These chocolate peppermint cookies are rich, chewy double chocolate cookies with melty pools of dark chocolate and a crunchy crushed candy cane topping.
A Quick Look at the Recipe
👩🏻🍳 Recipe Name: Chewy Chocolate Peppermint Cookies
⏱️ Ready In: About 45 minutes (plus an optional 1-hour chill)
🧑🧑🧒 Serves: 12-16 cookies
🍴Calories: ~419 (estimated)
🥣 Main Ingredients: Dark cocoa powder, butter, brown sugar, dark chocolate chips, peppermint extract, crushed candy canes
🍲 Flavor Profile: Deep, fudgy chocolate with a cool hit of peppermint and a crunchy candy cane finish. Chewy in the middle and crisp at the edges.
🎯 Difficulty: Easy
We take our Christmas cookies pretty seriously around here, and somehow this chocolate peppermint cookie snuck its way into our holiday lineup. Now it has a permanent spot.
I'll admit, I'm usually more of a vanilla gal. Give me a classic sour cream sugar cookie or a big soft ginger molasses cookie over something chocolatey most days. But these changed my mind (bold words for someone who's not a full-on chocolate lover). They're rich and chewy, studded with melty pools of dark chocolate and topped with a crunchy sprinkle of crushed candy cane, and that little hit of peppermint cuts right through all the richness.
I made them for the first time last year, and my kids immediately declared them "the best cookies ever." This year, they've already put in their request.
Pro tip: these disappear fast, so go ahead and make a double batch.
Why These Cookies Converted A Vanilla Gal
Besides those delicious pools of melty chocolate, here are a few reasons I love this recipe.
- Chewy middles, crisp edges. Brown sugar and an extra egg yolk keep the centers soft and chewy while the edges bake up just a little crisp.
- The peppermint knows its place. This is what I like most about them. There's enough peppermint to taste like Christmas, but the chocolate is still the star.
- No chilling required. You can scoop and bake right away. Chilling just makes the sticky dough easier to handle.
- The dough freezes beautifully. Scoop it, freeze it, and bake a few at a time all season long.
Key Ingredients
Your usual suspects, plus a few special ones. See the recipe card below for the complete list.
- Dark cocoa powder. I used Hershey's. This is where that deep, almost brownie-like chocolate flavor comes from, and it gives the cookies their dark color, too.
- Butter and eggs. Let both come to room temperature. It makes the dough much easier to mix and gives you that soft, chewy center with crispy edges.
- Brown sugar and white sugar. Mostly brown sugar for moisture and chew, with a little granulated sugar to help the edges crisp up.
- An extra egg yolk. One whole egg plus a yolk makes the cookies a little richer.
- Pure peppermint extract. Peppermint extract is strong stuff, so measure carefully.
- Dark chocolate chips. I used dark chocolate chips, but semisweet works too, and chocolate chunks give you deeper pools of melty chocolate. Save a few to press into the tops.
- Crushed candy canes. These go on the second the cookies come out of the oven so they stick. I also added peppermint sprinkles for a fun look. You can usually find them in the baking aisle around the holidays.
How To Make Chocolate Peppermint Cookies
Step 1: Cream the butter and sugars
Preheat the oven to 350°F and line two baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone baking mats. In a large bowl or a stand mixer, beat the butter, brown sugar and granulated sugar on medium speed until light, creamy and fluffy, about 2 to 3 minutes.
Step 2: Add the eggs and extracts
Add the egg, egg yolk, vanilla and peppermint extract, and mix just until smooth.
Step 3: Whisk the dry ingredients
In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda and salt.
Step 4: Make the dough
Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and mix on low speed until a soft, thick dough forms. Fold in the chocolate chips with a spatula until they're evenly mixed in. The dough will be very thick and sticky at this point.
Chill the dough (optional)
You can scoop and bake right away, but if the dough feels too sticky to handle, wrap it in plastic wrap and refrigerate it for at least 1 hour, or overnight. I think it bakes up a little thicker and chewier this way, too.
Step 5: Scoop and bake
Use a large cookie scoop (or your hands) to portion the dough into balls about 2 inches wide, or about ¼ cup each. Place 6 to 8 on each baking sheet so they have room to spread. Bake for 10 to 12 minutes, until the edges look set but the centers are still soft. For extra-pretty cookies, press a few more chocolate chips into the tops about 5 minutes into baking.
Step 6: Bang the pan and add the candy cane
As soon as the cookies come out of the oven, give the baking sheet a solid bang on the counter. It sounds strange, but it flattens the puffy centers nicely. Then right away, sprinkle the crushed candy cane over each cookie so it sticks while they're warm.
Let the cookies cool on the baking sheet for 10 minutes, then move them to a wire rack to cool completely.
Tips for the Best Chocolate Peppermint Cookies
- Don't overcrowd the pan. Six to eight cookies per sheet gives them room to spread evenly.
- Bang the pan. It's the easiest way to get flatter, chewier cookies instead of puffy domes. (This works with lots of other cookie recipes too!)
- Add the candy cane right away. Sprinkle it on the second the cookies come out of the oven, while they're still warm enough for it to stick.
Troubleshooting Chocolate Peppermint Cookies
It's probably a temperature issue. Chilling the dough before baking helps keep everything in place.
You might have added too much flour (we've all done it). Spoon the flour into the cup and level it off instead of scooping straight from the bag, and make sure your oven is fully preheated.
Most often, that's from too much flour or overbaking. Measure carefully and take the cookies out when the centers still look slightly soft.
Variations and Substitutions
- Try a different chocolate. Semisweet chips make a slightly sweeter cookie. White chocolate chips, on their own or mixed with the dark, give you a fun contrast. Chopped chocolate bars work too and give you more of those deep chocolate pools in the cookies.
- Change up the peppermint. Use chopped Andes mints or peppermint bark (usually in the baking aisle) in place of the chocolate chips for a twist on the chocolate and peppermint combo.
- Skip the peppermint extract. You'll still have a great double chocolate cookie. For a milder peppermint flavor, use ½ teaspoon instead.
Make Ahead, Storage and Freezing
- Make ahead. Scoop the dough into balls (chilling it first makes this easier), then freeze them in an airtight container or zip-top bag for up to 3 months. Bake straight from frozen, adding 1 to 2 minutes to the bake time.
- Freeze. Freeze baked cookies in an airtight container for up to 3 months.
- Storage. Keep cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 1 week.
Holiday Serving and Gifting Ideas
- Holiday cookie platters. Pair these with classic sour cream sugar cookies, chocolate-dipped orange and almond shortbread, or ginger molasses cookies for a fun mix.
- A hot chocolate bar. A favorite at our house! Serve warm cookies with mugs of Mexican hot chocolate or peppermint lattes.
- Cookie gifts. Package a few in cellophane bags or a festive tin with a printed recipe card for neighbors and hosts.
- Mini ice cream sandwiches. Sandwich softened peppermint (yum!) or vanilla ice cream between two cookies. (This is honestly so good and fun!)
- Decorating with kids. Drizzle the cooled cookies with melted chocolate, or let the kids add extra peppermint candies and festive sprinkles.
More Christmas Cookie Recipes
Made these chocolate peppermint cookies? I want to know if they won over any vanilla fans at your house, too. Leave a star rating and a comment below.
Recipe
Chewy Chocolate Peppermint Cookies
Ingredients
- 1 cup unsalted butter room temperature
- 1 ¼ cups brown sugar packed
- ⅓ cup granulated sugar
- 1 large egg plus 1 egg yolk room temperature
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 teaspoon pure peppermint extract
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- ⅔ cup dark cocoa powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- ¾ teaspoon salt
- 1 cup dark chocolate chips or chunks plus a few extra for the tops
- 4 tbsps crushed candy canes
- Peppermint sprinkles optional
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone baking mats.
- In a large bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer, beat the butter, brown sugar and granulated sugar on medium speed until light, creamy and fluffy, about 2 to 3 minutes. Add the egg, egg yolk, vanilla and peppermint extract, and mix just until combined and smooth.
- In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda and salt.
- Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and mix on low speed until a soft, thick dough forms. Fold in the chocolate chips with a spatula until evenly distributed.
- Optional: wrap the dough in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 1 hour, or overnight, to make it easier to handle.
- Use a large cookie scoop to portion the dough into balls about 2 inches wide (about ¼ cup each). Place 6 to 8 dough balls on each prepared baking sheet.
- Bake for 10 to 12 minutes, until the edges look set but the centers are still soft. If you like, press a few extra chocolate chips into the tops about 5 minutes into baking.
- As soon as the cookies come out of the oven, give the baking sheet a solid bang on the counter to flatten them, then sprinkle the crushed candy cane (and peppermint sprinkles, if using) over each cookie.
- Let the cookies cool on the baking sheet for 10 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
Notes
- Chilling is optional. The dough will be very sticky at first, and chilling makes it easier to handle and gives you a thicker, chewier cookie.
- Use room temperature butter and eggs for easier mixing and a soft, chewy texture.
- Measure the flour with the spoon-and-level method. Too much flour makes dry cookies that don't spread.
- Take the cookies out while the centers still look soft, since they firm up as they cool.
- Add the crushed candy cane while the cookies are still warm so it sticks well.
- To freeze the dough, scoop it into balls and freeze in an airtight container for up to 3 months. Bake from frozen, adding 1 to 2 minutes.
- Store baked cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 1 week, or freeze for up to 3 months.
- Use your favorite brand of cocoa powder. I used Hershey's cocoa powder.
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