At the Christmas parties my parents used to host, and at many parties I've attended since, the following have been popular. My mom always starts baking several weeks ahead of time. Many of these recipes will keep well in covered tins in a cool spot, or frozen, especially if you use real butter and cut it with coconut oil, which keeps it from going stale. I live in an area of the United States with a large German-descended population, as well as large segments from the British Isles and Italy:

Biscuits (called cookies, from the Dutch, here):

Pfeffernusse (peppernuts): A German spice cookie, rolled in powdered sugar http://mennonitegirlscancook.blogspot.com/2009/12/pfeffernusse.html

Springerle: A German/Swedish/Danish cookie that is anise-flavored and is cut with a patterned roller. The texture is a bit like biscotti. http://www.christmas-baking.com/springerle.shtml

Spritz: Another German or Swedish cookie, made using a cookie press or lightly rolled into a ball and gently pressed flat. This link is to the basic recipe, but *never* use "shortening" in cookies--use real butter, especially in these! These are my family's favorite Christmas cookie. My mom mixes the lemon and almond flavorings, which is unique and wonderful. http://www.wilton.com/recipe/Classic-Spritz-Cookies This is the recipe from the back of the cookie press we always use! Others aren't the same.

Gingerbread: Can be made like a biscuit or like a cake. We usually do the cake type. Here's a link to a good biscuit-type one you can decorate: http://www.joyofbaking.com/GingerbreadMen.html

Lebkuchen: a German honey cookie of Medieval origins: http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/Lebkuchen-107446 The honey makes this very sticky but it's wonderful! You taste the spices and not really the honey. You could substitute corn syrup for the honey with allergies in your family.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CwC-8GwVIUQ

Pizelle: An Italian cookie that is delicate and light. In my area, various churches will sell or even auction these at festivals, even summer ones. http://foodblogga.blogspot.com/2008/10/how-to-make-italian-pizzelle-cookies-in.html On the video, don't use vegetable oil. Yuck! Use melted coconut oil or butter. Makes them stay fresh; good for your health and super yummy too!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-Li6zs9-gYo

Many people in the U.S. are now becoming enamored of panettone, the Italian "big bread" that is a Christmas necessity in Italy. It's a high-risen sponge bread filled with fruit, but unlike fruitcake, it's not at all heavy. It's addictive! If you've never had it, I'd hesitate to make it for a party before buying one to see what it should be like, and then trying to make it a few times to get it right before serving it to guests. Plus it takes a full day to make from start to finish, with the rising time. http://www.italianmade.com/recipes/recipe384.cfm

Panettone:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gq2YeYlYlX0

Another similar German recipe is Stollen, which is a favorite in my family as well (we usually have to go through a couple of Panettone and a Stollen or two each Christmas). Stollen is a sort of a sweet bread/cake with fruit in it. Again, it's not heavy. It has a marzipan center, which we are crazy about in my family!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=my0cTq0oqJw

We have never done cupcakes in our family, or just straight sponge cake. We prefer the old traditional recipes that we never make at other times of the year. Part of this is because the ingredients are usually less-expensive at Christmas. The other part is that they taste amazing if you don't take shortcuts!

Our neighbors, who came from Devonshire, always gave us homemade petits fours for Christmas, and we always gave them a decorative tin of Spritz cookies. We decorate our spritz very much like these below.

Ingredients
20 ounces of crushed pineapples
2 tbsps cornstarch
1 cup of crushed pretzels
1 stick of melted butter
1 cups of sugar
2 cups of cool whip
8 ounces of cream cheese
Directions
Over low heat add the 2 tbsps of cornstarch with the crused pineapples and good until thickened. Set aside and let cool. Crush up one cup of pretzel (they can be salted of unsalted) and add 1/2 cups of sugar and one stick of butter mix together and spread into the bottom of a 13x9 inch pan. Take 8 ounces of cream cheese 1/2 cup of sugar and 2 cups of cool whip and mix together until creamy. Spread mixture over the pretzel crust. Spread the pineapple mixture over the cream cheese mixture and refrigerate until you are ready to serve your dessert! Enjoy this recipe it is very very good and very easy to make!

hope that it will be delicious one for you!!

Molasses Crinkles
Ingredients
3/4 cup shortening
1 cup packed brown sugar
1 egg
1/4 cup molasses
2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1/3 cup granulated sugar for decoration
Directions
1.Cream the shortening and the brown sugar. Stir in the egg and molasses and mix well.
2.Combine the flour, baking soda, salt, cloves, cinnamon, and ginger. Add the flour mixture to the shortening mixture and mix well. Cover and chill dough for at least 2 to 3 hours.
3.Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease cookie sheets.
4.Roll dough into balls the size of large walnuts. Roll balls in sugar and place 3 inches apart on the prepared baking sheets. Bake at 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) for 10 to 12 minutes. Let cool for one minute before transferring to a wire rack to continue cooling。
Besides, you need a well cooking machine.

Ingredients

* 1 (18.25 ounce) package white cake mix
* 1 1/4 cups water
* 1/3 cup vegetable oil
* 3 egg whites
* 8 drops red food coloring
* 2 drops raspberry candy oil

Directions

1. Preheat an oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Line a standard muffin tin with paper cupcake liners.
2. Beat the cake mix, water, vegetable oil, and egg whites together on low speed for 30 seconds, then on medium for 2 minutes, until smooth. Fill cupcake liners 1/3 full with white batter; set aside.
3. Stir 4 drops of red food coloring into the remaining bowl of batter to make the batter pink, stir in the raspberry oil. Pour 1/3 of pink batter into a resealable plastic bag and set aside.
4. Mix more food coloring into the remaining bowl of pink batter until it is an orange/red color and pour the batter into a resealable plastic bag. Cut a corner off the bag, stick the open tip into the center of each cup of white batter and squeeze in about two tablespoons of red batter.
5. Cut the corner off the bag with the pink batter, stick the open tip into the center of the red batter and squeeze about 1 tablespoon pink batter into each cup.
6. Bake the layered cupcakes in the preheated oven until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean, 15 to 20 minutes. Cool completely before frosting.

Here you can get more information about these recipes and more http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Sweetheart-Cupcakes/Detail.aspx