Holiday White Chocolate Raspberry Meltaways

The Christmas Cookie That Melts Hearts (and Literally Melts in Your Mouth)

There’s a certain kind of cookie that only shows up once a year, tucked into red and green tins lined with wax paper, the ones passed hand-to-hand at holiday parties by grandmas, great-aunts, and church-ladies who’ve been baking the same recipe since the Eisenhower administration. They’re never flashy. They don’t need sprinkles, food coloring, or Instagram filters. One bite and they dissolve into buttery, sugary snow — gone before you even realize you’ve eaten it.

These Holiday White Chocolate Raspberry Meltaways are my love letter to that exact cookie, only gently modernized with ruby streaks of real raspberry jam and pockets of premium white chocolate that turn creamy the moment they hit your tongue. They taste like nostalgia wearing a cashmere sweater.

I’ve tested this recipe more times than I can count (my neighbors and coworkers thank me every December), and I’m giving you the perfected, foolproof version that works whether you’re a seasoned baker or someone who only turns the oven on during the holidays.

Why These Cookies Are Different

Most “meltaway” or “snowball” recipes are simply shortbread with powdered sugar. Delicious, yes — but predictable. Here’s what sets these apart:

Real butter only (no substitutions) for that true melt-in-your-mouth texture
Just enough raspberry jam to give bright fruit streaks without making the dough sticky
Chopped quality white chocolate (not chips) that creates molten pockets
A double roll in powdered sugar — once warm, once cool — for that signature snowy coating that never falls off
Only 10–11 minutes in the oven so they stay pale and delicate

Yield: About 40–44 cookies
Prep Time: 25 minutes
Chill Time: 30 minutes (optional but recommended)
Bake Time: 10–11 minutes per tray
Total Time: About 1 hour 15 minutes

Full Ingredients List (with weights for precision)

Ingredient	Volume	Grams	Notes
Unsalted butter	1 cup (2 sticks	226 g	European-style (higher butterfat) if possible; room temperature
Powdered sugar (for dough)	½ cup	60 g	Sift if lumpy
Pure vanilla extract	2 tsp (increase from original)	–	Or scrape 1 vanilla bean for extra luxury
Fine sea salt	¼ tsp	–	Brings out sweetness; don’t skip
All-purpose flour	2 cups (spoon & level)	250 g	Can sub up to ½ cup with cake flour for even softer texture
Raspberry jam (seedless)	⅓ cup + 1 Tbsp	110 g	Bonne Maman or homemade; must be thick
Quality white chocolate	4 oz (⅔ cup chopped)	113 g	Valrhona, Callebaut, or Ghirardelli bars — not chips
Powdered sugar (for rolling)	1½–2 cups	180–240 g	For that snowy finish

Step-by-Step Instructions (with all the tips I wish someone had told me the first time)

1. Prep Your Ingredients and Pans

Preheat oven to 350°F (175°C) with racks in the upper-middle and lower-middle positions.
Line two large baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone mats. Trust me — these stick like crazy to unlined sheets.

2. Cream the Butter and Sugar Properly

In a stand mixer fitted with the paddle (or large bowl with hand mixer):

Beat room-temperature butter on medium speed for 1 minute to loosen it.
Add the ½ cup powdered sugar and ¼ tsp salt.
Cream together for 3–4 full minutes, scraping down the bowl twice. The mixture should be extremely light, fluffy, and almost white. This step is non-negotiable for the melt-away texture.

3. Flavor It Right

Add 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract (I sometimes use 1 tsp vanilla + seeds from half a vanilla bean).
Mix 30 seconds more until fully incorporated.

4. Add the Flour — Gently

Sift or whisk the flour to remove lumps.
Add it all at once and mix on the lowest speed just until the dough comes together and no dry streaks remain — about 30–45 seconds. Overmixing makes them tough.

5. The Raspberry & White Chocolate Magic

Warm the raspberry jam for 10 seconds in the microwave so it’s loose but not hot.
Chop the white chocolate into small chunks (about the size of mini chocolate chips). Uneven pieces = lovely molten pockets.
Add the jam and white chocolate to the dough.
Fold gently with a spatula or mix on the very lowest speed for 5–8 seconds. You want visible streaks of raspberry and chunks of chocolate — do NOT fully blend.

6. Portion the Cookies

Option A (my favorite): Use a #60 cookie scoop (2 teaspoons) or roll into 1-inch balls (about 15–16 g each).
Option B (for perfectly uniform cookies): Roll the entire dough into a log, chill 30 minutes, then slice into ⅜-inch rounds.

Lightly flatten each ball with the bottom of a glass dipped in powdered sugar so they bake evenly.

7. Bake to Perfection

Place cookies 1½ inches apart (they barely spread).
Bake 10–11 minutes. The tops should still be pale with barely golden edges. If they brown, they lose the meltaway quality.
Let cool on the tray 3 minutes (they’re extremely fragile when hot), then transfer to a rack.

8. The Double Powdered-Sugar Roll (the secret to the snow-dusted look)

While still warm (but cool enough to handle), gently roll each cookie in a bowl of powdered sugar. They’ll look messy — that’s okay.
Let cool completely (1 hour).
Roll a second time in fresh powdered sugar. This time it sticks perfectly and creates that thick, snowy coating.

Storage & Make-Ahead Tips

Room temperature in an airtight tin: up to 10 days (they actually improve on day 2–3).
Freezer: Freeze unbaked dough balls up to 3 months. Bake from frozen — add 1–2 minutes.
Baked cookies freeze beautifully for 3 months — roll in the second powdered sugar after thawing.

Variations & Substitutions

Seedless strawberry or blackberry jam instead of raspberry
Add ½ tsp almond extract with the vanilla for a cherry-cordial vibe
Swap half the white chocolate for chopped pistachios for a red-and-green look
Gluten-free: Use a 1:1 gluten-free baking blend (Bob’s Red Mill or King Arthur work great)

Troubleshooting Common Issues

Cookies spread too much → Butter was too warm or you over-creamed. Chill dough 30 min next time.
Raspberry jam made dough sticky → Use only thick, high-quality jam and don’t overdo it.
Cookies are dry → You added too much flour (always weigh flour) or baked too long.
Powdered sugar falls off → Must do the warm-roll + cool-roll method.

The Story Behind the Recipe

Every December my grandmother would spend an entire weekend baking 22 different kinds of cookies. The tins were legendary in our small town. But the one cookie everyone fought over? Her raspberry meltaways. She never measured anything — just “a handful of this, a pinch of that.” After she passed, the recipe died with her… until I spent three years reverse-engineering it. These are as close as I’ll ever get to sitting in her kitchen again, flour on our aprons, Bing Crosby on the radio, and the smell of butter and vanilla wrapping the house like a hug.

I hope these cookies find their way into your holiday tins, your neighbor gifts, your late-night snack with hot cocoa, and maybe even become the thing your own grandkids beg for one day.

From my oven to yours — happy holidays, and may all your cookies melt exactly the way they’re supposed to.

Nutrition Information (per cookie, based on 42 cookies)

Calories: 158 kcal
Total Fat: 7 g
Saturated Fat: 4.5 g
Cholesterol: 17 mg
Carbohydrates: 21 g
Sugars: 12 g
Protein: 1 g

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Happy baking!