It's time for 12 Days of Cookies , FoodNetwork.com's annual cookie swap. Each day visit us here on the Dish for a peek at new holiday cookies, party-planning tips and top techniques for rolling, spooning, slicing, baking and decorating delicious sweet treats to give – or keep – from favorite Food Network chefs. Then stop by Cooking Channel's blog for great takes on holiday baking from Cooking Channel chefs and Food People alike – cookies by the dozen to celebrate all season.

Ginger and garam masala are a natural fit in savory Indian cooking, so why not in a cookie? And any sweet decked with chocolate is sure to be a hit (just ask Ms. Deen about Day 1's cookie).

Just in time for the second season of Aarti Party, Next Food Network Star winner  Aarti Sequeira uses a classic spice pairing to sparkle up traditional holiday cookies. The result is her Garam Masala-Chocolate Gingerbread, a dark, spice-laden dough you can roll and cut into everything from cheerful gingerbread men to flowers decorated with fanciful trimmings.

Get Aarti's recipe and check out our 12 Days of Cookies package for many more treats. Then tell us what you're baking.

• Hosting a cookie swap? Watch firsthand and see how Food Network stars pull off the best holiday parties.
• Sign up for our 12 Days of Cookies newsletter--it's not too late; we're just getting started!
• See which chefs baked which cookies in past seasons to get inspired for your own baking.
• Cooking Channel is joining in with a baker's dozen of cookies of their own. Today's cookie: David Rocco’s Chocolate Espresso Cookies.

Melanie Rehak, author of Eating for Beginners, has been baking cookies since she was old enough to climb onto the kitchen stool. She and her family are partial to Zimtsterne—cinnamon stars—for the holidays, but love cookies of all kinds all year long.