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Candy Cane Cookie Recipe

I have several favorite Christmas cookie recipes, and this one is definitely earning a spot on the list this year! These have the delicious peppermint flavor of an actual candy cane, and they are a fun option of cookies to bake with kids because shaping them into the candy canes is so much fun.
Course: Dessert
Cuisine: American
Keyword: Christmas, cookies
Author: Lacy

Ingredients

  • 1 tsp. Vanilla Extract
  • 1 tsp. Peppermint Extract
  • 1 Large Egg
  • 1 tsp. Baking Powder
  • ½ tsp. Salt
  • 1 Cup Softened Butter
  • 1 Cup Granulated Sugar
  • ¼ Cup Powdered Sugar
  • 2 ½ Cups All-Purpose Flour
  • Red Gel Food Coloring
  • 2 Tbsp Granulated Sugar
  • 2 Standard Candy Canes

Instructions

How To Make Candy Cane Cookies

  • In a large mixing bowl, cream together the softened butter and sugar. Then add the egg and the peppermint and vanilla extracts. Mix this with an electric mixer until it’s fully mixed. 
  • In a separate bowl, combine the flour, salt, baking powder, and powdered sugar.
  • Add the flour mixture into the butter mixture, and mix well.
  • Take your dough out of the bowl and form it into a log. You’re then going to divide your dough log into 2 equal halves.
  • Next, take one side of your dough log and add some red food gel to the dough. I like to use a toothpick to transfer it.
  • Fold your dough over the food color gel and knead the dough until the it’s a consistent red for you. If the dough needs more coloring, you can add more and knead it again until you get what you’re looking for.
  • Now you should have 1/2 of your dough the original white of the recipe, and half of it red. Make both of these into balls, and wrap them in plastic wrap. 
  • These now need to chill in the refrigerator for at least 4 hours, or overnight works as well. 

How To Make Candy Cane Cookies Topping

  • Start by crushing your 2 candy canes.
  • In a small bowl, mix together your crushed candy canes along with your 2 Tbsp. of sugar.
  • Set this bowl of the topping aside.

How To Form The Candy Cane Cookies

  • Preheat your oven to 350°F.
  • Remove your dough from the refrigerator. You’re going to take your teaspoon and scoop one tsp of each color of dough for each cookie.
  • When you have one red and one white, you’re ready to twist them together! Once they’re twisted together, shape them like a candy cane and place them on your baking sheet.
  • I like to line our cookie sheets with parchment paper or foil before baking for easy clean-up. This is especially important for this recipe as the candy cane bits can be a mess! If you use foil, be sure to turn it shiny side down.
  • Bake your candy cane cookies for 8-10 minutes.

Adding The Candy Cane Cookie Topping

  • When you get your candy cane cookies out of the oven, sprinkle them with the topping mixture immediately!
  • Then allow the cookies to sit on the cookie sheet for about 3 minutes before moving them to a wire rack to cool completely.
  • Switch out your parchment paper or foil between batches of the cookies so the candy cane bits don’t melt.
  • These delicious and adorable Christmas cookies can be stored in an air tight container and are particularly delicious when served with hot cocoa!