48 Christmas Dessert Recipes That Will Get Anyone in the Holiday Spirit

• Time Commitment: 45 min
• Why I Love It: beginner-friendly, make ahead, crowd-pleaser
• Serves: 15 cookies

"If a soft molasses cookie and a good old chocolate chip number had a very delicious baby, it would be one of these chocolate gingerbread cookies," former PureWow senior food editor Katherine Gillen writes. "They’re sweet but not too sweet, with all the cozy spices of a holiday dessert (and plenty of chocolate)."

• Time Commitment: 3 hours
• Why I Love It: make ahead, special occasion-worthy, crowd-pleaser
• Serves: 18 cupcakes

The best seasonal flavors, peppermint and chocolate, unite in these gorgeous homemade cupcakes. The crowning glory? A generous dollop of marshmallow frosting, coated in a paper-thin layer of chocolate glaze. Where do I sign?

• Time Commitment: 3 hours and 10 minutes
• Why I Love It: crowd-pleaser, make ahead, special occasion-worthy
• Serves: 8

Spice up your holiday pie game with this gingery masterpiece that riffs on the idea of a gingerbread cookie, but with cherry filling. "Fresh, ground and crystallized ginger all find their way into this pie," recipe developer Erin McDowell explains. "There's even gingerbread pie crust woven into the lattice."

• Time Commitment: 2 hours and 30 minutes
• Why I Love It: make ahead, beginner-friendly, crowd-pleaser
• Serves: 24 cookies

Eggnog isn’t just for sipping. These chewy cookies incorporate a homemade version of the drink for extra holiday flair. Rum extract infuses every crumb with a touch of booziness to honor the timeless winter cocktail.

• Time Commitment: 45 minutes
• Why I Love It: special occasion-worthy, crowd-pleaser, <10 ingredients
• Serves: 6 to 8

This fragrant, creamy pudding is dreamy on a snowy day. (It’s kind of like tiramisu, minus the cake.) "This pudding is in its own class—luxurious, creamy and finished in ten minutes," McDowell explains. "Even better, it can be made the night before."

• Time Commitment: 2 hours and 30 minutes
• Why I Love It: make ahead, special occasion-worthy, crowd-pleaser
• Serves: 24 cookies

Gingerbread people (and houses) rarely taste as good as they look, so serve up something special that checks both boxes. "I used a round, fluted cookie cutter for a simple design, but feel free to get as festive as you want with the shape of these treats," McDowell assures. "Stars or diamonds would be cute, too."

• Time Commitment: 1 hour and 25 minutes (plus chilling time)
• Why I Love It: crowd-pleaser, gluten free, vegan
• Serves: 12

You’ll be surprised that this decadent and zingy tart is completely vegan and gluten-free. Chalk it up to the filling's fudgy, rich consistency, courtesy of dairy-free dark chocolate and full-fat coconut milk.

• Time Commitment: 1 hour and 50 minutes
• Why I Love It: make ahead, crowd-pleaser, beginner-friendly
• Serves: 8

This sophisticated-looking cake is a nod to a yeasted Swedish dessert called semlor. "Traditionally, the cake is scored to show people where to cut it," McDowell explains. "My version is much easier to shape because it's simply baked in a Bundt pan."

• Time Commitment: 30 minutes
• Why I Love It: make ahead, beginner-friendly, kid-friendly
• Serves: 15 cookies

Turn the classic Thanksgiving casserole into a decadent Christmas dessert with these bright orange cookies that you just might want to devour before dinner even starts. "Because it's a jumbo marshmallow, it stays chewy, so you get this nice pull effect when you break one in half,” McDowell says.

• Time Commitment: 1 hour
• Why I Love It: crowd-pleaser, make ahead, special occasion-worthy
• Serves: 10

Almond flour makes the crisp crust of this tart totally gluten free. And the slightly salty homemade butterscotch filling? It's the perfect amount of gooey without being excessively messy or hard to eat. Thanks, Jerrelle Guy.

• Time Commitment: 1 hour and 40 minutes
• Why I Love It: <10 ingredients, make ahead, beginner-friendly
• Serves: 20 truffles

A little booze in a Christmas dessert recipe can add a lot more fun. These truffles don’t require baking (just some brief time on the stove) and are a fantastic host gift to have on hand for the season ahead.

• Time Commitment: 50 minutes
• Why I Love It: special occasion-worthy, make ahead, crowd-pleaser
• Serves: 24 cookies

"These are like cookie texture meets brownie flavor," McDowell says. "The center is made by melting peppermint candies into cream, then using that to make a whipped white chocolate ganache that’s light and soft."

• Time Commitment: 1 hour and 50 minutes
• Why I Love It: crowd-pleaser, make ahead, beginner-friendly
• Serves: 30 cookies

Chocolate chip cookies are fine for Santa, but you deserve an upgrade. "When pecan brittle is just thrown into a cookie as is, it will liquefy and cause the cookie to be a hot, oozy mess," recipe developer Rebecca Firth explains. "To fix this, the brittle is anchored with some melted chocolate and turned into a bark."

• Time Commitment: 1 hour and 20 minutes
• Why I Love It: crowd-pleaser, beginner-friendly, special occasion-worthy
• Serves: 8

Traditional sticky toffee pudding gets a buttery, beautiful makeover worthy of a holiday debut. "The honeycomb and butter combine in the base of the pan to create a thick, honey-flavored caramel on top of the cake," says McDowell.

• Time Commitment: 1 hour and 10 minutes
• Why I Love It: crowd-pleaser, vegan, gluten free
• Serves: 16

Santa came early for the vegans on your list. "This recipe is rich in cacao flavor and not overly sweet," recipe creator Emily von Euw explains in her cookbook, Rawsome Superfoods. "It's delicious with any frosting you like, but I love a salted caramel situation."

• Time Commitment: 15 minutes (plus chilling time)
• Why I Love It: crowd-pleaser, <10 ingredients, make ahead
• Serves: 6

This Italian sweet never fails to make me feel fancy—even if it's made with only three ingredients. (That's right: You'll only need gelatin, milk and eggnog to pull it off, plus some freshly grated nutmeg for a garnish, if you're feeling fancy.)

• Time Commitment: 3 hours
• Why I Love It: beginner-friendly, make ahead, kid-friendly
• Serves: 24 cookies

Hear me out: There's nothing wrong with standard gingerbread cookies. But molten caramel couldn't possibly hurt. Plus, there's something so nostalgic about a confectioners' sugar-topped crinkle cookie that screams Christmas dessert.

• Time Commitment: 1 hour
• Why I Love It: <10 ingredients, crowd-pleaser, gluten free
• Serves: 6 to 8

I know what to do with that leftover eggnog in your fridge—and it involves bourbon. "In this Christmas dessert recipe, I mix eggnog with bourbon, cream and vanilla until it's silky smooth," McDowell explains. "Then, I chill the custard and, just before serving, top it with a little bit of raspberry jam."

• Time Commitment: 1 hour and 20 minutes
• Why I Love It: <10 ingredients, gluten free, make ahead
• Serves: 36 candies

Why should cookies get to have all the fun? These have the store-bought patties beat by a mile. "The candies are easier to make than you would think, and they're pretty much ready in the time it takes to watch A Christmas Story," McDowell asserts.

• Time Commitment: 1 hour and 30 minutes
• Why I Love It: no bake, <10 ingredients, kid-friendly
• Serves: 20 truffles

File this recipe under Reasons Why I Love Sprinkles. "They come together in your food processor, and they're a great way to use up extra sugar cookies," McDowell explains. I won't tell if you use the store-bought kind, promise.

• Time Commitment: 2 hours
• Why I Love It: special occasion-worthy, <10 ingredients, crowd-pleaser
• Serves: 24 cookies

Verdant matcha and sweet-tart fruit jam show off the season's signature colors in an unexpected way. "Matcha powder gives the cookies a gorgeous green hue and adds a delicious toasty edge that's perfectly complemented by the cranberry filling," McDowell explains.

• Time Commitment: 2 hours
• Why I Love It: special occasion-worthy, crowd-pleaser, make ahead
• Serves: 15 buns

Psst: They taste even better if you eat them for breakfast while opening presents. "The finished rolls are incredibly beautiful, but the technique is easy to replicate, as strips of dough are twisted and formed into a knot shape," says McDowell. "Just like the cinnamon rolls you've loved for years, they are best served warm."

• Time Commitment: 25 minutes (plus chilling time)
• Why I Love It: special occasion-worthy, make ahead, kid-friendly
• Serves: 24 cookies

Using canned dulce de leche is so much simpler than fussing with homemade icing. "You can make your own, but even I use store-bought dulce de leche, which is so smooth and easy to spread into a thin layer," McDowell admits.

• Time Commitment: 45 minutes
• Why I Love It: <10 ingredients, beginner-friendly, crowd-pleaser
• Serves: 6

Butter + pears + brown sugar + pie crust = the easiest Christmas dessert recipe you've ever served. "Make this darling, not-too-sickeningly-sweet recipe by placing small pears into small ramekins, topping them with store-bought dough and throwing them into the oven for 15 to 20 minutes," McDowell writes. Ta-da.

• Time Commitment: 25 minutes
• Why I Love It: <30 minutes, kid-friendly, beginner-friendly
• Serves: 10 cookies

Warm, cozy spices are one of my favorite things about Christmas dessert recipes. "These cookies are rolled in cinnamon and granulated sugar, which causes delicious caramelization to occur on the bottom," McDowell says.

• Time Commitment: 45 minutes
• Why I Love It: kid-friendly, make ahead, beginner-friendly
• Serves: 24 pies

Go ahead, have a second one—I'm on my fifth. The caramel topping on top is made from store-bought candies and heavy cream, but you can use your favorite bottled kind if you want to save some time. (Your secret is safe with me.)

• Time Commitment: 30 minutes
• Why I Love It: beginner-friendly, crowd-pleaser, make ahead
• Serves: 24 cookies

Have 30 minutes? These marshmallow- and pecan-speckled gems are totally within reach. "If you can plan ahead, it's ideal to lay the marshmallows on a baking sheet to dry out for 24 hours before you bake the cookies; they keep their shape better during baking," McDowell advises.

• Time Commitment: 1 hour and 35 minutes
• Why I Love It: crowd-pleaser, <10 ingredients, make ahead
• Serves: 6

Aka the only *right* way to wash down frosted sugar cookies. "This classic eggnog recipe takes only 15 minutes to prepare, and then you let it chill in the fridge for about an hour (or until guests arrive)," McDowell says. In the words of Ina Garten, how easy is that?

• Time Commitment: 1 hour and 45 minutes
• Why I Love It: crowd-pleaser, beginner-friendly, kid-friendly
• Serves: 6

This classic British treat deserves an overhaul, and Christmas is a great excuse to do it. "This is a ridiculously easy dessert with minimal baking and big flavor," McDowell raves. "Plus, it checks every texture box: gooey caramel, soft bananas, airy whipped cream and crisp graham cracker crumbles."

• Time Commitment: 1 hour and 30 minutes
• Why I Love It: make ahead, kid-friendly, crowd-pleaser
• Serves: 9 pies

These handhelds are filled to the brim with a tangy-yet-sweet marshmallow frosting that's spiked with cream cheese to honor their namesake. You'll want to bookmark this recipe for Valentine's Day dinner while you're at it.

• Time Commitment: 1 hour and 10 minutes
• Why I Love It: crowd-pleaser, special occasion-worthy, beginner-friendly
• Serves: 12

For when you've reached your pumpkin pie quota for the season. "In order to get it caramelized enough, you have to cook the butternut squash beforehand, but it’s just a quick blast in the oven and you can mix the cake batter while you’re doing it," McDowell assures.

• Time Commitment: 1 hour and 5 minutes
• Why I Love It: crowd-pleaser, special occasion-worthy, beginner-friendly
• Serves: 8

Mandarins, grapefruits, blood oranges and tangerines offer vibrant brightness in the dead of winter. "It's best to keep the citrus separate from the cream until the very last minute, and since the biscuit is so thick, I recommend serving extra whipped cream on the side for plenty of shortcake-y goodness," McDowell writes.

• Time Commitment: 40 minutes
• Why I Love It: crowd-pleaser, make ahead, beginner-friendly
• Serves: 24

Dip the bottoms in chocolate and boom! You've got grown-up Samoas. "They have that caramelly flavor on the inside, but you also spoon a little bit of the sauce on the outside as they're baking and it slides down the macaroon like a glaze,” McDowell raves. Sounds delicious to me.

• Time Commitment: 45 minutes
• Why I Love It: crowd-pleaser, no bake, make ahead
• Serves: 8

Complete with gingersnap crust, red currant jelly and whipped cream. If you're not a fan of red currant, feel free to substitute cranberry, cherry, apple, pear or orange jam, spread, compote or marmalade.

• Time Commitment: 2 hours and 20 minutes
• Why I Love It: beginner-friendly, make ahead, crowd-pleaser
• Serves: 12 cookies

I had no clue a six-ingredient cookie could be this nutty and buttery. It's the perfect match for the sour cranberry-citrus filling. Swap in store-bought cranberry jam to save time if you must.

• Time Commitment: 1 hour and 50 minutes
• Why I Love It: crowd-pleaser, beginner-friendly, make ahead
• Serves: 12

Don't let the fluted edges scare you: This showstopper is easier to whip up than you'd expect. "If you want to fancy it up a little bit, you can serve it with whipped cream and a drizzle of caramel sauce, either on the whole tart or on individual slices," McDowell suggests.

• Time Commitment: 4 hours and 5 minutes
• Why I Love It: crowd-pleaser, slow cooker recipe, beginner-friendly, <10 ingredients
• Serves: 8

Set and forget this Christmas dessert recipe while you prepare dinner. It'll be ready to devour in a few hours, and doesn't require a moment of babysitting. (In fact, it basically cooks itself.)

• Time Commitment: 50 minutes
• Why I Love It: <10 ingredients, crowd-pleaser, kid-friendly
• Serves: 10

Can you believe you only need seven ingredients and 50 minutes to make pretzel crust, caramel filling and chocolate ganache from scratch? That's less time than it takes to watch an episode of Love Is Blind, people.

• Time Commitment: 55 minutes
• Why I Love It: make ahead, kid-friendly, beginner-friendly
• Serves: 16 large or 32 small bars

"This starts with a very simple press-in brown sugar shortbread, followed by thin layers of seedless jam and frosting," McDowell explains. "On their own, those items are delicious, but together, they're extra special." Crumbled, freeze-dried raspberries make for a posh finishing touch.

• Time Commitment: 15 minutes
• Why I Love It: <10 ingredients, <30 minutes, one pot
• Serves: 4

One sip will have you saying, "hot chocolate who?" It's decadent and sweet enough that it no doubt counts as Christmas dessert. (Well, at my house, anyway.)

• Time Commitment: 12 hours and 30 minutes (includes rising time)
• Why I Love It: make ahead, special occasion-worthy, beginner-friendly
• Serves: 15 tarts

Take your pick of cara cara, navel, mandarin or blood oranges—there's no wrong choice. If you don't want any bitterness, peel the fruit, but I recommend leaving the rinds on to balance the sweetness of the chocolate.

• Time Commitment: 1 hour and 30 minutes
• Why I Love It: beginner-friendly, kid-friendly, crowd-pleaser
• Serves: 24 cookies

OK, I said no more sugar cookies. But if you decide to indulge anyway, I've got your back with this beyond-simple, seven-ingredient Christmas dessert recipe that even picky kids will adore. Decorating party, anyone?

• Time Commitment: 1 hour and 45 minutes
• Why I Love It: crowd-pleaser, special occasion-worthy, beginner-friendly
• Serves: 8 to 10

Looking for a baking project that will elicit plenty of oohs and ahhs? Look no further than this Danielle Alvarez recipe from her cookbook, Always Add Lemon. It’s sweet, spicy and practically decorates itself.

• Time Commitment: 3 hours
• Why I Love It: special occasion-worthy, <10 ingredients, make ahead
• Serves: 4

Don't forget to ask St. Nick for a mini blowtorch this year. "It's rich, creamy and has a super-cool golden shell," McDowell explains. "It also has a delightful spiciness and amazing scent, not to mention a never-unwelcome hit of caffeine."

• Time Commitment: 3 hours
• Why I Love It: special occasion-worthy, crowd-pleaser, make ahead
• Serves: 10

Aiming to impress this holiday season? Look no further than McDowell's updated version of the classic French bûche de Noël. The key to the photogenic spiral is to roll the cake right out of the oven, then let it cool. That way, it won't rip or tear later, even when filled.

• Time Commitment: 3 hours and 30 minutes
• Why I Love It: kid-friendly, beginner-friendly, crowd-pleaser
• Serves: 6 to 8

Three amazing Christmas dessert recipe elements become one in this stack of thin crepes glued together with peppermint whipped cream. It's crowned with crushed candy canes for crunch, freshness and color.

• Time Commitment: 1 hour and 5 minutes
• Why I Love It: special occasion-worthy, crowd-pleaser, <10 ingredients
• Serves: 6

Meet your new holiday go-to. No torch? You can also use your broiler for the burnt sugar topping in a pinch (although I'd say it's worth the splurge for an Insta-worthy Christmas dessert).

• Time Commitment: 35 minutes
• Why I Love It: <10 ingredients, beginner-friendly, kid-friendly
• Serves: 4

A Christmas dessert recipe for one? No problem. Whip up a cozy fruit pie in your favorite holiday mug and call it a day. Oh, and don’t be shy about the vanilla ice cream on top—consider it a gift to yourself.