400 christma recipes

The crisp, densely chocolaty cookies, with an unusually long baking time, were an annual favorite among the 20-plus recipes that Susan Couchman of Hartland remembers were made each year by her mother, Gloria Kuchler.

These rich chocolate-toffee bars from Mary Lueke of Menasha were our top pick in the bar category.

Soft cream cheese cookies studded with pecans and swirled with apricot preserves, topped with matching apricot frosting and coconut for pillowy sweetness.

Rocky road dessert pizza with a brown sugar cookie crust, melted chocolate, puffed marshmallows, and chopped peanuts drizzled with more chocolate. A fun holiday treat.

Citrus lovers will like this refreshing crispy cookie from Jocelyn Moritz of Waukesha.

Molded cranberry relish with raspberry Jello, fresh cranberries, grapes, celery, and crushed pineapple. Served with a fluffy cream cheese and marshmallow whipped dressing. A retro Thanksgiving and Christmas centerpiece.

Buttery spiced fig thumbprint cookies, tender brown-sugar dough rolled in a crunchy flax-sugar coating and filled with jammy fig preserves. Warm cinnamon and nutmeg make them a standout on the holiday cookie tray.

Easy elephant ears cookies (palmiers) bake from rolled puff pastry, sugar, and egg wash into crisp golden hearts, dipped in melted chocolate. Four-ingredient bakery-style treats ready in 40 minutes.

Green-and-white peppermint pinwheel cookies, sliced from a swirled frozen log. A classic Christmas icebox cookie with spiraled layers of vanilla and mint dough.

Almond crescent cookies with toasted ground almonds and a tender shortbread base, finished with a chocolate drizzle or powdered sugar dusting. A Christmas cookie tin classic that holds for a week or more.

This co-winner in the filled-cookie category from Dorothy O'Neill of Whitefish Bay makes a delicate, crispy cookie. Dipping in chocolate and nuts adds flavor and texture.

Virginia Lane of Cudahy secured this recipe, with its nice complexity of flavors, in the late '50s or '60s when she lived in Iran.

Candied spiced walnuts or pecans coated in orange zest, cinnamon, cloves, and powdered sugar, then baked until dry and crunchy. A festive holiday snack or handmade gift.

Cranberry ketchup is a sweet-spiced condiment with whole cranberries, brown sugar, vinegar, clove, mace, and cinnamon. The forgotten Thanksgiving table sauce for turkey, ham, and beyond.

When I was little my mom and dad had lots of parties especially at the holidays. With upwards of 70 people the easiest thing to serve was punch. This is Mom's concoction. The guys love it too. See Dreamsicle Punch too.

Sauteed spinach with garlic and a little fresh tomato, cooked down in olive oil into a quick, savory side dish. A simple, healthy way to turn a pound of greens into a flavor-packed plate in minutes.