White Chocolate Peppermint dipped Chewy Chocolate Cookies!
This year when I went onto Pinterest & typed in “Christmas Cookies” THIS was the trending recipe. I think its obvious why!! They really are beautiful looking cookies. There’s something about the dark chocolate cookie dipped in white chocolate that makes them really stand out.
I usually am not a chocolate cookie person. But these..holy cow I WILL be making them every single year going forward!!! They are absolutely delightful- Crisp edges, soft chewy centers with just the right amount of peppermint flavor without being overkill. They were always the first to go on the cookie platter every time I made one.
Its also worth noting that if you DO love chocolate cookies- this recipe would be an excellent base for a double chocolate chip cookie recipe! You could leave the mint out and swap it in for vanilla and stir in a cup or two of chips. I think they would turn out awesome. (In fact I think I’m going to give that a go myself and post them in the future.)
Better Batter Gluten Free Orginal Blend
This flour blend continues to amaze me. It can do so many things better than most other blends that I have tried. I cant live without for my bread recipes & have found it works exceptionally well in cookies too!
Lately I have been ordering it from the Better Batter website directly. When they sell out- they tend to restock pretty quickly. Check back within a day or two if they are sold out when you look. I buy it in bulk now (Up to 40 lbs at a time) as I cant risk running out. I use it in too many recipes that we love.
What if you cant get your hands on it? This may be the case if you live outside the US. My friend Nichole from Gluten Free on a Shoestring has figured out a mock recipe for better batter. Her version should work great in this recipe! The owner (Naomi) of better batter has confirmed that the mix is similar to the official version.
Butter
You can make these cookies with regular salted butter If dairy isn’t a concern for you. IF you are making them dairy free like I did please use Earth Balance Butter Sticks. You may try other brands but know that there is a lot of variety brand to brand and they don’t all perform the same. Earth balance is the best when it comes to mimicking how real butter works.
Organic Cane Sugar
Believe it or not there is a difference between regular cane sugar and organic. Organic tends to be a bit courser whereas regular is ground super fine. The finer the sugar the more the cookies spread. I tend to always work with organic and so therefore my recipes are perfected to spread the right amount using that. If you swap it out for regular your cookies may spread too much.
To make the cookies Corn Free
Just use a brand of corn free baking soda!
I know you’re going to ask me if you can use another gluten free flour blend.
I have been finding with cookies that swapping King Arthur Measure for Measure gluten free flour works pretty well! Recipes that rely on sugar/butter to spread with minimal liquid behave pretty similar between the two brands of flour. So I think it would be a safe experiment. I cant speak for other brands though- but please feel free to experiment.
Do I need to chill the dough?
No! Now if your butter melts COMPLETELY by accident before adding it to the bowl then sure you may want to cover the mixing bowl and stick the dough in the fridge for 30 minutes. But, otherwise don’t worry about it. Chilling the dough if the butter isn’t melted will result in the cookies spreading a little less.
Can I freeze the cookie dough?
Sure! I haven't tried it out but I cant see why it would be an issue. But here’s the big BUT- I don’t recommend baking the cookie dough frozen. Oven temperature changes would need to be made to help them spread enough and since I haven’t tested that out I cant give you specific instructions. I would pre-scoop the dough. Freeze it in balls. Then then when you want to bake place the balls on your lined cookie sheet & let them thaw out for 30-60 minutes until they have softened. You can always do a test batch and throw 1-2 in the oven to see if they spread enough. If not- let them thaw out some more. I have noticed a slight difference in how the cookies spread/crinkle when made right away vs waiting a little. I prefer how they look baked immediately. But its a subtle difference that doesn’t make any difference in the taste/texture.
White Chocolate Peppermint dipped Chewy Chocolate Cookies
Ingredients
- 1 Cup Softened Butter (slightly softened)
- 1 1/4 (250 grams) Organic Cane Sugar
- 1 Cup (117 grams) Brown Sugar
- 2 Large Eggs
- 2 Tsp Vanilla Extract
- 1 Tsp Peppermint Extract
- 1 1/3 cups (250 grams) Better Batter Gluten Free Original Blend
- 1 cup (95 grams) Cocoa Powder
- 1 tsp Baking Soda
- 1/2 Tsp Salt
- 16 ounces White Chocolate (regular or dairy free)
- 1/4 Cup Crushed Peppermints
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line 2-3 (depending on size) baking sheets with parchment & set aside.
- Add to the bowl of a stand mixer (Or using a large mixing bowl with a hand mixer) cream the butter, cane and brown sugar until a bit fluffy and combined.
- Add in the eggs, vanilla and peppermint extract. Beat again until smooth.
- Pour in your flour, cocoa butter, baking soda and salt. Mix until a smooth cookie dough forms.
- The cookies turn out best if you scoop the dough immediately onto the cookie sheets spacing them out by 1 1/2 inches so that they have room to spread. (I used standard sized pans and did 12 cookies per pan.)
- Bake one pan at a time on the middle rack. For super soft chewy cookies I recommend baking for 8-9 minutes (they will seem super underdone but then will collapse and finish cooking/firm up as they cool and turn out perfect!) For crispier cookies bake them for 10-12 minutes. They will also seem underdone when you remove them from the oven & they will collapse and finish cookies/ firm up as they cool.
- Place the second tray in the oven and repeat! Following with a 3rd if needed. Allow them to cool completely before removing them from the pan! After the cookies have cooled for 45-60 minutes- make the toppings. Crush/ chop peppermint candy into small pieces. Melt the chocolate in a glass bowl in a microwave by heating for 1 minute- then giving it a stir. Repeat with 30 second intervals stirring well between each round until fully melted (most brands wont take more than 1 minute and 30 seconds).
- Dip half of each cookie into the melted white chocolate being sure to allow excess to drip off. Place on clean parchment & sprinkle with crushed peppermint candy. Repeat with all of the cookies until finished. Allow the chocolate to become firm and then store at room temperature or in the freezer for another day.
Notes
Use a cookie scoop that makes each cookie about the size of 1 rounded Tbsp!
To get your butter the perfect temperature I recommend placing butter straight from the fridge into the microwave for exactly 10 seconds.
*Not all brands of dairy free white chocolate are the same. If you run into any issues getting it to melt down properly in the microwave or getting it as thin as you prefer for dipping- you can add a tiny bit of shortening or coconut oil to thin it out. I would start with 1/4 tsp and add only as much as needed. The more you add the more likelihood that the chocolate will melt in your hands at room temperature.