These Peppermint Sugar Cookies are a soft and chewy peppermint flavored drop sugar cookie topped with the best smooth peppermint frosting, and crushed peppermint candies on top! The cookie brings the classic holiday flavor of peppermint with an easy, and delicious cookie that has the perfect festive touch.
These soft and chewy peppermint filled cookies are one of my favorite Christmas treats. They are loaded with peppermint and candy cane flavor in both the cookie and and the frosting, and are a peppermint lover’s dream come true!
While that sounds like a lot of peppermint, I promise its the perfect balance of peppermint flavor, and is not too overwhelming. Just the perfect sweet peppermint and vanilla flavor throughout both, to balance the flavor, and give it a lovely peppermint flavor in every bite! Without tasting at all like toothpaste.
Why make these cookies
- Festive Peppermint Flavor – The refreshing, and sweet flavor of peppermint in the cookie, frosting, and candy cane pieces on top make these cookies perfect for the holiday season, or peppermint lovers year round.
- Quick and Easy – These drop style peppermint cookies are made without any chilling, just mix, scoop and bake. You’ll be baking the cookies in less than 10 minutes, and you can be enjoying them in less than 1 hour.
- Versatile – These cookies are great for holiday parties, cookie exchanges, gifting to neighbors, or satisfying your late night sweet tooth calling.
Ingredients Needed
This is a quick overview of the ingredients you’ll need for this Peppermint Sugar Cookie Recipe. Specific measurements and full recipe instructions are in the printable recipe card below.
- unsalted butter – I use unsalted butter to control the amount of salt in the recipe. If you are using salted butter cut the added salt from the recipe in half.
- granulated sugar – we only use white granulated sugar in this recipe for the classic sugar cookie flavor
- eggs – one egg and an egg yolk,
- vanilla extract – adds a nice vanilla flavor to the cookies
- peppermint extract – adds a nice peppermint flavor to the cookies and frosting, don’t use mint or spearmint extract
- all purpose flour – spoon and level the flour into the measuring cup (or weigh it with a scale) for the most accurate results.
- crushed candy canes – you can crush up your own candy canes, or buy Peppermint Crunch Sprinkles or Candy Cane Crunch.
- baking powder and baking soda – gives the perfect amount of lift, without too much spreading
- salt – balances the sweetness
- powdered sugar – to bulk up, and sweeten the frosting
- heavy cream – helps the frosting get its fluffy texture
How to make Peppermint Frosted Sugar Cookies
Step 1: Cream the butter and sugar in a large mixing bowl, or the bowl of a stand mixer for a couple of minutes, until the mixture is light in color. Add in the egg, egg yolk, vanilla extract, peppermint extract and mix until just combined.
Step 2: Add in the dry ingredients. Add the flour, peppermint candies, baking powder, baking soda and salt to the wet ingredients and stir together until just combined and you have a nice soft dough.
Step 3: Scoop the dough into 1.5 TBS sized portions and roll them into balls. Roll the balls into a bowl of granulated sugar. Place them onto a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper, at least 2 inches apart, to leave room for the cookies to spread.
Step 4: Bake the cookies. Bake the cookies in the pre-heated oven until the tops are crinkly, the edges are set, and just lightly golden on the sides. The tops will barely look set, and may look underdone. Let the cookies cool on the cookie sheet for a few minutes, then transfer to a cooling rack to cool completely.
Step 5: Make the Frosting. Beat the butter until smooth, then add in the powdered sugar until combined. Add in the heavy cream, vanilla extract, peppermint extract, and a dash of salt. Mix until combined, then beat another few minutes until smooth and fluffy.
Step 6: Frost the Cookies. Spread, or pipe the frosting over the top of the cookies. Sprinkle the tops with more crushed peppermint, and enjoy!
Tips and Tricks
- Room Temperature Ingredients: Bring the butter and egg to room temperature, to allow them to mix easily into the cookie dough, and to make sure everything incorporates evenly.
- Carefully measure the flour – Make sure to spoon and level the flour so you don’t end up with too much flour, altering the texture of the cookies. Spoon the flour into the measuring cup, then use the flat side of a butter knife to smooth the flour off at the top.
- Uniform size – Keep the cookies a uniform size by using a medium cookie scoop, or weighing out the cookie dough. This will ensure the cookies bake evenly.
- Do not over bake the cookies – You don’t want to keep baking them until they look super done (they might even look raw in the middle) you want to remove the pan from the oven when the edges start to turn golden brown. The cookies will continue baking as they cool on the pan.
Storage Instructions
The frosted cookies can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 5 days. Leave the cookies out for a couple hours to let the frosting set, then place layers of parchment paper between layers of cookies if stacking them.
You can also freeze the cookies for up to 2 months. Let them thaw at room temperature for a couple hours before enjoying.
These Peppermint Sugar Cookies are such a fun, and festive cookie that’s perfect for the holiday season and more! With their delightful peppermint flavor and beautiful appearance they’re destined to be a hit!
More Cookie Recipes
Peppermint Sugar Cookies
Ingredients
For Peppermint Sugar Cookies:
- 1 cup unsalted butter (softened)
- 1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
- 1 large egg
- 1 large egg yolk
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1/4 tsp peppermint extract
- 3 cups all purpose flour
- 1/2 cup crushed candy cane pieces
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1 tsp salt
- additional granulated sugar for rolling
For Peppermint Frosting:
- 1 cup unsalted butter (softened)
- 3.5 cups powdered sugar (sifted)
- 3-4 TBS heavy cream
- 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
- 1/4 tsp peppermint extract
- 1 dash salt
- 1/2 cup crushed candy cane pieces.
Instructions
For Peppermint Sugar Cookies:
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Line two cookie sheets with parchment paper, or silicone liners, and set it aside.
- Add the butter and sugar to a large mixing bowl (or the bowl of a stand mixer) and beat them together for about 2 minutes, until the mixture is light and creamy. 1 cup unsalted butter, 1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
- Add in the egg, and yolk, vanilla extract, and peppermint extract and stir them into the mixture until combined. 1 large egg, 1 large egg yolk 1 tsp vanilla extract, 1/4 tsp peppermint extract
- Add in the flour, candy cane pieces, baking powder, baking soda, and salt and stir it all together until you have a nice soft cookie dough. Scrape the bottom and sides of the bowl as needed. 3 cups all purpose flour, 1/2 cup crushed candy cane pieces, 1 tsp baking powder, 1/2 tsp baking soda, 1 tsp salt
- Scoop the dough by 1.5 TBS portions and roll them into balls. Roll the balls in a small bowl full of additional granulated sugar. additional granulated sugar for rolling
- Place the cookie dough balls at least 2 inches apart on the prepared baking sheets. Bake the cookies for 10 to 12 minutes, or until the tops are crinkled and the edges are just lightly golden.
- Let the cookies cool for 5 minutes on the cookie sheet, then transfer them to a cooling rack to cool completely.
For Peppermint Frosting:
- Add the butter to a stand mixer with a paddle attachment, or large mixing bowl with a handheld mixer. Beat it for 1 to 2 minutes until smooth. 1 cup unsalted butter
- Add in the powdered sugar, one cup at a time, mixing on low speed until each cup is mixed in completely. Scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl as needed. 3.5 cups powdered sugar
- Add in the heavy cream (starting with 3 TBS), and the vanilla extract, peppermint extract, and salt. Mix on medium speed until everything is well combined. 3-4 TBS heavy cream, 1/2 tsp vanilla extract, 1/4 tsp peppermint extract , 1 dash salt
- Mix the frosting for another 2 to 3 minutes at medium speed until the frosting is smooth and fluffy. Add a little more powdered sugar, or heavy cream as needed to get the right consistency.
- Spread the frosting onto the cooled cookies, and sprinkle the tops with additional candy cane pieces.
Notes
- Room Temperature Ingredients: Bring the butter and egg to room temperature, to allow them to mix easily into the cookie dough, and to make sure everything incorporates evenly.
- Carefully measure the flour – Make sure to spoon and level the flour so you don’t end up with too much flour, altering the texture of the cookies. Spoon the flour into the measuring cup, then use the flat side of a butter knife to smooth the flour off at the top.
- Uniform size – Keep the cookies a uniform size by using a medium cookie scoop, or weighing out the cookie dough. This will ensure the cookies bake evenly.
- Do not over bake the cookies – You don’t want to keep baking them until they look super done (they might even look raw in the middle) you want to remove the pan from the oven when the edges start to turn golden brown. The cookies will continue baking as they cool on the pan.
Can’t wait to try these! However, I usually weigh my ingredients so looked at the metric measures. They seem WAY off so I will convert from US customary measures myself. Just wanted to mention incase anyone else plans to rely on metric measures.
Oh, I just checked and Im not sure why my measurements were so off. I fixed that! I think the measurements were showing for a half batch on accident!