28 traditional cookie recipes

Cayenne and chocolate make a nice combo in this cookie from Paula Tuchscherer-Jones of Milwaukee; they would provide an interesting complement when plated with more traditional cookies.

Ginger bread is one of the classic and traditional cookies people make for Christmas. The rich flavor from brown sugar and molasses is so good and the spices make the uniquely delicious taste.

A hamantash (also spelled hamentasch, homentash, homentasch, (h)umentash, a filled cookie traditionally eaten during the Jewish holiday of Purim.

Traditional Jewish Purim hamantaschen with honey-sweetened ground poppy seed filling, lemon zest, and raisins folded into triangular dough pockets. Holiday cookies with deep cultural roots.

Simple Chinese almond cookies that stay pale and cream-colored, decorated with whole almonds or red food coloring dots. Traditional cookies perfect for celebrations.

Medianyky, traditional Ukrainian honey cookies spiced with cinnamon, cloves, ginger, and nutmeg, topped with almonds and sugar crystals. A fragrant holiday cookie with Old World charm.

Grandma's mincemeat cookies are a Christmas tradition: spiced dried-fruit filling folded into a tender shortening dough, dropped by the spoonful and baked golden in about 12 minutes.

Italian chocolate nut cookies (mostaccioli) are dense, spiced cocoa cookies with chopped almonds and raisins on whole wheat flour. A traditional Calabrian holiday cookie with deep chocolate-clove flavor.

Mexican polvorones, crumbly cinnamon shortbread cookies coated in a chocolate-cinnamon sugar. Baked low and slow for a melt-in-your-mouth traditional Mexican cookie.

Kwarezimal, traditional Maltese almond cakes with cinnamon, citrus zest, and orange extract. Baked in logs and sliced into crisp biscotti-style cookies.

Traditional German lebkuchen cookies with honey, molasses, almonds, candied fruit, and five warm spices. Soft, chewy spice cookies brushed with lemon glaze for a classic Christmas treat.

Traditional German Springerle cookies with anise oil, stamped with carved molds and dried overnight before baking to a pale straw color. This heirloom recipe makes 72 delicate, picture-perfect cookies.

Moustokouloura (Greek wine must cookies) shaped into oval wreaths with olive oil, petimezi, honey, cinnamon, cloves, and orange. A traditional vegan Greek cookie with a crunchy, spiced bite.

Pfefferkuchen, a German honey spice cake with whole wheat flour, coffee, cinnamon, cloves, and rum, glazed while hot. A traditional Christmas cookie bar that stays soft for weeks.

Biscotti Napoletani: traditional eggless Italian almond biscotti with whole and ground almonds, sweetened with corn syrup. Twice-baked Neapolitan cookies built for dunking in espresso or vin santo.

Halloween dead bones cookies are pillowy almond meringue-style cookies spiced with ground cloves, dusted in powdered sugar to look like ancient ghostly bones. A spooky kid-friendly Halloween treat from old European tradition.