These Peppermint Shortbread Cookies will be the star of any cookie platter. They're all dressed up and ready to party!
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How this recipe came to be
I can't take credit for coming up with this recipe, but I wish I could. I found the recipe for these Peppermint Shortbread Cookies in the holiday baking issue (2014) of Taste of Home Magazine.
When I spied these beauties in the magazine, I knew in a moment that these would be the perfect cookies for The 4th Annual (2014) Great Food Blogger Cookie Swap (#fbcookieswap). Yum! I was right!!!
Peppermint Shortbread Cookies Dipped in Chocolate are some of the most festive cookies around. Of course, you don't need to color them red and green if you'd rather not. But, in my opinion, it makes them all the more fun, and all the more inviting. Just ask Santa!!
The ingredient list:
- Butter
- Granulated Sugar
- Peppermint Extract
- Vanilla Extract
- All-Purpose Flour
- Red and Green Gel Food Color (optional)
- Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chips
- Crushed Peppermint Candy
The easy instructions:
- Cream together the butter and sugar.
- Beat in the extracts and the flour.
- Divide the dough in half and color half the dough with red food coloring and half the dough with green food coloring.
- Flatten each dough and wrap it in plastic wrap.
- Refrigerate for about 30 minutes.
- Roll the dough out to ¼" thickness and cut with a 1 ½" round cookie cutter.
- Place on baking sheets and bake for 10-12 minutes.
- Dip half of each baked cookie into the melted chocolate and sprinkle with crushed peppermint candies.
- Place on wax paper or parchment paper and allow the dipped cookies to sit until the chocolate is completely set.
What is the Great Food Blogger Cookie Swap you ask?
- Good question! It's when a remarkable number of food bloggers from all around the world come together to raise money for The Childhood Cancer Foundation and Cookies for Kids Cancer.
- We do this by each donating $4 to participate. We bake and mail three dozen cookies to three separate bloggers (1 dozen each blogger) that we've been assigned to.
- Then we all post our recipes on the very same day (Today, December 15th) in a blog post for our fellow food bloggers, and our readers to enjoy.
It's a great deal of fun and is a great way to be active in the food blogging community and make new friends all for a rewarding cause. In return, we each receive 3 dozen delicious cookies in the mail from other members of our food blogging community. Win! Win!
A fun and festive way to package Christmas cookies for shipping:
- I used leftover ribbon, some natural and some shiny, in addition to wrapping the cookies in cellophane bags.
Additional peppermint recipes for your enjoyment:
This delicious Peppermint Schnapps Ice Cream is fast and easy to make. It's a no-churn recipe that's smooth, creamy, and loaded with big, bold, peppermint flavor.
No-Bake Peppermint Buttercream Wafer Cookies are the perfect holiday cookie. Homemade peppermint buttercream is sandwiched between two crispy wafer sheets, sliced, and then dipped into white chocolate and festive sprinkles.
These festive and charming Holly Berry Chocolate Peppermint Cupcakes are sure to be a hit with your family and friends this holiday season!
When you make this recipe, and I hope you do, I'd appreciate it if you'd take a moment to leave a star rating on the recipe card and briefly comment on why you rated it as you did. FYI - Google appreciates recipe ratings and, in turn, will share my recipes with more people. Thank you so much!!
Printable Recipe Card
Peppermint Shortbread Cookies Dipped in Chocolate
Ingredients
- 1 cup butter softened
- ½ cup granulated sugar
- ½ teaspoon peppermint extract
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 2¼ cups all-purpose flour
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- red and green gel food color optional
- 8 ounces semi-sweet chocolate morsels
- 1 tablespoon butter
- ¾ cup crushed peppermint candy
Instructions
- Cream the butter and sugar together in a large bowl until light and fluffy. Beat in the peppermint and vanilla extract.
- Slowly beat in the flour and salt until completely incorporated.
- Divide the dough in half. Tint half with the red food coloring and the other half with the green. *Note - if the dough is too crumbly, add 1-2 tablespoons of cold water per color to the dough and blend.
- Flatten each disc and wrap in plastic wrap. Place the dough in the refrigerator for 30 minutes.
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- On a lightly floured surface, roll each chilled disc out to approximately ¼" thickness. Use a round, floured cookie cutter (1 ½" in diameter) to cut out as many circles as possible. *Note - the scraps can be re-rolled and cut in the same fashion.
- Place the cut cookies onto a parchment lined baking sheet approximately 1" apart.
- Bake in a preheated oven to 10-12 minutes, rotating the sheets halfway through the baking process.
- Remove the cookies to a baking rack to cool completely.
- In a microwaveable bowl, melt the chocolate morsels and the butter on medium temperature, stirring often.
- Dip half of each cooled cookie into the melted chocolate; allowing the excess to run off and then sprinkle the crushed candies on top of the chocolate. Place the cookies on parchment paper or wax paper and allow to sit until the chocolate is set.
Nutrition
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Thank you so much for visiting me today in my Kudos Kitchen. I hope you found something you'll love and that you'll come back and visit me often. There is always room for you around my table!
Should you have any questions or comments regarding anything you've seen here on my blog, please don't hesitate to reach out to me. It is always my distinct pleasure to respond to you just as soon as I possibly can.
Until we eat again, I hope you have a delicious day!!
Nellie Tracy says
I love a good peppermint cookie! These look amazing!
Renée says
They are! I do, too! Thanks, Nellie!!
Sandra says
What a great cause to participate in! Today is my baking day and I was looking for something with peppermint. These shortbread cookies are perfect to add to my cookie tray. Thank you!
Renée says
My pleasure! Enjoy!!
Alice Seuffert says
I'm so lucky to have received your cookies in the swap! They were so delicious! Happy Holidays!
Gingered Whisk says
Lovely cookies! I love peppermint and chocolate together!
Angie Barrett says
The people that got your cookies were very, VERY lucky! I love that they are dipped in chocolate too! oh and can I just tell you how much I LOVE that Mixer wine glass!
Kirsten/ComfortablyDomestic says
How fun and festive are these cookies?! They'd be the star of any cookie tray.
Unknown says
Such beautiful, festive cookies; perfect for the season and the cookie swap ~ Bea @ The Not So Cheesy Kitchen
Nutmeg Nanny says
These cookies are so pretty and festive! I love the red and green dough.
Paula says
Such pretty and festive shortbread and your packaging is lovely. Lucky recipient but at least we have the recipe 🙂 Thanks for sharing Renee.
Erin Dee says
These are so festive! LOVE the bright colors. And that's some cute packaging! The one year I did the cookie swap, there were only two of us in Germany and we each sent our cookies to each other in recycled tupperware. 😉
Nancy Piran says
I loved participating in the cookie swap this year! It was fun! Your cookies look great!
claire @ the realistic nutritionist says
These cookies are amazing! I'm definitely participating next year!
Heather Schmitt-Gonzalez says
Oh, they're so pretty Renee - and your wrapping was beautiful! The ones you received sound scrumptious, as well.
Melissa Bailey says
I participated in the cookie swap too and loved the cookies I got ... I would have loved to get these too 🙂
Paula-bell'alimento says
SO perfect for the holidays! Now I want a cookie!
Martha Pesa says
How wonderfully festive!
Liz Berg says
Oh, these are PURE Christmas! Love these decked out shortbread cookies!
Brenda@SugarFreeMom says
The red and green color is so vibrant and I love the chopped candy cane on the ends, very festive!
Nikki @ NikSnacks says
Those Santas, your glass, and wow---your cookies! All so pretty to look at!
Rebecca says
Thanks for the cookies!