffles, nutter butter truffles, and thin mint truffles. And now these gingerbread truffles just might be my favorite out of all of them!

I’ve always loved the sweet and spicy flavor of gingerbread, and it turns out it’s even better in truffle form. The cream cheese cuts the sweetness a little bit, and white chocolate is the perfect coating for the outside. Not to mention, these gingerbread truffles look pretty cute with their crumb topping.

If you’re a truffle fan, you’ve got to try this version – it was definitely a hit around here!

P.S. You can see all of my Christmas treat recipes from over the years at this Christmas Cookies tag. Enjoy! And, as always, let me know if you try any and how you liked them.

Gingerbread Truffles

Yield: Makes about 24 truffles

Ingredients:

• 1 box Gingersnap cookies (about 50 cookies)
• 1 8-ounce brick cream cheese, softened
• 1 teaspoon ground ginger
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• white chocolate candy melts

Directions:

1. Place the cookies, cinnamon and ginger in the food processor and process into crumbs. Reserve 1/4 cup cookie crumbs for decoration.
2. Mix crushed cookies and softened cream cheese in a large bowl until completely combined (your hands work best for this). Roll into small balls.
3. Melt white chocolate in the microwave, stirring until smooth. Using a toothpick, dip the gingerbread balls into the chocolate, letting the excess chocolate drip off.
4. Set the truffles on waxed paper to harden. Drizzle the extra white chocolate over the truffle and sprinkle with reserved cookie crumbs.
5. Once completely dry, store truffles in the fridge.

from The Playing House Blog

I wish I could fit the words “melt in your mouth” somewhere in the title of these cookies. These fresh cranberry lemon cookies are absolutely amazing.

Maybe I’m the last person to figure it out, but lemon and cranberry are a match made in heaven, especially when surrounded by a cookie sweet enough to cut through the tartness.

The cookies themselves are buttery and soft, and like I mentioned above, they really do melt in your mouth. I ate one before I added the lemon glaze on top, and also one after, and I have to tell you – don’t skip the lemon glaze. Even Mike, who isn’t the biggest cranberry fan, raved about these cookies.

Thanks to the fresh cranberries studded throughout, these cookies are perfect for your Christmas cookie platters! Every time I make a tray of cookies to take somewhere, these cranberry lemon cookies are the first to disappear. Please try them – I know you’ll love them!

P.S. You can see all of my Christmas treat recipes from over the years at this Christmas Cookies tag. Enjoy! And, as always, let me know if you try any and how you liked them.

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