Black Friday brings the peppermint cravings on. But I officially can't start eating peppermint and chocolate and cranberry orange and gingerbread and all sorts of other fun holiday flavors until the last drop of pumpkin pie has been consumed.
And then it's game on.
I need the fuel of the elves. Peppermint.
I'm starting the season off with these double chocolate peppermint cookies. Since it makes too much for one person to eat, I'll put them in the freezer and pull a couple out to enjoy while watching that nights Christmas movie of choice.
The Christmas season is my busiest season. I've got birthdays, the holiday, finals for me and the college students I grade for, kids concerts, and teachers squeezing in homework and service projects right before the end of the year. It's a sprint to the end of the year finish line. Bring on the peppermint.
Ingredients
- ½ cup (1 stick) butter, softened
- ¾ cup sugar (I substituted finely ground coconut sugar)
- 1 egg
- ¼ tsp peppermint extract
- 1 ¼ cup unbleached all purpose flour, whole wheat or white whole wheat flour or gluten free flour
- ⅓ cup cocoa powder
- Pinch of salt
- ½ tsp baking soda
- ½ cup chocolate chips (we used Enjoy Life)
- 1-2 candy canes, finely crushed.
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly grease a cookie sheet or line with parchment paper and set aside.
- In a mixing bowl, cream together the butter and sugar on medium speed for 2-3 minutes, or until light and fluffy. Stop the mixer, scrape the sides of the bowl, then turn the mixer speed onto slow. Add in the eggs and vanilla extract, stirring just until combined.
- Add in the flour, cocoa powder, salt and baking soda, stirring until combined. Fold in ⅓ cup of chocolate chips.
- Form the dough into tablespoon sized balls, leaving several inches of space between cookies. Press the tops of the cookies down and sprinkle with some peppermint and additional chocolate chips.
- Bake cookies at 350 degrees for 10-12 minutes. Cookies are done when edges are baked and insides are soft looking. Remove from oven and let the cookies sit on the cookie sheet for several minutes before moving the cookies from the cookie sheet to a cooling rack to finish cooling completely.
- Store cookies in an airtight container for a few days or freeze for several weeks.
Recipe adapted from Minimalist Baker
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