60 Christmas Dessert Recipes Everyone Needs To Try Once

For people who love to bake — and eat — festive sweets and desserts, Christmas is truly the most wonderful time of the year. The season is the perfect time to indulge, especially when the weather is cold and there's a fire raging in the fireplace, though crave-worthy desserts aren't limited by the weather. This round-up of Christmas dessert recipes has you covered, whether you prefer cookies, fudge, pies, or candy.

Some recipes, like a gingerbread house and decorated sugar cookies, will get everyone involved in the holiday spirit. Others are show-stopping desserts perfect for parties, like a chocolate yule log (a type of Christmas cake from France) and a two-tiered spice cake. There are recipes to make with kids, like Snowman Soup, Reindeer Food, and Grinch Cookies. Need a quick and easy treat to make at the last minute? There are plenty of recipes to choose from, like 2-Ingredient Fudge, Peanut Brittle, and No-Bake Pumpkin Pie. 

When deciding what to make for the holidays this year, take note of these Christmas dessert recipes that everyone needs to try at least once (though, to be honest, you'll likely make them far more).

You'd be hard-pressed to find a Christmas treat as iconic in the United States as homemade cookies. These from-scratch Christmas cookies with holiday shapes and decorations are easy to make, so you can spend less time fretting over specifics and more time bonding with family. All in all, these Christmas cookies take just over an hour from start to finish. (A little longer, if you want to do more elaborate decorating.) Almond and vanilla extracts together bring out a nutty sweetness. Grab your favorite cookie cutters — like Christmas trees, Santa, and reindeer shapes — and let your imagination go wild.

Recipe: Christmas Cookies

Do Santa's reindeer really like to eat a colorful blend of peanut butter-coated cereal and candy? We may never find out, but it's for certain that humans absolutely love it. The snack mix is surprisingly fast to prepare: Just add melted peanut butter, chocolate, and powdered sugar to Chex cereal until coated. Combine this with red and green M&Ms, pretzels, and peanut butter cups, then serve — it all takes less than 20 minutes. Try other add-ins too, like sprinkles or cookie pieces. 

Recipe: Reindeer Food

It just doesn't feel like Christmas without soft molasses cookies full of cinnamon, nutmeg, and ginger. These cookies have been a holiday favorite since medieval times, when molasses was a practical alternative to expensive refined sugars. This recipe makes a batch of 24 cookies that bake up in less than 10 minutes. Do plan for chilling time before baking, which is crucial for the best shape and texture. Make them for your family, bring them to a cookie exchange, or mail them in a sweet care package. 

Recipe: Molasses Spice Cookies

Admittedly, eggnog is not 100% in the desserts category, instead falling somewhere in between dessert and drink. (And eggnog can be an alcoholic drink, if you'd like.) This year, leave the overly sweet commercial eggnog versions on the grocery store shelves and make your own. Egg yolks and cream are heated during preparation, so there's nothing to fear for people who are wary of using raw egg in beverages. This eggnog is easy to whip together for a homemade drink that's rich, creamy, and perfect for long nights snuggled under a blanket or sitting next to a fire.

Recipe: Eggnog

Peppermint bark is an easy and quick treat to make that's ideal for the holiday season, when everyone's mind is on candy with red and white swirls. Tins of the stuff can be found at stores as soon as the Christmas music starts playing, but making your own is delicious fun. This peppermint bark recipe needs only three ingredients and takes just 15 minutes to make. Crush miniature candy canes, large candy canes, or small, round peppermints — Oreos, M&M's, or other favorite candies can be sprinkled on top as well.

Recipe: 3-Ingredient Peppermint Bark

Two ingredients that are probably already in your pantry are all you need to make a batch of creamy, chocolaty fudge: Sweetened condensed milk and chocolate chips. Plus, it's unbelievably easy to make. Though the fudge does need to chill for a couple of hours before slicing, this makes it a perfect make-ahead dessert or holiday food gift. Enjoy the fudge plain (it's delicious) or zhuzh it up: Add peppermint or vanilla extract, or add toppings like M&M's, peanut butter cups, or crumbled Oreos.

Recipe: 2-Ingredient Fudge

'Tis the season for gingerbread, and we don't mean just cookies and houses. Try homemade gingerbread ice cream: It's creamy and full of flavor from molasses, ginger, cinnamon, and clove. This recipe doesn't require any precooking of ingredients, which saves some time. Just blend everything together, then add it to an ice cream maker. Gingerbread ice cream is delicious all on its own, but you can also serve it with slices of cake, fresh-baked cookies, or a cup of hot cocoa. 

Recipe: Gingerbread Ice Cream

The best desserts aren't just sweet but also have a mix of flavors in every bite. Cranberry and orange oatmeal cookies are a balance of sweet and tart with lots of texture and a thick, chewy middle. Ingredients like cranberries, pecans, and cinnamon make them perfect for the holidays, and for everyday eating, too, because, well, they're delicious cookies. The cookie batter needs no chilling, and the cookies bake up in about 10 minutes. 

Recipe: Cranberry Orange Oatmeal Cookies

Festive holiday treats don't have to be complicated or time-consuming, and these fun brownies are proof of that. Mix together a simple boxed brownie mix and bake the batter in a round cake pan. Once cooled and sliced into wedges, it's time to transform them into Rudolph, Dasher, Dancer, and the rest of the reindeer team. Use melted chocolate chips to attach reindeer faces made of pretzel twists, candy eyes, and M&M's. They're fun to make with kids, with roommates in a college dorm kitchen, or for a marathon viewing of Christmas movies. 

Recipe: Reindeer Brownies

Want something a little more sophisticated for your family's Christmas stockings this year? Red velvet truffles are rich and decadent, yet really easy to make. The centers are red velvet cake that's made from an easy box mix. Once baked the cake is crumbled and blended with frosting, making it easy to scoop and roll them into truffles. Coat them in white chocolate (or dark or milk chocolate) then add Christmas sprinkles. Tie the finished truffles up in little boxes for stockings or a secret Santa exchange. 

Recipe: Red Velvet Truffles

Not to be confused with the French cookie macarons, macaroons (with two o's) are made with egg whites, sugar, and shredded coconut. They add a little coco-nuttiness to your holiday dessert spread. They only take around 20 minutes of prep work and then 15 minutes of baking, resulting in treats that are crisp on the outside and soft and fluffy on the inside. Dip the bottoms in dark or semi-sweet chocolate for even more decadence. Macaroons are a perfect treat for both Christmas and Hannukah.

Recipe: Chocolate-Dipped Coconut Macaroons

Pumpkin pie may get more attention when Thanksgiving rolls around, but it's a great dessert to put on the table after Christmas dinner as well. With this no-bake pumpkin pie recipe, you can skip the oven. Make a homemade graham cracker crust (or save time by getting a graham crust at the store). The filling ingredients are simply whipped and stirred together, and once it's poured onto the crust all that's left to do is to chill it in the refrigerator for two to three hours to set.

Recipe: No-Bake Pumpkin Pie

Christmas is the perfect time to bring out recipes for old-fashioned and nostalgic desserts like this nutty fudge. Made with cream, sugar, and butter that are simmered until caramelized, it's similar to penuche fudge. The squares have added flavor and texture from chopped pecans and a little orange zest. The final holiday touch comes from holiday-themed sprinkles scattered over the surface before the fudge sets. Make it as a food gift or keep a tin of this fudge at home for the perfect fire-side dessert. 

Recipe: Christmas Fudge

The creator of this recipe, Kristen Carli, says fruit cake doesn't deserve the annual round of jeering it receives — when made well, it's actually really delicious. Fruit cakes have a history going back centuries as a favorite Christmas treat, and would often include days-long preparations. In this recipe, only an overnight wait is needed to allow dried fruits like figs, cherries, and apricots to soak up sweet, dark rum. The finished loaves are full of boozy fruit, holiday spices, and nuts. This recipe makes two loaves; give one away and keep one for yourself. 

Recipe: Fruit Cake

Though these chocolate treats can (and should) be enjoyed anytime of the year, they've become a favorite cookie to make at Christmastime. Perhaps the powdered sugar coating on the cookies has something to do with this: With the "crinkles" of chocolate cookie peeking through the sugar, they resemble a snowy December landscape. Or it could be just because they're delicious and a pleasure to share. The chocolate cookie dough comes together quickly and needs only an hour to chill. Roll balls of cookie dough in powdered sugar to give them the pretty crinkled look once they're baked. 

Recipe: Chocolate Crinkle Cookies

How Stuff Works shares that the holiday favorite marzipan, made from ground almonds and sugar, has an easy-to-mold texture like that of Play-Doh. It can be rolled out and used to cover cakes, but is especially fun to shape into candies that look like miniature fruit or even animals with silly faces, like the holiday classic marzipan pig. This marzipan recipe requires only three ingredients and a few minutes to make, and once chilled, it's ready to be used. The decorated candies are a great way to show off your artistic side and create unique Christmas treats.

Recipe: Marzipan

If you're reaching for store-bought holiday candy because you think making your own is too much of a hassle, STOP — this White Chocolate Fudge recipe is super easy, quick, and requires just two ingredients. Head to the baking aisle and pick up a can of sweetened condensed milk and a bag of white chocolate chips. Melt them together on the stove or in a microwave, then spread the mixture in a pan. Go watch a Hallmark Christmas movie while the fudge chills and sets, then slice and serve.

Recipe: 2-Ingredient White Chocolate Fudge

Make this easy three-ingredient marshmallow pumpkin cake for a special holiday dessert table centerpiece, or leave a slice out for Santa on Christmas Eve. The recipe is perfect for the busy season: It's a cinch to blend boxed cake mix with canned pumpkin pie mix and then bake it up in about 30 minutes. The topping is simply marshmallow fluff poured over the top. Serve it just like this or add some holiday décor to the top, like red and green sprinkles. 

Recipe: 3-Ingredient Marshmallow Pumpkin Cake

If you want a more formal and elegant holiday dessert to serve after Christmas dinner or bring to a party, this two-layer candy cane cake is perfect. The fluffy yellow cake is easy to make from scratch; the two round layers bake through in about 25 minutes. Frost the cake with a simple peppermint buttercream, and candy cane bits between the layers. Finish the pretty cake with piped frosting, a snowy dusting of powdered sugar, and candy canes. Little pine tree cake toppers would also be cute to add to the top.

Recipe: Candy Cane Cake

Christmas is all about red and green, and thankfully, these red velvet brownies fit the bill perfectly. It's easy to make a brownie batter from scratch, and this batter gets its red color from cocoa powder and a few drops of red food coloring. You can use any kind of chocolate chips, but we love how white chocolate chips stand out in the red brownies. You can simply serve them with a cold glass of milk, or add a scoop of peppermint stick ice cream and hot fudge to make a festive sundae. 

Recipe: Red Velvet Brownies

Desserts filled with warming spices, like these gingersnaps, are our favorites when the holidays roll around. My Recipes shares that compared to gingerbread cookies and molasses cookies, ginger snaps are crispier and have a stronger ginger bite. And these gingersnaps are especially delicious because they get a dip in sweet, creamy white chocolate after baking. Vanilla-flavored melting chocolates are easy to use, and you can even swap out the white variety for holiday reds and greens. 

Recipe: White Chocolate-Dipped Gingersnaps

Atlas Obscura shares that in Denmark, rice pudding is a Christmas Eve tradition thanks to an elf known as nisse. Unlike the good-intentioned Elf On The Shelf in the U.S., the nisse is a mischievous spirit who likes to steal things and be naughty. To keep the nisse happy, families leave him a Christmas bowl of risengrød, or rice pudding. Even if you don't believe in elves, this easy rice pudding is still delicious, made with cinnamon, sugar, and a sprinkle of raisins. Who knows: Maybe your Elf On The Shelf would like some, too.  

Recipe: 15-Minute Rice Pudding

As The Old Farmer's Almanac points out, crumb bars are a favorite dessert because they're so easy to make and can be made with almost any kind of fruit filling. The crumb (or crumble) base and topping for these cranberry crumble bars is made from flour, butter, and baking powder. A simple cranberry sauce made on the stovetop is layered over the base, creating a sweet-tart filling in the tender bars. Santa would LOVE one of these crumble bars with his milk on Christmas Eve, and your holiday guests will enjoy them, too. 

Recipe: Cranberry Crumble Bars

Pumpkin isn't just for Thanksgiving: It's a welcome part of the holiday festivities right through December. Instead of pouring pumpkin into a pie shell, however, this dessert puts that sweet flavor into a creamy mousse — and uses only three ingredients. Blend canned pumpkin puree with cream and instant pudding mix. The mousse is ready to eat in only five minutes, or you can chill it in cups to serve for dessert later. Top your pumpkin mousse with whipped cream, chocolate chips, or a drizzle of caramel.

Recipe: 3-Ingredient Pumpkin Mousse

Keep this recipe handy for the holidays. It's easy to whip up when you need to bring a dessert to the party or find yourself scrambling for one last gift for that hard-to-please family member. Creamy peanut butter fudge is made with only five ingredients and in ten minutes. It's sweet and creamy with a hint of vanilla amidst the peanut butter. Once the fudge chills slice it into cubes and serve — or box it up for a gift. Tip: add holiday sprinkles to the top before the fudge sets. 

Recipe: Peanut Butter Fudge

If you're lucky enough to have a white Christmas where you live, this is the perfect recipe to try — especially if you have kids home on vacation who need something to do. Just as the name suggests, it's made from fresh snow along with sweetened condensed milk and vanilla extract. Stirred together, the mixture has an ice cream-like texture and tastes so good. Have your toppings ready, like chocolate sauce, holiday sprinkles, crumbled Oreos, or crushed candy canes, and eat it before it melts. 

Recipe: 5-Minute Snow Ice Cream

Fudge recipes seem to fall into two categories: Made on the stovetop while fussing with a candy thermometer or made lightning-fast with minimal ingredients. (TikTokers like @fitwaffle seem to prefer the latter method.) Since we love spending time in the kitchen during the holidays, this recipe finds a happy middle ground; you get to slowly simmer peanut butter, white chocolate chips, and chopped nuts together in a slow cooker with no thermometer necessary. It's fun to handcraft a perfect batch of creamy, sweet fudge for gifts and dessert tables alike. 

Recipe: Slow Cooker Peanut Butter Fudge

Sugar cookies are about as simple a cookie as you can make. That might lead some people to take the humble sugar cookie for granted, but the right recipe should be kept in your back pocket come holiday season when you need something quick and easy. These sugar cookies only take around 25 minutes to make. This recipe outlines how to make the perfect round sugar cookies, or you can use your favorite cookie cutter shapes instead — a jolly, plump Santa Claus shape or Christmas tree ornament is sure to bring the holiday vibes.

Recipe: Sugar Cookies

Chocolate chip cookies are desirable no matter the time of year. Chocolate chip cookies around Christmastime, however, just hit different with lights, presents, and all of the other trappings of the holiday season around you. We've got the perfect from-scratch chocolate chip cookies for the occasion, complete with a soft and chewy center and crispy edges. What type of chocolate you use is your call, but chopped chocolate that you've cut yourself from a chocolate bar always ends up better — and meltier — than chips. Flaky salt on top makes these sweet treats more dynamic.

Recipe: Chocolate Chip Cookies

Save some of the holiday red wine for a unique and really yummy batch of cupcakes! The chocolate and wine cupcakes are really lovely, perfect to bring out after dinner or to make in advance and bring to a party. The from-scratch cupcake batter includes cocoa and a generous pour of your favorite type of red wine like Cabernet Sauvignon or Merlot. The cream cheese frosting has a red wine reduction for extra flavor and a pale pink hue. They make a unique Christmas treat, and it's a great recipe to have on hand for other holidays, too. 

Recipe: Red Wine Cupcakes