There is a lot of discussion about Christmas cookies in my house. While the kids and I believe that everything would benefit from a heavy dose of Candy Cane Crunch at this time of year, Adam is adamantly against the event. tips His cookies have mint in them. In my quest to convert him, I made peppermint chocolate shortbread cookies that were like soft, chewy snowballs with melted chocolate centers. Double the peppermint flavor, the dough contains the extract and is topped with a sprinkle of crushed candy cane.
One bite (or five) and even Adam was convinced. This is the best chocolate peppermint cookie any of us have ever had (even those who aren’t Team Peppermint). I’m definitely going to make a batch of this for the holidays. We gather regardless of the season.
Why I love these peppermint chocolate shortbread cookies
- Center of melted chocolate. When you bite into this cookie, it oozes rich chocolate flavor (think chocolate lava cake in cookie shape).
- A new twist on snowball cookies. I wanted to reinvent the classic chocolate snowball cookie, so I rolled these in powdered sugar to give them a festive and Christmassy look.
- Topped with crushed peppermint. Top with crushed peppermint to add holiday flavor, crunch, and festive color.
How to make peppermint chocolate shortbread cookies
Mix wet ingredients together. This one-bowl recipe starts out as you’d expect. In a stand mixer, cream together the unsalted butter and sugar until creamy, then add the peppermint extract, vanilla extract, and large egg.
Add dry ingredients. Many recipes instruct you to add the dry ingredients separately, but I’m a fan of doing as little washing as possible. Add the all-purpose flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, and salt and stir slightly to combine into the wet ingredients.
Chill for 1 hour. More details below, but this is an important step to help your cookies maintain their shape and Make sure it’s soft and chewy.
Scoop into a bowl and sprinkle with powdered sugar. This gives the cookies a festive snowball effect.
Adhere a chocolate disc to the center of each cookie. Place on a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper and add a chocolate disc to the center of each cookie dough ball. i like to use bittersweet chocolate Semi-sweet and dark colors also work well here. This is the step that creates the gooey, lava cake-like center after baking.
Bake it and leave some leftover. Remember, we want a soft and gooey (not flaky) consistency with these cookies.
Sprinkle with crushed peppermint. If you do this while the chocolate is still melting, it will act like a glue to hold the peppermint together. Then cool on a wire rack to set before serving.
The secret to peppermint cookie success
- Candy canes will melt in the oven, so sprinkle with crushed candy canes or peppermint as soon as they come out of the oven. Work while the chocolate is still melted so the crushed candy cane sticks.
- One of the secrets to soft, chewy cookies is to let the dough rest in the refrigerator for at least an hour before baking. This step allows some of the water to evaporate, increasing the sugar content and keeping the cookies chewy.
- I also leave these cookies a little undercooked to keep them chewy (not crunchy). You need a loose center of lava in the middle.
Storage and freezing methods
I rarely make cookies in bulk without batch freezing leftovers and doubling them. Whether you’re going to a family movie night, need an impromptu dessert to take to dinner or to deliver to a neighbor, you always want to have freshly baked cookies on hand. These Chocolate Peppermint Cookies will keep for up to 3 days when stored in an airtight container at room temperature. However, if you want to freeze, you have two options:
Freeze the dough and bake it when ready to eat.
This is my favorite way to freeze cookies because you get all the benefits of truly freshly baked cookies. To make, proceed to step 4 of the recipe and roll the chilled dough into a ball. But instead of rolling them in powdered sugar, place them on a baking sheet and put them in the freezer for about 30 minutes. This will make them very hard and won’t stick together. Transfer the cookie dough balls to a gallon-sized Ziploc bag and freeze for up to 1 month. When ready to bake, thaw at room temperature for about 10 minutes and proceed to steps 5-8.
Freeze baked cookies
If you have leftover cookies that you’ve already baked, you can freeze them completely. Simply seal in a gallon-sized Ziploc bag and freeze for up to 1 month. When ready to eat, reheat in the microwave at 50% power or place on a baking sheet in a 350°F oven for about 5 minutes.
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explanation
These chewy peppermint chocolate shortbread cookies have an amazing melty center. The dough has double the peppermint extract and is topped with crushed candy canes.
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 1/4 teaspoon peppermint extract
- 2 teaspoons vanilla essence
- 1 big eggs
- 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
- 1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1 cup powdered sugar
- 12 Chocolate baking discs (bittersweet or semisweet)
- crushed peppermint
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Preheat oven to 375°F.
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Using a stand mixer with the paddle attachment, cream the butter and sugar on medium-high. Add both extracts and eggs and mix until well combined. Sprinkle flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, and salt on top. Mix until just combined.
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Refrigerate until firm, at least 1 hour.
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Remove the dough from the refrigerator and roll into a tablespoon-sized ball. a cookie scoop Let’s make this easy.
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Roll in powdered sugar and spread out on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper, about 1 inch apart.
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Place one chocolate disc in the center of each cookie and press down slightly.
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Bake for 10 minutes – the center should be slightly overcooked. Remove from the oven and immediately sprinkle with crushed peppermint while the chocolate is still melted.
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Let cool on a wire baking rack before eating!
Source: Camille Styles – camillestyles.com
