Pepper Some Festive Fun Into Your Holiday Recipes This Year
For celebrating the most wonderful time of the year, we gathered three recipes below to tempt your tastebuds with one of the season’s most popular ingredients. The star player? Peppermint. From Peppermint Snowball Cookies to Chocolate and Peppermint Christmas Bark to Easy Peppermint Hot Chocolate, we’re whipping up a seasonal surprise to delight everyone on your list.
Peppermint Snowball Cookies (24 cookies)
Ingredients
- 1 cup unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
- ½ cup confectioners’ sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 cup walnuts, finely chopped (can substitute with pecans, hazelnuts or almonds)
- 6 ounces white chocolate
- 3-4 tablespoons crushed candy canes (about 2-3 small canes)
Directions
- Make the dough
- Cream the butter and sugar together using a stand mixer or in a large mixing bowl with a hand mixer on medium speed until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes.
- Add vanilla and beat on medium until incorporated.
- Gradually add the flour and beat on low speed until combined.
- Add walnuts and beat until incorporated.
- Turn the mixer to high speed and beat for 1-2 minutes until dough becomes more breadcrumb like and less dry (You should be able to easily shape the dough into a ball using your hands).
- Shape the cookies
- Line two half sheet baking pans with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat.
- Scoop out a tablespoon of dough and roll into a 1-inch ball with your hands, placing an inch apart on the baking sheet.
- Once the baking sheet is full, transfer to the refrigerator and chill for one hour.
- Bake
- Bake cookies in a 350-degree preheated oven for 15-18 minutes until they are golden brown on the bottom edges.
- Allow cookies to cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes, then transfer to a wire cooling rack to cool completely.
- Melt chocolate
- Melt the white chocolate in a small bowl. Melt it by placing the bowl on a steamer basket over a small pot of boiling water, or melt in the microwave in 30 second increments, stirring between each increment until melted and smooth.
- Coat cookies
- Dip the top of each cookie into the white chocolate and place back on the wire rack. Sprinkle crushed candy canes on top.
- Allow the chocolate to harden and set overnight at room temperature, or transfer the wire rack to the refrigerator to allow the chocolate to harden and set quickly in about 10 minutes.
- Enjoy!
Easy Peppermint Hot Chocolate (2 servings)
Ingredients
- 2 cups milk
- 1 cup milk chocolate chips
- 1 large mint-flavored candy cane, crushed and divided
- Whipped cream for topping (optional)
Directions
- Bring milk to a simmer over medium heat.
- Turn heat down to low and add chocolate and half of the crushed candy cane.
- Whisk until chocolate and candy cane has melted, about 3-4 minutes.
- Pour hot chocolate into two cups and top with whipped cream and the remaining crushed candy cane.
- Enjoy!
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