I love to bake year round but there is something special about baking during the holiday season. I’ve pulled together some of my favorite holiday sweets to bring to your next gathering or cookie swap. Tis the season!

Joulutorttu- Finnish Christmas Tarts

Andrew is Finnish and super proud of his heritage. Joulutorttu are traditional Finnish Christmas Tarts that are eaten during Christmas and holiday season. These pinwheel/star shaped tarts look so impressive and are not that difficult to make. Grab some of your favorite jam and try this recipe.

Glazed Gingerbread Cookies

These are my go-to gingerbread cookies. They are soft and chewy, with the right amount of bite from the spicy ginger. I picked up some cookie stamps to give them that extra special touch but they are not necessary. Find my favorite recipe here.

Old Fashioned Sugar Cookies

Is it even Christmas if you don’t make sugar cookies? My Aunt Eillie would make cookies with me and my brother every holiday season and I would look forward to using her cookie cutter collection. Unfortunately, I don’t have her recipe but I found one that is pretty close. We would decorate the cookies with egg paint before they were baked, which then gave them a glossy look when they came out of the oven. To make the “paint” combine one egg yolk with drops of water to make a thinner, paint like consistency. Add in some food coloring and use synthetic paint brushes to paint your cookies.

Bûche de Noël

This traditional Christmas cake is decorated to resemble a log…Bûche de Noël is Yule Log in French. Light yellow sponge cake with a creamy chocolate frosting is the perfect flavor combination. This is not an easy dessert but once it’s assembled you will feel such a sense of accomplishment. I really like this recipe because of how detailed the steps are. I’m all about the visuals and Audrey from Pardon Your French is so good about providing step by step pictures. If I can do this, you can do this!

Peppermint Snowballs

Some people are weird about mint flavored things, I am not one of those people. I enjoy the combo of chocolate and mint and just peppermint on its own, like in these snowball cookies. Not only are these cookies delicious, they are quite pretty too.

Gingerbread Bundt Cake

If you love gingerbread, this cake is for you! It’s spiced with ginger, cinnamon, and nutmeg, just bursting with holiday flavors. You can add a splash of citrus to the glaze too, SO good. I also just realized that my two favorite gingerbread recipes come from The View From Great Island. Check out her site for more great recipes! I’m obviously a fan. 🙂

I hope you’re able to try some of my holiday favorites! What are some of your favorite holiday treats?

Happy Baking!