Description
These festive Candy Cane Cookies feature a delightful blend of creamy butter, tangy cream cheese, and refreshing peppermint extract, rolled into red and white spirals and shaped into charming candy cane forms. Perfect for holiday celebrations, these buttery cookies have a tender texture and a subtle minty flavor that captures the spirit of the season.
Ingredients
Scale
Cookie Dough
- 8 oz unsalted butter (1 cup), room temperature
- 4 oz cream cheese (1/2 cup), room temperature
- 10 oz granulated sugar (1.33 cups)
- 1 large egg yolk
- 2 tsp peppermint extract
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 16 oz all-purpose flour (3.5 cups)
- Red gel food coloring (Americolor Super Red recommended)
Instructions
- Prepare Butter and Cream Cheese: Place the unsalted butter in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment and beat for about 30 seconds until creamy.
- Add Cream Cheese and Sugar: Add the cream cheese to the butter and mix together until combined. Then add the granulated sugar and mix on medium speed for 30 seconds.
- Incorporate Egg Yolk and Flavorings: Add the egg yolk, peppermint extract, and salt, mixing until all ingredients combine smoothly.
- Add Flour: With the mixer running on low, add the all-purpose flour in a steady stream and mix just until the dough comes together without overmixing.
- Divide and Color Dough: Divide the dough in half (about 18 ounces each). Keep one half plain in the mixer. Add red gel food coloring to the other half and mix just until the color is evenly incorporated, turning the dough bright red.
- Roll Out Dough Rectangles: Roll each half between two sheets of parchment paper into a long rectangle approximately ¼” thick, 5″ wide, and 18″ long. If dough is too soft, refrigerate briefly to make it easier to handle.
- Chill and Stack Dough: Chill both rectangles in the refrigerator for 10 minutes. Then carefully stack the red rectangle on top of the white one. Use a rolling pin to gently roll over them, melding the two layers together into a two-toned rectangle about ½” thick, 5″ wide, and 18″ long. Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate until firm, about 45 minutes.
- Cut and Shape Candy Canes: Using a sharp knife, cut thin strips about ½” wide and 5″ long from the rectangle. Roll each strip between your hands to round out edges, then twist gently to create a red-and-white spiral. Curve one end to form a candy cane shape and place on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Repeat with remaining dough, refrigerating if dough becomes too soft.
- Preheat and Chill Cookies: Preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C). Place one baking sheet of shaped cookies in the freezer while the oven heats to chill them without freezing.
- Bake Cookies: Bake the cookies for 12-14 minutes. They should puff slightly, lose their raw sheen, and have lightly golden bottoms without much color change on top.
- Cool and Store: Let cookies cool completely on the baking sheet before transferring. Store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to one week or freeze for up to three months.
Notes
- If the dough feels too soft while shaping, refrigerate it briefly to firm it up and prevent tearing.
- Using gel food coloring is preferred to avoid adding excess liquid and to achieve vibrant color.
- Chilling the formed cookies before baking helps maintain their shape and improves texture.
- For consistent portioning, use a kitchen scale to divide the dough halves accurately.
- Cookies can be stored frozen; thaw at room temperature before serving.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 cookie
- Calories: 110
- Sugar: 7g
- Sodium: 65mg
- Fat: 6g
- Saturated Fat: 3.5g
- Unsaturated Fat: 2g
- Trans Fat: 0g
- Carbohydrates: 13g
- Fiber: 0.3g
- Protein: 1.2g
- Cholesterol: 25mg
