Chocolate-Peppermint Cookies, Gingerbread Houses, and a Lovely Gift

Chocolate Peppermint cookies

The scent of cinnamon, cloves, ginger, molasses, chocolate, vanilla, and peppermint have been swirling around my kitchen for the past week.  Dozens of cookies baked, packaged, and given out as gifts.  One of the recipes I made was Chocolate-Peppermint Cookies.  A wonderful chocolate cookie topped with a sprinkle of crushed peppermint candies. It’s a basic chocolate cookie recipe that could easily be changed for other occasions by replacing crushed peppermint with toffee, peanut butter morsels, white chocolate chips, or other toppings.

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Chocolate peppermint cookies

{print recipe, here}

makes about 3 dozen

Ingredients
1½    cups all-purpose flour
½      cup unsweetened Dutch-process cocoa powder
½      teaspoon baking powder
½      teaspoon coarse salt
4       ounces semi-sweet chocolate chips
½      cup {1 stick} unsalted butter
1½    cups sugar
1       teaspoon pure vanilla extract
3       large eggs

peppermint candies or candy canes, coarsely crushed for dipping
{crush enough to make about ¼-½ cup}
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Instructions
preheat oven to 325°F

1.  In a medium size bowl, combine together flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, and salt and set aside.

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Chocolate peppermint cookies

2.  {above left picture} Fill a pot about 1 inch to 1½ inches with water and bring to a simmer.

3.  {above right picture} Melt chocolate and butter in a heatproof bowl set over a pot of simmering water, stir with a metal spoon.  Remove the bowl and let it cool slightly.

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Chocolate peppermint cookies

4.  In a bowl attached to mixer fitted with paddle attachment add chocolate mixture, sugar, vanilla extract, and eggs.  Mix on  medium speed until combined.

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Chocolate peppermint cookies

5.  Reduce speed to low and slowly add flour mixture.

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Chocolate peppermint cookies

6.  Line a baking sheet or another container with plastic wrap.  Using a 1-inch ice cream scoop, form mounds of dough onto the lined baking sheet, cover with plastic wrap, and refrigerate until firm, about 30-45 minutes.  The dough could be stored in the freezer for a later use, up to 3 months.

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Chocolate peppermint cookies

7.  Enclose candy canes/peppermint candies in a sealable plastic bag and crush them with a small hammer {or another tool such as a rolling pin and a meat tenderizer mallet-smooth side}.  Transfer crushed candies from the plastic bag to a bowl.

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Chocolate peppermint cookies

8.  Dip the top of the cookie dough in crushed candies to coat.  Place cookies on baking sheet lined with parchment paper, spacing about 2 inches apart.

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Chocolate peppermint cookies

9.  Bake cookies, about 11-12 minutes {2-3 minutes longer for crispy cookies}.  Let cool on baking sheet on a cooling rack.  Store in an airtight container at room temperature up to 3 days.

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Chocolate peppermint cookies

clockwise-top:  molasses cookies, chocolate crinkle cookies, and chocolate-peppermint cookies

A small variety of cookies to serve as treats or after dinner dessert.

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Chocolate peppermint cookies

Tie a simple ribbon around this bowl of cookies and it will be ready as a gift to give someone special.

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gingerbread houses

 

 

gingerbread houses

The finished gingerbread house decorated by Hannah.

I always look forward to our annual gingerbread house decorating party {I wrote about it last December 2013, here}.  It was a fun time for our kids and their friends to be together and create one-of-a-kind gingerbread houses covered with their favorite candies.

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gingerbread houses

Grace’s gingerbread house

A total of 28 houses were baked, assembled and decorated with more than enough candies left for another round of decorating.

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 lovely gift title

gingerbread houses  & sugar cookies

I wanted to share this beautiful sweet gift my family received from our friends, Linda and Liz and their families on the day of the gingerbread house decorating party… Thank you!  The packaging was lovely and I wanted to share this idea with you.  The cookies were arranged on the cake stand and wrapped with clear plastic wrap with a tag attached to the base of the stand.  A wonderful and thoughtful gift to give at Christmas time or other occasion.

 

gingerbread houses  and sugar cookies

Sugar cookies from Linda and Liz surrounded by a sweet mess of candies and icing from the gingerbread house decorating party.

Have a Wonderful Holiday Season and Merry Christmas!

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{print Chocolate-Peppermint cookie recipe, here}


posted by Kay

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