The best recipes for delicious, no-bake Christmas cookies called Beehives. Get inspired!

Christmas is a time for traditions, and one of the most beloved traditions in the Czech Republic is the making of Christmas cookies.

Among the wide array of Czech Christmas cookies, one stands out for its unique appearance and delicious taste – the no-bake beehive cookies.

For Americans who may not be familiar with Czech Christmas traditions, the beehive cookies are a delightful discovery. These no-bake treats are made from simple ingredients such as butter, cocoa, milk, sugar, and crushed biscuits.

The mixture is shaped into small mounds resembling beehives and then adorned with a dollop of rich chocolate icing. The beehives are filled with a cream with rum or egg nog.

What sets the beehive cookies apart is not only their charming appearance but also their luscious taste. The combination of chocolate, butter, and crushed biscuits creates a rich, indulgent flavor that is sure to delight anyone with a sweet tooth.

Try these delicious cookies with us this year!

You’ll need special molds to achieve their distinctive shape for making beehive cookies.

These molds are typically small and cylindrical, helping create the unique beehive design. You can find them at specialty baking stores or online.

If you can’t get the molds, you can easily substitute them with a shot glass, an egg carton with a clean plastic bag or cling film inside or a piping bag, which can be made out of a regular small plastic bag.

Here are some tips when baking these delicious Christmas cookies:

• Make sure that the consistency of the dough is fairly firm and that it doesn’t crumble.
• The cream filling should be soft and fluffy but not too runny; otherwise, it will run out.
• Make sure to dust the mold with fresh icing sugar every time you push the dough in to create the shape (or dip the dough roll into icing sugar before you place it into the mold). This helps with de-moulding the cookie and prevents it from sticking to the mold.
• Don’t overfill the cookies – sometimes less is more!

Happy baking!

Walnut Beehives Cookies

You will need:

• 1/2 cup ground nuts
• 1/4 cup of butter
• 3/4 cup of powdered sugar
• 2 spoons of cocoa
• 2 tablespoons of rum
• 2 tablespoons of milk
• vanilla biscuits or wafers (Nilla Vanilla waffles are a good choice)

Cream:

• 2 egg yolks
• 1/2 cup of butter
• 1/4 cup of powdered sugar
• rum – as needed

Preparation process:

• First, grind the nuts and mix them with sugar and cocoa.
• Add rum, milk, and butter, and let it soften at room temperature before processing.
• Mix everything and make a smooth dough, which you put in the fridge to harden for a few hours.
• Meanwhile, prepare the cream.
• Wipe the yolks with powdered sugar and gradually mix in the butter and a little rum.
• The cream should be beautifully smooth.
• Once you have everything ready, start forming balls from the dough and roll them in sugar.
• Press the balls into the mold, making a hole in the center. Then, fill the hole with the prepared cream.
• Cover the beehive with a wafer and carefully tap it out, depending on the mold type.
• Store the finished beehives in the refrigerator.

Coconut Beehives

Try this extraordinary version of classic Beehives. You will like it with the coconut flavour!

You will need:

• 1 cup of ground coconut
• 1 cup of powdered sugar
• 1 egg
• 1 cup of sponge cake
• 1 cup of softened butter
• vanilla biscuits or wafers (Nilla Vanilla waffles are a good choice)

Cream:

• 3 spoons of cold coffee
• 3 spoons of powdered sugar
• 1 egg yolk
• 1 egg
• 1/2 cup of butter

Preparation process:

• Mix the coconut, sugar, eggs, biscuit crumbs, and butter together to form a dough.
• Put the prepared dough in the refrigerator for 30 minutes to harden.
• Meanwhile, prepare the cream.
• Mix the coffee, sugar, egg yolk, and egg in a water bath and stir until the mixture thickens.
• Allow the mixture to cool.
• Then, beat the mass into softened butter.
• Prepare molds for the cookies and sprinkle them with icing sugar.
• Make balls from the dough and press them into the mold.
• Use the end of a wooden spoon to make a hole and fill it with cream.
• Close the beehives with a wafer.
• Store in the refrigerator or in a very cool place.

White Beehives

You will need:

• 3/4 cup of powdered sugar
• 2 cups of grated coconut
• 3/4 cup of whole milk powder
• 1/4 cup of semi-skimmed milk
• 1 can of condensed milk
• vanilla biscuits or wafers (Nilla Vanilla waffles are a good choice)

Cream:

• butter
• powdered sugar
• granulated coffee

Preparation process:

• Mix sugar with grated coconut and dried milk.
• Add milk and condensed milk and start working the dough – preferably by hand.
• Put the dough in the fridge for at least 30 minutes and let it harden.
• Prepare the cream – rub the same amount of butter with sugar and add boiled instant coffee according to the consistency.
• Once you have everything ready, make balls out of the dough and place them in the molds.
• Make a well in the middle and fill it with the prepared filling.
• Close the cake with a sponge and carefully remove it from the mold.
• Store in the refrigerator.

Cocoa Beehives

You will need:

• vanilla biscuits or wafers (Nilla Vanilla waffles are a good choice)
• 2 spoons of cocoa
• 1/4 cup of hazelnuts and walnuts – ground
• 1/2 cup of powdered sugar
• 2 tablespoons of brown rum
• pickled cherries
• 1/4 cup of butter

Preparation process:

• Process all the ingredients except the baby biscuits and sour cherries into a dough.
• Then, put it in the fridge for 30 minutes to harden.
• If the dough is not very elastic, add more rum.
• Once the dough is ready, form balls and stuff them into a beehive mold.
• Make a hole in the middle and fill it with eggnog.
• For a children’s version of this recipe, for example, use vanilla cream and replace the rum with rum essence and milk.
• Cut the sour cherries in half and place them in the nest.
• Close with a wafer and carefully turn it out of the mold.
• Store in the refrigerator.

Eggnog Beehives

Introducing a delightful twist on traditional Czech beehive cookies: beehive cookies filled with creamy eggnog.

These whimsical treats feature a luscious eggnog filling encased in a rich, chocolatey, no-bake cookie shell. The combination of the indulgent beehive cookie and the creamy eggnog center creates a truly festive treat that captures the cozy flavors of the holiday season.

Whether enjoyed as an after-dinner treat or a sweet surprise at holiday gatherings, these beehive cookies filled with eggnog will surely delight and impress.

You will need:

• 1/2 cup of vanilla biscuits or wafers (Nilla Vanilla waffles are a good choice)
• 1/4 cup of powdered milk
• 1/4 cup of ground nuts
• 1/4 cup of softened butter
• 1/4 cup of grated dark chocolate
• 2 tablespoons of rum
• 1 egg white
• eggnog
• milk powder
• vanilla biscuits or wafers (Nilla Vanilla waffles are a good choice)

Preparation process:

• First, prepare the wafers and grind them.
• Next, mix them with sugar, nuts, chocolate, butter, rum, and egg whites.
• Work the whole mixture into a dough.
• Place the resulting dough in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes to harden.
• In the meantime, prepare the filling – pour the eggnog into a bowl and thicken it with powdered milk as needed.
• Make balls out of the dough and place them in the molds.
• Use a wooden spoon to make a hole in the middle of the dough, which you fill with the prepared eggnog filling.
• Finally, close the beehives’ bottom with wafers.
• Store in the refrigerator.

Beehive cookies with matcha cream

Beehive cookies with Matcha cream are a little twist on classic Czech cookies. This time, we are adding a little Matcha powder to add some colors.

You will need:

For the no-bake beehive dough:

• 3/4 cup of ground walnuts
• 1 cup confectioner sugar
• 1 tsp cocoa powder
• 1 small egg white
• 1 tsp rum dark
• 20 round vanilla wafers (for the base)
• 1 tbsp Matcha powder (for decoration)

For the Matcha cream:

• 1/2 cup of butter softened at room temperature
• 1/2 cup confectioner sugar
• 1 tbsp Matcha powder
• 1 tbsp rum or milk

Preparation process:

Start with the no-bake dough:

• Combine all the ingredients for the beehive dough in a medium kitchen bowl with a wooden spatula. If the dough doesn’t come together with the spatula, work it with your hands.
• Leave the dough in the kitchen bowl and cover it with food wrap. Let it chill for 30 minutes in the refrigerator. After 30 minutes, the mixture will become easier to handle.
• Dust the beehive cookie mold with confectioner sugar and place a small piece of the dough inside the mold. 
• Remove excess of the dough with your hands.
• With your index finger, make a hole and gently open the mold to remove the beehive. Repeat until you have used all the dough.

For the Matcha cream:

1. In a medium kitchen bowl, start mixing with a hand mixer, soft unsalted butter with sugar until creamy.
2. Add matcha powder and mix until combined.
3. At the end, add rum/or milk and mix until creamy.
4. Place the matcha buttercream in a piping plastic bag without any tip. Cut a 1/4 inch opening and pipe the cream inside the beehives.
5. Pipe also small dollop onto the wafers and then place the beehive on top of it.
6. Sprinkle some Matcha powder on the assembled beehives.

Gluten-free Beehives cookies

Even those who do not like gluten or suffer from celiac disease can enjoy this candy.

Gluten-free beehive cookies are just as delicious as the traditional ones.

Don’t you believe it? Try them with us!

You will need:

• 1/4 cup of softened butter
• 5 tablespoons of powdered sugar
• 2-4 tablespoons of rum
• 3 tablespoons of Dutch cocoa
• 1/2 cups of gluten-free round biscuits (ground, for the dough)
• a bit of milk
• gluten-free round biscuits (for the base)

Cream:

• 1/4 cup of butter
• 4 tablespoons of powdered sugar
• 1 tablespoon of rum
• a drop of vanilla flavoring

Preparation process:

• Rub the softened butter with powdered sugar.
• Add rum and cocoa and mix well.
• Blend the biscuits and mix them into the prepared mixture.
• Add a little extra ground biscuits if the mixture is too runny.
• Put the finished dough in the refrigerator for half an hour to harden.
• Meanwhile, prepare the cream.
• Beat the softened butter with sugar, rum, and vanilla flavoring.
• Form balls from the hardened dough, which you place in a beehive mold.
• Make a hole in the middle of the dough and fill it with the finished cream.
• Close the base of the cookie with the biscuit and carefully remove the mold.
• Store in the refrigerator.

The best filling for beehive cookies

There is a wide variety of creams and fillings that can be used to fill beehive cookies; however, their effectiveness also depends on the correct density and preparation.

Classic vanilla cream

You will need:

• 1 bag of instant vanilla pudding mix
• 2 cups of milk
• 1/4 cup of sugar
• 1 bag of vanilla sugar for baking
• 1/4 cup of butter

Preparation process:

• Mix the vanilla pudding powder in the milk.
• Then, pour the mixture into a saucepan, add sugar and vanilla sugar, and bring to a boil by heating slowly – cook until thickened.
• Remove the finished pudding from the stove and let it cool.
• Once the pudding is cold, start whisking the butter into small pieces.

Yolk cream

You will need:

• 1 egg yolk
• 1 egg white
• 1/3 cup of sugar
• 1/2 cup of butter

Preparation process:

• First, prepare a water bath in which you beat the egg whites with sugar.
• In another bowl, whisk the yolk with the butter.
• Once the whipped egg white is cold, combine the two mixtures together and mix into a smooth egg yolk cream.

Condensed Milk Filling

You will need:

• 2 tablespoons of granulated sugar
• 1 1/2 cup of butter
• 1 can of condensed milk
• 2 tablespoons of rum

Preparation process:

• First, boil the condensed milk – boil the whole can for 1.5 – 2 hours.
• Mix the icing sugar with the rum into a thick mass.
• Add the softened butter and beat the mixture until the ingredients are combined.
• Whisk the caramelized condensed milk into the whipped mixture by spoonfuls.
• Once you have filled the beehive cookies with the cream, put them in the fridge immediately.

Fruit Filling

You will need:

• 3/4 cup of butter
• 3/4 cup of powdered sugar
• 4 tablespoons of fruit juice – for example, from compote, juice, etc.

Preparation process:

• Rub the sugar with the softened butter in a bowl.
• Then, mix the fruit juice spoon by spoonful into a smooth cream.

Beehive cookies mold

Openable molds

This type of wasp nest mold is very easy to work with. You press the dough in, make a hole, fill it with filling, and close it with a wafer. Finally, you open the mold and remove it easily.

Knock-out molds

Knockout molds have their supporters, as well as their critics.

They operate on the same principle as regular molds but are more challenging when removing a finished beehive cookie.

Remember to sprinkle powdered sugar, ground coconut, or cocoa before filling each mold with the dough.

You can find many shapes of these molds nowadays – showmen, bears, cats…