Christmas Baking Recipes

A unique bread with a sweet flavor that makes a wonderful holiday gift! It takes about 4 hours to make, so allow yourself plenty of time.

Tender, soft, sweet yeast bread swirled with a creamy homemade poppy seed filling. Growing up, my mother and aunts always made this Eastern European bread for Easter and Christmas. Looks complicated, but is easy enough to make for an Old-World treat. I like it best after the second day.

A beautiful Christmas cookie!

This is everyone's holiday favorite, even the busy cook's, because it is so easy to make.

These are the product of early morning experimentation modifying an old butter tart recipe that I've been using for years. They are a combination of sweet and tart, look beautiful, and disappear very quickly!

This is one my mum in England used to make when we were kids. It was always the biggest hit every year. Use your imagination and a variety of candies to make doors, windows, pathways, and a garden. Note, this gingerbread house takes 2 to 3 days to complete. You can buy a variety of candies for decoration.

Great solid cookie for making cookie people and ornaments. Holiday favorite! I usually double or quadruple this recipe!

This marzipan tubular bread is an ABSOLUTE must for the Christmas season, and a traditional dinner would not be complete without this Christmas Kringle for dessert. It may seem complicated at first glance, but if you follow the recipe step by step, it is actually quite easy and you will amaze your family with this beautiful dessert. This is an extremely rich and decadent treat so guests only need a little. Often a coin is hidden in the kringle and it is thought that the finder will be guaranteed good luck for the upcoming year. As such, it is considered bad luck not to indulge at Christmas!

This recipe was handed down by my 'Baba' (Ukrainian for 'grandmother'). She originally just made a chocolate and plain pinwheel cookie, but I adapted it easily to create a very colorful variety that my kids and husband adore at Christmas time!

These cookies are not a pie, and these pies aren't even cookies! They're really little cakes. Despite their confusing name, they are delicious and fun to make.

This recipe makes enough for 24 luxurious mini fruitcakes. They make a thoughtful Christmas gift for neighbors, work colleagues or teachers, or as part of a gift basket. You can decorate them differently by making one for each family member which makes it a lot more fun.

Cranberries and orange are a natural pairing, and I wanted to combine them in a cheesecake fit for the Thanksgiving table. The cranberry glaze is a really beautiful color, and the sugared cranberries are the perfect topping. Most of the work is done the night before, so it's not even that hard to make.