30 Easy Christmas Cookies with 5 Ingredients or Less

By Warm Oven Bakes Editorial Team · Updated 2 November 2026

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Easy Christmas cookies don't need a long shopping list. Some of the best holiday cookies use just three, four or five ingredients you probably already have: butter, sugar, flour, an egg, a jar of peanut butter or a box of cake mix. These easy Christmas cookie recipes with few ingredients are beginner-proof, quick to mix and perfect for filling tins.

A note on counting: we don't count water, a pinch of salt, cooking spray or optional sprinkles toward the total. Amounts below are standard ratios for these classic cookies. Full amounts are given for the base recipes (shortbread, peanut butter cookies and cake-mix crinkles); the others are variations on those or classic ideas, so use a full recipe for amounts. We haven't tested every variation in our own kitchen, so bake a small test batch first, especially if your oven runs hot.

3-ingredient Christmas cookies

Shortbread

1. Three-ingredient butter shortbread. *Butter, sugar, flour.* Beat 1 cup (226 g) softened unsalted butter with ½ cup (100 g) granulated sugar until creamy, then mix in 2 cups (250 g) all-purpose flour until a soft dough forms. Press into a pan or roll and cut shapes, then bake at 325°F (165°C) until the edges are just pale golden. A pinch of salt helps if you use unsalted butter. For a more detailed version, see our classic buttery shortbread.

2. Brown sugar shortbread. *Butter, brown sugar, flour.* Swap the white sugar for light brown sugar for a caramel flavor. Same method.

Peanut butter cookies

3. Flourless peanut butter cookies. *Peanut butter, sugar, egg.* Mix 1 cup creamy peanut butter (a regular, no-stir kind works best), 1 cup granulated sugar and 1 large egg. Roll into balls, press with a fork in a crisscross and bake at 350°F (175°C) until set at the edges. They're naturally gluten-free if your peanut butter is. Natural, oily peanut butter can make them spread more.

Cake-mix crinkles

4. Cake-mix crinkle cookies. *Cake mix, eggs, oil.* Stir a standard box of cake mix with 2 eggs and ⅓ cup vegetable oil into a thick dough. Chill briefly, roll into balls, then roll in powdered sugar (if you count it, this becomes a 4-ingredient cookie) and bake at 350°F (175°C). Chocolate, red velvet, lemon and spice cake mixes all work.

More 3-ingredient cookies

5. Nutella cookies. *Hazelnut spread, flour, egg.* Mix 1 cup chocolate-hazelnut spread, 1 cup flour and 1 egg, roll into balls and bake at 350°F (175°C) until just set. Contains tree nuts.

6. Meringue kisses. *Egg whites, sugar, peppermint extract.* Whip egg whites to soft peaks, gradually beat in sugar until glossy and stiff, add a drop of peppermint extract and pipe small kisses. Bake low and slow, around 200 to 225°F (95 to 105°C), until dry. A pinch of cream of tartar makes them more stable.

7. Puff pastry palmiers. *Puff pastry, sugar, cinnamon.* Sprinkle a sheet of thawed puff pastry with cinnamon sugar, roll both long sides to the center, slice and bake at 400°F (200°C) until caramelized, flipping halfway.

8. Pretzel hugs. *Mini pretzels, chocolate kisses, candy-coated chocolates.* Top each pretzel with an unwrapped chocolate kiss, warm in a low oven for a few minutes until soft, then press a candy on top. Cool until set.

4-ingredient Christmas cookies

9. Peanut butter blossoms (shortcut). *Peanut butter, sugar, egg, chocolate kisses.* Make the flourless peanut butter dough above, roll in sugar, bake, and press a chocolate kiss into each cookie as soon as it comes out of the oven.

10. Jam thumbprints. *Butter, sugar, flour, jam.* Use the shortbread dough, roll into balls, press a thumbprint into each and fill with a little thick jam before baking at 325°F (165°C), like the shortbread.

11. Coconut macaroons. *Sweetened shredded coconut, sweetened condensed milk, egg whites, vanilla.* Combine coconut and condensed milk, fold in egg whites whipped to stiff peaks and a little vanilla, scoop and bake at 325°F (165°C) until golden at the edges. Naturally gluten-free.

12. Chocolate-dipped shortbread. *Butter, sugar, flour, chocolate.* Bake the shortbread, then dip one end in melted chocolate and let it set.

13. Spice cake-mix gingerbread cookies. *Spice cake mix, eggs, oil, molasses.* Add a spoonful of molasses to the cake-mix crinkle dough for a gingerbread flavor and bake at 350°F (175°C). Rolling the balls in sugar first makes it a five-ingredient cookie.

14. Cinnamon pinwheels. *Refrigerated pie crust, butter, sugar, cinnamon.* Brush a pie crust with melted butter, sprinkle with cinnamon sugar, roll up, slice and bake at 350°F (175°C).

15. Mint chocolate cake-mix cookies. *Chocolate cake mix, eggs, oil, chopped chocolate mint candies.* Fold chopped mint candies into the cake-mix dough.

16. Sprinkle shortbread bites. *Butter, sugar, flour, sprinkles.* Fold red and green sprinkles into shortbread dough, press into a pan, cut into small squares and bake. Use sprinkles that hold their color, such as jimmies, rather than nonpareils, which can bleed.

5-ingredient Christmas cookies

17. Russian tea cakes (snowballs). *Butter, powdered sugar, flour, finely chopped pecans or walnuts, vanilla.* Mix into a dough, roll into small balls and bake at 350°F (175°C) until just set. Roll in powdered sugar while warm and again when cool. Contains tree nuts.

18. Chocolate chip shortbread. *Butter, sugar, flour, mini chocolate chips, vanilla.* Fold mini chips into shortbread dough and slice-and-bake.

19. Lemon crinkle cookies. *Lemon cake mix, eggs, oil, lemon zest, powdered sugar.* Add fresh zest to the cake-mix crinkle dough for a brighter flavor and roll in powdered sugar.

20. Almond cookies (amaretti-style). *Almond flour, sugar, egg whites, almond extract, sliced almonds.* Mix to a sticky dough, roll in sliced almonds and bake at 325°F (165°C), like the macaroons, until the outside is crisp and the center chewy. Gluten-free; contains tree nuts.

21. Red velvet crinkles. *Red velvet cake mix, eggs, oil, white chocolate chips, powdered sugar.* Festive color with no food coloring needed.

22. Shortbread sandwich cookies. *Butter, sugar, flour, jam, powdered sugar.* Cut shortbread rounds, cut a small shape from the center of half of them, bake and sandwich with jam, Linzer-style. Dust with powdered sugar.

23. Brown butter sugar cookies. *Butter, brown sugar, egg, flour, baking soda.* Brown the butter first for nutty depth, then mix and bake as drop cookies.

No-bake few-ingredient cookies

24. Cookie truffles. *Chocolate sandwich cookies, cream cheese, chocolate.* Crush the cookies, mix with softened cream cheese, roll into balls, chill and dip in melted chocolate. Keep refrigerated.

25. Peanut butter balls. *Peanut butter, butter, powdered sugar, chocolate.* Mix the first three into a dough, roll into balls, chill and dip in melted chocolate. Keep refrigerated.

26. Butterscotch haystacks. *Butterscotch chips, peanut butter, chow mein noodles.* Melt the chips with a spoonful of peanut butter, stir in the noodles and drop in clusters to set.

27. Cornflake wreaths. *Marshmallows, butter, green food coloring, cornflakes, red candies.* Melt marshmallows with butter, tint green, stir in cornflakes, shape small wreaths on parchment and dot with red candies.

28. Chocolate pretzel rods. *Pretzel rods, chocolate, sprinkles.* Dip pretzel rods in melted chocolate and roll in sprinkles.

29. Crispy rice cereal trees. *Butter, marshmallows, crispy rice cereal, green food coloring, pretzel sticks.* Make the classic treats, tint green and press into a pan, then cut into triangles with a pretzel stick "trunk."

30. No-bake chocolate peanut butter bars. *Graham cracker crumbs, butter, powdered sugar, peanut butter, chocolate chips.* Press the first four into a pan, spread with melted chocolate and chill before cutting.

Food safety for no-bake treats: recipes with cream cheese need to stay in the fridge. Melted chocolate and marshmallow get very hot, so an adult should handle the stovetop or microwave steps with kids.

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Easy Christmas cookie hacks for beginners

Freeze dough balls

Scoop drop-cookie doughs (peanut butter, cake-mix crinkles, brown butter cookies) into balls, freeze them on a lined tray, then move to a freezer bag. Bake straight from frozen, adding a minute or two. Shortbread freezes well as a log for slice-and-bake.

Store-bought dough upgrades

• Roll refrigerated sugar cookie dough in sprinkles before slicing.
• Press a candy into warm cookies, blossom-style.
• Sandwich two baked cookies with frosting or jam.
• Dip half in chocolate and add crushed candy canes.
• Use a cookie cutter on rolled-out store-bought dough. Our guide to Christmas cookie cutters explains which shapes cut cleanly.

More beginner tips

• Line pans with parchment or a silicone baking mat so cookies don't stick and bake evenly.
• Chill soft doughs for 20 to 30 minutes if they feel greasy or spread too much.
• Bake one test cookie to check spread and timing before baking a whole tray.
• Rotate pans halfway through if your oven has hot spots.

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Swaps and allergy-friendly tweaks

• Gluten-free: flourless peanut butter cookies, coconut macaroons, meringues and almond-flour amaretti contain no wheat flour. Check that your other ingredients are certified gluten-free if you're baking for someone with celiac disease.
• Nut-free: shortbread, cake-mix crinkles, meringues, palmiers and cornflake wreaths are naturally nut-free recipes. Check labels on chocolate, sprinkles and cake mix for "may contain" warnings.
• Egg-free: shortbread, palmiers and most no-bake treats contain no eggs.
• Salted vs unsalted butter: if you only have salted butter, skip any added salt.

How to store few-ingredient cookies

• Crisp cookies (shortbread, palmiers, meringues, amaretti) go in an airtight tin at room temperature, away from soft cookies.
• Soft cookies (peanut butter, cake-mix crinkles, macaroons) go in a separate airtight container. A slice of bread in the container helps keep them soft.
• No-bake treats with cream cheese or butter (truffles, peanut butter balls) belong in the fridge.
• Meringues hate humidity. Store them airtight and add them to tins at the last minute.
• Most baked cookies freeze well for later in the season. Thaw them in their sealed container.

Troubleshooting simple cookies

• Cookies spread flat: the butter was too warm, the dough wasn't chilled, or you measured too little flour. Chill the shaped dough for 20 to 30 minutes, bake on a cool, parchment-lined pan and check your oven with an oven thermometer.
• Cookies are dry and crumbly: too much flour or overbaking. Spoon and level your flour, and pull cookies when the edges just start to color.
• Peanut butter cookies are greasy: natural peanut butter separates. Stir it well, or use a no-stir peanut butter for these recipes.
• Cake-mix dough is too sticky to roll: chill it for 20 to 30 minutes, and dust your hands with powdered sugar.
• Meringues are sticky: humidity or underbaking. Leave them in the turned-off oven with the door ajar to finish drying.
• Thumbprint jam runs: use a thick jam or preserves, and don't overfill.

Plan a cookie-baking afternoon

Pick three cookies with different textures, say shortbread, peanut butter blossoms and cookie truffles, and you can fill a tin in an afternoon. Make the shortbread dough first and chill it while you mix the peanut butter dough. Bake the shortbread, then the blossoms, and roll the truffles while the trays cool. For a full holiday schedule, see our holiday baking timeline and make-ahead plan.

Ingredient count table

Hands-on times are rough estimates and don't include chilling or baking.

Final thoughts

These easy Christmas cookie recipes with few ingredients prove you don't need a long list to fill a cookie tin. Start with three-ingredient shortbread or peanut butter cookies, add blossoms and snowballs once you're comfortable and keep no-bake treats for the busiest days. Baking for a crowd or a cookie swap? Our Christmas cookies for gifts guide shows which ones keep and ship best.

About the author: This guide was written by the Warm Oven Bakes Editorial Team using established baking technique and standard ratios for classic cookies. We haven't tested every variation in our kitchen, so bake a test batch first. Check labels for allergens, including nuts, peanuts, wheat, eggs and milk.

Read next: 25 Christmas Cookies That Ship and Gift Well (Plus How to Pack Them) →