Rich chocolate flavor, soft and chewy texture, and bright peppermint candies all come together in these easy Chocolate Chocolate Chip Peppermint Cookies! This is a one bowl recipe that is perfect for the holidays but also right at home brightening those bleak winter months. The chocolate chips and crushed peppermints bring delightful texture to a delicious cookie treat!
If you love the combination of chocolate and peppermint, these cookies are for you. You get a double dose of chocolate with a rich, brownie-like cookie and soft chocolate chips plus the refreshing blast of minty goodness from peppermint candies. It’s a perfect pairing!
These cookies are perfect for cookie exchanges during the holidays or as part of a holiday party spread. Looking for more holiday recipe inspiration? Try this Cranberry Syrup with Vanilla or Buttered Pecans recipe next! Try the Chocolate Chocolate Chip Walnut Cookies version for that double chocolate flavor all year round.
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Ingredients
I include ingredient notes here when I think they’ll be helpful, including ways to source, any preparation tips, or why I've chosen a particular ingredient. Be sure to check out the recipe card below for the full list of ingredients and their quantities!
- Salted Butter - We keep salted butter on hand at all times, so I developed this recipe with that in mind. I use salted butter from Costco most often. If you only have unsalted butter simply add ¼ teaspoon of table salt to your wet ingredients when making the dough.
- Brown Sugar - This recipe has both brown and granulated sugars, but a much higher proportion of brown sugar which adds a hint of molasses flavor and keeps the cookies extra soft and chewy.
- Vanilla Extract - Vanilla has a special ability to make chocolate taste richer and more aromatic, so I always include it in chocolatey recipes.
- Egg + Egg Yolk - Adding an egg plus an additional egg yolk makes for a richer cookie with a softer brownie like texture.
- All-Purpose Flour - The moderate protein content in all-purpose flour is perfect for a soft and chewy cookie texture.
- Dark Cocoa Powder - Use a Dutch processed dark cocoa powder here, like Hershey’s Special Dark or King Arthur’s black cocoa powder, for the richest chocolate flavor. Dutch process cocoa is treated to reduce the acidity and produces a smoother chocolate flavor.
- Baking Powder - Because of the dutched cocoa, a bit of acidity is needed for lift in these cookies. Adding baking powder means you are adding both baking soda and tartaric acid to your dough at the same time!
- Chocolate Chips - Use semisweet chocolate chips or chocolate chunks to get your double dose of chocolate in these cookies.
- Peppermint Candies - Use starlight peppermints, candy canes, or buy pre-crushed peppermint candy during the holiday season.
Instructions
Gather up one large mixing bowl and a wooden spoon; that’s all you’ll need to whip up these one-bowl chocolatey cookies!
Prepare a baking sheet by lining it with parchment paper and setting it aside for later. Crumpling up the parchment paper and then flattening it out again can help it mold to the shape of your pan better.
Melt the butter in a microwave-safe mixing bowl. If you prefer, you can melt the butter in a small saucepan on the stove and transfer it to a mixing bowl.
To the melted butter, add the brown sugar, granulated sugar, vanilla, egg, and egg yolk. Mix the ingredients well.
Sprinkle the flour, cocoa, and baking powder over the top of the wet ingredients. Stir until the mixture comes together in a dark, smooth dough.
Add in the chocolate chips or chunks and stir well to distribute them evenly in the dough.
Cover the dough with plastic wrap and chill it for at least one hour.
While the dough is chilling, add the candies to a zip bag and crush them with a mallet or rolling pin over a cutting board until you have pieces about the size of small pebbles.
Pass the candies through a mesh strainer, if desired, to separate the pieces of crushed candy from the peppermint “dust”. You can skip this step and your cookies will just have a less-defined candy topping but still taste delicious. Save that peppermint dust for sprinkling over hot chocolate and whipped cream!
Once the cookie dough has chilled sufficiently, preheat the oven to 350F. Roll generous tablespoons of dough into a ball (I love a cookie scoop for consistent portions), and then roll the top of the ball into the crushed candy
Place the dough balls on the prepared baking sheet with two-inch spacing.
Bake the cookies for 9-11 minutes, until the center of the cookies start to look matte and not shiny and the edges are firm. Once you remove them from the oven, let them rest on the pan for an additional two minutes before transferring to a cooling rack.
If you are baking two sheets of cookies at the same time, place one in the center rack and one on the lower rack. Bake for five minutes and then rotate the pans from rack to rack and flip the pans from front to back before baking for an additional five minutes.
Allow the cookies to cool completely and share with family and friends!
Substitutions and Variations
The substitutions listed below have been tested in this recipe and work well. If you successfully make any other ingredient substitutions, let us know in the comments!
- White Chocolate Chips - Swap white chocolate chips for semisweet chocolate to change up the flavor and provide pretty white chocolate contrast to the dark cocoa cookies.
Equipment
A standard half sheet pan (18-inch by 13-inch) has plenty of room to bake a dozen of these cookies and leave room for spreading. Half sheet pans are super versatile and great for making sheet pan dinners like Sheet Pan Peanut Chicken, too!
Make This Recipe Kid Friendly
These cookies are a perfect part of a cookie exchange or cookie party, but they are also great for snacks and after-dinner treats! My kids love theirs with a tall glass of milk to balance that rich cocoa flavor.
Storage
Store the cooled cookies in an airtight container for up to five days at room temperature. They won’t last that long, though! It’s important to store these cookies separately from any other baked goods. You don’t want your Peanut Butter and Jelly Bars to taste like peppermint!
Make-Ahead Options
If you want to get ahead on baking, you can make the cookie dough, roll it into balls, and freeze the balls on a sheet pan before transferring them to a zip storage bag. Once you are ready to bake them, allow them to sit in the refrigerator overnight or at room temperature for an hour or so before rolling in the crushed peppermint candy and baking as directed.
Top tip
Wondering how to get that perfectly round shape to your cookies? Find a drinking glass or a cookie cutter that is larger than the cookies. Once they come out of the oven and have rested about one minute, place the glass over the cookie and swirl in a circular motion about 5-6 times. The cookie will bounce around in a circle inside the glass and get a more round and crinkled appearance. Does it affect flavor? Not at all, it’s just for looks and you can skip this step altogether.
FAQ
Dutch processed cocoa beans are washed with an alkaline solution that reduces the acidity of the cocoa powder, giving it a darker color and a smoother chocolate flavor.
Using a standard cocoa powder will produce a cookie that is less fudgy with a tamer chocolate flavor, but otherwise will bake up well.
In this recipe, the extra brown sugar, egg yolk, and melted butter all contribute to the soft texture of the cookies. Baking the cookies only until they are firm on the edges and not shiny in the centers will also help keep the cookies soft and chewy.
More Chocolate Recipes
If you love chocolate, don't stop at this cookie recipe! Try these delicious options, too:
New Cookie and Bar Recipes to Try
Cookies and dessert bars are perfectly sweet treats to share with family and friends. Here are some other recipes to bake up for someone special:
Try It and Share
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Recipe
Chocolate Chocolate Chip Peppermint Cookies
Ingredients
- ¾ cup salted butter (melted)
- 1 cup brown sugar (packed)
- ¼ cup granulated sugar
- 2 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 large egg
- 1 large egg yolk
- 1½ cup all-purpose flour (192 grams)
- ½ cup dark Dutch-process cocoa powder (50 grams)
- 1½ teaspoon baking powder
- 1 cup semisweet chocolate chips (140 grams)
- ⅓ cup peppermint candies (crushed, 15-18 candies)
Instructions
- Melt the butter in a large microwave-safe bowl.
- Stir in the brown sugar, granulated sugar, vanilla, egg, and egg yolk.
- Add in the flour, dark cocoa powder, and baking powder. Stir until combined.
- Stir in the chocolate chips until they are evenly distributed.
- Cover and chill the cookie dough for at least 1 hour.
- Crush the candies in a zip bag on a cutting board using a mallet or a rolling pin.
- Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line a sheet pan with parchment paper.
- While the oven is preheating, roll a generous tablespoon of dough into a ball and dip the top of the ball into the crushed candies, pressing to adhere.
- Space the cookies apart by 2 inches on the pan.
- Bake the cookies for about 9-11 minutes, until the center starts to look matte and the edges are firm. Remove the pan from the oven and let the cookies rest on the pan for 2 additional minutes.
- Transfer the cookies to a cooling rack. Seal in an airtight container.
Nutrition facts are sometimes provided below and are calculated using an online calculator. With specific brands of ingredients and additions, omissions, or substitutions the nutrition facts may change. We encourage you to use your own nutrition facts caculator to obtain the most accurate nutrition facts for your meal.
Cassie Waltman says
These are perfect cookies for brightening up a now day at home with the kids!