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! Congratulations to Michelle P. from Amaranth, Ontario, who won our 2015 contest for submitting her Italian Christmas ricotta cookies recipe! Michelle wins a KitchenAid Artisan Stand Mixer (retail value $550), courtesy of KitchenAid. We also had two runners-up this year: Winnipeg's Sharon L., who submitted her Chocolate caramel thumbprints, and Vancouver's Kristin G., who submitted Gingerbread whoopie pies. Each wins a set of KitchenAid bakeware, also courtesy of KitchenAid! Starting today and for the next 11 days, we'll be posting our 12 favourite recipes from this year's contest to help provide you with plenty of baking inspiration. Thanks to all of you from across the country who entered! Happy holidays, and happy baking! Cityline.ca

Winning recipe: Italian Christmas ricotta cookies

Cookie ingredients:

• 6 tbsp unsalted butter, softened
• 2/3 cup sugar
• 1 egg
• 1 cup ricotta cheese
• 1/4 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 tsp baking powder
• pinch of salt

Glaze ingredients:

• 3/4 cup powdered sugar, sifted
• 3 tbsp milk

Decorations:

• 1 large bottle (7.5 oz) mixed red, green and white sprinkles

Method: Preheat oven to 325 F. Line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper. In a large bowl, add the softened butter, sugar and egg. Beat until light and fluffy. Add ricotta cheese and vanilla extract, mix well and combine. In another bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder and salt. With the mixer on low speed, slowly add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients. Mix only until combined. Portion the dough on the prepared baking sheets using a cookie scoop. Bake in the center of the oven for about 25 minutes. To make the glaze, sift the powdered sugar into a large bowl and add the milk 1 tablespoon at a time until the glaze has formed. Dip each cookie into the glaze, place on a clean cookie sheet and then sprinkle with the decoration sprinkles. Repeat for every cookie. Let cookies dry completely before serving, and store in an airtight container. Submitted by Michelle P. Amaranth, ON

The Cityline Holiday Cookie Swap is back for its seventh year, which means we're looking for your favourite cookie, square and bar recipes to share with all our Cityline viewers. And to sweeten the pot, everyone who sends in a recipe will be entered for a chance to win the grand prize of a KitchenAid Artisan Stand Mixer (retail value $550) or one of two secondary prizes of KitchenAid bakeware! CLICK HERE TO ENTER We'll be taking entries from November 10, 9amET to December 1, 11:59pmET. On December 14 we'll announce the winners, and for the next 12 days we'll post our favourite recipes in celebration of the 12 Days of Cookies! Contest closes on December 1, 2015, 11:59pm. Good luck, and happy baking! Cityline.ca staff Winning recipes from 2014: Chocolate iced buttersweets, submitted by Rhonda W., from Grande Prairie, AB and Cape Breton 'pork' pies, submitted by Thelma B., from Dundas, ON Winning recipe from 2013: Cranberry streusel shortbread, submitted by Jan F., from Whitby, ON Winning recipe from 2012: Chai gingerbread bars, submitted by Nicole W., from Toronto, ON Winning recipe from 2011: Caramel Chocolate Shortbread, submitted by Heather T., from Toronto, ON Winning recipe from 2010: Iced Meyer Lemon Cookies, submitted by Janeen O., from North Vancouver, B.C. Winning recipe from 2009: My Bubbe's Apricot Rugelach, submitted by Gail E. of Edmonton, Alberta

We’ll be featuring recipes from the 2014 Cityline Holiday Cookie Swap all month long! Don’t forget to download this year’s cookie book — it has 31 delectable viewer-submitted recipes for you to try!

Soft and chewy white chocolate cranberry cookies

Ingredients:

• 3/4 cup (1.5 sticks to 170g) unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
• 3/4 cup (150g) dark brown sugar
• 1/4 cup (50g) granulated sugar
• 1 large egg, at room temperature
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 2 cups (250g) all-purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons cornstarch
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 3/4 cup (135g) white chocolate chips
• 3/4 cup (105g) dried cranberries

Method: In a large bowl using a hand-held mixer or stand mixer with paddle attachment, beat the butter for 1 minute on medium speed until completely smooth and creamy. Add the brown sugar and granulated sugar and mix on medium speed until fluffy and light in color. Mix in egg and vanilla. Scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl as needed. In a separate bowl, combine flour, cornstarch, baking soda and salt. On low speed, slowly mix into the wet ingredients until combined. The cookie dough will be quite thick. Add the white chocolate chips and dried cranberries, mix for about 5 seconds until evenly disbursed. Cover dough tightly with aluminum foil or plastic wrap and chill for at least 1 hour and up to 2 days. Chilling is mandatory for this cookie dough. Remove cookie dough from the refrigerator and allow to sit at room temperature for 10 minutes. Preheat oven to 350F. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat. Set aside. Once chilled, the dough will be slightly crumbly, but will come together if you work the dough with your hands as you roll into individual balls. Roll balls of dough, about 1 Tablespoon of dough each, into balls. Bake for 8-9 minutes, until barely golden brown around the edges. They will look extremely soft when you remove them from the oven. Allow to cool for 5 minutes on the cookie sheet. If the cookies are too puffy, try gently pressing down on them with the back of a spoon. They will slightly deflate as you let them cool. Transfer to cooling rack to cool completely. Cookies stay fresh covered at room temperature for up to 1 week. Baked cookies freeze well - up to three months. Unbaked cookie dough balls freeze well - up to three months. Submitted by Lori L. Winnipeg, MB

We’ll be featuring recipes from the 2014 Cityline Holiday Cookie Swap all month long! Don’t forget to download this year’s cookie book — it has 31 delectable viewer-submitted recipes for you to try!

Spiced holiday sugar cookies

Ingredients:

• 1 cup butter, softened
• 1 1/4 cups sugar
• 1 egg
• 2 teaspoons vanilla
• 2 1/3 cups flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
• 1/8 teaspoon salt
• Coloured sugars or other decorations

Glaze:

• 1 cup confectioners' sugar
• 3 to 4 teaspoons milk
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla
• 3 to 4 drops food colouring

Method: Beat butter in large bowl with an electric mixer on medium high speed 30 seconds. Add sugar, egg and vanilla. Mix flour, baking soda, nutmeg and salt; gradually stir into mixture. Chill dough until firm, about 1 hour. Preheat oven to 375F. Roll to 1/8-inch thickness on lightly floured surface. Cut into shapes with favorite cookie cutters. Sprinkle with coloured sugar if desired. Bake on greased baking sheet 8 to 10 minutes or until lightly browned. Cool cookies 1 minute on baking sheet, then remove to wire rack. Cool. Glaze and decorate. Submitted by Andrea S. Fenelon Falls, ON

We’ll be featuring recipes from the 2014 Cityline Holiday Cookie Swap all month long! Don’t forget to download this year’s cookie book — it has 31 delectable viewer-submitted recipes for you to try!

Sour cream sugar cookies

Ingredients:

• 3 cups flour
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1/4 cup unsalted butter
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 1 egg
• 1/4 cup sour cream
• 2 tsp vanilla

Glaze:

• 3 cups icing sugar
• 3 tbsp sour cream plus 6 tsp water
• 1/4 tsp vanilla

Method: In a bowl sift together flour, baking powder and salt. In a large mixing bowl beat together butter and sugar until creamy. Add the egg, sour cream and vanilla and continue beating until well combined. Add flour mixture in two or three portions beating after each addition until smooth. Wrap in plastic and refrigerate an hour or overnight. Preheat oven to 350°F. Line cookie sheet with parchment paper. Roll cookie on a lightly floured surface to thickness of 1/4-inch. Cut into desired holiday shapes with cookie cutters. Arrange on cookie sheets and bake for 10–13 minutes (depending on size). Decorate with sour cream glaze. For glaze: Sift icing sugar. Add liquid/sour cream and mix until smooth. Add more water by half teaspoonful if glaze is too thick. Spread on cookie and decorate with holiday sprinkles. Submitted by Anita J. Waterloo, ON