Peppermint Christmas Cookies: A Family Tradition of Spreading Holiday Cheer

Peppermint Christmas Cookies

Both of my grandmothers were gifted bakers but my maternal grandmother Helen was the queen of Christmas cookies.  She would often brag about how many dozen cookies she baked and gave away to her friends, brought to club meetings and had left over for us to eat during the holidays.  When Grams passed away just before Christmas in 2001 she left us two precious gifts.  All her Christmas cards had been carefully written and addressed to her friends and family (but had not yet been sealed or mailed) and she left all the Christmas cookies that she had baked for us to enjoy and cry over during the holidays.  Of the dozen or so varieties she made every year these peppermint balls are my favorite.  They have a lovely pink tint from the crushed peppermint and a sticky surprise filling of peppermint cream.  I always save the few candy-canes left from the tree when I take it down with my baking material and take them out when the Christmas baking season begins.

The peppermint flavor is delicate and not too overpowering.  These cookies hold extremely well and are also good to ship.  Enjoy!

Dough:

1 Cup Unsalted Butter

½ Cup Confectioner’s Sugar (Powdered Sugar)

2 ½ Cups All purpose Flour

½ Cup finely chopped walnuts

1 teaspoon  pure vanilla extract

Filling:

¼ Cup Crushed (pulverized!) Peppermint Candy - such as candy canes

¼ cup Confectioner’s sugar

1 Tablespoon Cream Cheese

½ teaspoon milk

1 drop red coloring (I would not worry if you don’t have this)

To make dough:  Cream butter with sugar.  Gradually add flour, nuts and vanilla.  Mix thoroughly and chill (1 hour should be enough).

Filling:  Combine candy and sugar.  Reserve ½ for topping.  Blend the cream cheese and milk and add to remaining candy mixture.  Mix well.

Remove dough from refrigerator.  Shape into balls about 1” in diameter.  Make a deep hole (I use a tiny measuring spoon to do this) in center of ball and fill with ¼ teaspoon of filling (the one with the cream cheese).  Seal with a  small amount of dough.  Bake on un-greased or parchment paper cookie sheet 350 degrees for 12 minutes.  WHILE STILL WARM roll in remaining candy mixture.