Check out a visual guide and easy search (by ingredient or cookie name) of all The Washington Post's Food section's holiday cookies since 2005 at washingtonpost.com/food.
Lime Cornmeal Cookies
36 large cookies
These have a surprisingly complex flavor: bright lime with the sweetness of cornmeal.
MAKE AHEAD: The dough needs to be refrigerated for at least 2 hours and up to 3 days in advance, or frozen for up to 3 months.
Adapted from Anthony and Carol Boutard of Ayers Creek Farm in Gaston, Ore.
Ingredients
1 cup flour
1 cup yellow cornmeal, preferably stone-ground
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon fine sea salt
8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter, at room temperature
1/2 cup granulated sugar
Finely grated zest of 1/2 large lime, plus 11/2 teaspoons juice
2 large eggs
Coarse or turbinado sugar, for sprinkling
1 1/2 tablespoons water
Steps
Whisk together the flour, cornmeal, baking powder and sea salt in a medium bowl.
Combine the butter, granulated sugar and lime zest in the bowl of a stand mixer or hand-held electric mixer; beat on medium speed for about 2 minutes, until creamy, then stop to scrape down the bowl.
Add 1 egg and the lime juice; beat on medium speed until well incorporated. Stop to scrape down the bowl.
On low speed, gradually add the flour mixture, to form a blended, soft dough. Transfer it to a clean work surface; form the dough into a log that's about 10 inches long and 2 inches in diameter. Wrap it in wax paper, sealing the ends; refrigerate for at least 2 hours and up to 3 days.
Position racks in the upper and lower thirds of the oven; preheat to 375 degrees. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone liners.
Unwrap the log of dough, spreading the wax paper flat on your work surface. Spread the coarse or turbinado sugar on the paper. Whisk together the remaining egg and the water in a small bowl, then brush the log all over with that mixture. Roll the log of dough in the sugar until lightly and evenly coated.
Cut the coated log into 36 equal slices, laying them on the baking sheets as you work, spacing the slices about 2 inches apart. (Refrigerate the remaining dough.) Bake on the upper and lower racks for 15 to 18 minutes, rotating the sheets top to bottom and front to back halfway through, until the bottoms and edges of the cookies are golden brown. Transfer the pans to wire racks until the cookies are completely cool.
Repeat to use all the dough.
Nutrition | Per cookie: 60 calories, 1 g protein, 8 g carbohydrates, 3 g fat, 2 g saturated fat, 15 mg cholesterol, 20 mg sodium, 0 g dietary fiber, 3 g sugar
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Maple and Fig Shortbread
30 cookies
These are meant to be served with beer - specifically, a saison or Belgian strong, dark ale that stands up to the richness of the butter, maple and fig.
Bonus: This egg-free dough comes together by hand; you can use a mixer, but you don't need one.
MAKE AHEAD: The dough needs to be refrigerated for at least 30 minutes and up to 1 day. The cookies can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 5 days or frozen for up to 1 month.
Adapted from "Cookies & Beer: Bake, Pair, Enjoy," by Jonathan Bender (Andrews McMeel, 2015).
Ingredients
2 cups flour
1/2 cup confectioners' sugar
Pinch salt
16 tablespoons (2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
3 tablespoons dark-amber maple syrup
1 cup packed dried black Mission figs, stemmed and each cut in half
Steps
Whisk together the flour, sugar and salt in a large mixing bowl.
Add the butter; use a sturdy wooden spoon (or your clean hands) to stir/blend until well incorporated. Add the vanilla extract and maple syrup; stir for about 1 minute, until well blended, then add the figs and stir until they are evenly distributed. At this point, you should have a soft, slightly crumbly dough.
Lay a wide sheet of plastic wrap on a clean work surface; transfer the dough there and gather/roll it into a cylinder that's about 10 inches long. Wrap tightly in the plastic wrap and refrigerate for 30 minutes (or up to 1 day).
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone liner.
Unwrap the dough; cut it into 30 equal slices, placing as many of them as will fit 1/2 inch apart on the baking sheet as you work. Bake (middle rack) one sheet at a time for 10 to 12 minutes, rotating the sheet from front to back halfway through. Transfer to a wire rack to cool completely before serving or storing. Repeat with any remaining cookie dough.
Nutrition | Per cookie: 110 calories, 1 g protein, 13 g carbohydrates, 6 g fat, 4 g saturated fat, 15 mg cholesterol, 10 mg sodium, 0 g dietary fiber, 6 g sugar
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Garibaldis
16 cookies
These are reminiscent of Eccles cakes, the U.K.'s flaky, currant-laden pastries. They are particularly good with tea or coffee.
MAKE AHEAD: The cookies can be stored in an airtight container for up to 3 days.
Adapted from "The Cookie Jar: Over 90 Scrumptious Recipes for Home-Baked Treats From Choc Chip Cookies and Snickerdoodles to Gingernuts and Shortbread," by Liz Franklin (Ryland Peters & Small, 2015).
Ingredients
1 3/4 cups flour, plus more for the work surface
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
4 tablespoons (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, at room temperature
5 tablespoons Demerara or turbinado sugar
4 to 5 tablespoons whole or low-fat milk
1 cup dried Zante currants, coarsely chopped
Water
1 large egg white, beaten
Superfine sugar, for dusting
Steps
Position oven racks in the upper and lower thirds of the oven; preheat to 350 degrees. Line 2 rimmed baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone liners.
Whisk together the flour and baking powder in a mixing bowl. Add the butter and use your clean fingers to work it into the dry ingredients until it resembles dried bread crumbs. Stir in the Demerara or turbinado sugar, then add the milk (as needed); knead just enough to form a soft dough.
Lightly flour a work surface. Transfer the dough there; roll out to a large rectangle that's about 1/8 inch thick. Cut the dough in half; scatter the currants evenly over one half. Brush the other half lightly with water, then invert it carefully over the currants. Use the rolling pin to gently roll/seal the top layer of dough, until you can see the currants through the top layer and the layers seem bonded.
Brush the surface with the beaten egg white, then sprinkle with the superfine sugar. Cut into 16 equal rectangles. Use the tines of a fork to dock the tops of each one a few times.
Arrange 8 cookies on each baking sheet. Bake on the upper and lower racks for 5 to 7 minutes, then rotate the sheets top to bottom and front to back; bake for 5 to 8 minutes or until golden and firm.
Cool for 5 to 10 minutes on the baking sheets, then transfer the cookies to a wire rack to cool completely before serving or storing.
Nutrition | Per cookie (using low-fat milk): 120 calories, 2 g protein, 21 g carbohydrates, 3 g fat, 2 g saturated fat, 10 mg cholesterol, 5 mg sodium, 0 g dietary fiber, 10 g sugar
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Peanut Butter Turtle Cookie Cups
12 three-inch cookies or 25 to 30 mini-muffin-size cookies
Chocolate, caramel and pecans are classic "turtle" components; peanut butter ups the ante.
You'll need a standard size 12-well muffin pan, or three 12-well mini-muffin pans.
MAKE AHEAD: The cookie cups can be stored in an airtight container for up to 1 week.
Adapted from "Quick-Shop-&-Prep 5 Ingredient Baking," by Jennifer McHenry (Page Street Publishing, 2015).
Ingredients
8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 cup packed light brown sugar
1 large egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup creamy peanut butter
1 1/2 cups flour
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
4 ounces (about 15 pieces) soft caramels
3 tablespoons heavy cream
6 ounces semisweet chocolate, coarsely chopped (do not use morsels)
12 pecan halves or 25 to 30 pecan pieces
Steps
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Grease the muffin wells with cooking oil spray.
Combine the butter and brown sugar in the bowl of a stand mixer or handheld electric mixer; beat on medium speed for several minutes until light and fluffy. Stop to scrape down the bowl. Add the egg and vanilla extract; beat on low speed until well blended, then add the peanut butter and beat until incorporated. Stop to scrape down the bowl.
Add the flour and salt; beat on low speed to form a soft dough.
Divide into 12 portions (or 25 to 30 portions if you're using the mini-muffin pans); press the dough into each well to form cups (up the sides) that will hold the filling. Bake for 15 to 20 minutes or until lightly browned; you may need to tamp or reshape the cups immediately after you remove them from the oven.
Combine the caramels and heavy cream in a microwave-safe bowl. Microwave on HIGH in 30-second increments until all the caramels are melted. Stir until smooth, then divide evenly among the cookie cups. Refrigerate (in the pan) while you prepare the topping.
Place the chocolate in a microwave-safe bowl. Microwave on MEDIUM in 30-second intervals until the chocolate has melted. Stir until smooth, then pour evenly over each filled cookie cup. Immediately place a pecan half at the center of each topped surface. Let cool until the chocolate has set, then use a round-edged knife to loosen the cups around the edges before removing them from the pan.
Nutrition | Per cookie (based on 30): 170 calories, 4 g protein, 19 g carbohydrates, 10 g fat, 4 g saturated fat, 15 mg cholesterol, 30 mg sodium, 0 g dietary fiber, 12 g sugar
