Little Cookhouse has been experiementing with cookies lately, starting from our “If you give a Mouse a Cookie” lesson, to our upcoming lesson on Sugar cookies.

Cookies come in all sorts of shapes, sizes, flavors, and textures, and it’s such a joy to pop it into your mouth whenever you please! And cookies are so fun and easy to make, no matter how young or old you are. I never knew how many types of cookies there are, until I came across this article! While it would take days to cover every cookie out there, here is a brief look at some of the most popular ones.

European Butter Cookies

Characteristic of types like almond horns, checkerboard cookies, shortbread, tea cookies, sablées, chocolate-filled or jam-topped spritz cookies, and crescent cookies, these cookies are tender, sandy, buttery, and sometimes made with almond paste. These are often the cookies found wrapped in tissue and packed in metal tins around the holidays.

Adorned with simple things, like chocolate glaze or almonds, these types of cookies tend to be not-as-sweet, petite, and more modest than a chocolate chip cookie the size of your head, a delicate florentine cookie, or something dripping in caramel and covered in sprinkles.

American-Style Drop Cookies

When someone says the word “cookie,” how many of us have visions of the jumbo chocolate chip variety? Think: white chocolate macadamia nut, oatmeal raisin, snickerdoodle, and peanut butter cookies — these types of cookies are easy to make, and produce chewy, indulgent results.

They tend to be much softer than other biscuits found throughout the world. The dough typically comes together in a mixing bowl, gets dolloped onto a cookie sheet, and finds its way into our bellies after just 10 to 15 minutes in the oven. These cookies are also great for making ice cream sandwiches.

Piped Cookies

Indicated by their name, these types of cookies are piped onto baking sheets before being baked. They include meringues, spritz cookies, strassburger cookies, and the shells for French macarons.

Bar Cookies

Bar cookies consist usually of a batter that has been poured or pressed into a rectangular pan and then cut into squares or bars. These may be layered with other ingredients (think: lemon and jam crumble bars) or be as simple as a brownie. These types of cookies may also be known as “tray bakes.”

Refrigerator or Icebox Cookies

The dough for these cookies comes together, then is rolled into a log. From there, the dough is chilled long enough for it to be cleanly sliced into round, uniform cookies, then baked. Think: butter cookies, sugar cookies, and sablées. For extra crunch and flair, try rolling the log of dough in sanding sugar or chopped nuts before slicing!

Rolled-Out Cookies

As their names implies, the cookie dough for these cookies is rolled out, then cut into shapes. Think: holiday sugar cookies, gingerbread, and even homemade graham crackers.

Pastry-Like Cookies

The opposite of drop cookies, these more-delicate cookies require their own set of rules. For something special, try making tuiles, florentines, French macarons, or palmiers!

Specialty Cookies

As mentioned, there are so many cookies out there! Here are few others worth checking out: rugelach, Mexican wedding cookies, thumbprints, madeleines, biscotti, and macaroons.