Holiday cookie season is officially here, and we couldn’t be more excited! The key to a great mix? A thoughtful variety of flavours, shapes, sizes, textures, and colours. Plan for a combination of chocolatey, nutty, citrusy, and spiced treats, and don’t forget to include elements like jam or icing for a festive touch. Take your favourite cookie recipes up a notch by amping up the spices or adding pretty garnishes. Play with scale—tiny cookies can be adorable, while oversized ones make a statement (just keep in mind that bake times will vary from the original recipes). And be mindful of strong flavours that might clash—if you include one, wrap it separately to maintain harmony.
If you’re planning ahead, now’s the time to start baking, especially if you’ve got freezer space. We love “keepers”—cookies that freeze beautifully and stay fresh for days on the counter. This week’s recipe is for a buttery, cardamom-spiced cookie that checks all the boxes: it’s rich, fragrant, and holds its shape well-enough for simple cookie cutters—a true keeper in every sense. For the best flavour, grind your spices fresh, especially the cardamom—we’ve been loving Burlap & Barrel’s decorticated (seeds removed from the pod) Cloud Cardamom Seeds with a built-in grinder, Even if built-in grinders aren’t usually your thing, this one is kind of perfect - it's even adjustable for a fine or coarse grind. Pro tip: grind onto parchment paper for easy measuring!
To make your iced cookies extra special, we recommend Sweetopolita’s All is Bright Sprinkle Mix. This is essentially a 2-for-1 deal: beautiful sprinkles plus fun candy bits you can pick out to use strategically if you choose (like on our tree cookies). They’re a simple way to make any cookie tray pop.
Whether you’re baking at home or letting us take care of the treats, this holiday season is bound to be delicious. Let us know what’s baking in your kitchen.
Cardamom Tree Cookies
1 cup unsalted butter, softened
1 1/2 cups sugar
1 1/2 cups sugar
1 1/2 tsp freshly ground Burlap & Barrel Cloud Cardamom
1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper
1/2 tsp Burlap & Barrel Royal Cinnamon
1/4 tsp freshly grated nutmeg
1 tsp Diamond Crystal Kosher salt
1 lg egg
1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper
1/2 tsp Burlap & Barrel Royal Cinnamon
1/4 tsp freshly grated nutmeg
1 tsp Diamond Crystal Kosher salt
1 lg egg
325 g (2 1/2 cups) all-purpose flour
Royal Icing & Sprinkles or Coloured Sugar to Decorate
- Combine butter and sugar in the bowl of a stand mixer and beat until fluffy. Add spices and salt and beat until fully combined. Add egg and beat until uniform. Add flour and beat until just incorporated.
- Gather dough into a ball, divide in half, and working with one piece at a time, place between lightly floured sheets of parchment paper and roll to about 1/8-inch thick. Chill for 1 hr or until firm.
- Preheat oven to 325 °F.
- Use cookie cutters to cut out desired shapes. Transfer to parchment-lined baking sheets placing cookies at least 1-inch apart. For cleanest shapes, keep dough chilled until ready to bake.
- Working with one sheet at a time, bake for 12-16 min (depending on size of cookie) or until cookies are lightly golden. Let cool 5 min before transferring to a rack to cool completely. Ice and decorate cooled cookies as desired or transfer to a sealed container and freeze until ready to decorate and serve.
Makes about 3 dozen cookies
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