Peppermint Kiss Cookies

Can we talk about these kisses for a minute? They are Hershey’s Holiday Candy Cane kisses and they are marvelous. I was skeptical at first, thinking they might be overly sweet. They are sweet but I was totally won over by the little crispy bits of peppermint candy in each bite. Paired with a rich chocolate cookie, they’re a scrumptious little treat.

In fact, these peppermint kiss cookies are so good, you’ll want to send these cookies away on gift platters to friends and family, just to get them out of the house. (P.S. If you’re a chocolate with mint fan, be sure to try these peppermint chocolate sugar cookies, too.)

Holiday Peppermint Kiss Cookies

A rich chocolate base. The bottom part of the cookie is a dark chocolate brownie-like cookie. It’s the perfect foil for the candy cane kisses. I use the same cookie base for my chocolate cherry thumbprints because really, it is just that good: rich and chocolatey.

Not a tricky recipe. This cookie recipe doesn’t take any fancy ingredients. It’s a pretty simple cookie which uses basic pantry ingredients. The peppermint kiss cookies turn out well every time I make them and are always a hit when I serve them to guests.

Festive holiday appearance. Candy cane kiss cookies with red and white striped candies nestled into a dark chocolate base really are strikingly attractive. They look so pretty on a cookie platter.

Ingredient Notes

• All-Purpose Flour: For holiday cookies, I usually stick with all-purpose flour. Although I love whole wheat flour in my everyday cookies, I feel like it may be too a bit too coarse and hearty for these holiday cookies.
• Cocoa Powder: Unsweetened cocoa powder is found in the baking aisle of the grocery store. If it contains hard lumps, press it through a fine strainer before adding it to the flour mixture.
• Salt: Just a pinch of fine table salt keeps the cookies from tasting flat.
• Unsalted Butter: Make sure the butter is softened, or at room temperature. If all you have is salted butter, omit the salt in the recipe.
• Sugar: Use regular granulated white sugar that is normally used for baking.
• Egg: You’ll need one large egg. It’s usually best if eggs are at room temperature when you’re using them for baking but don’t sweat it if you forget.
• Pure Vanilla Extract: The warm flavor of vanilla enhances the chocolate.
• Hershey’s Candy Cane Kisses: These holiday peppermint kisses are festively striped with red and white, with little crunchy bits of peppermint. Each 10 oz. bag contains 70 to 75 kisses. Depending on how large you make your cookies, you’ll need 40 to 45. The remaining kisses are a bonus for you to eat or share! You can use them to decorate your cookie platter, too.

How To Make Peppermint Kiss Cookies

Unwrap the kisses. If you have helper elves, this is a good job for little fingers (expect a few candies to disappear though). It’s important to have the candy kisses unwrapped and ready to go when the cookies come out of the oven. You want to press a kiss into the center of each cookies when it’s still very warm.

Preheat oven. It’s always important that the oven is fully preheated before you put the cookies in to bake so they bake evenly and don’t burn on the bottoms. Line a couple of large baking sheets with parchment paper.

Mix dry ingredients. Whisk together the flour, cocoa powder, and salt in a medium-sized bowl. If the cocoa powder has hard little lumps, press it through a small, fine mesh strainer. Set the flour mixture aside for now.

Cream butter and sugar. In a larger bowl, combine the butter and 1 cup of the sugar (save the remaining ½ cup for rolling the cookies). Using an electric mixer or a stand mixer, beat the butter and sugar until it’s light and fluffy. Add the egg and vanilla extract. Beat until combined.

Combine. Slowly add the flour mixture to the butter mixture. On low speed or by hand, mix just until blended together.

Form balls. Scoop a small amount of dough out and form it into a ball, a generous one inch in diameter. Try to make the balls about the same size so they bake evenly. Once you’ve shaped all the balls, roll them in the remaining sugar. The sugar will give the cookies a happy little sparkle.

Bake. Arrange the cookies on the prepared baking sheets about one inch apart. They won’t spread a lot so you can put them fairly close together. Be careful when you put the cookie sheet in the oven. The balls are pretty roly-poly and you don’t want to loose a few in the bottom of your oven. Bake the cookies until they are set and firm, about 8 minutes. They’ll still look a bit shiny and moist.

Press in candy. Remove the pan from the oven and immediately press a candy kiss very lightly into the center of each cookie. You certainly don’t have to press all the way to the bottom of the cookie; basically, you can almost just set the kiss on top. There should be a cookie base under the candy.

Cool and store. Allow the cookies to cool completely on the baking sheet. They’ll firm up completely when they’re cool.

Since the candies stay a little soft for awhile, I usually store them in a single layer if possible. Store them in an airtight container. They will keep at room temperature (as long as it is fairly cool) for up to one week. They’ll keep in the freezer for at least one month.

Helpful Tips

After some feedback that these did not turn out well, I retested the recipe several times. I can assure you that the cookies turn out perfectly the way the recipe is written. If you follow the instructions carefully, you should have the same result: a perfectly baked cookie. This recipe is not tricky or difficult to make. As some readers have complained, the cookies are not mushy and they don’t spread too much (they barely spread at all until you put the kiss in). They are a soft, brownie-like cookie.

Measure the flour correctly. Don’t mistakenly add too much flour by compacting it when you measure it. Measure the flour correctly by spooning it lightly into a measuring cup (one without a pouring spout). Level the top off with a straight edge. Don’t shake or tap the measuring cup to level the flour. The dough should be thick but easy to handle and not overly sticky.

Divide the sugar. Make sure you note that the amount of sugar is divided. One cup goes into the dough, and the remaining half cup is used for rolling. If you put the entire 1 ½ cups into the dough, you’ll run into problems.

Make sure you have the kisses unwrapped and ready to go. It’s essential to lightly put the candies into the center of the cookies immediately after they come out of the oven. Once the cookies have cooled and firmed up, it is difficult to add the candy kiss and they may fall out easily when the cookie is cool. Don’t press them down very hard; the cookie tends to get cracks in it when you press hard.

I did make one change to the recipe. In the original recipe, I added the kisses 5 minutes into the baking time and returned the cookies to the oven to bake for another 3 minutes. Although this does work, the top of the kiss turns a light brown color. I like the appearance of the cookies better when the kisses are added at the end. 

I’m happy to answer any questions or troubleshoot if you contact me.

• Preheat oven to 350°F. Prepare baking sheets by lining with parchment paper or silicone sheets.

• Remove foil wrappers from 40 candy kisses and set aside (you won’t need the whole bagful). It’s important to have these ready to go when the cookies come out of the oven so you’re able to immediately press them into the warm cookies.

  1 pkg. (10 oz.) Hershey’s Candy Cane Kisses

• In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, cocoa powder and salt.

  2 cups all-purpose flour, ⅓ cup unsweetened cocoa powder, ¼ teaspoon fine salt

• Using an electric mixer and a large bowl (or a stand mixer), beat butter and 1 cup sugar (save the remaining ½ cup for rolling) on medium-high until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Add egg and vanilla and beat until combined.

  1 cup unsalted butter, softened, 1 ½ cups granulated sugar, divided, 1 large egg, 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

• Turn mixer to low and gradually add flour mixture until combined. If you’re using a hand electric mixer, you may have to do this by hand.

• Put the remaining ½ cup of sugar in a small bowl. Form dough into balls (generous one inch balls) and then roll in sugar to coat. Place one inch apart on prepared baking sheets.

• Bake for 8 minutes or until cookies are set but still look moist. Remove the pan from the oven and immediately very lightly press candy cane kisses into the center of each cookie. Don’t press too hard; this may cause the cookie to get cracks.

• Cool cookies completely on the cookie sheets on wire racks before removing to an airtight container to store. The kisses can remain soft for awhile so it’s best to store them in a single layer if possible.

• Yield: Yield will vary depending on how large or small you roll each cookie. The size is up to you but try to make them consistent so they bake evenly. Adjust baking time according to size (less time for smaller cookies, more time for larger cookies). 
• Variation: If desired, substitute a different type of Hershey’s Kisses. There are lots to choose from!

Serving: 1cookie, Calories: 101kcal, Carbohydrates: 13g, Protein: 1g, Fat: 5g, Saturated Fat: 3g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 0.2g, Monounsaturated Fat: 1g, Trans Fat: 0.2g, Cholesterol: 17mg, Sodium: 18mg, Potassium: 21mg, Fiber: 0.5g, Sugar: 8g, Vitamin A: 149IU, Calcium: 6mg, Iron: 0.4mg

Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.

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