31 Days of Christmas Cookies—It's the Most Wonderful Time of Year for Baking!

Raspberry preserves are sandwiched between light, tender cream-cheese cookies cut in the shape of diamonds, and the whole batch is covered with a blanket of powdered sugar "snow."

A subtle wink at candy canes, these wreath cookies have a drop of food coloring in the glaze to thank for their marbled red-and-white appearance.

Molasses, dark brown sugar, and a bevy of spices—ginger, cinnamon, nutmeg, and cloves—give these cookies their classic gingerbread flavor. Take a page out of Martha's book and turn them into a menagerie of woodland creatures.

Cinnamon-and-allspice cookies are filled with caramel buttercream and rolled in pink rock salt and sanding sugar for this perfectly balanced treat.

Streaks of cocoa powder in the dough gives these crisp cookies the appearance of bark when baked.

No mold needed for these beautiful speculaas cookies—just a doily rolling pin, and cookie cutters.

Cornmeal and olive oil are the MVPs in this riff on the traditional Italian cookies—the former adds texture, while the latter contributes a lovely fruitiness.

Our basic sugar cookie recipe makes a great base for any festive shape you please. Start with this adorable red-hooded little girl, then let your imagination run wild.

These crumbly cookies are a delicious way to use up the leftover bits of jam in your fridge. The almond-studded batter goes well with any fruit—cranberry, apricot, blueberry, cherry, whatever you've got on hand!

We love the combination of sweet-tart apricot with aromatic anise in these shortbread stars.

It couldn't be easier to shape these festive coconut trees—the only tool you need is clean hands!

Peppermint candies can be so much more than an after-dinner treat. Use them to amp up your sugar cookies this holiday season.

Dried apricots simmered with vanilla make an addictive filling for these crescent cookies. Pistachios add just the right amount of crunch.

Inspired by Mexican hot chocolate, these cookies combine an intense cocoa flavor with fiery cayenne pepper and fragrant cinnamon.

Let wintry weather serve as baking inspiration—make a batch of these snowball-like almond cookies smothered in powdered sugar.

Our take on the beloved elephant ears calls for spreading a homemade sour cream dough with raspberry jam.

Why not shower your loved ones with meringue "kisses"? These delectable treats are flavored with coffee extract and finished with bittersweet chocolate and either pistachios or pecans.

Time to break out the piping bag! You'll need a star tip to make these stunning S shapes. Make a batch of one color, or better yet, all five.

Lemon zest brightens these otherwise classic sugar cookies. Stamp out all kinds of shapes, then decorate with royal icing and colored sugars.

Like a peppermint patty in cookie form! The chocolate filling gets its bracing flavor from peppermint extract as well as chopped peppermint candies.

You can use any dried fruit you please for these colorful cookies. We went with apricots, cranberries, currants, and candied citron, but figs, pineapple, strawberries, and kiwi would also be wonderful.

Everyone will ooh and ahh over the bark-like effect cinnamon and chocolate give these slice-and-bake cookies.

A quick turn in the oven transforms crushed hard candy into beautiful stained glass windows in these ornament-shaped cookies.

Gingerbread triangles become festive trees with the help of some lemony icing and sanding sugar.

Lemon and bittersweet chocolate temper the richness of buttery macadamia nuts in these simple holiday cookies.

Amp up sugar cookies with two types of ginger—ground and candied—then sweeten and tint one half with molasses and the other with honey to create a striped candy-cane effect.

Rich almond butter cookies are the perfect canvas to showcase dollops of apricot jam.

If you're not a fan of shaping and decorating gingerbread men but love the taste, this recipe is for you. A tablespoon of instant espresso powder is all it takes to elevate the spicy, warm flavor of gingerbread to something even richer.

How stunning are these edible shortbread wreath cookies? Fresh Meyer lemon juice perks up the buttery dough and pairs well with the sugared herbs for garnish.

After your done decorating your real Christmas tree, get ready to adorn these edible sugar cookies. Skip the fuss of making royal icing and create smooth, even strands of garland using melted white chocolate instead.

There's nothing like sipping on a cup of warm chai tea in the middle of a snowy day. Turn that experience into a cookie that everyone can dig into while you watch the flakes fall.