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Peppermint Hot Chocolate Cookies

Description

These Peppermint Hot Chocolate Cookies are full of rich chocolate and peppermint flavor. They’re soft and chewy, topped with crushed candy canes, and dipped in delicious semi-sweet chocolate. These are THE chocolate Christmas cookies to make this season!

Ingredients

Scale

For The Cookies

  • 1 cup butter, softened (2 sticks)
  • 1/2 cup organic granulated sugar
  • 1 cup brown sugar, packed
  • 2 large eggs
  • 1 tsp peppermint extract
  • 2 cups flour spooned and leveled
  • 1 cup unsweetened cocoa powder, sifted
  • 1 tsp baking soda
  • 3/4 tsp pink sea salt
  • 1/2 cup organic granulated sugar for rolling

For sprinkling and dipping

  • 12 mini candy canes or 6–8 candy canes, crushed
  • 1 cup dark chocolate chips or semi-sweet
  • 1 tbsp coconut oil

Instructions

  1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F—line three baking sheets with parchment paper and set aside.
  2. Add 6-8 candy canes to a ziplock bag. Using a rolling pin, crush the candy canes as coarsely as you like. The finer you crush them, the easier they stick to the cookies. Pour the candy into a bowl and set it aside for now.
  3. In a large bowl or stand mixer, beat 1 cup softened butter until light and fluffy, scraping the edges.
  4. Add 1/2 cup granulated sugar, 1 cup brown sugar, 2 eggs, and 1 teaspoon peppermint extract to the butter, and beat well, scraping the edges and bottom of the bowl.
  5. In a separate bowl, use a small spoon to combine the dry ingredients- 2 cups flour, 1 cup cocoa powder (sifted), 1 teaspoon baking soda, and 3/4 teaspoon pink sea salt. Then add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients, and beat until just incorporated. Take a second to scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl. Finish mixing it all but don’t go overboard; over-beaten cookies turn out tough.
  6. Use a spoon or cookie scoop to scoop about 1 and 1/2 tablespoons of dough into a ball. The dough is pretty sticky, but that’s normal and will turn out great. 
  7. Place each ball on the prepared baking sheets. 12 cookies per sheet fit on my baking sheets, but make sure you have at least 1-2 inches in between each cookie.
  8. Add 1/2 cup of granulated sugar to a bowl and roll each cookie dough ball in sugar, making sure it gets well coated.
  9. Bake the cookies at 350 for 8 minutes.
  10. After 8 minutes in the oven, carefully remove the cookie pan from the oven and sprinkle the top of each cookie with the crushed candy canes. Use your fingers to gently press them in if necessary.
  11. Return the pan to the oven for 2 minutes for a total bake time of 10 minutes. When they are done, the edges will have cracked. The cookies should not be shiny in the middle and the edges should be firm.
  12. Let cool on the pan for 5 minutes before removing to a cooling rack to cool. Keep the pan with parchment paper as you will reuse it in the dipping step. Continue baking the remaining pans of cookies.
  13. When the cookies are completely cool, they are ready to dip. Add 1 cup of dark or semi-sweet chocolate chips and 1 tablespoon coconut oil to a bowl. Microwave in 30-second increments, stirring every time, until the chocolate chips are mostly melted. Stir until the mixture is completely smooth.
  14. Dip each cookie halfway into the chocolate. Let the excess chocolate drip off, then place it back on the baking sheet with the parchment paper that you baked the cookies. Sprinkle extra crushed candy canes on top of the chocolate, if you’d like.
  15. Let the chocolate harden at room temperature or place it in the fridge or freezer for a few minutes. These cookies are delicious when chilled or warmed for a few seconds in the microwave. Enjoy!

Notes

  • Be sure not to overmix the dough. This leads to tough cookies, and we want soft and tender cookies.
  • Sift the cocoa powder. Sifting the cocoa powder will result in a soft cookie and prevent clumps of cocoa powder in the baked cookie.
  • Want to expedite the hardening process of the dipped chocolate? Place cookies in the freezer for 5-8 minutes. Viola!
  • These Peppermint Hot Chocolate Cookies can be stored in an airtight container on the countertop or in the refrigerator for 4-5 days.
  • Prep Time: 20 minutes
  • Cook Time: 10 minutes

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Find it online: https://livewellservewell.com/peppermint-hot-chocolate-cookies/