Peppermint Meltaways

My holiday cookie baking has been pretty non-existent this year. Work, never-ending home renovations, sick kiddos, etc. I did manage to make these scrumptious Peppermint Meltaways and loved them so had to share the recipe!

These cookies have a very crumbly texture. You will see that they don’t contain any eggs which does make them a bit more delicate than other cookies. The addition of corn starch makes them super soft and gives them that melt in your mouth texture. I still love these for cookie trays, but just a word of caution in case you plan to ship them! I actually like to store these in the fridge because of the buttercream frosting, but it is not required!

Recipe Tips and Suggestions:

• Make sure the butter is truly at room temperature before creaming together with the powdered sugar. It will not combine well if it’s too cold, and you also don’t want to use melted butter here. The butter should be softened.
• Don’t skip the chilling step. Plan for it ahead of time. This step will help you form the cookies before baking. The dough is too soft right after mixing. While 30 minutes does the trick, I’ve also let mine chill for an hour or more which helps them not to spread while baking.
• You can bake these cookies ahead of time and freeze if needed, but I recommend holding off on frosting them.
• Although it is not required, I do find that these cookies keep best in the fridge due to the buttercream frosting. I also think the chilling makes the cookies less crumbly in general. Up to you though!
• You can control how peppermint-y these cookies are. I use peppermint extract in the cookie and frosting and of course, the crumbled candy canes on top add to that flavor. I use a small amount in each, but if you want less peppermint flavor, you can skip it in the cookies and/or frosting or use even less!

Print

Yield: 2 dozen

Peppermint Meltaways

Prep Time 20 minutes

Cook Time 11 minutes

Additional Time 30 minutes

Total Time 1 hour 1 minute

Peppermint Meltaways - These simple cookies are so soft and literally melt in your mouth! Topped with fluffy peppermint frosting and crushed candy canes!

Ingredients

For the cookies:

• 1 cup salted butter, softened
• 1/2 cup powdered sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon peppermint extract
• 1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/2 cup cornstarch

For the frosting:

• 4 tablespoons salted butter, softened
• 4 tablespoons milk
• 1/4 peppermint extract
• 1 1/2 cups powdered sugar
• 2/3 cup crushed candy canes

Instructions

1. In a mixing bowl, cream together the butter and powdered sugar. Mix in the peppermint extract, flour, and cornstarch until just combined. Cover the bowl and chill for at least 30 minutes.
2. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Remove dough from the fridge. Use your hands or a small cookie scoop (about 1-1/2 tablespoons) and roll dough into 1-inch balls. Place 2 inches apart on a lined cookie sheet. Bake 9-11 minutes or until the bottoms are lightly golden. Let cool for 1-2 minutes and transfer to cooling rack to cool completely.
3. In a small mixing bowl, beat together the butter, milk, extract, and powdered sugar until smooth. If frosting seems to thick or you want to drizzle frosting instead of having a thicker frosting, add additional milk, 1 tablespoon at a time until frosting reaches desired consistency.
4. Once cookies are cooled, frost and sprinkle crushed candy canes on top. Store leftover cookies in airtight container. Chill to keep them longer.

Notes

Recipe slightly adapted from Taste of Home

Nutrition Information:

Yield:

24

Serving Size:

1
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 181Total Fat: 10gSaturated Fat: 6gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 3gCholesterol: 26mgSodium: 80mgCarbohydrates: 23gFiber: 0gSugar: 13gProtein: 1g

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