In the very early days of this blog, I buried one of my favorite cookie recipes deep in a post on Chili Cashew Chicken. Now, to be fair, that chicken is really quite good, but these cookies are the recipe that I find myself most often searching for on the blog. They are a soft, brownie-like chocolate cookie that only becomes more irresistible when rolled into bite-sized proportions.
As I was thinking about Christmas cookies, along with, it seems, half of the planet this week, these cookies were the first thing that came to mind. The discovery of candy canes at the grocery store this week (holy goodness gracious have I been looking everywhere for them) prompted me to give these beloved cookies a Christmas make-over.
They are still just about the simplest cookies around, and perhaps one of the most lovable things about them is how well they freeze. If ever there was a secret weapon for holiday entertaining/party-going/cookie-swapping, it’s frozen cookie dough.
Roll the dough, dip it in sugar, freeze on a cookie sheet, and transfer to a bag. Even the easy peppermint glaze and crushed candy canes can be made in advance (refrigerate the glaze; freeze the crushed candy canes).
While the chocolate cookies are fantastic on their own, they were made to be bedazzled with candy cane crumbles.
With Christmas cookie season in full swing, here are a few other beauties that I would love to get at a cookie swap this year!
Claire’s Mexican Chocolate Snickerdoodles (mmm, spice and chocolate are so good together)
Sally’s Soft Gingersnaps with Butterscotch Chips (love that butterscotch chip pillow on top)
Ashley’s Brown Butter Ginger Cookies with Honey Mascarpone Cream (sandwich cookies with brown butter and ginger = holiday perfection)
Joy’s Red Velvet Black and White Cookies (Joy took these to Ina Garten’s house, so you know they’re good)
Bite-Sized Chocolate Brownie Cookies with Candy Cane Topping
Ingredients
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 3/4 cup cocoa powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 1/4 cups unsalted butter, softened
- 2 cups sugar (plus an extra 1 cup sugar for rolling cookies)
- 2 tsp. vanilla
- 2 large eggs
For topping:
- 1 1/2 cups powdered sugar
- 4 Tbs. hot water
- 1/4 tsp. peppermint extract
- 5 candy canes
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- Combine flour, cocoa, baking soda and salt in a bowl and stir until evenly combined.
- Beat butter and 2 cups sugar until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Add vanilla and eggs and gently mix for another minute. Add dry ingredients and mix until just combined.
- Pour 1 cup sugar into a flat-bottomed bowl or plate. Roll small balls of cookie dough (a teaspoon is about how much you'll want to use for each) between your palms and then roll each ball in sugar to fully coat. Place rolled dough balls on a cookie sheet, leaving a couple inches of space between them. (If the dough is too soft to easily roll, put it in the refrigerator for 10 minutes to help it firm up.)
- Bake just until cookies have spread out slightly but are still moist, 7-8 minutes. Remove from the oven and cool for 5 minutes on the cookie sheet before transferring to a wire rack. (Cookies will be fragile when they come out of the oven but will remain tender after completely cooled.)
- To make the peppermint glaze, whisk together the powdered sugar, hot water, and peppermint extract in a small bowl until smooth and pourable (add more water, 1 tsp. at a time, if necessary to reach a pourable consistency). Put the candy canes in a plastic bag and pound with a rolling pin until crushed into small pieces.
- When the cookies have cooled, drizzle the tops with peppermint glaze and immediately sprinkle each cookie with crushed candy canes.
Notes
Recipe adapted from "Grammy's Chocolate Cookies", published in Martha Stewart Living, February 2000
Oh my goodness I’ve never thought to freeze the dough already rolled that’s sheer brilliance! I will most gladly swap you a basket of Mexican chocolate snickerdoodles for a basket of these! YUM!
Oh you’ve got to try it! It’s almost TOO easy – a bag of rolled cookie dough is a tempting thing to have in the freezer. Have you ever had Mexican hot chocolate? Your cookies totally reminded me of how delicious it is!
Yum, I love chocolate brownie cookies! I need to buy some candy canes… I’ve been holding out so far this year but I think it’s time… : )
Ashley recently posted..Pomegranate Cranberry Sangria
Well great minds clearly think alike with our brownie cookies today! I love the peppermint addition to yours and that they look so chewy. Like I want to sink my teeth into them!
Averie @ Averie Cooks recently posted..Quintuple Chocolate Fudgy Brownie Cookies
Haha – I know! I thought the same thing! I’m a huge fan of soft chewy cookies that are much more like brownies, so I’m happy to have lots of options to try! Next time though I’ll load them up with all sorts of chocolate like yours!
ARe these not the cutest cookies in the entire world? The adorable icing on top, the candy canes – the perfect chocolate cookie recipe. They look SO soft and chewy. Pinning these, they are SO festive!!! 🙂
sally @ sallys baking addiction recently posted..salted caramel pecan chocolate chip cookies.
So pretty! I have peppermint candy canes still left over from last Christmas, so I am looking for ways to use them. 🙂
Julia | JuliasAlbum.com recently posted..Chopped salad with spinach, pomegranates, mango, apples, and pears
I love the way they look, but I always have candy canes left over from year to year, Julia! This would be a great way to use them!
I just found this recipe from a Google search. I am making them right now!! Thank you for the recipe (PS I love your blog)
Thank you, Emily! Hope you liked them as much as I did!