Soft and chewy Peppermint Sugar Cookies with a creamy peppermint-flavored frosting and crushed peppermint candy on top are the perfect Christmas cookie!
Peppermint Sugar Cookies
These soft, chewy, peppermint-studded cookies are a holiday favorite. With crushed peppermint in the dough, peppermint-flavored frosting, and a sprinkle of crushed candy on top, they’re a peppermint lover’s dream.
Despite all the peppermint, the flavor is balanced, and the cream cheese frosting adds just the right touch of sweetness.
The texture is ultra-chewy with crisp edges and a soft, melt-in-your-mouth center.
Let’s Talk Peppermint
- Peppermint Crunch Sprinkles® or Candy Cane Crunch® are perfect toppings. I prefer Wilton’s® peppermint sprinkles, but crushed candy canes work just as well.
- If you don’t have pre-crushed peppermint, use a mini food processor or strong blender to crush candy canes or peppermint candies.
Quick Tip
No food processor or blender? No worries. Put unwrapped peppermint candies in a sealed double bag (to avoid ripping), then smash with a rolling pin or meat mallet until finely crushed.
I add peppermint extract to both the dough and frosting—just make sure it’s peppermint extract, not mint, or it’ll taste like toothpaste!
Peppermint extract strength can vary by brand, so taste and adjust as needed. I use McCormick’s® in these cookies.
Peppermint Sugar Cookies Tips
- Use melted butter that’s cooled to room temperature for chewy cookies; if it’s too warm, the cookies can turn greasy.
- Spoon flour into the cup, then level it with a knife to prevent dense cookies.
- Chill the dough to add flavor and control spreading; skipping this step changes the texture.
- Shape cookie dough into tall, narrow balls for a thick, chewy center and crispy edges.
- Right out of the oven, press the edges in with the back of a spoon or spatula to enhance the crispy edges and chewy center.
How To Make Peppermint Sugar Cookies
- Make Dough: Combine all the wet ingredients. Add dry ingredients on top. Mix until just combined.
- Chill: Roll dough into balls, coat in sugar, and chill for 1 hour.
- Bake: Preheat oven to 325°F. Bake and cool.
- Frost: Beat frosting ingredients together until smooth. Frost cooled cookies, sprinkle with crushed peppermint, and enjoy!
- Store: Keep in an airtight container in the fridge; best within 2-3 days.
Storage
Storing Peppermint Sugar Cookies
Freeze the dough, not the baked cookies! Place dough balls on a tray to freeze, then move them to a sealed container for up to 3 months. (Make frosting fresh; it doesn’t freeze well.)
To bake: Bake directly from frozen, adding a few extra minutes. Bake until edges are lightly browned and centers stay soft.
Quick Tip
Download the FREE Sugar Cookie Kit Printables!
More Delicious Cookies Recipes
- Oatmeal Cookies (or Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies)
- Thumbprint Cookies with raspberry jam filling
- Peppermint Bark Cookies with a brownie mix!
- Frosted Honey Graham Cookies with a graham cracker cookie base
- Avalanche Cookies no baking required!
Soft Peppermint Sugar Cookies
Equipment
- Sheet pan
- Parchment paper or silicone baking mat
- Cooling Rack
Ingredients
Cookies
- 16 tablespoons unsalted butter 1 cup, melted and cooled
- 1-1/2 cups granulated sugar
- 1 large egg
- 1 large egg yolk discard or save the white for another use
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1/4 teaspoon peppermint extract
- 1/2 cup peppermint crunch sprinkles see note 1
- 3 cups all-purpose flour see note 2
- 3/4 teaspoon salt
- 2 teaspoons cornstarch
- 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
Optional Sugar Coating
- 1/4 cup granulated sugar
- 1/4 cup white sparkling sugar or additional granulated sugar
Peppermint Cream Cheese Frosting
- 1 (8-ounce) package cream cheese full-fat, softened to room temperature
- 8 tablespoons unsalted butter 1/2 cup, softened to room temperature
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla bean paste or 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 teaspoon peppermint extract
- 1/8 teaspoon salt
- 3-1/2 cups powdered sugar
- Additional crushed peppermint for topping cookies
Instructions
- Optional sugar coating: Stir granulated sugar and white sparkling sugar together in a small bowl (optional but gives the cookie a nice crunchy exterior and additional sweetness).
- Place the melted butter in a large bowl and allow it to cool to room temperature before adding sugar. (If the butter is hot, it will melt the sugar and cause greasy cookies.) Add granulated sugar and stir with a wooden spoon until smooth and incorporated, about 3–4 minutes. Add the whole egg, egg yolk, vanilla extract, and peppermint extract. Stir until smooth.
- Add the peppermint crunch sprinkles, flour, salt, cornstarch, baking powder, and baking soda to the wet ingredients. Mix until just combined. Do not overmix the dough.
- Roll tall balls of dough, each using a full 2 tablespoons of dough. If you have a kitchen scale, the balls of dough should be about 43 grams. Roll the dough balls generously in the granulated/white sparkling sugar mixture. Cover and refrigerate dough balls for 1 hour and up to 8 hours.
- Preheat oven to 325°F. Place dough balls on a parchment or silicone-lined sheet pan, spread far apart (I only bake 6 cookies at a time; they spread a lot), and bake for 9–14 minutes. Watch carefully, being sure to not overbake. (Slightly underbaked sugar cookies are the best! I pull them out at 11–12 minutes.) Remove and immediately press the edges of the cookie toward the center with the back of a spoon or metal spatula. Let stand on sheet pan for 2 minutes before removing to a cooling rack with a spatula.
- Frosting: Prepare frosting while the cookies bake. In a large bowl, beat together the softened butter and cream cheese until completely smooth. Add vanilla, peppermint extract, and salt. Beat to combine. Add powdered sugar and beat until frosting is smooth (it will seem like you need more liquid, but just keep beating; it will come together!)
- Frost each completely cooled cookie and sprinkle with crushed peppermint. Store any leftover cookies in an airtight container in the fridge. Cookies are best enjoyed within 2–3 days.
Recipe Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
I’ve made this recipe twice except I didn’t use peppermint oil (didn’t have any) and instead I added about 1c of white chocolate chips with the crushed peppermint pieces. The cookies came out perfect each time, this is definitely a recipe I’ll be coming back to.
Delsih! So thrilled you enjoyed these! Thanks Sydney! 🙂
These were perfect for my cookie exchange at work! My family loved them too. The melted butter tip
makes a noticeable difference.
Thank you for sharing!
I am so thrilled to hear this! Thanks so much Amanda! 🙂
i made these cookies for my friends and they tasted amazing, my friends loved them! although theres one thing i have to say which is the dough didn’t spread as much as you suggested it would, so I ended up with thick cookies and had to flatten them a bit. other than that they’re great
I’m so glad you enjoyed! Thanks Reese! 🙂
yummy recipe, thanks!
Thanks so much Kona! 🙂
I love the concept of peppermint/candycane sugar cookies but these really didn’t turn out well. They taste like baking soda and they barely spread out, so the end result was very raised rather than a fairly flat cookie. Thanks for the idea though, I might try using a different dough recipe and use the peppermint extract + crushed candy canes.
Did you change the recipe at all? That hasn’t been my experience making these ever. Would love to trouble-shoot with you!
I followed the recipe close to exactly, and I know I didn’t accidently add more baking soda/powder than was called for. The only thing I changed was the chilling, I chilled the dough cut into batches rather than chilling the individual balls of dough, because I didn’t have the fridge space. The issue seems to be the amount of baking powder/soda, but I didn’t change any of the proportions.
Are both baking agents fresh?
Since it uses a cream cheese frosting, do these need to be refrigerated?
AWESOME recipe, Chelsea, can’t wait to bake some of these! BUT…annot figure out where to click to download the printables!
Please explain & thanks!
I hope you love these! Directly below the recipe in big blue letters it says: Download the FREE Sugar Cookie Kit Printables (click that to print them! Enjoy 🙂
Loved these cookies!! They came out so well!! Def will bake again.
So happy you enjoyed them Sam! 🙂
These cookies are so cute Chelsea! Perfect Christmas gift!
These are adorable. I love pink and red for christmas 🙂