I’m sure I’ve mentioned this before, but baking is something very near and dear to my heart, especially when it’s done with my mom. And extra especially around Christmas! We, like lots of families, have a few go-to recipes we bust out every December. My dad’s favorite are Pfeffernusse, my sister likes the peppermint meltaways the best, my favorite is the peppermint fudge, and I’m pretty sure mom doesn’t want to look at a single cookie ever again (for like two weeks). I joke of course, and I have to admit that I love them all. A lot of our recipes come from a cook book gifted to my mom in the early ’70s, and I thought I would share one of our favorites with you!
Candy Cane Cookies
Ingredients:
- 1 cup butter or margarine
- 1 cup sifted confectioners’ sugar
- 1 egg
- 1 1/2 tsp almond extract
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp red food coloring
- 1/2 cup crushed peppermint candy
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
Directions:
- Preheat the oven to 375º F
- Mix the butter, sugar, egg, and flavorings until combined.
- In a separate bowl, mix the flour and the salt, and then gradually add to the butter mixture until combined.
- Divide the dough in half and add the red food coloring to one half.
- Take about 1 tsp of each color and roll out into a strip about 4 inches long. Mom and I did this by flouring a dishcloth on a cutting board and rolling on that.
- Take each strip and gently twist them together. The original recipe suggests you do one cookie at a time to make sure the strips don’t dry out!
- Shape each twisted cookie into a candy cane shape and place on a parchment-paper lined cookie sheet.
- Bake about 9 minutes or until lightly browned.
- Before the cookies cool, sprinkle a mixture of crushed peppermints and sugar on the top.
- This will make about 4 dozen cookies!
Enjoy, and Merry Christmas everyone!
xoxo Katie
