Description
These charming Christmas Candy Cane Cookies are a delightful twist on classic sugar cookies. Featuring a peppermint-infused dough that’s half natural and half vibrantly red, twisted together to resemble festive candy canes, they offer a perfect balance of buttery sweetness and refreshing mint flavor. Lightly coated with granulated sugar and baked to a tender golden perfection, these cookies are sure to melt your heart and brighten your holiday celebrations.
Ingredients
Scale
Dry Ingredients
- 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
Wet Ingredients
- 1 cup unsalted butter, softened
- 1 cup powdered sugar
- 1 egg
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1/2 teaspoon peppermint extract
Additional Ingredients
- Red food coloring (enough to color half the dough)
- Granulated sugar for coating
Instructions
- Preheat Oven: Preheat your oven to 350°F (175°C) to ensure it’s at the perfect temperature for baking your cookies evenly.
- Mix Dry Ingredients: In a medium bowl, combine the all-purpose flour, baking powder, and salt, stirring together to distribute the leavening and seasoning evenly throughout the flour.
- Cream Butter and Sugar: In a separate large bowl, cream together the softened unsalted butter and powdered sugar until the mixture is light and fluffy, creating a smooth base for the dough.
- Add Egg and Extracts: Beat the egg into the creamed butter mixture, then add vanilla and peppermint extracts, mixing well to incorporate the flavors uniformly.
- Combine Wet and Dry Mixtures: Gradually add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients, stirring until just combined to form a cohesive dough without overworking it.
- Divide and Color Dough: Split the dough evenly into two portions. Add red food coloring to one half and knead gently until the color is uniform, leaving the other half plain.
- Form Dough Ropes: For each cookie, take a small portion from both colored doughs, roll each into thin ropes of equal length, and gently twist them together to create the classic candy cane stripes.
- Shape Candy Canes: Shape each twisted rope into a cane shape by forming a curved hook at one end, mimicking the traditional candy cane silhouette.
- Prepare Baking Sheet: Place each shaped cookie onto a baking sheet lined with parchment paper, spacing them to allow room for slight spreading during baking.
- Add Sugar Coating: Sprinkle a thin layer of granulated sugar over the tops of the cookies to add sparkle and subtle crunch.
- Bake Cookies: Bake in the preheated oven for 10-12 minutes or until the edges begin to turn lightly golden, ensuring a tender, melt-in-your-mouth texture.
- Cool Cookies: Remove the cookies from the oven and transfer them to a wire rack to cool completely, allowing them to firm up and maintain their shape.
Notes
- For best results, use room temperature butter to ensure proper creaming with sugar.
- Do not over-mix the dough after adding flour to avoid tough cookies.
- Red food coloring can stain; handle with care to avoid coloring your hands.
- Store cooled cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for up to one week.
- For a stronger peppermint flavor, you can increase peppermint extract slightly, but be cautious as it can become overpowering.
