For the Christmas sweets plate
11 Homemade Christmas Cookies & Sweet Treats
Eleven Christmas cookies and treats, with butter cookies, lemon crinkles, cinnamon, chocolate, cherry bars, and caramel apple bites for sharing.
By PedroPublished November 5, 2026 · Updated November 5, 2026
A plate of Christmas sweets can be a little less formal than a whole dessert. I'd put striped zebra cookies beside the lemon crinkles, then make room for a few cherry squares and pieces of pistachio-filled chocolate. The shapes and colors do some of the work before anyone takes a bite.
This selection has eight cookie recipes and three other treats. I'd choose the honey cinnamon cookies for their warm spice, or the brown butter batch when I want dark chocolate in the middle. You can pick a few rather than make all eleven. Check the waiting time first, especially for the brown butter dough and the cherry bars.
3 Ingredient Butter Cookies
Butter, powdered sugar, and flour make a delicate cookie with lightly golden edges. I'd keep these near the chocolate cookies for a simpler bite alongside them. Pipe the dough, give the trays their 30-minute chill, and let the baked cookies cool completely before moving them.
3 Ingredient Peanut Butter Cookies
The fork pattern makes these easy to spot on a mixed plate. Peanut butter, sugar, and an egg make the dough, with no required chilling stage. Let the cookies settle on the baking sheet after the edges set; they're still delicate while warm.
Brown Butter Cookies
Dark chocolate chips sit inside thick cookies flavored with browned butter. I'd start here if I'm planning several batches. The butter needs to cool and become solid again before mixing, and the shaped dough then needs at least two hours in the refrigerator.
Honey Cinnamon Cookies
Honey, light brown sugar, and cinnamon give these soft-centered cookies their warm flavor. A few flakes of salt go on while they're still hot. I'd leave the space specified in the recipe between the dough balls because these spread as they bake.
Lemon Crinkle Cookies
Lemon juice and zest bring a brighter flavor to a plate with chocolate and cinnamon. The powdered sugar coating cracks as the cookies bake, leaving the pale surface broken into little patches. Keep the centers soft rather than waiting for the whole cookie to look dry.
Marry Me Cookies
Brown butter, oats, cinnamon, and white and dark chocolate make these a little more textured than a plain chocolate chip cookie. I'd choose them when I want the cinnamon and toasted butter to sit alongside the chocolate. Chill the browned butter and sugars for 15 minutes before adding the eggs, as directed in the full recipe.
Soft Apple Pie Cookies
These are larger cookies with a cooked apple filling and chopped pecans on top. I'd set them on their own plate if the smaller cookies are already filling the tray. They bring the cinnamon and soft fruit of an apple pie in a form you can pick up.
Zebra Cookies
The vanilla and cocoa stripes come from layered dough rather than decoration added afterward. Chilling the rectangular block makes it easier to cut clean slices. I like having this pattern beside the round cookies; every slice has slightly different bands.
Cherry Pie Bars
Cherry filling sits between a buttery base and loose almond crumble. These give the plate something to cut into squares instead of another cookie. Let the pan cool completely before slicing so the fruit layer and base have time to settle.
Dubai Chocolate Bar
A dark chocolate shell holds pistachio cream, tahini, and crisp toasted kataifi. I'd cut the set bar into pieces for sharing. A chocolate mold and the freezer setting stages are part of this recipe, so make room before melting the chocolate.
Caramel Apple Bites
A pretzel carries soft caramel, fresh apple, dark chocolate, and chopped peanuts. These are the treats I'd leave until nearer serving. Let the caramel and chocolate set, then serve soon afterward while the pretzel and apple still have their crunch.
Plan the plate
Choose the batches before the baking day.
I'd begin with anything that needs a long wait: the brown butter and shaped cookie dough, the chocolate setting stages, or the cherry bars that need to cool fully. The peanut butter cookies can fit around those pauses without another dough chill.
Keep the caramel apple bites for nearer serving, and let the baked cookies cool before arranging them together. A few different textures are enough for one plate. Use each full recipe for quantities, oven settings, and batch sizes.
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