14 Adorable Hanukkah Cookie Recipes You’ll Want to Eat for Eight Days (2024)

When it comes to Hanukkah, most people’s thoughts naturally turn to the feast. Latkes and sufganiyot top the list of fave foods. Cookies… not so much. Though cookie exchanges abound this time of year, they haven’t featured largely in Jewish tradition. But lately, cookie bakers have been upping their Hanukkah game, and the results will delight cookie lovers everywhere. From modern takes on rugelach; to gelt-chip cookies; to beautifully decorated dreidel-, menorah-, and donut-shaped confections; here are Hanukkah cookies you need on your holiday menu *right now.*

1. Hanukkah Iced Cookies: You don’t need a special cookie cutter to make decorated menorah cookies — any circle cutter or even an overturned glass works. Just cut the circle in half, then pipe on some festive color. (via Craftsy)

2. The Best Rugelach Cookies: These babies are buttery and flaky, with just the right amount of sweetness rolled up inside. Fill yours with anything you have on hand, from ground nuts and honey to peanut butter and chocolate. The secret is the blend of cream cheese and butter in the dough, which makes them SUPER tender. (via The Kitchn)

3. Iced Sugar Cookies: This one’s for all you cookie bakers who’ve been yearning to show off your pastry piping talent. And don’t shy away from putting your Hebrew writing skills to the test — eating the mistakes is half the fun! (via Suburbs Mama)

4. Glitter Ball Cookies: These rolled cookies hide a sweet surprise — they’re stuffed with creamy ginger filling. The sanding sugar in shades of silver and blue make them perfect for your Hanukkah table. (via Martha Stewart)

5. Hanukkah Jelly Cookies: If you’ve got little helpers in the kitchen at holiday time, this is the perfect cookie to make. Kids will get a kick out of spreading jam on the full circles and sprinkling sugar on the cutouts, then sandwiching them together for a magical effect. (via Living Sweet Moments)

6. Red Velvet Rugelach: If you thought you couldn’t improve on rugelach, the world’s most perfect cookie, prepare to be proven wrong. This red velvet version has cream cheese in the dough and in the filling. Double cream cheese for the win! (via What Jew Wanna Eat)

7. Cardamon-Scented Hanukkah Cookies by Jamie Geller: Some sugar cookies, while fun to make, can be a bit bland. A touch of cardamom in this dough makes these cookies real stars. Pile them up on your party tray and watch ’em go. (via Jewish News Service)

8. Chanukah Star Cookies: These cookies are airbrushed with a pearl shimmer that gives them a special holiday glow. But it’s the dairy-free cookie recipe that really shines through. Your guests will never miss a thing. (via Li’l Miss Cakes)

9. Melt-in-Your-Mouth Hanukkah Gelt Cookies: Start with a melt-in-your-mouth cookie dough that’s rich with cream cheese, then press a gelt coin right in the middle. These cookies are a treasure for the eyes — and the taste buds. (via Overtime Cook)

10. Hanukkah Cookies: These cookies are perfect for any one of the eight festival nights — or why not all? But you’d better be prepared to make them year after year, because after one bite, everyone in the house will be hooked. (via Leite’s Culinaria)

11. Stripey Chanukah Cookie: Calling all beginner cookie bakers! These easy chocolate cookies require no advanced cookie decorating skills; just drizzle the icing in any old pattern and they’ll look perfectly festive and taste delish. (via Chai and Home)

12. Elegant Hanukkah Cookies: A simple color palette of blue, white, and silver gives these cookies an ethereal beauty. They’re perfect for gifting your BFF. (via Li’l Miss Cakes)

13. Chocolate Doughnut Cookies: You know that donuts are SO on trend right now. Everyone at the table will go crazy when they see a whole tray of cookies decorated in a plethora of donut flavors. (via Joy of Kosher)

14. Cookie Menorah: These gorgeous candle-shaped cookies will be the star of the dessert table at your holiday gathering. Bonus: They make a killer centerpiece to light up your festive tablescape. (via Camille Styles)

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Sally Jones is a writer and editor living in New York City. She has worked at many websites including iVillage, Ladies Home Journal, More, Parenting, Cosmopolitan, The Knot and YourTango, in jobs ranging from editor to COO. Renovation and interior design are her

hobbies. She has renovated every home she's lived in, including the rentals, and like... whoa, who does that? You can catch her at her blog Renov8or.