Frosted Peppermint Twist Cookies (Print Version)
Buttery sugar cookies flavored with peppermint and topped with creamy frosting and crushed candy canes.
# List of Ingredients:
→ Cookie Dough
01 - 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
02 - 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
03 - 1/2 teaspoon salt
04 - 1 cup unsalted butter, softened
05 - 1 cup granulated sugar
06 - 1 large egg
07 - 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
08 - 1/2 teaspoon peppermint extract
09 - Red gel food coloring (optional)
→ Frosting
10 - 1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
11 - 2 cups powdered sugar
12 - 2 tablespoons milk
13 - 1/2 teaspoon peppermint extract
14 - Pinch of salt
→ Topping
15 - 1/3 cup crushed peppermint candies or candy canes
# Step-by-step Instructions:
01 - Whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt in a medium bowl, then set aside.
02 - Using an electric mixer, beat butter and granulated sugar in a large bowl until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes.
03 - Add egg, vanilla extract, and peppermint extract to the butter mixture and beat until thoroughly combined.
04 - Gradually add the flour mixture to the wet ingredients, mixing just until incorporated.
05 - Divide dough in half; tint one half with red food coloring and knead until color is even.
06 - On a lightly floured surface, roll each dough half into a 12-inch log. Twist the two logs together, then gently roll into a single log. Wrap tightly with plastic wrap and chill for at least 30 minutes.
07 - Heat oven to 350°F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
08 - Cut chilled dough into 1/2-inch slices and space them 2 inches apart on the prepared baking sheets.
09 - Bake cookies for 10 to 12 minutes until edges are lightly golden. Cool on baking sheets for 2 minutes, then transfer to wire racks to cool completely.
10 - Beat unsalted butter until creamy. Gradually add powdered sugar, milk, peppermint extract, and salt, beating until smooth and spreadable.
11 - Spread frosting over cooled cookies and immediately sprinkle with crushed peppermint candies.
# Expert Advice:
01 -
- The dough is simple enough to make on a Tuesday evening but looks impressive enough for any holiday spread.
- That twisted red-and-white log is secretly delicious to eat raw, which means you'll be taste-testing before they even hit the oven.
- The frosting is silky and not too sweet, which lets the peppermint shine without feeling medicinal.
02 -
- Cold dough makes the difference between cookies that spread into flat puddles and cookies that hold their shape and their stripes.
- Stop mixing the flour in the moment you see it incorporated; one extra ten seconds of mixing changes the texture from tender to tough.
- Crush the peppermint candies by hand or with the back of a knife, not a food processor, so you get irregular pieces instead of fine powder.
03 -
- Room-temperature butter creams into the sugar faster and creates a lighter, fluffier texture in the final cookie.
- Watch the cookies carefully at the 10-minute mark; they continue to bake on the hot sheet even after you pull them out, so slightly underbaked is better than overdone.