These Candy Cane Kiss Cookies pack all the fun of the holidays into one bite! Soft, chocolatey, and topped with a peppermint candy that melts just slightly into the warm cookie. Bright, festive, soft, and chewy, they add a perfect pop of color and flavor. They’re simple to make, great for gifting, and disappear fast from any cookie plate.
I started with Sara’s Cadbury Egg Cookie Dough, which is really just a great recipe for chocolate cookies. A little peppermint extract, a sprinkle of chocolate chips, and a peppermint kiss finish these off and make them irresistible!
Ingredients Needed
This is just a preview of ingredients and method, keep scrolling for full printable recipe.
- Butter flavored shortening – I sometimes like the combo of shortening and butter because you get flavor and tenderness from the butter, and some structure and softness from the shortening. If you’d rather not use shortening, or don’t have it on hand, you can definitely make this recipe will all butter as well.
- Butter
- Brown sugar
- Granulated sugar
- Eggs
- Vanilla extract
- Peppermint extract
- Baking powder
- Baking soda
- Salt
- Flour
- Unsweetened cocoa powder
- Chocolate chips – This recipe calls for dark chocolate chips, but you can use whatever you have on hand!
- Hershey’s Candy Cane Kisses – These are kind of the star of the show here! But if you’d like to experiment, go ahead and try these cookies with other flavors of kisses, just leave out the peppermint extract or replace it with another extract or flavoring oil of your choice.
Instructions
- Start by placing some brown and white sugars in the bowl of a stand mixer or a large bowl. Add some softened butter and butter-flavored shortening and cream together for a few minutes until light and fluffy. Add some vanilla, peppermint extract, and eggs and mix until thoroughly combined.
- In a separate bowl, whisk together the baking powder, baking soda, salt, flour, and cocoa powder. Add to the butter/sugar mixture and mix until combined. Mix in the chocolate chips.
- To prevent cookies from flattening out, refrigerate dough for 30-60 minutes. Drop the dough by the tablespoonful onto an ungreased baking sheet (or parchment paper-lined baking sheets). Bake until just set, but centers are still soft, about 8 minutes. Remove from oven and allow to cool for 1-2 minutes. Use a metal spatula to transfer cookies to cooling rack. Top each cookie with an unwrapped Candy Cane Kiss. Allow them to stand for 5 minutes and then transfer to a wire cooling rack.
- Allow to cool completely, long enough for the Kiss to harden.
Storing and Other Tips
- Store finished cookies in an airtight container at room temperature and enjoy within days for best results.
- These puppies need a few hours for the kiss to become solid again, but if you need to hurry things along, wait until the cookies themselves have cooled and then transfer them to your refrigerator or freezer and they’ll be set up in no time.
- These are perfect for holiday gift-giving because they’re easy, festive, a little different, and hold up well to packaging.
Frequently Asked Questions
Definitely! I understand not everyone likes to bake with shortening. I sometimes think of it as a cheat-code because a little bit helps the cookies have a really great shape and a little more lift. They also stay softer, longer! But you certainly can use all butter as well. Just make sure you do the chilling step and know that you might get just a little more spread (ie flatter cookies).
Make these cookies a day ahead of time if needed. Store on the counter in an airtight container until ready to serve. While I have not personally tried freezing these, most cookies freeze pretty well as long as they are sealed well.
Yes. Make the dough and store, tightly covered, in the refrigerator for up to 48 hours before baking. For best results, let it sit at room temperature for about 15 minutes before scooping and baking.
You don’t have to, just expect a flatter cookie. Refrigerating the dough helps it hold it’s shape when baked.
Candy Cane Kiss Cookies
Ingredients
- ½ cup butter-flavored shortening
- ½ cup real butter
- 1 cup brown sugar
- 1 cup white sugar
- 2 eggs
- 1 ½ teaspoons vanilla
- 1 teaspoon peppermint extract
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 2 ½ cup flour lightly spooned into measuring cups and leveled with a knife
- 6 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
- 12 ounces dark chocolate chips (1 bag)
- 48 Hershey’s Candy Cane Kisses unwrapped (one 10 ounce bag)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350℉.
- Cream together softened butter, shortening, brown sugar, and white sugar for 1-2 minutes on medium-high speed or until light and fluffy. Add the eggs and vanilla and mix until combined. In a separate bowl, combine the baking powder, baking soda, salt, flour, and cocoa powder. Add to the butter/sugar mixture and mix until combined. Mix in the chocolate chips.
- To prevent cookies from flattening out, refrigerate dough for 30-60 minutes. Drop the dough by the tablespoonful onto an ungreased baking sheet. Bake until just set, but centers are still soft, about 8 minutes.
- Remove from oven and allow to cool for 1-2 minutes. Use a metal spatula to transfer cookies to cooling rack. Top each cookie with an unwrapped Candy Cane Kiss.
- Allow to cool completely, long enough for the Kiss to harden. If necessary, after the cookies have cooled, they can be placed in the refrigerator or freezer to re-solidify the Kiss.
Notes
- Store finished cookies in an airtight container at room temperature and enjoy within days for best results.
- These cookies need a few hours for the kiss to become solid again, but if you need to hurry things along, wait until the cookies themselves have cooled and then transfer them to your refrigerator or freezer and they’ll be set up in no time.
- These are perfect for holiday gift-giving because they’re easy, festive, a little different, and hold up well to packaging.
Questions & Reviews
Karin–Hahaha, good question! 🙂 I usually save about a dozen for my family and then bring the rest to school/church/work/neighbors. It's seriously a great way to make friends, lol!
Kelli–Oh, my gosh, how FUNNY! I'm sure our paths totally did cross at some point (although Sara's the one who did horticulture).
Natalie–I really recommend using shortening. I know there's concern about trans-fat, but I believe Crisco is now free of trans-fats. Using Crisco really improves the texture; if you're really opposed to it, you could use a really high-quality margarine like Smart Balance.
Naomi–I believe the boxes came from Target, but I can't be 100% sure. 🙂
These look so yummy! Can't wait to try them. I love the cute holiday box you have them in. Would you mind sharing where you got them? Would love to have some like that to send around to neighbors this holiday season.
These sound insanely wonderful! I can totally understand the scrougeness and grinchness! I am so not feeling up to anything this year… new house (way too small!!), new location, my first born driving and half way done w/ his junior year in high school, 2 out of 3 in high school, 45 hit way harder than 40 or 30 did, and NO snow! But this too will pass, soon hopefully!
So now I am off to make these cookies as I don't care for my old chocolate cookie recipe! Do they freeze well? 'Cause I need about 20 dozen or more between now and Christmas!! Yep school parties, youth group parties, adult sunday school parties, you name it We got it!
Thank you!!!
Happy birthday Kate! I love how festive these look. To make them all year round, I just break Andes mints in half and bury them in the middle of my chocolate cookies. Then when people bite into them they get a minty surprise. But I've never tried Sara's Cadbury cookie recipe…guess I need to get on the ball!
These look yummy. Can you make this recipe without using shortening? Love your website and I can't wait to get your cookbook.
Thanks,
Natalie
Um Kate, just FYI, you so don't have to wait for the kisses to solidify up again. I eat these but the PB chocolate kiss ones and they are the BEST while still a little soft. Like, I eat half the batch within the first half hour as they are coming out of the oven.
I can't wait to try these. I hope the kisses have made it to our little town grocer.
Wow, so yummy! I've never had these kisses but they look awesome. I'm glad you're planning on enjoying Christmas this year 🙂
Kate!
These cookies look like a lot of fun–but I'm actually posting because if you're turning 30 this year and went to BYU and were into English and Horticulture, then our paths must have crossed because I did all those things too! Weird! I really don't know you from anywhere except this blog, which I stumbled across a few months ago while searching for a frosting recipe…but seriously there are some parallel universe things going on right now. 🙂 I turned 30 in October, and it feels great so far. Congrats!
Yummy!! I just bought a bag of those kisses just because I love the chocolate mint combo and they are so festive!! This was just perfect timing for this recipe, as I was trying to decide what cookie to make this year for my cookie exchange party….this is it!!!! Thanks for all the great recipes….I just love trying out new ones!!!
These are right up my ally. I have a question for you Kate and Sara- when you make your yummy sweet treats what do you do with the extras? I love to bake but always wish it just made enough for my fam to each just have one. I am a bit lacking in self control 🙂