By Susan of Food Blogga

Charlie Brown got it right when he said that Christmas isn’t about who has the shiniest Christmas tree (or Lexus, as it were), it’s about the true meaning of Christmas — eating. Well, more like the warm feeling you get inside, as when you share and eat Christmas cookies with friends and loved ones.

If you haven’t already started beating, whipping, icing, and sprinkling, then you’d better hurry up because Christmas is almost here. Not sure which cookies to make this year? What to try out a couple of new ones? Then read on. You’ll be sure to find some Christmas cookies that will make you feel warm inside.

Is there a cookie that tastes like Christmas more than gingerbread? For classic gingerbread men, make Andrea’s Gingerbread Men Cookies made with freshly ground cloves for added fragrance and spice. If twinkling stars make you smile, then you’ll be laughing with Suzana’a star-shaped Chocolate and Ginger Cookies. Alanna improves upon beloved Christmas chocolate crinkles by adding spicy ginger, cloves, cinnamon, and nutmeg, creating Chocolate Ginger Crinkle Cookies. Molasses and ginger get along as well as Santa and Rudolph, which is why Manju’s Gram’s Ginger Molasses Cookies are a holiday favorite year after year at her house.

After gingerbread men, shortbread may be the next most popular Christmas cookie. For traditional shortbread, make Neil’s Shortbread Cookies at More Than Burnt Toast, which comes with a guarantee to turn out perfectly every time. For a non-traditional shortbread, try The Purple Foodie’s aromatic Lavender Shortbread or Sage Trifle’s savory Rosemary Shortbread.

Anything with chocolate and nuts is always welcome on a Christmas cookie tray. There isn’t a better cookie for a Christmas cookie exchange than Lynn’s gooey, chewy, chocolatey Caramel Turtle Bars. For a chocolate chip cookie with a Christmas twist, try my Chocolate Chip, Cherry, and Pistachio Cookies. Chocolate and coffee lovers won’t be able to resist Christie’s Kahlua Chocolate Chunk Cookies. Surprise white chocolate-lovers with irresistibly bumpy Oatmeal Cranberry White Chocolate Chunk Cookies from Cooking on the Side.

Believe it or not, there are some people who prefer light, citrusy cookies to nutty, chocolate ones. No doubt they’ll love my tart and tangy Betty Crocker’s Lemon Poppy Seed Cookies with Poppy Seed Glaze or Haley Suzanne’s tender, citrus-spiked Lemon Lime Meltaway Cookies. Karen’s brightly colored Orange-Cranberry Slices are as fun to make as they are to eat.

When it comes to making kids happy, nothing beats baking cookies. So get in the kitchen the kids and make a batch Rachelle’s minty, festive, red and white twisted candy cane cookies. Or try La Mia Cucina’s strawberry jam-filled Thumbprints because kids love to make the thumbprint in the dough. Little ones will be tickled with adorable Teddy Bear Popsicles from Mele Cotte or Rudolph’s Christmas Sugar Cookies with pretzel antlers from Good Eats ‘n Sweet Treats.

Adults will be thrilled if they receive a bag of homemade biscotti to dunk in their coffee. My mom’s Traditional Italian Almond Biscotti are satisfying firm and chock full of nuts — perfect for dunking. Cherrapeno’s Holiday Biscotti with pistachios and cranberries are the very merriest of biscotti.

Chances are you have some people on your Christmas cookie list who have food allergies or are calorie-conscious. Don’t worry. There are scores of wonderful recipes for eggless, flourless, gluten-free, and vegan cookies. Here is a sampling: Sadhana’s Gluten Free, Eggless Oats, Almond, and Candied Fruit Cookies are delicious, healthy, and festive. So are Maybelle’s Mom’s Vegan Linzer Cookies filled with sweet, red strawberry jam. You won’t miss any sweetness with The Happy Cook’s low-sugar Chocolate Snowballs. Kalyn’s Flourless and Low-Sugar Chocolate Shortbread Cookie almost defy cookie logic. Despite being low-carb and gluten-free, they’re rich and delicious.

Now’s the time to start baking. Whatever you make, please don’t forget to leave a plate of cookies for Santa!

You can find more delicious holiday cookie recipes from all over the internet on the FoodieView Recipe Search Engine.

Susan Russo lives in Southern California where she is addicted to local farmers’ markets. She publishes stories, recipes and photos on her cooking blog, Food Blogga, and is a regular contributor to NPR’s Kitchen Window.

This entry was posted on Tuesday, December 15th, 2009 at 1:15 pm and is filed under Recipe Roundup. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.