Description
These Candy Cane Cookies are a festive and flavorful holiday treat featuring peppermint-flavored red and white dough twisted into candy cane shapes. Soft yet slightly crisp, they offer a delightful peppermint and vanilla taste, perfect for holiday celebrations and sharing.
Ingredients
Scale
Dough Ingredients
- 1 cup (2 sticks, 8 ounces) unsalted butter, at room temperature
- 1 cup (200 g) granulated sugar
- 1 1/2 teaspoons peppermint extract
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 large egg
- 2 3/4 cup (385 g) all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon liquid red food coloring
For Topping
- 1 egg white
- 2 tablespoon sparkling sugar
Instructions
- Make the Dough: Place the butter, sugar, peppermint extract, vanilla extract, baking powder, and kosher salt in the bowl of a stand mixer. Beat until a paste forms and clings to the side of the bowl. Scrape down the sides and beat in the egg until absorbed. Add the flour and beat until just combined with no dry streaks of flour.
- Color the Dough: Remove half the dough from the bowl. Add the liquid red food coloring carefully to the remaining dough and mix on low speed until the color is evenly distributed.
- Chill the Dough: Pat each piece of dough into a disk, wrap tightly in plastic wrap, and refrigerate for at least 3 hours or overnight to firm up.
- Prepare for Shaping: Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat. When ready, the dough should be firm but pliable; if too hard, let it warm a few minutes to become easier to shape.
- Shape the Cookies: Pinch off a 1-inch piece of white dough and roll it into a 5-inch rope. Repeat with a red dough piece of the same length. Place both ropes side by side and twist them together, then curve the top to form a candy cane shape. Place on the baking sheet and repeat, spacing cookies about 2 inches apart.
- Apply Egg Wash and Sugar: Beat the egg white with 1 tablespoon water until foamy. Brush the top of each shaped cookie with the egg white wash, then sprinkle evenly with sparkling sugar.
- Bake the Cookies: Bake in a preheated oven at 350°F (175°C) for 8 to 10 minutes or until edges are barely brown. Remove from oven and let cool on the baking sheet for 10 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.
Notes
- Peppermint-flavored red and white dough makes a tasty, striking holiday cookie.
- Do not let dough warm too much when shaping to prevent it from becoming too soft to handle.
- Cookies can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature for up to two weeks.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 cookie
- Calories: 111 kcal
- Sugar: 6 g
- Sodium: 36 mg
- Fat: 5 g
- Saturated Fat: 3 g
- Unsaturated Fat: 2 g
- Trans Fat: 0 g
- Carbohydrates: 14 g
- Fiber: 0 g
- Protein: 2 g
- Cholesterol: 24 mg
