Homemade Thin Mint Cookies

Around Christmas time last year, I experimented with these cookies a lot. I baked a lot of different chocolate cookie dough to find the one I liked the best. I tried dipping them in white chocolate, all chocolate and half of each. The winner was the dough in this recipe rolled thin, cooked a little crispy, and dipped in dark chocolate.  They are an amazing combination of chocolate and mint and won rave reviews from anyone who tried them.  If you ask me, they are much better than any commercially produced version and I know what went in them!

 These cookies do require a little more work than your basic drop cookie and can be a bit messy with the chocolate dipping, but they are oh so worth it.  The cookies can be made and frozen for a few weeks so they are ready when you need them. But don’t think that them being in the freezer will stop you from eating too many- they taste delicious frozen too (a little personal experience 🙂 ). 

There are a couple of ways to dip them. You can dip one side in the melted chocolate and then even and thin the chocolate with an offset spatula. Then place it chocolate side up on a pan lined with waxed or parchment paper. Chill that until set and then repeat process on the other side of the cookie. The other method, which coats the cookie all at once (my preference), is to place the cookie right in the chocolate and make sure it is fully coated by pressing it into the melted chocolate with a fork. Lift it out of the chocolate by resting it on the fork, tapping the fork on the side of the bowl to get off the excess. Use the offset spatula to get excess off top of cookie and gently wipe the bottom of fork on the side of bowl. Place carefully on a prepared pan. You can also temper the chocolate if you want, so it sets better at room temperature and has a better finished look.  For a festive look, sprinkle crushed candy cane pieces on the chocolate before it sets.

Homemade Thin Mint Cookies

yields about 5-6 dozen 2 inch round cookies

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Ingredients

  

For the Cookie Dough

• 1½ cups all-purpose flour
• 2/3 cup Dutch-process cocoa powder
• 3/4 tsp of baking powder
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 12 Tbsp unsalted butter at room temperature
• 1½ cups confectioners’ sugar
• 2 eggs
• 1 tsp pure peppermint extract
• ½ tsp vanilla extract

For the Chocolate Coating

• 16 oz of good quality bittersweet chocolate
• Crushed candy cane for decorating optional

Instructions

 

To make the cookies

• Whisk the flour, cocoa powder, baking powder and salt in a small bowl to blend and set aside.
• In the bowl of an electric mixer, combine the butter and sugar. Beat on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, 2-3 minutes. Add the egg, peppermint extract, and vanilla and blend well. With the mixer on low speed, add the dry ingredients and mix only until incorporated and no streaks remain. Scrape dough out onto plastic wrap and form the dough into a disc, wrap tightly with the plastic wrap and refrigerate until firm, 1-2 hours or overnight.
• Preheat the oven to 325˚ F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat. On a lightly floured work surface (don't worry flour will come off), roll the dough out to a little less than ¼-inch thick. Cut out 2-inch rounds with a cookie cutter and place on the prepared baking sheet. Bake 10-12 minutes, until set. Transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

For the Chocolate Coating

• Line baking sheets with wax or parchment paper. Place the chocolate in a heatproof bowl set over an inch or two of simmering water- the bottom of the bowl should not touch the water.
• Melt chocolate, stirring occasionally until smooth or you can temper the chocolate so it sets better.
• Dip the bottom side of each cookie into the chocolate. Use an offset spatula to smooth off the excess. Place chocolate side up on the prepared baking sheets. Place in the refrigerator to chill until the chocolate has set. Repeat process with the top of the cookie. OR Alternately- to coat entire cookie at once- place the cookie right in the chocolate and make sure it is fully coated by pressing it into melted chocolate with a fork. Lift it out of the chocolate by resting it on the fork, tapping the fork on the side of the bowl to get off excess. Use the offset spatula to get excess off top of cookie and then gently wipe bottom of fork on the side of bowl. Place carefully on prepared pan.
• If desired, sprinkle crushed candy candy cane on top of cookies before chocolate is set.

Notes

If you really don't like rolling out cookie dough- you can chill the dough till a little firm- roll it into 2 logs the size you want your cookies and wrap in plastic wrap. Then refrigerate until really firm- even overnight. Slice into between 1/8 and 1/4 inch circles with a sharp knife. You may have to gently press them into a better circle shape with the roller after cut.

 Cookie base adapted from Annies Eats originally from Martha Stewart