Chocolate Candy Cane Cookies

I have a favorite chocolate cookie recipe that I just love to make. It is so simple and it makes a lot of cookies. Usually I am always experimenting with different types of chocolate chips to put in them. I have used semi-sweet, milk chocolate, white chocolate, peanut butter chips, butterscotch and mint chocolate chips. Because I am a huge mint chocolate fan last Christmas I decided to see if crushed candy cane worked well in these cookies and of course I wasn't let down; they tasted delicious! This year I decided to alter the recipe just a little bit. Instead of adding crushed candy cane throughout the cookies I used mint extract in the recipe and then decorated the tops of the cookies with the crushed candy canes. I think they taste even better this way.




Chocolate Candy Cane Cookies

1 1/4 cup non-hydrogenated margarine
1 cup white sugar*
2 eggs
2 tsp vanilla
2-3 drops of mint extract (add more if you like more of a mint taste)
2 1/2 cups flour
3/4 cup cocoa
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
2 cups of chocolate chips (Instead I used 1/2 cup of crushed candy cane for the top of the cookies)


1. Cream together margarine and sugar.

2. Beat in eggs and vanilla until mixed well. Add drops of mint extract.

3. Combine in a small bowl flour, cocoa, soda, salt.

4. Blend flour mixture into creamed mixture; mix well. If you were adding chocolate chips this is where you would do it. Works great if you mix with your hands.

5. Roll dough into balls and place on cookie sheet. Press dough down with palm of hand and add crushed candy canes to the top of the cookies.

6. Bake in pre-heated oven (350) for 8-10 minutes

Recipe yields 3-4 dozen cookies


*the original recipe calls for 2 cups but you can always half the amount of sugar in any recipe and still get the same results.