Easy Christmas Cookies You Can Make in One Day: 10 No-Chill Recipes + a Baking Day Plan

These easy Christmas cookies all have one thing in common: none of them need the dough chilled overnight. Mix, scoop, bake, done. That means you can knock out a whole tray of Christmas cookies in a single afternoon instead of spreading it across three nights after the kids go to bed.

Chilling dough is where the time disappears in most holiday recipes. Every cookie below skips it, or never goes in the oven at all. There’s a full baking-day game plan near the top if you want to do several kinds back to back.

At a Glance

• Ten cookies, zero overnight chilling. Two are no-bake, one is a pan of bars, seven are scoop-and-bake.
• Fastest of all: no-bake cocoa oat cookies, about 15 minutes start to finish.
• Best with kids helping: peanut butter blossoms and cornflake wreaths.
• Prettiest for the least work: jam thumbprints and snowball cookies.
• The one thing that makes a baking day work: two sheet pans, so one is in the oven while you scoop the next.
• Realistic goal: pick four or five. All ten in one day is doable, but it’s a full day.

Jump to: The one-day game plan · Shopping list · Chocolate chip · Snickerdoodles · Peanut butter blossoms · Sprinkle sugar cookies · Snowballs · Thumbprints · Molasses crinkles · No-bake cocoa oat · Cornflake wreaths · Magic cookie bars · Gear · FAQ

The One-Day Christmas Cookie Game Plan

The trick is doing things in the right order. No-bakes go first because they need counter time to set. Then you bake from the lowest oven temperature to the highest, so you only ever turn the oven up, never wait for it to cool down.

• The night before (5 minutes): nothing to bake, just set the butter out on the counter before bed. Almost every recipe here needs it soft, and that’s the step that holds everyone up.
• 9:00 am: line your sheet pans, pull out every ingredient, preheat the oven to 350°F.
• 9:15 am: make the no-bakes on the stove: cocoa oat cookies, then cornflake wreaths. Leave them on parchment to set.
• 9:45 am: magic cookie bars into the oven (25 minutes). Mix the snowball dough while they bake.
• 10:15 am to 12:30 pm, still at 350°F: snowballs, jam thumbprints, sprinkle sugar cookies and molasses crinkles. Scoop the next batch while the current one bakes.
• 12:30 pm: lunch break. Give the snowballs their second roll in powdered sugar now that they’re cool.
• 1:00 pm: oven up to 375°F for chocolate chip cookies and peanut butter blossoms.
• 2:00 pm: oven up to 400°F for snickerdoodles. They’re last because they bake fastest at the highest heat.
• 2:45 pm: cut the bars, pack everything up, and you’re done before school pickup.

Doing fewer? Keep the same order and just skip what you’re not making.

The Shopping List for All Ten

Here’s what to grab if you’re making the whole lineup. If you’re only doing a few, check each recipe below.

• Butter: 7 1/2 cups (15 sticks), unsalted. Yes, really. Butter is the thing you’ll run out of.
• Flour: about 15 1/2 cups all-purpose (a 5 lb bag is roughly 17 to 18 cups)
• Granulated sugar: about 7 cups, plus extra for rolling
• Brown sugar: 1 1/2 cups packed
• Powdered sugar: about 2 cups
• Eggs: 8
• Baking basics: baking soda, baking powder, cream of tartar, salt, vanilla, almond extract
• Spices: cinnamon, ground ginger, ground cloves
• Pantry: molasses, creamy peanut butter, unsweetened cocoa, quick oats, cornflakes, graham cracker crumbs, sweetened condensed milk, flaked coconut, chopped pecans or walnuts, seedless raspberry jam
• Candy and chocolate: chocolate chips (about 3 cups), Hershey’s Kisses (one bag), sprinkles, mini marshmallows (10 oz bag), red cinnamon candies or mini M&Ms
• Other: 1/2 cup milk, green gel food coloring

1. Melted Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies

Makes about 30 · 375°F · 9 to 11 minutes

Melting the butter instead of creaming it is what lets you skip the chill, and it gives you a chewier cookie. Swap half the chips for red and green M&Ms and they’re instantly Christmas cookies.

What you need for the melted butter chocolate chip cookies

• 3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, melted and cooled a few minutes
• 1 cup packed brown sugar
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 1 large egg plus 1 egg yolk
• 2 tsp vanilla
• 2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp salt
• 2 cups chocolate chips (or 1 cup chips + 1 cup red and green M&Ms)

How to make the melted butter chocolate chip cookies

1. Heat the oven to 375°F and line two sheet pans.
2. Whisk the melted butter with both sugars until smooth, then whisk in the egg, yolk and vanilla.
3. Stir in the flour, baking soda and salt just until no dry flour is left, then fold in the chips.
4. Let the dough sit 10 minutes while the oven finishes heating. It firms up enough to scoop cleanly.
5. Scoop 2-tablespoon balls about 2 inches apart and bake 9 to 11 minutes, until the edges are golden and the centers still look a little soft.
6. Cool 5 minutes on the pan, then move to a rack.

Don’t skip: pull them while the middles look underdone. They finish setting on the hot pan.

2. Snickerdoodles

Makes about 48 · 400°F · 8 to 10 minutes

The cinnamon-sugar classic, and one of the fastest cookies to bake. Cream of tartar gives them their tang and their soft, puffy middle.

What you need for the snickerdoodles

• 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
• 1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
• 2 large eggs
• 2 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 tsp cream of tartar
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1/4 tsp salt
• For rolling: 1/4 cup sugar mixed with 1 Tbsp cinnamon

How to make the snickerdoodles

1. Heat the oven to 400°F and line your pans.
2. Beat the butter and sugar until fluffy, about 2 minutes, then beat in the eggs.
3. Mix in the flour, cream of tartar, baking soda and salt.
4. Roll the dough into 1 1/4-inch balls and roll each one in the cinnamon sugar.
5. Bake 2 inches apart for 8 to 10 minutes, until set but still pale on top.
6. Cool a couple of minutes on the pan, then move to a rack.

Don’t skip: the cream of tartar. Without it they taste like a plain sugar cookie and spread flatter.

3. Peanut Butter Blossoms

Makes about 48 · 375°F · 8 to 10 minutes

The cookie with a chocolate kiss pressed in the top. This is the best one on the list for little helpers, because unwrapping kisses and pressing them in is a real job they can do.

What you need for the peanut butter blossoms

• 1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened
• 1/2 cup creamy peanut butter
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar, plus more for rolling
• 1/2 cup packed brown sugar
• 1 large egg
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 tsp salt
• About 48 Hershey’s Kisses, unwrapped

How to make the peanut butter blossoms

1. Heat the oven to 375°F and line your pans. Unwrap the kisses first (or hand that job off).
2. Beat the butter, peanut butter and both sugars until fluffy. Beat in the egg and vanilla.
3. Mix in the flour, baking soda and salt.
4. Roll into 1-inch balls, roll in sugar and set 2 inches apart.
5. Bake 8 to 10 minutes, until lightly golden.
6. Press a kiss into the center of each cookie the second they come out of the oven. They’ll crack around the edges, which is exactly what you want.

Don’t skip: press the kisses in right away. Wait even a few minutes and the cookies set too firm and crumble instead of cracking.

4. Sprinkle Drop Sugar Cookies

Makes about 36 · 350°F · 10 to 12 minutes

All the fun of a decorated sugar cookie with none of the rolling pin. You roll the dough balls in sprinkles and flatten them with the bottom of a glass.

What you need for the sprinkle drop sugar cookies

• 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 1 large egg
• 2 tsp vanilla
• 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp salt
• About 1/2 cup red, green and white sprinkles

How to make the sprinkle drop sugar cookies

1. Heat the oven to 350°F and line your pans.
2. Beat the butter and sugar until light and fluffy, then beat in the egg and vanilla.
3. Mix in the flour, baking powder and salt.
4. Roll into 1 1/2-inch balls, roll the tops in sprinkles, and set them 2 inches apart.
5. Flatten each one slightly with the bottom of a glass.
6. Bake 10 to 12 minutes, until the edges are just barely golden. Cool on a rack.

Don’t skip: use nonpareils or jimmies, not the big crunchy sugar crystals. The small ones stick better and don’t fall off when you flatten them.

5. Snowball Cookies

Makes about 48 · 350°F · 12 to 14 minutes

Also called Russian tea cakes or Mexican wedding cookies. Buttery, nutty, and rolled in powdered sugar twice so they look like little snowballs. No eggs, no chilling, and they look like you worked way harder than you did.

What you need for the snowball cookies

• 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
• 1/2 cup powdered sugar, plus about 1 1/2 cups for rolling
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 3/4 cup finely chopped pecans or walnuts

How to make the snowball cookies

1. Heat the oven to 350°F and line your pans.
2. Beat the butter, 1/2 cup powdered sugar and vanilla until creamy.
3. Mix in the flour and salt, then the nuts. The dough will be crumbly but hold together when you squeeze it.
4. Roll into 1-inch balls and set them about an inch apart. They barely spread.
5. Bake 12 to 14 minutes, until the bottoms are lightly golden but the tops are still pale.
6. Let them cool 5 minutes, then roll in powdered sugar while still warm. Once they’re completely cool, roll them again.

Don’t skip: the second roll. The first coat melts into the warm cookies, and the second one is what makes them look snowy.

6. Jam Thumbprint Cookies

Makes about 36 · 350°F · 14 to 16 minutes

They look fancy on a cookie tray and take zero decorating skill. Raspberry is classic and the red is perfect for Christmas. Apricot works too.

What you need for the jam thumbprint cookies

• 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
• 2/3 cup granulated sugar
• 1 large egg yolk
• 1/2 tsp almond extract (or 1 tsp vanilla)
• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/4 tsp salt
• About 1/2 cup seedless raspberry jam

How to make the jam thumbprint cookies

1. Heat the oven to 350°F and line your pans.
2. Beat the butter and sugar until fluffy, then beat in the yolk and almond extract.
3. Mix in the flour and salt.
4. Roll into 1-inch balls and press a well into the center of each one with your thumb or the back of a measuring teaspoon.
5. Fill each well with about 1/2 teaspoon of jam. Don’t overfill or it bubbles over.
6. Bake 14 to 16 minutes, until the edges are lightly golden. Cool on the pan for 5 minutes before moving them.

Don’t skip: if the edges crack when you press the well, just pinch them back together. Slightly cracked ones still look homemade in the good way.

7. Chewy Molasses Crinkle Cookies

Makes about 30 · 350°F · 9 to 11 minutes

Gingerbread flavor without rolling out gingerbread. Melted butter keeps these soft and chewy and means the dough is ready to scoop right away.

What you need for the chewy molasses crinkle cookies

• 3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, melted and cooled a few minutes
• 1 cup granulated sugar, plus more for rolling
• 1/4 cup molasses
• 1 large egg
• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 1 tsp ground ginger
• 1/2 tsp ground cloves
• 1/2 tsp salt

How to make the chewy molasses crinkle cookies

1. Heat the oven to 350°F and line your pans.
2. Whisk the melted butter, sugar and molasses, then whisk in the egg.
3. Stir in the flour, baking soda, spices and salt.
4. Let the dough sit 5 to 10 minutes so it firms up enough to roll.
5. Roll into 1 1/4-inch balls, roll in sugar and set 2 inches apart.
6. Bake 9 to 11 minutes, until the tops crackle. They’ll look soft in the middle. Cool 5 minutes on the pan.

Don’t skip: don’t overbake. The middles should still look a little puffy when you pull them, or they’ll go crunchy once they cool.

8. No-Bake Chocolate Oatmeal Cookies

Makes about 36 · no oven · about 15 minutes plus setting time

The fastest Christmas cookie there is. Everything happens in one pot on the stove, and they set on the counter while you bake everything else.

What you need for the no-bake chocolate oatmeal cookies

• 2 cups granulated sugar
• 1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter
• 1/2 cup milk
• 1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1/2 cup creamy peanut butter
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 3 cups quick oats
• Pinch of salt

How to make the no-bake chocolate oatmeal cookies

1. Line a sheet pan or your counter with parchment.
2. Put the sugar, butter, milk and cocoa in a medium saucepan over medium heat and stir until it comes to a full rolling boil.
3. Once it’s boiling hard, set a timer and boil for exactly 1 minute without stirring much.
4. Take it off the heat and stir in the peanut butter, vanilla and salt until smooth, then the oats.
5. Drop spoonfuls onto the parchment right away, before it starts to firm up in the pot.
6. Let them set at room temperature for about 30 minutes.

Don’t skip: the 1-minute boil is the whole recipe. Under a minute and they never set. Much over and they turn dry and crumbly.

9. Cornflake Wreath Cookies

Makes about 24 · no oven · about 20 minutes plus setting time

Green, sticky, and the most fun one to shape. Kids love these, and they’re a nice change from all the brown cookies on the tray.

What you need for the cornflake wreath cookies

• 1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter
• 1 bag (10 oz) mini marshmallows
• 1 tsp green gel food coloring (more for a deeper green)
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 6 cups cornflakes
• Red cinnamon candies or mini red M&Ms for the berries

How to make the cornflake wreath cookies

1. Line a sheet pan with parchment or wax paper and lightly grease your hands or a spoon.
2. Melt the butter in a large pot over low heat, add the marshmallows and stir until completely melted.
3. Stir in the food coloring and vanilla, then fold in the cornflakes until they’re evenly green.
4. Scoop about 1/4 cup at a time onto the parchment and shape into a little wreath with a hole in the middle.
5. Press 3 red candies onto each one while they’re still warm and sticky.
6. Let them set for about an hour.

Don’t skip: work fast and keep your hands greased. Once the marshmallow cools, it stops sticking to the cereal and starts sticking to you.

10. Magic Cookie Bars

Makes 24 bars · 350°F · 25 minutes · 9×13 pan

Technically a bar, but it goes on every cookie tray and nobody complains. About ten minutes of work, and it’s the one to put in the oven first while you mix your next dough.

What you need for the magic cookie bars

• 1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, melted
• 1 1/2 cups graham cracker crumbs
• 1 can (14 oz) sweetened condensed milk
• 1 cup chocolate chips (or half chips, half red and green M&Ms)
• 1 1/3 cups sweetened flaked coconut
• 1 cup chopped pecans or walnuts

How to make the magic cookie bars

1. Heat the oven to 350°F. Line a 9×13 pan with foil or parchment, leaving some hanging over the sides so you can lift the bars out.
2. Stir the melted butter into the graham crumbs and press it firmly into the pan.
3. Pour the condensed milk evenly over the crust.
4. Sprinkle the chocolate, coconut and nuts on top, then press down lightly with a spatula.
5. Bake about 25 minutes, until the edges are golden brown.
6. Cool completely in the pan before cutting into 24 bars.

Don’t skip: let them cool all the way before you cut. Cut warm, they fall apart. Cut cool, you get clean squares.

Easy Christmas Cookies Ahead of Time: What Freezes

Can’t give up a whole day? Most of these doughs freeze really well, so you can split the work.

• Freeze as dough balls: chocolate chip, snickerdoodle (roll in cinnamon sugar after thawing), peanut butter blossoms, sprinkle sugar cookies and molasses crinkles. Freeze them on a sheet pan, then bag them. Bake from frozen and add a minute or two.
• Freeze baked: snowball cookies (do the final sugar roll after thawing), magic cookie bars and thumbprints all freeze well for a few weeks in an airtight container.
• Don’t freeze: cornflake wreaths and no-bake cocoa oat cookies. They’re quick enough to make the day you need them anyway.

The Gear That Makes a Baking Day Easier

Short list. Most of it runs between ten and sixty dollars and prices move, so check the current price before you buy. Everything here was sold or shipped by Amazon when I checked on October 22, 2026, except where I’ve said otherwise.

• A second sheet pan. This is the one that matters most. The Nordic Ware Naturals half sheet is a classic, and two pans means one bakes while you scoop the next. Starting from nothing? The set is the better buy.
• A silicone baking mat. Nothing sticks, the bottoms don’t burn, and you stop buying parchment.
• Pre-cut parchment sheets. For the no-bakes, the wreaths and lining the bar pan.
• A wire cooling rack. Cookies left on a hot pan keep baking. Sold by Ultra Cuisine rather than Amazon.
• A KitchenAid 5-speed hand mixer. You don’t need a stand mixer for any of these. You do need something better than a wooden spoon by batch four.
• Cookie boxes, set of nine. For handing them out to teachers, neighbors and the cookie exchange. Sold by Zicoto US.

The whole kit is on my storefront here: Christmas Cookie Baking Gear.

👉 Shopping for someone who loves to bake? My 2026 holiday gift guide has lots more, and if you need something to bring to a party, here are my hostess gift ideas.

What I’d Skip on a One-Day Baking Day

• Royal icing cut-outs. Beautiful, but they’re a two-day project: bake, cool, flood, dry overnight, detail. Save them for a day when that’s the whole plan.
• Anything that says “chill overnight.” That’s the whole point of this list. If a recipe needs the dough to rest in the fridge for hours, it goes on a different day.
• Candy-thermometer recipes like toffee or brittle on the same day. They need your full attention and you won’t have it.
• Doing all ten if it’s your first time. Four or five kinds, made well, is a great cookie tray. Nobody has ever looked at a cookie plate and wished there were more kinds on it.

Easy Christmas Cookies FAQ

What is the easiest Christmas cookie to make?

No-bake chocolate oatmeal cookies. One pot, no oven, about 15 minutes. The only thing to get right is boiling the mixture for a full minute.

What Christmas cookies don’t need to be chilled?

Melted butter chocolate chip cookies, snickerdoodles, peanut butter blossoms, drop sugar cookies, snowball cookies, jam thumbprints and melted butter molasses cookies can all go straight from the bowl to the oven. No-bake cookies and cornflake wreaths skip the oven entirely.

How many kinds of Christmas cookies can you make in one day?

With two sheet pans and an early start, all ten on this list fit into about six hours. For most people four or five kinds is the sweet spot, and that’s done in an afternoon.

What order should I bake my Christmas cookies in?

No-bakes first so they can set, then bake from the lowest oven temperature to the highest. You only ever turn the oven up, so there’s no waiting for it to cool.

How far ahead can I make Christmas cookies?

Most of these keep about a week in an airtight container. For longer, freeze the dough balls or the baked cookies and they’ll keep for a few weeks.

How do I keep Christmas cookies soft?

Pull them from the oven while the centers still look a little underdone, cool them on a rack, and store them airtight. A slice of bread in the container helps soft cookies stay soft.

Final Thoughts

Set the butter out the night before, pick your four or five, and start with the no-bakes. That’s really the whole secret.

If you’re hosting this season, my how to host Thanksgiving guide has the full timeline, and once the cookies are done, pack up a plate and go see the metro Detroit Christmas lights.

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