522 sugar cookie recipes

Cognac cookies, no-bake bourbon-ball cousins made with melted semisweet chocolate, crushed vanilla wafers, finely chopped pecans, and a generous splash of cognac. Roll in sugar and let them mellow.

Old-fashioned Nantucket molasses cookies with brown sugar, butter, and a soft, cake-like texture. Six pantry ingredients and no eggs, just like the New England whaling-era originals.

Rosettes are delicate Scandinavian fried cookies shaped on a decorative iron, crisp like a wafer and dusted with powdered sugar. A Christmas tradition in Nordic and Midwestern kitchens.

Chewy honey date cookies with chopped nuts, baked in a sheet pan, cut into strips, and rolled in powdered sugar. No butter needed, just honey, eggs, and dates.

Jewish rugelach with a flaky cottage cheese dough, apricot jam, cinnamon-sugar, walnuts, and currants rolled into golden crescents. A holiday cookie jar essential for Hanukkah or Christmas.

Almond orange macaroons made with blanched almonds, sugar, egg whites, and orange flower water. The naturally gluten-free Mediterranean cookie with a chewy interior and crisp golden top.

Delicate, paper-thin cookies infused with toasted saffron, ground almonds, and a whisper of lemon. Sugar-sprinkled and crisp at the edges, this recipe yields 100 elegant bites.

Orange poppy seed muffies, a drop cookie-muffin hybrid made with orange sugar, buttermilk, whole wheat pastry flour, and allspice. Lightly crisp edges with a soft, citrusy center.

Fudgy chocolate brownie cookies topped with pastel-colored frosting and sugar crystals. Loaded with semisweet chocolate chips and finished with rainbow icing for a festive, party-ready treat.

Chocolate-spice crinkle cookies rolled in sugar with cocoa, cinnamon, ginger, allspice, and cloves. Chewy, fragrant, and lower-fat thanks to a yogurt swap for most of the butter.

Egg shortbread cookies with a tender, crumbly texture from butter, sugar, and a whole egg. Blind-baked with pie weights for an even, golden result. Simple 5-ingredient recipe.

Crisp rolled poppy seed cookies made with oil instead of butter, loaded with a third cup of soaked poppy seeds and a sugar-sparkle top. Simple dough, big crunch.

Rugelach roll flaky cream cheese dough around apricot preserves, cinnamon-brown-sugar, walnuts, and raisins into bite-sized crescents. A classic Jewish bakery cookie for Hanukkah and Christmas alike.

Pignoli cookies (pine nut macaroons): the chewy almond-paste Italian classic studded with toasted pine nuts and dusted with powdered sugar. Naturally gluten-free, dairy-free, and totally addictive.

Pecan crisps made with butter, brown sugar, and vanilla, rolled thin and topped with a pecan half. A simple kneaded dough yields tender, nutty cookies with lightly browned edges.

Pecan meringue cookies with brown sugar, egg whites, and just a touch of flour. Light, crisp, and loaded with toasted nut flavor. Naturally gluten-light and simple to make.