Crushed candy canes add a cheerful twist to these red and white swirled cookies.
| Level: | Easy |
| Total: | 1 hr 30 min |
| Active: | 30 min |
| Yield: | 45 to 50 cookies |
Ingredients
- 2 sticks (1 cup) unsalted butter, at room temperature
- 2/3 cup sugar
- 1/4 teaspoon almond extract
- 1/4 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 1 large egg
- 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting (see Cook’s Note)
- 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
- 10 mini candy canes, finely crushed (about 1/4 cup)
- Red gel food coloring, such as bright red, for coloring the dough
Instructions
- Position oven racks in the upper and lower thirds of the oven and preheat to 350 degrees F.
- Beat the butter and sugar in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, about 5 minutes. Add the almond and vanilla extracts and egg and mix until combined. Reduce the mixer speed to low, add the flour and salt and mix until just combined.
- Remove a third of the dough to a flour-dusted surface and reserve. Add the candy canes to the dough left in the bowl and mix on low until just combined. Remove to a flour-dusted surface and fold with your hands until it comes together.
- Add the reserved dough back to the mixer bowl and add enough red gel food coloring until it is a vibrant red like a fire truck, about 10 drops. Mix on low until the dough is completely red. Remove to a flour-dusted surface and fold with your hands until it comes together.
- Tear off 2 Ping-Pong ball-size pieces of the white dough and add to the barrel of a cookie press; add 1 marble-size piece of the red dough. Repeat this pattern until the barrel is filled (you will not use all of the dough). Place a wreath disc onto the cookie press barrel according to the manufacturer’s instructions. Press the cookies onto an ungreased baking sheet and set aside. Repeat 2 more times in the same pattern with the remaining dough.
- Bake 2 of the batches until the cookies are firm but not yet browning on the bottom, 8 to 10 minutes. Cool the cookies for 1 minute on the baking sheets, then remove to a wire rack to cool completely, about 30 minutes. Bake the third batch and let cool. Store in an airtight container for up to a week.
Nutrition Facts
| Serving Size | 1 of 47.5 servings |
| Calories | 75 |
| Total Fat | 4 g |
| Saturated Fat | 3 g |
| Carbohydrates | 8 g |
| Dietary Fiber | 0 g |
| Sugar | 3 g |
| Protein | 1 g |
| Cholesterol | 14 mg |
| Sodium | 12 mg |
Reviews
Tried this but apparently I did not crush my candy canes/star mints enough. Ended up jamming the cookie spritz and none of the disks worked! I salvaged the dough and made small balls by hand, rolled in red sugar, to get little circle cookies.
Next time I will pulverized the candy into dust before adding…
I loved it but I made it without egg (used Replacement Egg) and with Stevia instead of Sugar; I used Shortening instead of Butter. I rolled them in balls and baked them because I did not have food coloring. So good!
These cookies turned out really cute, but are lacking in peppermint flavor. the crushed candy apparently was not enough flavor, and the almond and vanilla ruled. I might suggest adding peppermint extract instead of the almond, though very carefully as I presume it would be quite strong.
The dough handled nicely, and since I didn’t have gel coloring I used the liquid and added a little extra flour until the red dough felt like the plain. Love the idea of mixing the colors, and it worked.