Peppermint Chocolate Thumbprint Cookies

Fun holiday peppermint chocolate thumbprint cookies topped with a white chocolate peppermint kiss. These Christmas cookies are family-friendly, easy to make, and so delectable.

Course Dessert

Cuisine American

Keyword can you freeze chocolate thumbprint cookies, cocoa thumbprints, how to make chocolate thumbprint cookies

Prep Time 15

Cook Time 8

Servings cookies

Calories 113kcal

Author Beth Pierce

Ingredients

1 cup unsalted butter softened preferably Land O Lakes
½ cup sugar
¼ cup packed light brown sugar
2 egg yolks
1 teaspoon vanilla extract or 3/4 teaspoon peppermint
1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
½ cup unsweetened baking cocoa
¼ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon baking powder
½ teaspoon baking soda
28 -30 frozen peppermint kisses

Instructions

Cream butter and both sugars with a mixer until light and fluffy. Turn the mixer to low, add egg yolks one at a time, and mix just until incorporated. Mix in vanilla extract.
Whisk together flour, baking cocoa, salt, baking powder, and baking soda in a medium bowl. Add the dry mixture to the butter mixture in 3 parts. Blend on low after each addition just until combined, scraping down the side of the mixer bowl as needed. Remove the bowl from the mixer, cover, and refrigerate for at least 3 hours up to overnight.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Cover baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone mats.
Butter hands and roll dough into a little less than 1-inch balls. Place them on the prepared baking sheet with 1-2 inches between cookies.
Bake for 7-8 minutes. Allow to cool for 3 minutes only. Press 1 peppermint kiss into the top of each cookie. Carefully move the cookies to wire racks without touching the peppermint kiss as it may be soft.

Notes

Always preheat the oven and load your cookies on the middle rack in the center of the oven.
Cover your baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone mats.
For best results, freeze the kisses two hours before starting the recipe. This will help keep the kisses from melting when you place them on the top of the cookies.
I really like Land O Lakes butter. It is the only butter I use for my cookie baking anymore.
The dough works best when chilled for 3 hours up to overnight.
When we took this recipe back to the test kitchen (also known as Beth's kitchen), we found that the vanilla extract tasted better. However, feel free to use peppermint extract instead, but cut it down to 3/4 teaspoon so it is not overpowering.
Gently press the kiss into the top of the cookie, creating a small indentation.
These cookies can be frozen for four to six weeks. I don’t like to go much further than that because of the white chocolate kiss. Simply double wrap in freezer bags and place in a sturdy container. The dough can be double-wrapped and frozen for two months.
If you have time, do a test run with one or two cookies. It really helps to establish optimum baking time.

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