Chocolate-Peppermint Cookies!
(from the December issue of Martha Stewart Living)
makes six dozen
Ingredients
1C all-purpose flour, plus more for surgace
1/2 C unsweetened cocoa powder
1/2 t baking soda
1/2 t baking powder
1/2 t salt
5 T unsalted butter, softened
1/4 C sugar
1 large egg
1 large egg yolk
3/4 t pure peppermint extract
8 large candy canes or 30 peppermint candies, crushed
2 pounds white chocolate, coarsely chopped
Directions
- Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Sift flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder, and salt into a bowl. Beat butter and sugar with a mixer on medium-high speed for 1 minute. Reduce speed to medium-low, and add egg, then yolk, beating well after each addition. Beat in peppermint extract. Slowly add flour mixture, and beat until just incorporated. Shape dough into 2 disks, wrap each in plastic, and refrigerate until firm, at least 1 hour (or up to 2 days).
- Roll out 1 disk of dough on a lightly floured surface to 1/8-inch thickness. Freeze until firm, about 15 minutes. Using a 2-inch round cutter, cut out circles, and place 1 inch apart on parchment-lined baking sheets. Roll and cut scraps once. Freeze cookies until firm, about 15 minutes. Repeat with remaining disk.
- Bake until cookies are dry to the touch, about 12 minutes. Transfer parchment, with cookies, to wire racks, and let cool. (Undecorated cookies will keep, covered, for up to 3 days.)
- Sift crushed candy, and separate larger pieces from dust, reserving both. Melt chocolate in a heatproof bowl set over a pot of gently simmering water. Remove from heat. Dunk cookies into melted chocolate. Using a fork, turn to coat, let excess drip off, and gently scrape bottom against edge of bowl. Place on parchment-lined baking sheets, and sprinkle 1/4 teaspoon of either candy pieces or dust on top. Repeat, sprinkling half the cookies with pieces and the rest with dust. Refrigerate until set, up to 3 hours. Decorated cookies are best served the same day.
We’ll let you know how they turn out! (They smell great!)
Update: So, they taste great, but they are a LOT of work! Sort of an all-day project. And, all the white chocolate isn’t cheap! Maybe we’d be better off buying a box of thin mints and spending the time playing a game or reading or something. Whew!
>yum! You’re definitely making some yummy goodies!
>These look delicious. I’m going to give them a try and that playdough. Thanks for the recipes Rae.