With Christmas and the holiday break coming up soon you may find yourself with a lot of free time on your hands. And it’s the perfect time to pick up a new hobby like…making desserts! It may seem confusing on where to begin, but here are a few recipes for the holiday season to get started!

Starting with a Christmas classic, gingerbread houses and cookies are always fun. You get an activity and a treat! The soft and flavorful cookies are easy and quick to make. And after they’re done baking, you can decorate them too! If you go with a gingerbread man or person shape you can add faces or clothing! According to Delish, this gingerbread cookie recipe is near perfect, so maybe give it a try and see if it lives up to its expectations!

But gingerbread cookies aren’t everyone’s style, so here are some other cookies you can try out! Sugar cookies can be a great alternative for gingerbread cookies. Use Christmas themed cookie cutters before baking, and once they’re cooled, you can decorate them too! And everyone knows homemade cookies are the best and the most fun so enjoy baking with other cookies like shortbread cookies, Christmas pinwheel cookies, or the “Santa’s Trash” cookie which ties in both sweet and salty. 

If you want something quick and easy to make and eat try out peppermint bark! The treat is made out of chocolate (usually dark and white chocolate) and chopped candy canes and takes no more than an hour to make. 

Another holiday classic is the Yule Log. Also known as the Bûche de Noël, it is a traditional but time-consuming Christmas cake that is perfect for making with the family. 

No Christmas dinner is complete without a wide selection of pies. Try making a simple Pecan pie or the fresh and toasty Lemon meringue. If you aren’t a fan of traditional pies, spice things up a little bit with an Eggnog or Salted caramel pie. 

Putting a Christmas spin on a classic dessert treat can be a great way to spruce up your holiday spirit! Making Christmas tree or Christmas light cupcakes, decorated with sprinkles as ornaments or M&M “lights” respectively could be a fun family activity!

A perfect way to celebrate the colder weather during the holiday season can be some warm cinnamon buns paired! Ambitious Kitchen’s cinnamon bun recipe takes a little less than two and a half hours to make, so it can be a great longer recipe for you to try out on a chilly winter Saturday!

We hope you have fun with these recipes – happy baking!