These chocolate peppermint bark cookies are a perfect match of chewy, chocolate cookie and melty pieces of peppermint bark candy. they come together quickly and can sit covered in the fridge until you're ready to bake them. Once baked they keep well for days. These minty double chocolate cookies would be a wonderful and delicious addition to your cookie boxes, cookie swaps or just for snacking! In short, they are a fantastic holiday cookie!
In a few words, these double chocolate cookies are:
- Sweet
- Chocolate-y
- Buttery
- Chewy
- With crisp edges
- Filled with melted pieces of peppermint bark
- Perfect for holiday cookie swaps and cookie boxes
The ingredients list
- All purpose flour
- Instant espresso powder
- Baking powder
- Baking soda
- Salt
- European style butter
- Light brown sugar
- Dutch processed cocoa powder
- Eggs
- Vanilla extract
- Peppermint bark
- Chocolate bar (optional, use more peppermint bark if omitting)
Baking tools for the best chocolate peppermint cookies
- Stand mixer with paddle attachment
- or electric hand mixer with beaters and a large mixing bowl
- Plastic wrap
- To keep the cookie dough from drying out.
- Parchment paper
- Perfect for even baking.
- Aluminum baking sheets
- Preferred over other baking sheets.
- Promotes even baking.
- Great for baking cookies.
- Large cookie scoop
- This is my preferred way to get beautifully consistent cookies every time!
- A large biscuit or pastry cutter
- This helps reshape the cookies once they’re out of the oven.
- Oven thermometer
- Cheap and most used kitchen tool in my kitchen!
- I highly recommend one for every oven (even new ones).
Tips and tricks for the best chocolate peppermint bark cookies
Best ingredient substitutes for this recipe:
- Butter: Can be replaced with vegan or plant based butter if needed
- Use a brand you have already made cookies with before to ensure you know the butter works for this
- All purpose flour: use a 1:1 GF mix for all purpose flour.
- I like this brand for easy GF baking.
Tips and tricks for perfect peppermint bark cookies:
- Use room temperature ingredients.
- Use the lowest mixing setting or mix by hand when adding in the dry ingredients.
- Chill the cookies!!!
- This allows the glutens to rest (or hydrate depending on the flour).
- The flavors develop more fully.
- Don’t forget the to cover the cookie dough.
- Fully preheat the oven
- Use an oven thermometer to check the internal oven temperature.
- I love this one and use it all the time.
- Let the cookies sit out at room temperature for about 20-30 minutes before scooping onto a baking sheet for baking.
- Use a cookie scoop for perfectly shaped and sized cookies.
- Space the cookies about 2 - 3 inches apart.
- Top the cookies with reserved chunks of peppermint bark right before baking.
- Bake cookies until golden brown on the edges and lightly golden in the center.
- Within the first few minutes of removing the cookies from the oven use a large biscuit cutter (wider than the cookies) to help shape any cookies into a more round shape.
more holiday inspired cookies to bake!
- hot chocolate brownie cookies
- chewy molasses cookies
- hazelnut butter blossoms (kiss cookies)
- almond rye thumbprint cookies
- chewy chocolate gingerbread cookies
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Make sure to tag me on instagram @olivesnthyme. For more delicious dessert ideas follow me on pinterest
chocolate peppermint bark cookies
these chocolate peppermint bark cookies are a chewy, buttery double chocolate cookie filled with chunks of chocolate and peppermint bark.
Equipment
- stand mixer with paddle attachment or electric hand mixer with beaters
- plastic wrap
- baking sheet
- parchment paper
Ingredients
- 1 ¾ c (210g) all purpose flour
- 2 tsp instant espresso powder
- 1 ½ tsp baking powder
- ½ tsp baking soda
- ½ tsp salt
- 1 c (226g) unsalted European style butter, room temperature
- 1 ½ c (300g) light brown sugar
- ½ c (48g) dutch processed cocoa powder
- 2 large eggs, room temperature
- 1 tsp (5ml) vanilla extract
- 2 c assorted, peppermint bark and chocolate chunks, chopped into bite sized pieces reserve about ½ of the peppermint bark to top the cookies with
Instructions
- In a separate bowl, whisk together flour, instant espresso powder, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Set aside.
- In a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, cream together the browned butter and sugar until light and fluffy (3-4 minutes). Scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl.
- Beat in cocoa powder until well combined. Scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl.
- On low-medium speed, beat in eggs and vanilla extract one at a time, until each is well incorporated. Scrape the bottom and sides of the bowl.
- Add dry ingredients to the wet ½ at a time. Mix on lowest setting until JUST combined. Do not overmix.
- Gently fold in the chopped chocolate bark and/or chocolate chunk pieces.
- Cover the mixing bowl with pastic wrap. Chill in the fridge at least 2 hours and up to overnight.
- When it's time to bake the cookies, preheat the oven to 350 F (177 C). Line 2 large cookie sheets with parchment paper. Pull the cookie dough out to sit at room temperature for about 25-30 minutes.
- Scoop dough out using a 2" cookie scoop with trigger release onto a parchment lined baking sheet. Leave about 3" (in) in between each cookie. They are meant to spread a bit while baking. Top each cookie dough ball with pieces of chopped peppermint bark.
- Bake at 350 F ( 177 C) for 12-16 minutes or until cookies are set around the edges. The center may still look slightly underbaked.
- Pull cookies from the oven, cool on the cookie sheet placed on top of a cooling rack for 5 minutes.For perfectly circular cookies, use the inside large pastry ring to gently nudge the edges of the cookie back into a circular shape.
- Using a spatula, gently remove cookies from the pan, onto a cooling rack to finish cooling.
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Sun Sun says
You mention browned butter in the instructions but I believe you mean softened or just butter since nowhere else in the post is browning butter mentioned. Please confirm. Thanks
Megan says
Hi Sun Sun,
Thanks for pointing out that error. This recipe does not contain browned butter. The butter should be unsalted butter at room temperature.