Holiday baking season is underway, and we're excited to share 12 of our favourite submissions from our annual Cityline Holiday Cookie Swap to add to your repertoire! Take a look at one of our top recipes: Christie M. from Port Moody, B.C.'s Pumpkin spice cookies! Happy holidays, and happy baking!

Pumpkin spice cookies

Cookie ingredients:

• 1 pkg. (8 oz) cream cheese, softened
• 1 1/2 cup packed brown sugar
• 1/2 cup white sugar
• 2 eggs
• 1 cup canned pumpkin
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 3-1/2 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/2 tsp cinnamon
• 1/4 tsp nutmeg
• 1/4 tsp allspice
• 1/4 tsp ginger
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp baking powder

Frosting ingredients:

• 2 cups confectioners' sugar
• 1/4 cup butter, softened
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 2-3 tbsp boiling water
• 2 cups chopped pecans

Method: In a large mixing bowl, beat cream cheese and sugars until smooth. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in pumpkin and vanilla. Combine dry ingredients; gradually add to pumpkin mixture. Drop by rounded teaspoonfuls 2 inches apart onto ungreased baking sheet. Bake at 350F for 10-12 minutes or until golden brown. Remove to wire rack to cool. For frosting, in a bowl, combine the confectioners' sugar, butter, vanilla and enough water to achieve frosting consistency. Frost cookies, sprinkle with pecans. Submitted by Christie M. Port Moody, B.C.

Holiday baking season is underway, and we're excited to share 12 of our favourite submissions from our annual Cityline Holiday Cookie Swap to add to your repertoire! Take a look at one of our top recipes: Luzviminda G. from Richmond, Ontario's Festive mincemeat pinwheel cookies! Here's what Luzviminda said about her favourite cookies: In Europe, mince pies are popular during [the] holidays. When I move here to Canada I missed it so much, so I started making my own version but this time I made a festive pinwheel cookie. I used store-bought mincemeat and it passed my taste test. This is so festive, a sweet treat for this coming holiday. Happy holidays, and happy baking!

Festive mincemeat pinwheel cookies

Ingredients:

• 2 1/4 cups (550 mL) all-purpose flour
• 1 tsp (5 mL) baking soda
• 1/2 tsp (2 mL) kosher salt
• 1 cup (250 mL) unsalted butter
• 1/2 cup (125 mL) firmly packed light brown sugar
• 2 large eggs
• 1 tsp (5 mL) vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup (250 ml) store-bought mincemeat
• Red food colouring
• Green food colouring
• Icing sugar

Method: Sift the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt together into a bowl. Resift again into another bowl. Beat the butter with the brown sugars in a mixing bowl until light and fluffy. Beat in the eggs and vanilla until smooth. Gradually stir in the flour mixture until evenly blended. Gather the dough into a ball, and divide into two equal parts. Place one half in a second bowl. Add red food colouring to the dough in one bowl, and green food colouring to the dough in the other bowl. Use a fork or wooden spoon to blend the food colouring into the dough until evenly blended. Add additional drops of food colouring to make the desired shade. Roll out the red dough to 1/4 inch thickness. Spread the mincemeat out thinly onto the dough. Roll out the green dough to 1/4 inch thickness and place on top of the red dough. From the long end, roll the dough to make a log so the two colours spiral inside each other. Wrap the log in waxed paper. Freeze for 30 minutes. Preheat oven to 350F. Unwrap the dough log, and place on a clean, lightly floured surface. Trim the edges. Slice the log into rounds about 1/8 inch thick, and place on prepared baking sheets. Bake for 15-20 minutes, checking regularly to see that they do not burn. Let pinwheels cool for 5 minutes before removing from tray. Dust with a little icing sugar. These are best served warm. Submitted by Luzviminda G. Richmond, ON

Holiday baking season is underway, and we're excited to share 12 of our favourite submissions from our annual Cityline Holiday Cookie Swap to add to your repertoire! Take a look at one of our top recipes: Jenness M. from Winnipeg, MB's Cranberry & pistachio shortbread! Happy holidays, and happy baking!

Cranberry & pistachio shortbread

Ingredients:

• 1 cup unsalted butter
• 1/2 cup icing sugar
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 1 3/4 cups flour
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1/2 cup dried cranberries
• 1/2 cup shelled pistachios, coarsely chopped
• Icing sugar for dusting

Method: Preheat oven to 300F. In a large bowl using a wooden spoon, stir butter with sugar until smooth. Stir in vanilla, then gradually stir in flour and salt until evenly mixed. Stir in cranberries and nuts. Drop dough by heaping teaspoonfuls onto an ungreased baking sheet about 2 inches apart. Press down lightly with your finger to produce a chunky cookie. Sprinkle with more cranberries and nuts if you like and press into dough. Bake in centre of oven until lightly golden, 20-25 minutes. Remove from oven, let stand 10 minutes. Just before serving dust with icing sugar. Submitted by Jenness M. Winnipeg, MB

Holiday baking season is underway, and we're excited to share 12 of our favourite submissions from our annual Cityline Holiday Cookie Swap to add to your repertoire! Take a look at one of our runner-up winners' recipes: Kristin G. from Vancouver, B.C.'s Gingerbread whoopie pies! Happy holidays, and happy baking!

Gingerbread whoopie pies

Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 cups flour
• 1 tsp each ground ginger, ground cinnamon & baking powder
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 cup + 1/4 cup butter, softened
• 1/2 cup packed brown sugar
• 1 egg
• 1/2 cup molasses
• 1/2 cup buttermilk
• 2 tsp freshly grated ginger
• 250 g cream cheese
• 1/4 tsp vanilla
• 1 cup icing sugar

Method: Preheat oven to 350F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper. In a large bowl, whisk together flour, ground ginger, ground cinnamon, baking powder and baking soda. In another bowl, cream together 1/2 cup butter and brown sugar until mixed completely. Cream in egg until incorporated. Mix in molasses, buttermilk and grated ginger (it will look slightly curdled). Stir dry ingredients into wet until just combined. Chill batter in refrigerator for 1 hour. Spoon tablespoon-sized mounds of batter onto prepared baking sheets, spacing mounds about 2 inches apart. Bake 10–12 minutes until tops are puffed and cakes spring back when touched. Transfer to a rack and let cool completely. To make cream cheese icing, beat together cream cheese, remaining 1/4 cup butter, vanilla and icing sugar until smooth. Assemble each whoopie pie by filling two cakes, flat sides in, with cream cheese Icing. Submitted by Kristin G. Vancouver, B.C.

Holiday baking season is underway, and we're excited to share 12 of our favourite submissions from our annual Cityline Holiday Cookie Swap to add to your repetoire! Take a look at one of our runner-up winners' recipes: Sharon L. from Winnipeg, Manitoba's Chocolate caramel thumbprints! Happy holidays, and happy baking!

Chocolate caramel thumbprints

Ingredients:

• 1 egg
• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup butter, softened
• 2/3 cup sugar
• 2 tbsp milk
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 16 vanilla caramels
• 3 tablespoons whipping cream
• 1 1/4 cups pecans, finely chopped
• 1/2 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
• 1 tsp shortening

Method: Separate egg and set egg yolk aside. Cover and chill egg white until needed. Stir together flour, cocoa powder, and salt; set aside. In large bowl, beat butter with electric mixer on medium to high speed for 30 seconds. Add sugar; beat until combined. Beat in egg yolk, milk, and vanilla. Beat in as much of the flour mixture as you can with mixer. Stir in any remaining flour mixture. Cover and chill about 2 hours or until dough is easy to handle. Preheat oven to 350F. In small saucepan, cook and stir caramels and whipping cream over low heat until mixture is smooth. Set aside. Slightly beat reserved egg white. Shape dough into 1 inch balls. Roll balls in egg white, then in pecans to coat. Place balls 1 inch apart on greased cookie sheet. Using your thumb, make indention in center of each cookie. Bake about 10 minutes or until edges are firm. Spoon melted caramel mixture into indentation. (If necessary, reheat caramel mixture to keep it more liquid.) Transfer cookies to wire rack; cool. In another small saucepan, combine chocolate chips and shortening. Cook and stir over low heat until melted. Cool slightly. Drizzle cookies with chocolate mixture. Let stand until chocolate is set. Submitted by Sharon L. Winnipeg, MB