Holiday Baking: Peppermint Mocha Cookies

Hope everyone has had a wonderful holiday! I've been so off my game this year and since I wasn't planning to ship any cookie gifts to my family and friends, I didn't bake anything special until the other night. I had picked up Andes peppermint crunch baking chips earlier this year and have been dying to use it since. With the holiday drinks out in full force, I wanted to make a Starbucks inspired peppermint mocha cookie and was lucky to discover Tracey's blog!

My butter didn't come to complete room temperature, so my dough ended up being a little crumbly. I recommend putting the dough in the fridge for a good 30 minutes before scooping and dip the top of the dough in a plate filled with the peppermint baking chips before baking.



Peppermint Mocha Cookies
recipe from Tracey's Culinary Adventures

2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
2 tablespoons instant coffee granules
2 teaspoons cornstarch
1 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup (2 stick) unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 cup packed light brown sugar
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1 large egg plus 1 egg yolk, at room temperature
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 teaspoon peppermint extract
1 1/2 cups peppermint baking chips
1/2 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
Jumbo marshmallows, cut in half (optional)

Preheat oven to 350 F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.

In a medium bowl, sift the flour, cocoa powder, instant coffee granules, cornstarch, baking soda, and salt together. Cream the butter and both sugars on medium speed until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Beat in the egg and egg yolk, and then the vanilla and peppermint extracts. With the mixer on low, gradually add the dry ingredients, beating just until combined. Mix in the peppermint baking chips and chocolate chips.

Bake for 8 minutes and add half of the marshmallow. Bake an extra 3 minutes or until the edges of the cookies are set (don't overbake!). Transfer the baking sheets to wire racks and let the cookies cool for a few minutes then remove the cookies to the wire rack to cool completely.