How To Make Christmas Cookies 2020: 5 Freezer-Friendly And Make-Ahead Recipes

Christmas cookies may be the sweetest part of the holiday season, but they’re also sometimes one of the most tedious parts as well. This year, while Christmas may be different and we may not be sharing our baked creations with all of our loved ones, the joy holiday cookies bring can be infectious.

This year, the joy can come from cookies that are made in two parts—a prep stage and a baking/decorating stage. Check out these five freezer-friendly cookie recipes to double your holiday baking fun.

Chocolate Mint Cookies

These treats (compliments of At Home With Rebecka) can be frozen for up to three weeks before baking.

What You’ll Need:

• 1 tablespoon vinegar
• ¼ cup milk
• 1 ½ cups sugar
• ½ cup shortening
• 1 egg
• ¼-½ teaspoon peppermint extract
• 2 cups sifted flour
• ½ cup powdered cocoa
• ½ teaspoon baking soda
• ¼ teaspoon salt

How To Prepare:

1. Add vinegar to milk and set aside. Thoroughly cream the shortening and sugar. Add egg, extract and soured milk to the mixture and combine.

2. Sift together flour, cocoa, soda and salt, then add to the creamed mixture. Blend until well combined.

3. Shape dough into a roll, about 2” in diameter. Wrap dough in waxed paper, freeze for up to 3 weeks, or chill for 4-6 hours.

How To Finish:

1. Slice dough into thin cookies and place on an ungreased cookie sheet. Bake at 350 degrees for 6-8 minutes.

Gluten-Free Slice And Bake Christmas Cookies

This Gluten-Free recipe (from Craft Create Cook) is not only fun to make and festive, but it allows for those who can’t enjoy the traditional recipes to get in on the fun as well.

What You’ll Need:

• 1 cup butter, softened
• ¾ cup brown sugar
• 1/3 cup white sugar
• 2 eggs
• 3 cups Bob’s Red Mill Unbleached White Organic All-Purpose Flour
• ¾ teaspoon baking powder
• ½ teaspoon baking soda
• ¾ teaspoon salt
• Red and green gel food coloring
• Bob’s Red Mill Decorative Sprinkling Sugar
• Paper template cut to 9” x 3”

How To Prepare:

1. Beat butter, brown sugar and white sugar in a mixer until light and fluffy, then add eggs and beat well.

2. Combine flour, baking powder, salt and baking soda to a small bowl and mix well, then add to batter and beat until just combined.

3. Remove dough from mixing bowl and divide it into three sections. Return 1 section to the mixing bowl and add red food coloring. Beat until well-blended, then remove from bowl and wash the bowl and beater.

4. Repeat with another section of dough, adding green food coloring.

5. Wrap each color of dough in wax paper and place it in the refrigerator for three hours. Remove the dough from the refrigerator and divide each piece in half. Roll each piece on a flat surface lightly dusted with flour up to ¼" thickness. Use the paper template to place on top of the dough and trim around it with a knife. Remove the excess and re-roll.

6. Place each rectangle of dough on top of each other, alternating colors or creating a pattern. Wrap tightly in plastic wrap and gently press the colors together on all sides. Refrigerate overnight or freeze until ready.

How To Finish:

1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

2. Remove cookies from plastic wrap and slice to ¼" thickness and place onto prepared pan. Sprinkle a generous amount of decorative sugar and bake for 7-8 minutes or until the center is set. Let sit on the pan for one minute before moving to a cooling rack to cool completely.

Make-Ahead Cherry Christmas Slices:

These cookies (from Food.com) may remind you of fruitcake, but they’re definitely better. Like the traditional Christmas dessert, they can also be frozen for quite some time—up to two months.

What You’ll Need:

• 1 cup butter, softened
• 1 cup confectioners sugar
• 1 egg
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 2 ½ cups flour
• 2 cups red and green glazed cherries, halved
• 1 cup pecans, coarsely chopped

How To Prepare:

1. In a mixing bowl, cream the butter and sugar. Add the egg and vanilla, then beat until fluffy. Add the flour and mix well. Stir in cherries and pecans.

2. Chill the dough for one hour, then shape into three 10” rolls. Wrap in plastic wrap, then place in a zip-lock freezer bag and freeze up to two months.

How To Finish:

1. Remove the rolls from the freezer and cut them into 1/8” slices. Place the cookies 1-inch apart on ungreased baking sheets.

2. Bake at 325 degrees for 10-12 minutes, or until the edges are golden brown. Remove to wire racks to cool.

Red Velvet Spritz Cookies:

Why not combine the festivity and deliciousness of Spritz cookies with Red Velvet? Thanks to this recipe (compliments of Taste of Home), you can.

What You’ll Need:

• 1 cup butter, softened
• 3 ounces cream cheese, softened
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 large egg, separated, room temperature
• 2 teaspoons red paste food coloring
• 2 ½ cups all-purpose flour
• 1 tablespoon baking cocoa
• 1 tablespoon water
• Nonpareils or Sprinkles
• Optional: ½ teaspoon peppermint extract

How To Prepare:

1. Cream butter, cream cheese and sugar until light and fluffy, 5-7 minutes. Beat in egg yolk, vanilla, food coloring, and if desired, extract.

2. In another bowl, whisk flour and cocoa; gradually beat into the creamed mixture.

3. Place dough in a freezer container and freeze. To use, thaw dough in the refrigerator overnight or until it’s soft enough to press.

How To Finish:

1. Using a cookie press fitted with a disk of your choice, press dough 1 inch apart onto ungreased baking sheets. In a small bowl, mix egg white and water, then brush over cookies. Decorate as desired with nonpareils or sprinkles.

2. Bake until set, 10-12 minutes. Cool on pans two minutes before removing to wire racks to cool completely.

Vanilla-Butter Sugar Cookies:

These delicious cookies (from Taste of Home) are everything Christmas is about, and can be baked ahead of time, leaving the decorating for later.

What You’ll Need:

• 1 ½ cups butter, softened
• 1 ½ cups sugar
• 2 large eggs, room temperature
• 2 tablespoons vanilla extract
• 4 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon cream of tartar

For Frosting:

• 1 ½ cups confectioners’ sugar
• 3 tablespoons butter, softened
• 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
• 1-2 tablespoons whole milk
• Food coloring (optional)
• Colored Sugar

How To Prepare:

1. Cream butter and granulated sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in eggs and vanilla. In another bowl, whisk flour, salt, baking soda and cream of tartar. Gradually beat into creamed mixture. Refrigerate, covered for 30 minutes.

2. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. On a lightly floured surface, roll dough to ¼ inch thickness. Cut with floured 2 ½ inch cookie cutters. Place one inch apart on ungreased baking sheets. Bake 10-12 minutes and cool on wire racks.

3. Freeze undecorated cookies, layered between waxed paper in freezer containers. When ready to decorate and eat, thaw.

How To Finish:

1. For frosting, beat confectioners’ sugar, butter, vanilla and enough milk to reach desired consistency. If desired, add a few drops of food coloring. Cut a small hole in the tip of a pastry bag or in a corner of a food-safe plastic bag; transfer frosting to bag. Pipe decorations and sprinkle with colored sugar.