Three Cookies from Cookie Box

Three standout recipes from Cookie Box, the new book by my friends Michelle Lucas Larving and Miranda Keyes. All of which are good candidates for holiday baking. They're reasonably straightforward recipes that use great ingredients to get delicious results. Cookies don't have to be complicated! I picked these three because they also use some ingredients I love that you might not be familiar with: Amarena cherries, Ruby chocolate and Cloud Forest cardamom.

Each of these cookies is different in flavour, shape and texture, and they look good together: a two-bite cherry crumble baked in a mini muffin tin, a buttery flower-shaped sablé with freshly ground cardamom, and a chewy chocolate cookie with a pink ruby drizzle. Bake one, or make all three and you have the start of a box. Michelle and Miranda each added a note on what's special about each recipe.

Amarena Cherry Crumble Cookies

"I love the flavour of Amarena cherries, they are packed in a gorgeous dark syrup and the cherries are both deeply sweet and tart. Dark chocolate and cherries are a hit combination that I wanted in a cookie. These are made in a mini muffin tin and are a two-bite cookie that feel really special with the dark cherries on top." (Miranda)

Prep: 25 minutes. Bake: 12 minutes, plus 40 minutes cooling. Makes: 24 cookies.

Ingredients:

For the crumble:
2 tbsp unsalted butter, melted, plus more for the pans
2 tbsp all-purpose flour, plus more for the pans
¼ cup (30 g) quick oats
¼ cup (50 g) packed light brown sugar
⅛ tsp salt

For the cookies:
½ cup (115 g) unsalted butter, at room temperature
¼ cup (50 g) granulated sugar
2 tbsp confectioners' sugar
¼ tsp salt
1 large egg yolk
½ tsp almond extract
1 cup (120 g) all-purpose flour
50 g 70% dark chocolate, finely chopped
8 Amarena Fabbri cherries (60 g), well drained and finely chopped

To finish:
12 Amarena Fabbri cherries (90 g), well drained and halved

Method:

1. Heat the oven to 350°F (180°C) with a rack in the centre. Butter two 12-cup mini muffin pans well, dust with flour and tap out the excess.
   
   
2. For the crumble, mix the oats, brown sugar, melted butter, flour and salt in a medium bowl until well combined. Set aside.
   
   
3. For the cookies, beat the butter, granulated sugar, confectioners' sugar and salt in a stand mixer with the paddle on medium-high until light and fluffy, 2 to 3 minutes. Scrape down the bowl, add the egg yolk and almond extract, and mix until combined. Add the flour and mix on medium-low just until the dough comes together, then mix in the chocolate and chopped cherries.
   
   
4. Roll the dough into 1 tbsp balls. Press one into each muffin cup and flatten the top with your fingertips. Sprinkle about 1 tsp of crumble over each, then press a cherry half into the centre.
   
   
5. Bake, rotating the pans halfway through, until the crumble and edges are golden, 10 to 12 minutes. Cool in the pans for 20 minutes, then move to a wire rack to cool completely, about 20 minutes more. They keep in an airtight container at room temperature for up to a week.

Cardamom Sugar Sablés

"Having spent part of my pastry career working in Scandinavia, cardamom plays a deep role in the baking that I love. Freshly grinding the seeds really makes a huge difference by getting the best of their complex flavour. It's what transforms these simple, buttery cookies into something truly special." (Michelle)

Prep: 50 minutes, plus 1 hour chilling. Bake: 16 minutes, plus 25 minutes cooling. Makes: 30 sablés.

Ingredients:

8 green cardamom pods, seeds removed*
1 tbsp granulated sugar
3 cups (360 g) all-purpose flour, plus more for rolling
1 cup (120 g) confectioners' sugar
1 tsp salt
1½ cups (340 g) cold unsalted butter, cut into ½-inch (1.3 cm) pieces
2 large eggs, divided
1 tbsp water
3 tbsp (45 g) coarse white sugar

*Flavourfull note: if you're using Burlap & Barrel Cloud Forest cardamom, the seeds are already out of the pod. Use about ½ tsp, finely ground from the jar's grinder top.

Method:

1. Grind the cardamom seeds with the 1 tbsp granulated sugar in a mortar and pestle or spice grinder until very fine. In a stand mixer with the paddle, mix it with the flour, confectioners' sugar and salt on medium-low until combined. Add the butter and mix on low until the mixture looks like coarse sand, 3 to 4 minutes. Add 1 egg and mix just until a smooth dough forms (this can take a few minutes longer in a cool kitchen). Shape into 2 disks, wrap and chill for 1 hour.
   
   
2. Set racks in the top, centre and bottom thirds of the oven and heat to 350°F (180°C). Line 3 baking sheets with parchment.
   
   
3. Working with one disk at a time, knead briefly on a lightly floured counter to soften, then roll to ¼ inch (6 mm) thick. Cut out flowers with a 3-inch (7.5 cm) flower cutter, then cut out the centres with a 1-inch (2.5 cm) round cutter. Space the cookies 1 inch (2.5 cm) apart on the sheets. Reroll the scraps, chilling the dough if it gets soft.
   
   
4. Whisk the remaining egg with the water. Brush it over the cookies, then sprinkle with the coarse sugar.
   
   
5. Bake, swapping the top and bottom sheets halfway through, until set but not coloured, 12 to 16 minutes. Cool on the sheets for 5 minutes, then on racks for 20 minutes. They keep in an airtight container at room temperature for up to a week.

Chewy Triple Chocolates

"I wanted a cookie that was deeply chocolate-y and mixing different types of chocolate into a chocolate based cookie felt like the right move. If you don't have a variety of chocolate, just use the chocolate you have on hand. They are chewy in the middle and crisp around the edges." (Miranda)

Prep: 15 minutes. Bake: 12 minutes, plus 55 minutes cooling and drying. Makes: 30 cookies.

Ingredients:

1⅓ cups (160 g) all-purpose flour
¼ cup (20 g) cocoa powder
½ tsp baking powder
½ tsp baking soda
½ tsp salt
½ cup (115 g) unsalted butter
½ cup (110 g) packed light brown sugar
½ cup (100 g) granulated sugar
1 tbsp honey
1 large egg
2 tsp vanilla extract
100 g dark chocolate, coarsely chopped
100 g milk chocolate, coarsely chopped
100 g white chocolate, coarsely chopped
Ruby chocolate, melted, for drizzling (optional)

Method:

1. Set racks in the top and bottom thirds of the oven and heat to 350°F (180°C). Line 2 baking sheets with parchment.
   
   
2. Sift the flour, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda and salt into a medium bowl.
   
   
3. In a stand mixer with the paddle, beat the butter, brown sugar, granulated sugar and honey on medium-high for 1 minute. Scrape down the bowl, add the egg and vanilla, and mix until combined. Add the flour mixture and mix on medium-low just until the dough comes together, then mix in all three chocolates.
   
   
4. Scoop heaping 1 tbsp portions onto the sheets, 2 inches (5 cm) apart.
   
   
5. Bake, swapping the sheets halfway through, until the edges are just starting to set, 10 to 12 minutes. Cool on the sheets for 5 minutes, then on racks for 20 minutes.
   
   
6. To finish, melt the ruby chocolate gently (using a double boiler, or microwaving in short bursts) and drizzle it over the cooled cookies. Let it set until dry to the touch, at least 30 minutes, before packing. They keep in an airtight container at room temperature for up to a week.

Excerpted with permission from Cookie Box: Delicious, Giftable Cookies for All Occasions by Michelle Lucas Larving and Miranda Keyes. Photography: Suech and Beck. Published by Hardie Grant North America, September 8, 2026.