Candy Cane Peppermint Kiss Cookies– with crushed peppermint candies in the dough and a peppermint kiss on top, these yummy cookies are perfect for Christmas!
PEPPERMINT BUTTER CHRISTMAS COOKIES
If you love butter or shortbread cookies and also happen to love mint, this recipe is perfect for you! These little cookies just melt in your mouth. If you are looking for a more traditional soft and chewy peppermint cookie, give my Chocolate Chip Peppermint Kiss Cookies a try.
My mom and I experimented and came up with these Peppermint Kiss Cookies a few years ago. They have crushed peppermint candies in the dough, and a Hershey Candy Cane Kiss on the top. If you are a fan of peppermint, you will love these cookies!
They are rolled in sugar, so they have a sparkle to them that is so pretty. They are perfect for Christmas cookie trays, or for gift giving. Just make sure that you let them sit for a couple hours before stacking them, or the kisses will melt into pools. Still yummy, but not quite as pretty!
I shared this cookie recipe at Tatertots and Jello a few weeks ago, but wanted to make sure you didn’t miss it! I am a major fan of anything chocolate and mint, so I love coming up with new recipes that use both flavors.
Christmas naturally screams peppermint to me, so I always stock up on the mint kisses that are only available during the holidays. Of course, I don’t save them only for Christmas- I can eat and bake with them all year long!
Why are there no eggs in the cookie dough?
It is not a typo, there are no eggs in these cookies. They are similar to shortbread, so they are light and tender and just melt in your mouth. If you have trouble getting the dough to stick together, just mix it with your hands till it comes together.
Update 12/2020: A few people have had trouble making these cookies, so here are a few tips to help you troubleshoot.
PRO TIPS FOR MAKING PEPPERMINT KISS COOKIES:
- You want your butter to be barely soft. It is best to let it come to room temperature on the counter. If it is too soft or has melted spots, your dough will be too soft.
- Make sure you chill your dough or your cookies will spread too much when they bake.
- Line your pans with parchment or use ungreased cookie sheets. Greasing the baking sheets causes the dough to spread.
- After placing your kisses on the hot cookies, let them sit on the pan till set, or very carefully move them to cooling racks. If you jostle the cookies before the kisses are set, the kisses will collapse into pools.
MORE HERSHEY KISS COOKIES:
- Peanut Butter Blossoms
- Double Chocolate Kiss Cookies
- Macaroon Kiss Cookies
- Pistachio Cookies
- Cookies and Cream Blossom Cookies
- Mint Truffle Kiss Cookies
- Hershey Kiss Cookie Cups
Here are a few more chocolate mint recipes to try:
- Mint Cookie Crunch
- Andes Mint Chocolate Chip Cookies
- Mint Brownies
- Andes Mint Cookies
- Mint Chocolate Candy
PEPPERMINT KISS COOKIES
Candy Cane Peppermint Kiss Cookies
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 cup butter barely softened
- 1 tsp peppermint extract
- 10 peppermint candies starlight mints
- 2 cups flour
- ½ cup sugar
- ¼ tsp salt
- ½ cup sugar for rolling
- 1 pkg. Candy Cane Hershey kisses
Instructions
- Place the peppermint candies in a ziplock bag and pound them with a mallet or rolling pin till they are finely crushed, set aside.
- Cream together the butter and peppermint extract. Beat in the crushed peppermint candies.
- Whisk together the flour, sugar, and salt, then stir into the butter mixture. Dough will be very stiff, you may need to work it with your hands.
- Cover and chill the dough for 30-60 minutes. Roll in 1” balls, then roll in sugar. Place on parchment lined or ungreased baking sheets.
- Bake at 350° for about 10-12 minutes. Immediately press a kiss in the middle of each cookie.
- Cool for several minutes on the pan before carefully removing to cooling racks, or let cool completely on the cookie sheet.
Notes
Nutrition
If you need a cookie that keeps well, looks beautiful, and melts in your mouth, give these buttery peppermint kiss cookies a try!
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I have a question. I will be making these with kids. Can I use a sugar cookie mix because I am working with kids? I will refrigerate and roll later. Do you think that would word? Trying to start easy with them. Joanne G.
These are more of a shortbread cookie than a sugar cookie, but you could definitely use a sugar cookie mix if you just want something fast. Shortbread cookies hold their shape much better, so I would definitely do a test cookie first to make sure they don’t spread too much. If the cookie does spread too much, you can add more flour to the dough, and try chilling the balls before baking. Good luck!
Can the dough be frozen for use later on? After reading all the comments to, I am skeptical. Skeptical with all the j gradients out on my counter.
Yes, the cookies should work if you freeze the dough first. Most people who were having trouble with the cookies were using chopped peppermint kisses instead of starlight mints or candy canes in the dough. So as long as you don’t make that mistake, you should be just fine!
Such a waste of time! So mad I didn’t read the comments first. Sad to have wasted time and ingredients. I have disappointed kids.
You should consider taking this recipe down with all the comments.
I’ve tested it several times, and it always turns out for me. It has also turned out well for other readers, even though some have trouble. So sorry you were one of the ones that didn’t end up with perfect cookies. 🙁
Mine fell flat. Big waste of time and ingredients! I wish I’d read the reviews first.
So sorry you had trouble. I found out that people were using crushed kisses instead of hard peppermint candies in the dough, and that’s why their cookies were spreading too much. I updated the ingredients to specify starlight mints, and I baked them again to make sure they worked. If you used the hard mint candies, I’m not sure what went wrong. Perhaps you needed more flour? When I try a new cookie recipe, I usually bake a test cookie. I’ve discovered that flour amounts vary greatly depending on how it is measured.
Ours were perfect and highly addictive. Gone in a day.
That’s about how long they last at my house. Haha. So glad they were a hit!
Is it possible not to use extract and peppermint candy? I’m only wanting a mild mint flavor?
You can definitely use less peppermint extract or omit it altogether.
Mine fell flat too. What a bummer!!
I placed kisses on top immediately after baking and each one melted into a puddle. I should have given it 5-10 minutes before that step.
I have made the cherry and pistachio kiss cookies by Kara, I even added baking Soda and powder since the others had it in them, but these were pretty much flatter although I did manage to put the kisses in. I always had to put all of the different cookies in the fridge because the kisses were melting too fast after I put them on the cookie. I was not impressed with this one, sorry.
#recipefail What a waste of time! I should have read the comments before I made these for my daughter’s team Christmas party. Now I am stuck with having to run out to buy store bought cookies.
Our family made two recipies of peppermint cookies and they were so good.Did not fall,we ate them up before Christmas so we had to make them for Santa on Christmas Eve.He left a note asking for our recipie.!Guess we will send it to the North Pole,so he can make and share with his Elf’s.
There is no baking soda or powder in these cookies?
fell flat. disappointed in this recipe.
Mine fell flat too.
These take great and SOOO happy to find an egg free recipe because of allergies, but mine fell super flat and spread. 🙁 Definitely triple checked all ingredients also.
I chilled for 60 minutes too.
Made them last night and I had the same thing happen…its almost like there is an ingredient missing 🙁
My advice is to use the real Hershey’s candy cane kisses cookie recipe on their website! It’s foolproof!
Is the dough supposed to be crumbly? Before u bake?
The dough should be stiff, but not crumbly. You can let it sit at room temperature for a few minutes, or work it with your hands to soften it up a bit if you need to.
Can you keep dough in fridge for a few days?
I know this is an older post, but I have to tell you these cookies are AMAZING! I’ll be making 16 dozen for my church next month. I will say, I tried one when still very warm and it wasn’t as good as once they cooled completely. Tasted of raw flour when warm, but once you let them cool they melt in your mouth and are delicious! I cannot stop eating them.
So glad you enjoyed them Lin! I agree about letting them cool. I like most cookies warm, but shortbread cookies are better served cooled, at least in my experience. I also have a hard time resisting them, they are so good!
After reading the recipe and the comments I was quite surprised there were no eggs or baking powder. When I made my cookies they were very dry, so I added a couple of eggs as well as baking powder to help with the flatness.
They are actually a shortbread recipe, so they don’t call for eggs. The dough should be stiff, that’s what makes them the perfect texture to melt in your mouth after they are baked.
Do these cookies really have no eggs in the recipe?
Nope, no eggs. They are a shortbread type cookie.
I really struggled with this recipe. Could you help me figure out what went wrong? The first batch I forgot to chill and they went flat. I chilled the next batch and they still went flat. I don’t know what was wrong. Do they need to be really cold when I put them in the oven? Thanks for your help!
Darn, I’m sorry you’re having trouble. I’ve never had them go flat, but I know that’s a bummer! If you chilled them for 60 minutes, they should have been cold enough. Another thing you could try is adding a little more flour. I’d start with 2 tablespoons. Then bake just one test cookie to see how it turns out. Differences in elevation and humidity can alter the way baked goods turn out, so sometimes it’s just a matter of trial and error. But if you do test cookies, at least the whole batch won’t be ruined. Hope that helps, and good luck!
I know why they turned out flat!!! Too much butter! When I was making a double batch, I only had 3 sticks of butter instead of 4 but I used what I had & they weren’t flat anymore!
Also, thank you for this recipe!! I used the cookies to raise money for this organization that fights against human trafficking & sold them $5 for a packs of 3. So far I’ve raised more than $300!!
The recipe calls for a cup of butter, which is two sticks. If you used three or four, I could see why they didn’t turn out.
Oops, my bad. I see now that you doubled the recipe. 🙂
Maybe that was the issue? Not all recipes double well.
Do you know about what measurement the crushed peppermint comes out to? I just bought a bag of already crushed candy. Thanks.
It’s hard for me to remember back that far. (I can barely remember last week sometimes.) But I’m guessing it’s about 1/4 cup. 🙂
These look so yummy! I love peppermint. Thanks for linking up to The Creative Exchange. We will be featuring your project this week!