Peppermint Hot Chocolate Brownie Cookies
Peppermint Hot Chocolate Brownie Cookies are soft, fudgy cookies with the rich flavors of hot chocolate, crushed peppermints and brownies! Great for the holidays and especially perfect for cookie swaps!
I am not trying to brag, but have you ever seen such perfectly perfect cookies? The texture, the crackle, the peppermint chips! Brownies are always and forever at the top of my list of favorite desserts, but I have a serious weakness for cookies.
Combining the two things was basically next level dangerous, but in the best way.
Great for Cookie Swaps
Peppermint Hot Chocolate Cookies were part of a giant cookie sprint wherein I mailed somewhere in the neighborhood of 5 dozen cookies to various corners of the country. These cookies are PERFECT for cookie swaps, but they are also really perfect for mailing because the texture holds up really nicely.
They stay moist (? sorry for the trigger word!) without things getting weird or mushy, and when you open the box, a GORGEOUS waft of chocolate and peppermint hits you right away.
The outside of these cookies stays crisp, while the inside is soft and chewy, like a brownie. There's a secret to that perfect texture, and it might surprise you!
The Secret to Perfect Peppermint Hot Chocolate Cookies
The secret to perfect hot chocolate brownie cookies ... Is shortening.
Don't throw things at me - y'all know how much I love butter. But hear me out.
Butter has water. Shortening does not. The water in butter increases the gluten production when you are baking anything, because when you heat water, you get STEAM. Shortening is all fat, and so it reduces the chemical reaction and gives you SOFTER COOKIES.
Shortening also gives you height because it has a higher melting point than butter. That means taller cookies.
Baking science!
This White Chocolate Cranberry Pound Cake is also made with shortening if you are looking for other ways to use it up.
What Kind of Peppermint Chips Can I Use?
I use these Andes Peppermint Crunch Baking Chips. As soon as I see them in stores I snatch up all the bags I can carry, because not everywhere has them, and they are usually only sold certain times of the year.
If you are unable to find those and aren't interested in waiting on an Amazon Prime box to show up on your porch, you can try crushed candy canes. Lots of readers have had success with that if you poke through the reviews and comments.
Sometimes it's easier to find the Peppermint Crunch candies and chop them into bits yourself. I love the red and white in my holiday cookies but if you can't find them the regular Andes mint baking chips will work well. too. Also -- when in doubt, check Big Lots.
Can I use regular cocoa powder instead of dark cocoa powder?
You can, but I'd say that the results might not be exactly what you are hoping for, OR what you are seeing here in these photos. Since this recipe calls for baking SODA and not baking powder, you CAN safely substitute lighter or "regular" cocoa powder without affecting how the science works.
If you have any sort of cocoa powder hanging around, you should ABSOLUTELY make this Bourbon Spiked Hot Chocolate . It's rich and creamy, made from scratch, and spiked with bourbon to make all your winter days warmer. You can leave the bourbon out and this is also just a really SOLID from scratch hot chocolate recipe.
Need a few quick and easy tips on How to Ship Baked Goods? I wrote a whole tutorial on it. I have lots of treat-mailing practice.
Looking for more Cookie Swap Cookies?
- The Grinch Stole Christmas Cookies - my personal favorite!
- Chocolate Chip Blondie Cookies
- Mint Chip Chocolate Chip Cookies
- Pistachio Pudding Cookies
- Hot Cocoa Cookies
- Snowball Cookies
Peppermint Hot Chocolate Brownie Cookies
Peppermint Hot Chocolate Brownie Cookies are chewy, rich Holiday cookies with the delicious flavors of peppermint and hot chocolate. These have the texture of a brownie in cookie dough form, come together simply, and are so delicious!
Ingredients
- ⅔ cup shortening
- 1 ½ cups light brown sugar, packed
- 1 tablespoon water
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 2 eggs
- 1 ½ cups all purpose flour
- ⅓ cup dark cocoa powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon baking soda
- 1 cup peppermint crunch baking chips *See Note*
- 1 cup semi sweet or dark chocolate chips
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 375°F.
- In a large bowl cream the shortening and brown sugar. Mix in the water and vanilla. Then add the eggs. Mix until combined.
- In another bowl whisk together the flour, cocoa powder, salt, and baking soda. Gradually add it to the sugar/egg mixture.
- Stir in the peppermint crunch baking chips and the semi-sweet chocolate chips.
- Drop by rounded tablespoons onto an ungreased baking sheet, about 2 inches apart.
- Bake for 7 - 9 minutes (8 was exactly perfect for me). Let the cookies cool slightly before removing them to a wire rack to cool completely.
Notes
1. The Peppermint Crunch Baking Chips can be elusive! Sometimes it's easier to find the Peppermint Crunch candies and chop them into bits yourself. I love the red and white in my holiday cookies but if you can't find them the regular Andes mint baking chips will work well. too. Also -- when in doubt, check Big Lots.
2. I've found that it's important to keep this cookie dough cool. If the dough gets too warm (like if your kitchen gets too warm while you're baking) the cookies spread out and are more crisp than chewy. I like to refrigerate the dough either in the bowl or portioned out onto the cookie sheet until ready to bake.
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Nutrition Information:
Yield:
36Serving Size:
1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 120Total Fat: 6gSaturated Fat: 3gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 3gCholesterol: 13mgSodium: 50mgCarbohydrates: 15gFiber: 1gSugar: 10gProtein: 1g
I love this recipe. I usually double the recipe and make mint ones for me. During Christmas time I like the red and white mint chips, but use the green Andes ones the rest of the year. I substitute the mint chips for caramel chips and little caramels for my husband. Caramel vs mint is a great debate in my house! They are both delicious.
On the butter vs shortening, my grandma would use half butter and half shortening in almost all of her cookies. Not sure why, but they were always amazing!
Thanks for sharing the recipe. ?
Thanks so much, Valerie! I LOVE the caramel idea! Totally trying it.
Mine went really thin too! I had the batter in the fridge overnight, I'm not sure what happened. They didnt cook really well in the middle either so I left them in the oven a little longer.
Aside from being very thin though they look good.
It’s just days before Xmas, and with two kids in tow, I could not locate the peppermint chips. I’m going to chop Hershey’s candy cane kisses! Should work.
Target carries Andies Peppermint Crunch candies this time of year and i just throw them in my food processor. They work perfect!
Great tip! Thank you Sam!
Boy these cookies didn't turn out for me. Turned hard right out of the oven and could not scrap off pan. I would use foil on pan if I would try again. I had the dough in the fridge for an hour and the batter still spread really thin. Definitely a Pinterest fail for me.
Hey Kelly. Sorry to hear that. Based on the many successes that I and others have had with this recipe I'd say you did something wrong, though. For the batter to be thin something went terribly awry.
Mine did the same thing as Kelly's. Had to scrape off the pan . Will try again another time
Can you make the dough ahead of
Time and refrigerate?
Yup! You sure can!
do these cookies freeze well? or can you freeze them?
Not sure. I have never tried!
Yes, I made these and froze them. They freeze very well!
Thank you!!!! I never freeze anything and people ask about that all the time. I appreciate you answering!
I love making these with the "holiday mint" m&m's! They were so popular last year, I'm making them again this year 🙂
What a fun idea! Thanks so much, Maddy!
Can you use regular cocoa powder or does it have to be dark cocoa powder? Thanks so much!
Regular cocoa powder won't give you the same rich color or flavor. It will work but won't be quite the same.
Love the comment and answer page. Thanks. I too, wondered about crushing candy canes. Those we can get here, the ones in the recipe, not so much. (we are small here! ha )
I live in a small town, too! I usually have to go someplace weird - like Big Lots - to find the peppermint chips. And when I find them I buy a BUNCH. So glad candy canes are working well for people though! Another good thing to try is the candy cane Hershey's Kisses chopped 🙂
These cookies are FANTASTIC!!! I used crushed candy canes and they were perfect. Love love love the texture of these... fudgey and toffee-like. These are my new go to cookies for the holidays. Absolute perfection!!!
Thank you so much, Paula! We love them too! Super glad you enjoyed them ???? Happy Holidays!
So is butter ok to use instead of shortening
these are delicious!! i made them with vanilla bean paste and crushed up candy canes and they came out great! thank you!
Hi Keith! These are seriously one of my FAVORITE cookies ever. Glad you loved them, too! Good call on the vanilla bean paste!
Great recipe! Thank you! Added this to my annual bake-a-thon I do..... I did use butter flavored crisco shortening sticks, and because I wasn't about to trudge back through the nasty snow to the store, I substituted the peppermint baking chips with pre-crushed peppermint candy pieces I buy in bulk for some other recipes. So far it's a hit. 🙂
Hey Sarah! Glad to know the crushed peppermint candy works! Thanks so much for the feedback! LOVE the holiday bake-a-thon
Would butter flavor Crisco sticks work? I've not used shortening in baking, as you commented - yes, butter please! - but I think I must make these cookies!
I've not used them -- I'm a butter girl. But usually that's a pretty good swap 🙂
If you can't find the above, can you just use crushed candy canes?
Candy canes are hard and these Andes peppermint baking pieces are soft. I don't think I'd suggest candy canes, but you could look for something that has a similar texture -- like the Candy cane Hershey's Kisses.
I just tried these last night and I used crushed up candy canes. They taste amazing but the candy cane bits melt into the dough rather than there being chunks of crunchy candy in it.
Fun tip! Thanks, Michelle!
Yes, that is what makes them so good
I thought that’s what made them great! I only use crushed candy canes!
I️ did!