Peppermint bark is one of those treats that you really don’t find any other time of year, so I can’t refuse it when offered. Unless it’s the Friday before winter break. Then, there are ungodly amounts of food and chocolate floating around school from everyone’s holiday parties, presents, and other edible goodies for sharing. By the end of the day, even the guys were saying that they couldn’t eat another cookie. Seriously, when was the last time you heard that coming from a teenage boy?!
I included these cookies in my Christmas gifts, along with gingerbread men and some Nutella rice krispie treats I whipped up at the last minute. The peppermint bark cookies – chocolate sugar cookies (the dough was incredibly sticky, I had to keep adding flour) with white chocolate and candy canes on top – definitely stole the show. It’s very similar to straight up peppermint bark in flavor and texture, but I think you can get away with eating more of the cookies (I won’t tell anyone, I promise).
I know it’s Christmas Eve and your holiday baking is probably done, but if you aren’t sick of sugar yet, make these on a snowy day. I hope everyone has a wonderful Christmas spending time with your friends and family – see you in 2013! (my graduation year oh my gosh finally)
Recipe: Peppermint Bark Cookies
Ingredients
- 1½ cups all-purpose flour
- 2/3 cup Dutch-process cocoa powder
- Pinch of salt
- 12 tbsp. (6 oz.) unsalted butter, at room temperature
- 1½ cups confectioners’ sugar
- 2 large eggs
- 1 tsp. peppermint extract
- ½ tsp. vanilla extract
- 10 oz. good quality white chocolate, finely chopped
- Crushed candy canes or peppermint candies
Instructions
- Whisk flour, cocoa powder and salt in a small bowl; set aside. In the bowl of an electric mixer, combine the butter and sugar. Beat on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, 2-3 minutes.
- Blend in the egg, peppermint extract, and vanilla. With the mixer on low speed, add the dry ingredients and mix just until incorporated and no streaks remain. Form the dough into a disc, wrap tightly with plastic wrap and refrigerate until firm, 1-2 hours.
- On a lightly floured work surface, roll the dough out to about ¼-inch thickness. Sandwich the dough between two sheets of parchment or wax paper and freeze for 10 minutes.
- Preheat the oven to 325˚ F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or silpat. Cut out shapes with a cookie cutter and place cut outs on the prepared baking sheet. an inch apart Bake 10-12 minutes, just until set. Let cool on the baking sheet about 5 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
- Line baking sheets with wax or parchment paper.
- Melt the white chocolate using the double boiler method (heatproof bowl set over a few inches of simmering water) or in the microwave. Use an offset spatula to spread a layer of white chocolate on top of each cookie and sprinkle immediately with crushed candy cane pieces before the chocolate sets. Let the chocolate set before storing in an airtight container or packaging for gifts.
Number of servings (yield): ~24 cookies
Adapted from Annie’s Eats