53 Thanksgiving Cookies That Deserve A Spot On Your Dessert Table (2024)

Forget sweet potato casserole. Forget pumpkin spice lattes. Sweet potato cookies are our new fall staple. Once you taste the maple glaze, you'll understand why.

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Chef Christina Tosi runs on cookies. Her other go-to special-occasion baked good? A fresh, warm cinnamon bun. The buttery cinnamon swirl, the gooey cream cheese frosting—she knew she had to dream it into this wildly good cookie recipe.

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Snickerdoodles are only made better by nutty, brown butter. These are chewy with pillowy soft centers and that classic snickerdoodle tang. As they cool, they settle into cracked and wrinkly cookies, which, in our opinion, are the very best kind.

Get the Brown Butter Snickerdoodle Cookies recipe.

If you like French macarons, you'll love this take on Italian amaretti cookies. Soft, pillowy, moist, sweet, and lightly scented with amaretto liqueur as well as citrus zests, these are in our top 10 for holiday cookies.

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Pecan sandies are a store-bought cookie classic, and while we’d never turn up our noses at our old nostalgic favorites, our homemade version is pretty tasty (and possibly even better!). Featuring thick, buttery shortbread studded with toasted pecans and rimmed with decorative sparkling sugar for a little extra crunch, it takes that grocery story favorite to the next level.

Get the Pecan Sandies recipe.

You’ll fall in love with hazelnut flour once you realize how nutty it makes these gianduia-inspired cookies. Melted chocolate adds extra cocoa punch to the dough, while rich and creamy Nutella tops them off.

Get the Chocolate Hazelnut Thumbprint Cookies recipe.

Decorating an Oreo to look like a turkey is much easier than it seems. Don't have candy eyes? Get creative and use Reese's Pieces or chocolate chips. White chocolate hardens quickly so make sure to have everything else ready to go when you start melting your chocolate!

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These cookies combine the best of oatmeal cookies with pumpkin's delicious seasonality. Soft and chewy with a maple glaze that adds extra autumnal flair, these pumpkin oatmeal cookies are just the thing to serve alongside pie this Thanksgiving.

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Kolaczki cookies are Polish in origin, often made and eaten during the holidays. Some recipes use canned pie filling, though we opted for jam in this version—use your favorite flavor, just make sure to dilute it with cornstarch and water so it doesn't turn into hard candy during the bake.

Get the Kolaczki Cream Cheese Cookies recipe.

Alfajores are soft and tender shortbread cookies with dulce de leche sandwiched between. The cookies can be dusted in powdered sugar or, our favorite, rolled in coconut flakes. Dip half of the cookie in melted chocolate if you're feeling extra indulgent.

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Is it a cookie? Is it a brownie? It's... well... both! These fudgy, SUPER-chocolatey cookies are truly the best of both worlds. They're incredible for chocolate lovers come Thanksgiving, but we're also bookmarking these to make all year long.

Get the Brownie Cookies recipe.

Pumpkin biscotti is the perfect fall treat. These warmly spiced, dry cookies are made for dipping in hot chocolate or coffee, especially after as a sweet end to Thanksgiving.

Get the Pumpkin Spice Chocolate Chip Biscotti recipe.

Brown butter is a magical thing. It can turn an already perfect chocolate chip cookie into a phenomenal one. The butter gets more flavorful and smells like toasted nuts. The addition of milk powder really did the trick on these cookies too. It makes the caramel-y butter flavor even stronger and will instantly make everyone fall in love.

Get the Brown Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies recipe.

It's true—this dough is firm, almost like a shortbread, so to make sure it doesn't crack, roll it into balls until smooth and firm, then gently press your thumb in the center to make sure it doesn't crack. Gently.

Get the Thumbprint Cookies recipe.

These molasses cookies are sort of like gingerbread cookies, but way better. They're packed with flavor (don't sleep on the black pepper) and they've got a soft, cake-like texture. We're obsessed.

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Love chocolate chip cookies, but want EVEN more chocolatey flavor? This recipe is for you. These chewy cookies double down on chocolate, thanks to the combo of cocoa powder, chocolate chips, and one of our favorite secret-weapon ingredients: instant coffee.

Get the Chewy Chocolate Cookies recipe.

These anise and cinnamon cookies have been a staple on one of our food editor's holiday cookie plate for as long as she can remember. Not only were these cookies developed in New Mexico, they're the official state cookie! (And the first state cookie ever, at that.)

Get the Bizcochitos recipe.

What if your favorite coconut-almond-chocolate candy bar morphed into a crunchy, melt-in-your-mouth cookie? We've done it! Joy is in the name for a reason.

Get the Almond Joy Cookies recipe.

The idea that vegan desserts can't be delicious is a total myth. These cookies are dangerous—a bit crisp on the edges and pleasantly chewy in the centers. They're good enough to prove any naysayer wrong, and will have any plant-based eaters at your meal feeling extra grateful toward YOU this Thanksgiving.

Get the Vegan Chocolate Chip Cookies recipe.

Cranberry sauce isn't just a side for turkey anymore. To add even more festivity to this thumbprint cookie, we speckle the dough with finely chopped rosemary—and it tastes just as good as it looks.

Get the Cranberry Rosemary Thumbprint Cookies recipe.