Yuletide Peppermint Crunch Cookies
The best Christmas cookies bring you all the tastes of the season like peppermint, chocolate, and cinnamon. This cookie has it all! The recipe makes more than enough cookies to feed your Christmas Day crowd. You can add them to a party table of Christmas cookies and be the stand-out favorite.
Prep dough: 25 minutes
Shape cookies: 30 minutes
Bake: 14 to 15 minutes
Bake at: 350°F
Yield: 4 dozen cookies
Pan: 2 baking sheets
Difficulty: easy
Ingredients
- 3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
- 1/4 cup (50 grams) granulated sugar
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1 large egg, room temperature (separated)
- 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1/2 teaspoon peppermint extract
- 2 cups (240 grams) all-purpose flour
- 1/2 cup crushed peppermint candies
- 1 1/2 cups semi-sweet mini chocolate chips
- 1/3 cup (67 grams) granulated sugar
- 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- Parchment paper
Directions
Making the Cookie Dough
- Preheat the oven to 350°F.
- In a medium bowl, use an electric mixer at medium speed to cream the butter, 1/4 cup sugar, and salt until smooth, about 2 to 3 minutes. Beat in the egg yolk, vanilla and peppermint extracts until fully incorporated.
- With the mixer on low, add the flour 1/4 cup at a time until just combined.
- Crush the peppermint candies in the small work bowl of a food processor until very fine and powdery (see “Tips”). Stir the peppermint into the dough to thoroughly mix.
- Add the mini chocolate chips to the dough and stir.
Forming and Baking the Cookies
- Line the first baking sheet with parchment paper.
- In a small bowl, mix 1/3 cup sugar with the cinnamon.
- Roll the dough into 1-inch balls between your palms (#70 cookie scoop), dip the balls into the egg white, and roll them in the sugar mixture.
- Place the dough balls about 2 inches apart on the baking sheet (one half sheet fits 24). Chill the sheet of dough balls for 10 minutes in the refrigerator before baking. Repeat the process with the second baking sheet.
- Bake the cookies in a preheated 350°F oven for 14 to 15 minutes until very light brown. The cookies spread very little in the oven. The baked cookie should be crisp on the outside and soft and chewy on the inside.
- Let the cookies cool on the pan for 5 minutes before removing to a wire rack to cool completely.
- Store the cookies in an airtight tin for up to 4 days, separating the layers with wax paper. For longer storage, freeze them for up to 1 month.
Tips
- Do not leave chunks in the peppermint candies when processing.