Photography Credit: Elise Bauer

One of the best parts about any holiday—be it Christmas, Thanksgiving, a birthday, Diwali, Columbus Day, whatever—is that you get an excuse to eat some of your favorite foods. For me, that means chocolate.

Now, I’m generally not a big chocolate eater during the year, but when December rolls around it’s totally game on. The chilly weather and holiday spirit just make me crave it for some reason. That craving means I’m whipping up old favorites like chocolate peppermint bark cookies, truffles, and homemade hot chocolate.

Video! How to Make Chocolate Crinkles

Chocolate Crinkles are a Holiday Favorite

It also means it’s time to make these adorable cookie-fiend favorites: chocolate crinkles.

These chocolate crinkles are a holiday staple in winter, but are great any time of the year. Soft, devil’s food-like cake-y cookies are rolled around in powdered sugar. When they bake the dough rises and the chocolate dough peeks out in little crinkled fissures beneath the white sugar.

Easy to Make, Easy to Eat!

Crinkles are easy-peasy to throw together and make for a flashy addition to any cookie platter. A warning though: these cookies are so good and chocolaty they may not make the hot cocoa cravings go away. In fact, they might just make them worse.

How to Work with the Sticky Dough

This is a sticky dough, no doubt about it. Chilling it at least four hours before shaping the cookies really helps.

If you’re still having trouble, here are a few more things that will help:

Work fast and wash your hands between each tray that goes in the oven.

Roll several cookie dough balls at once and then dredge them in sugar together so there’s less time for the dough to thaw.

A small cookie scoop helps speed things up.

How to Freeze Chocolate Crinkle Cookies

These cookies freeze well, either unbaked or baked. Freeze the unbaked balls of dough without powdered sugar on a sheet pan until solid, then transfer to a freezer bag or container. Let the dough balls thaw for a few minutes on the counter while the oven pre-heats, then roll in powdered sugar and bake. You may need to add an extra minute or two onto the baking time.

Ways to Adapt these Cookies

Try these fun variations!

Double Chocolate : Add a cup of mini chocolate chips.

: Add a cup of mini chocolate chips. Black Forest : Add a cup of chopped dried cherries or cranberries

: Add a cup of chopped dried cherries or cranberries Mint Chocolate : Swap 1/2 teaspoon of the vanilla for mint extract, and add some crushed candy canes to the powdered sugar

: Swap 1/2 teaspoon of the vanilla for mint extract, and add some crushed candy canes to the powdered sugar Orange Chocolate: Swap 1/2 teaspoon of the vanilla for orange extract

Looking for more Christmas cookies?!