These chewy White Chocolate Peppermint Cookies will take you on a trip down candy cane lane! They’re chewy, crispy, and delightfully minty, with the creaminess of white chocolate adding the perfect balance.
Looking for more peppermint recipes? You’ll love this Peppermint Bark Recipe. My Peppermint Cream Bites are always a hit too!
White Chocolate and Peppermint Cookies
Dark chocolate is usually the most common pairing with peppermint, and sometimes milk chocolate too. (These Chocolate Peppermint Shortbread Cookies are the perfect example.)
But I think these White Chocolate Peppermint Cookies prove it’s time to start putting these two flavors together more often!
It adds a creaminess that mellows the peppermint, cutting some of its bite and making it that much more cozy.
Here are some more reasons you’ll flip for this recipe:
- These festive peppermint cookies are perfect for the holidays! Tuck them into a tin with Christmas Tree Sugar Cookies and Homemade English Toffee you’ve got a homemade gift everyone will love.
- This is a recipe full of fantastic contrasting textures. I used my drop sugar cookie dough as a base for these cookies.
- So many holiday cookie recipes require a lot of work, but not these white chocolate chip cookies with peppermint! These are as easy as making my Chocolate Chip Cookies.
- With their creamy peppermint flavor, I guarantee everyone who tries them will love these cookies!
Important Ingredient Notes
You can find the complete ingredient list for these peppermint and white chocolate cookies in the recipe card below. Here are some key highlights.
- Unsalted butter – Let this soften to room temperature so it’s easy to mix with the other ingredients in the dough. Use my guide on how to soften butter quickly.
- Egg yolks – Using just the yolks instead of the whole egg makes for a chewier texture.
- Pure Vanilla extract – Another flavor that helps balance the peppermint. Use my homemade vanilla extract for delicious flavor.
- Crushed peppermint candy – You can crush your own (see the tips later in this post) or buy crushed peppermints in the baking section. Crushed candy canes are a delicious option too.
- White chocolate chips – Be sure to buy a good brand, because they can vary in quality. I like Ghirardelli white chocolate chips.
- White sparkling sugar – is optional. However, it adds a nice texture and sparkle to the tops of these white chocolate peppermint cookies.
How to Make White Chocolate Peppermint Cookies
I prefer using a hand mixer or a stand mixer with paddle attachment for making cookie dough.
Make the Cookie Dough:
- Cream the butter and sugar for 2 to 3 minutes.
- Beat in the egg yolks and vanilla extract.
- Add the all-purpose flour, baking powder, and kosher salt.
- Continue to mix until the dough comes together in a ball.
- Mix in the crushed peppermints and white chocolate chips.
Form the Cookies:
- Drop the dough in 2 tablespoon portions onto baking sheets with parchment paper.
- Flatten each cookie slightly with the palm of your hand.
- Sprinkle the sparkling sugar on top, if you’re using it.
Bake:
- Bake the cookies in a 350ºF oven for 12 to 14 minutes.
- Cool on the pan for 10 minutes.
- Carefully remove the cookies from the pan and transfer them to a wire rack to finish cooling.
Tips and Tricks
- To make your own crushed peppermints, use candy canes (peppermint ones, of course!) or starlight mints. Unwrap them, place them in a ziplock bag, and whack them with a rolling pin to crush them. Be careful when lifting the bag later. The sharp candy pieces can make small holes in the bag. If you move it, peppermint powder will spill out!
- Using a Silpat or parchment paper for these cookies is important. The melted peppermint bits will make the cookies sticky. This is also why I recommend letting them cool on the baking sheet for 10 minutes.
- After removing the cookies from the oven, you can use a spoon to shape the edges a bit so they’re more round.
- Don’t toss the egg whites down the drain! You can pop them in the fridge for a few days to make Christmas Meringue Cookies, or freeze them if you won’t be able to use them that quickly.
- Store white chocolate peppermint cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days. You can freeze these cookies for up to 1 month.
More Peppermint Recipes
- Grandma’s Peppermint Puff Cookies
- Homemade Peppermint Mocha Coffee Creamer
- Chocolate Peppermint Biscotti Recipe
- Chocolate Peppermint Grahams
- Peppermint Cracker Toffee
- Grinch Peppermint Fudge
- Chocolate Peppermint Cheesecake Cake
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Ingredients
- 1 cup unsalted butter softened to room temperature
- 1 ½ cups granulated sugar
- 2 egg yolks
- 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- 2 ½ cups all-purpose flour
- 1 ½ teaspoons baking powder
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- ½ cup crushed peppermint candy, see notes
- 1 ½ cups white chocolate chips
- 2 Tablespoons white sparkling sugar, optional
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper and set it aside.
- In a large mixing bowl, beat butter with sugar for 2-3 minutes until fully combined. Add in egg yolks and vanilla extract, beat until fluffy.
- Add flour, baking powder, and kosher salt. The mixture will be crumbly, continue beating until a cookie dough ball forms. Stop mixing at this point. Add in crushed peppermints and white chocolate chips. Mix just until combined.
- Using a 2 Tablespoon cookie scoop, drop cookie dough onto prepared cookie sheet. Flatten the top of each cookie just slightly (so it is not domed). Sprinkle with a pinch of the sparkling sugar. Bake for 12-14 minutes until edges are just starting to brown. Remove from the oven.
- Allow cookies to cool on the pan for ten minutes, then remove and cool completely on a wire cooling rack.
Notes
- For the crushed peppermint, you can either use candy canes or starlight mints (the crunchy hard candy mints, not the soft & chewy mints). You’ll need about 6-8 candy canes, or 18-20 mints to get 1/2 cup.
- These cookies are sticky after baking! Be sure to use a silpat or parchment paper on your cookie sheet. Also, let them cool for at least ten minutes on the cookie sheet before transferring to the wire rack.
- While the cookies are warm on the cookie sheet, use a spoon to push the edges in to make the cookies appear more circular in shape. This also helps if some of the peppermint candies have melted along the edge of the cookie.
- Save the egg whites to make meringue cookies or white cupcakes!
- Store cooled cookies in an airtight container for up to three days.
- If freezing the cookies, store cooled cookies in airtight container in the freezer for up to one month. Thaw on counter overnight.