My candy cane cookies are buttery Christmas sugar cookies studded with crushed peppermint bits that melt in your mouth for the perfect two-bite holiday cookie! My family requests them every year without fail.
And if you enjoy this better than Betty Crocker's Christmas cookie recipe, you'll love my crockpot peppermint hot chocolate!
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❤️ Why You'll Love this Recipe
Multigenerational Family Favorite - I adapted my candy cane cookie recipe from Betty Crocker's Cooky Book back in high school. The book is a keepsake of mine that I hope to give to one of my future children who will, ideally, share my love for cooking and baking. Our version of the cookbook was printed in the year my Mommy was born and passed down from my late great grandmother, Pearlie Mae, so it's very special to me. Keep reading to learn how to make vintage Christmas cookies with a fun twist!
Holiday Flavor - Now that the sappy stuff is out of the way, let's get into what makes my candy cane Christmas cookies so damn delicious, with layered peppermint and vanilla flavor plus a twist of almond for that bakery sugar cookie effect. Anyone in my family and friend circle will tell you they're low-key addictive.
Quick & Easy - These little 100 calorie Christmas cookie bites come together easily in under 20 minutes and with simple ingredients. We love unique Christmas cookies around here and I bake homemade candy cane cookies by the dozens every year for Christmas cookie boxes and even as edible holiday party favors for guests.
👉🏾 I love holiday baking season and recommend you get into my peppermint chocolate chip cookies, cream cheese sprinkle cookies, sweet potato pie cookies, tahini sugar cookies and gingerbread cocoa crinkle cookies, next. And my peanut butter and jelly thumbprints are also fab!
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Featured Reader Review
★★★★★
"The cookies are delicious. Thank you for stream lining the recipe and making it so much easier to make. This recipe brings back fond memories from Christmas pasts with my mother and sisters."
-Robin
What's in My Candy Cane Cookies?
Almond Extract and vanilla extract add classic bakery sugar cookie flavor notes to this recipe that balance the cool, refreshing bite of peppermint.
Butter - Soften but don't melt the butter. Otherwise, you'll wind up with loose cookie dough, which means your cookies will spread out too much. I use this trick to soften butter quickly.
Crushed Peppermints, candy canes or peppermint crunch sprinkles add minty fresh flavor. Just don't use the soft, puffy mints as the texture won't be the same. Crush up the candy canes or peppermint candies by hand if you have the time to spare. This is also a great stress reliever.
Check out the recipe card below for full ingredients list, measurements, nutrition facts, and step-by-step instructions!
Substitutions & Variations
Shape and Color - To keep these cookies simple and cut out artificial food coloring, I make them into peppermint drops. But the original recipe calls for separating and dyeing half the dough red then making twists using bits from each half to form truly candy cane shaped cookies. I always had leftover uncolored dough for some reason and would make simple little round cookies out of it so you're welcome to try both methods!
Vegan - Make these classic peppermint Christmas cookies vegan by using a plant based butter and egg substitute. If you're into vegan holiday treats, check out my dairy-free hot cocoa, too.
Size - You can make candy cane cookies with crushed candy canes larger by using a bigger cookie scoop or mashing together multiple scoops to create giant candy cane Christmas cookies. Or press the dough into a pan in one solid piece, then cut into cookie bars!
How to Make my Candy Cane Cookies for Christmas
This heirloom holiday cookie recipe is unique but so easy. Take note of my pro tips to make sure yours turn our perfectly!
- Step One: Add the crushed mint candies to flour and dredge them in the flour.
- Step Two: Beat together the butter, sugar, egg, and extracts then stir in remaining ingredients until just combined.
Pro Tip #1
Adding the peppermint bits to flour before mixing the batter helps them to "float" throughout the cookies instead of clustering or clumping together. Don't skip this step!
Pro Tip #2
Pause the mixing to scrape down the sides of the bowl, as needed. And don't over-mix the dough. This will result in tough batter. To prevent over-mixing, I recommend adding the flour in two batches and stirring the second batch in by hand.
- Step Three: Scoop out dough onto a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper.
- Step Four: Bake until tops are just set and bottoms are golden brown.
Pro Tip #3
Use a cookie dough scoop for even cookies or roll the dough into balls with your hands.
Pro Tip #4
The tops of these cookies will not brown so be sure not to over bake them.
Watch me Make Candy Cane Cookies on YouTube
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes, you can make these cookies up to three days ahead of time with good results.
My candy cane cookies are better than Betty Crocker's because they're quicker and easier to make. They are also shaped into simple circles and don't use artificial food coloring. Lastly, you'll notice almond and vanilla flavors in place of peppermint extract.
Store candy cane cookies at room temperature in an airtight container for up to two weeks. I don't recommend refrigerating because they will become hard. Beyond that time, you can freeze.
Scoop the dough into balls then place on a parchment lined sheet pan and flash freeze for about three hours. Transfer the frozen dough into an airtight, freezer-safe container. When ready to bake, preheat the oven to 355 degrees instead of 375 degrees and add about five minutes to the baking time.
How to Serve
Pairings: Serve your crushed candy cane cookies with milk or with a festive hot chocolate. Try my peppermint hot cocoa or gingerbread hot cocoa. Or get extra indulgent with cookie butter white hot chocolate!
Occasions: Obviously, these are great cookies for Santa or to serve on your Christmas party cookie platter. But they also make great party favors--I like to bag them up and send home with guests and always get rave reviews!
If you want to make Christmas cookie boxes, use a mix of creative cookie recipes and bars like my best ever dark chocolate brownies with nuts.
More Festive Holiday Recipes
Looking for more recipes like this? Try these:
Writing this post brings back so many memories of making a mess in my parents' kitchen during winter breaks from school. I hope you'll bake a batch or two of these peppermint crunch sugar cookies with your family this year and make memories that last. And sharing is caring so pin this easy Christmas cookie recipe on Pinterest. Thanks for reading!
📖 Recipe
My Candy Cane Cookies
Equipment
- 1 stand mixer or hand mixer
- 1 cookie scoop or dinner spoon
Ingredients
- 2 ½ cups all-purpose flour
- ¾ cup peppermint crunch crushed peppermints or candy canes
- 1 teaspoon fine sea salt
- 1 cup unsalted butter softened (see notes)
- ½ cup granulated sugar
- 1 egg
- 1 ½ teaspoon almond extract
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside. In one bowl, mix together flour, crushed peppermint, and sea salt.2 ½ cups all-purpose flour, 1 teaspoon fine sea salt, ¾ cup peppermint crunch
- In another bowl, beat together butter, sugar, egg, and extracts until smooth (about two minutes).1 cup unsalted butter, ½ cup granulated sugar, 1 egg, 1 ½ teaspoon almond extract, 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- Combine wet and dry mixtures and mix until a dough forms. This can be done by hand or with a mixer. Do not over-mix dough.
- Scoop out dough using a cookie scoop or tablespoon and roll each into a ball before placing onto prepared baking sheet. Leave at least one inch between each ball of dough as cookies should not spread much while baking.
- Bake for about 9 minutes or until edges are just set and bottoms are golden brown. Tops will not brown. Cool for at least 10 minutes before serving.
Video
Notes
- Leave it out for about one hour, depending on how hot your kitchen is, or use this trick to soften it quickly.
- The butter should feel cool to the touch (about 65°F), and your finger should leave an indentation when you press it, but shouldn't sink into the butter.
- It should be pliable and bendable without breaking or turning to liquid.
Amaare says
I’ve been making your version of the candy cane cookies for years now and figured I’d let you know how much my family gobbles them DOWN each December. They’re easy to make and festive. Thanks, Jazz!
Jazzmine Woodard says
Thanks for your feedback, Amaare. So glad you and yours enjoy these cookies, too!
Carrie says
I rolled mine into balls but they still ended up spreading and being very thin. They don’t look like your picture at all. The dough wasn’t warm either. Any ideas?
Jazzmine Woodard says
Hi, Carrie! The only thing I can think of is that perhaps some of your ingredients were warm or the kitchen environment was very warm. This has only happened when I've let my butter set out for too long and one thing you'll notice if that is the case is that the dough will be very sticky. To prevent this, I recommend chilling the dough for about 20 minutes. Hope this is helpful.
Jeanie Little says
Do you think it would work to shape this into a candy candy instead of a ball before baking?
Jazzmine Woodard says
Hi, Jeanie! This recipe would work shaped into a candy cane, as well, with the same cooking time (give or take two minutes).
Jen says
I am so sorry, Jazz...I wanted to like these but...I made these cookies exactly like the recipe but I would definitely, next time, skip the almond extract. I feel these cookies would have been editable without it. It was way to much almond extract (Maybe use real almonds or only 1/2 teaspoon?). In my opinion and my taste buds, the almond and peppermint taste were fighting to win in strong flavor and everything else was completely masked. I would be curious with what to do if this occurred for anyone else and how to save the recipe?
Jazzmine Woodard says
Hi, Jen! Sorry to hear these cookies weren't to your liking. I haven't gotten any similar feedback but would recommend double checking the expiration/potency of your extracts and, if there's no issue there, using just 1/2 teaspoon of almond extract or omitting it altogether if you like. For a stronger peppermint taste, try 1/2 to 1 teaspoon of peppermint extract. The crushed peppermint doesn't add much flavor on its own. Hope this is helpful!
Jessica says
Made these for a Christmas cookie tray and they got GOBBLED up. Everyone loved them and was asking for the recipe. Will be making these every year now!
Robin McPherson says
The cookies are delicious. Thank you for stream lining the recipe and making it so much easier to make. This recipe brings back fond memories from Christmas pasts with my mother and sisters.
Jazzmine Woodard says
Thank you for your comment, Robin. I'm so glad to hear you enjoyed these Christmas cookies. Happy Holidays!
Krysten says
These are my favorite Christmas cookies! I like to put a little vanilla frosting on them. Would love for you to make a chocolate version of this recipe (chocolate cookie with candy cakes). So good!
Jazzmine Woodard says
Thanks, Krysten--so glad you enjoyed these cookies! I will definitely work on a chocolate version.
Brianne says
I love this recipe! Growing up my dad also didn’t make the candy canes but more of the peppermint ball shapes. They were always a family favorite every year. When he passed in 2020, I realized no one had written this recipe down. I was so excited to see your recipe and immediately made it - spot on to my dad’s! Thank you for sharing!
Jazzmine Woodard says
Thanks for your note, Brianne! I'm so glad you could reunite with this recipe. Happy Holidays!
Marta says
My peppermint loving son devoured these cookies! They will absolutely be a part of every holiday cookie tray from now on.
Jeanmarie Short says
Hello , I'm interested in making these this year for Christmas , I was looking at ingredients and noticed that it did not call for baking soda or baking powder is that correct?
Jazzmine Woodard says
Hi, Jeanmarie! Yes, that is correct there are no rising agents in this recipe. Hope you enjoy these for Christmas!
Marcus Avery Christon says
I'm typically not a big candy cane/peppermint lover, but these cookies changed that! They are so tasty and I love that they're not overly sweet.
Merci Rowe says
I was wondering how many cookies with this recipe will make?
Jazzmine Woodard says
Hi, Merci! This recipe makes about 30 cookies. Full serving details are available in the recipe card.
K Smith says
I have made these for years. However, this time they were a flop! Old age perhaps!
Cannot find my BC cookbook so perhaps the printed recipe I have is not the same. I shall use this one of yours. (Fingers crossed!)
I roll mine into a ball, press design stamp on top then sprinkle peppermint and sugar (mixed) on top. Some white, some red, some green and some two-three colors. “ Merry Christmas “
Jazzmine Woodard says
Hi, K! Sorry I'm just seeing your comment but I hope that the cookies turned out better than you remember! My recipe is slightly different from the BC cookbook version but the family loves it every year. Almost time to make them again!
Theresa Doyle says
Self riding or all purpose flour. Making them for cookie exchange. Can't wait!!
Jazz says
All-purpose flour!
Jo says
Hi Jazz, your cookies look great! I am anxious to make them; hopefully, tomorrow. Question: your recipe shows 1/2 cup sugar (I assume it is granulated sugar), but the original B.C. recipe uses confectioner's sugar (1 cup). Was the change from confectioner's to granulated done to produce a crispier cookie?
Thank you, Jo
Jazz says
Hi, Jo! Yes, this recipe calls for granulated sugar. The cookies are not much crisper than the Betty Crocker version. They come out soft and chewy!
jill nelson says
Can I just use extra vanilla extract or peppermint. I'm not a huge fan of almond?
Jazz says
Hi Jill! You're welcome to use a different extract just note that it will change the flavor of the cookies. Almond extract lends a bakery sugar cookie flavor to the end result.