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White Chocolate Peppermint Cookies are soft, chewy vanilla sugar cookies dressed up with a white chocolate drizzle and a shower of crushed candy canes. I bake these every December weekend once the candy canes hit the pantry, and Maddie has appointed herself official drizzle inspector. If your cookie tin needs company, my buttery shortbread cookies are the dunkable classic next to these.
A soft vanilla sugar cookie base, a snowy white chocolate drizzle, and candy cane crunch in every bite.
White Chocolate Peppermint Cookies Quick Look
- 🕒 Prep Time: 15 minutes
- 🌡️ Cook Time: 11 minutes
- ⏳ Total Time: 26 minutes
- 🍽️ Serving: 48 cookies
- ⚡ Calories: 103kcal
- 🌶️ Flavor Profile: Buttery vanilla sugar cookie with creamy white chocolate and cool candy cane crunch
- ✋ Difficulty: Easy, a straightforward drop cookie like my cream cheese cookies
Quick Answer
Whisk the flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt together, then cream the butter and sugar and mix in the egg and vanilla. Add the dry ingredients alternating with the milk until a moist dough forms, then chill it for at least an hour or overnight. Scoop tablespoon sized balls onto a parchment lined sheet and bake at 375 degrees Fahrenheit for 8 to 11 minutes, until the edges are lightly golden. Cool the cookies completely, then drizzle them with melted white chocolate and immediately sprinkle crushed peppermint on top so the candy sticks.
Jump to:
- White Chocolate Peppermint Cookies Quick Look
- Quick Answer
- Why This Recipe Works
- Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- Key Ingredients
- Variations and Substitutions
- How to Make White Chocolate Peppermint Cookies
- Recipe Tips & Tricks
- Serving Ideas and Suggestions
- White Chocolate Peppermint Cookies FAQs
- Other Recommended Christmas Cookie Recipes
- White Chocolate Peppermint Cookies
Why This Recipe Works
Click to see the technique science
- Chilling the dough builds chew. An hour in the fridge, or better yet overnight, hydrates the flour and firms the butter so the cookies bake thick and chewy instead of spreading thin.
- Alternating milk with the flour keeps it tender. Adding the dry ingredients in stages with splashes of milk brings the dough together gently, so the cookies stay soft instead of tough.
- Vanilla bean paste punches up the base. The little flecks of real vanilla give a plain sugar cookie a bakery depth that supports the peppermint on top.
- A light bake keeps them pale and soft. Pulling the cookies when only the edges turn golden means the centers finish on the hot pan and stay pillowy.
- The drizzle goes on cool cookies. White chocolate hardens into clean ribbons on a fully cooled cookie, but slides straight off a warm one.
- Sprinkling candy immediately makes it stick. Crushed peppermint lands in the wet drizzle and locks in place as the chocolate sets, so the crunch stays put in the cookie tin.
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- The cookies stay soft and chewy for days, even after the white chocolate drizzle sets.
- One batch makes four dozen, which is cookie exchange and gift tin math done right.
- They hold their own on a Christmas cookie tray next to my chocolate sugar cookies.
Key Ingredients
Pantry staples plus two festive finishers make these holiday magic.
- Unsalted Butter: The soft, rich base. Creaming it with the sugar builds the light texture the whole cookie rides on.
- Vanilla Bean Paste: The flavor anchor. Those tiny vanilla flecks make the base taste like it came from a bakery, though extract works too.
- Milk: The softness secret. A few tablespoons loosen the dough just enough for a moist, tender crumb.
- White Chocolate: The snowy drizzle. Melted white chocolate or almond bark sets into sweet, creamy ribbons over every cookie.
- Crushed Peppermint: The holiday crunch. Smashed candy canes or starlight mints stick right into the wet drizzle.
See recipe card for exact quantities.
Variations and Substitutions
One soft sugar cookie, a whole December of options.
- Dark chocolate drizzle: Swap the white chocolate for semisweet if your crowd runs chocolatey.
- Peppermint extract boost: Add a quarter teaspoon to the dough for mint through and through.
- Double drizzle: Do white chocolate first, let it set, then zigzag melted dark chocolate over it.
- Sprinkle swap: Red and green sprinkles or sanding sugar work when the candy canes run out.
- Frost them like my soft frosted Lofthouse cookies and skip the drizzle entirely.
How to Make White Chocolate Peppermint Cookies
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. In a stand mixer or large bowl with a hand mixer, cream the butter and sugar until combined, then mix in the egg and vanilla.
- Slowly add the dry ingredients, alternating with the milk, until a moist but not wet dough forms. Cover the bowl and chill for at least one hour, or overnight for thicker, chewier cookies.
- Preheat the oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit. Using a 1 tablespoon cookie scoop, roll dough balls and place them about 3 inches apart on a parchment lined baking sheet. Bake for 8 to 11 minutes, until the edges are barely golden.
- Rest the sheet on a wire rack for 10 minutes, then move the cookies directly onto the rack to cool completely.
- Drizzle the cooled cookies with the melted white chocolate and immediately sprinkle the crushed peppermint over the top so it sticks as the drizzle sets.
Recipe Tips & Tricks
- Chill the dough overnight if you can. The longer rest gives noticeably thicker, chewier cookies with deeper flavor.
- Use a cookie scoop for even baking. Same size balls bake at the same speed, so no burnt small ones or doughy big ones.
- Do not overbake. The cookies should look barely golden at the edges and slightly underdone in the middle when they come out.
- Cool completely before drizzling. Any warmth melts the drizzle flat and the peppermint slides off.
- Crush the candy canes in a bag. A rolling pin over a zip top bag gives you sparkly candy dust and small chunks without the mess.
- Add the peppermint right after each drizzle pass. Work in batches of a few cookies so the chocolate never sets before the candy lands.
Serving Ideas and Suggestions
These white chocolate peppermint cookies were made for a Christmas cookie tray, a cocoa night, and every teacher and neighbor gift bag in December. Stack them on a platter with my chocolate Christmas shortbread bites for an easy cookie board.
A great cookie plate mixes textures, so pair the candy cane crunch with something plain and buttery. My chewy oatmeal raisin cookies balance the tray with something homey. A bowl of my white chocolate chex mix carries the same peppermint white chocolate flavor into snack form.
For gifting, stack them in a cellophane bag once the drizzle fully sets and tie it with baker”s twine. And my cream cheese cookies melt in your mouth right beside them.
White Chocolate Peppermint Cookies FAQs
Three things keep white chocolate peppermint cookies soft: chill the dough so the cookies bake thick, pull them from the oven when the edges are barely golden, and store them airtight once the drizzle sets. A slice of sandwich bread in the container works wonders too, since the cookies absorb its moisture and stay pillowy for days.
Either works perfectly. Candy canes and starlight mints are the same candy in different shapes, so use whichever is in the pantry. Seal them in a zip top bag and crush them with a rolling pin into a mix of fine dust and small chunks. The dust tints the drizzle pink in spots and the chunks give that signature crunch.
White chocolate is fussier than dark because it scorches at a lower temperature. Melt it slowly in 15 to 20 second microwave bursts, stirring well between each, and keep every drop of water away from the bowl. If it does clump, a teaspoon of vegetable shortening stirred in usually rescues it into a drizzle friendly consistency.
Stored airtight at room temperature, white chocolate peppermint cookies stay fresh for up to 5 days. The candy topping actually helps, since the set white chocolate seals moisture into the cookie. For longer storage, freeze the plain baked cookies for up to 3 months and add the drizzle and peppermint after thawing.
Yes, and the cookies are better for it. The dough keeps covered in the refrigerator for up to 3 days, and the long chill deepens the flavor and thickens the bake. You can also freeze scooped dough balls solid on a tray, bag them, and bake straight from frozen with an extra minute or two.
Those 10 minutes on the hot sheet finish cooking the soft centers gently and let the cookies firm up enough to move without breaking. Lifting them too early tears the tender bottoms. After the rest, the rack cools them evenly so the bottoms do not steam and turn soggy before the drizzle goes on.
Made these white chocolate peppermint cookies? Leave a comment and a star rating below, and tell me if they survived until the cookie exchange!
White Chocolate Peppermint Cookies
Ingredients
- 2 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
- pinch salt
- 1 cup unsalted butter softened
- 1 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 1 egg
- 1 teaspoon vanilla bean paste or extract
- 3 – 4 tablespoons milk
- 1 cup white chocolate melted or almond bark
- 1/4 cup peppermint crushed
Instructions
- In a medium-sized bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. In the bowl of a stand mixer or a large bowl with a hand mixer, cream together the butter and sugar until combined. Add the egg and vanilla, mix to combine.
- Slowly add the dry ingredients alternating with the milk until combined. The dough will be moist but not wet. Cover, place bowl in the fridge for at least one hour. For thicker and chewier cookies, rest overnight. I recommend letting it rest overnight.
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Using a 1 tablespoon cookie scoop, roll out dough balls, place on parchment lined baking sheet about 3 inches apart. Bake for 8-11 minutes until the edges of the cookies are slightly golden brown.
- Place sheet on a wired rack for 10 minutes to cool slightly, place cookies directly on a wired rack to cool completely.
- Drizzle the cookies with the melted chocolate, sprinkle with the crushed peppermint immediately so the candy will stick.
Nutrition
Love This Recipe?
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Love this peppermint addition to sugar cookies!
White chocolate and peppermint are two of my favorite flavors, I can’t wait to try these cookies!