Christmas is twenty-five days (gulp) away and what better way is there to countdown to the big event than to feature a cookie recipe each day? Think of it as a cookie recipe advent calendar. And to fill that advent calendar I’m featuring twenty five of my favorite holiday cookie recipes that are sure to fill your holidays with cheer. Bake them to fill your cookie trays, bring them to a cookie swap or eat them yourself; they are guaranteed to bring about holiday joy. And if you love baking as much as I do, making them is a fun filled gift unto itself. Enjoy!

These cookies are from Food 52 and are the Christmas version of a chocolate chip cookie. Chocolate and peppermint are a natural pairing and these cookies don’t disappoint. After all, who doesn’t love a good chocolate chip cookie? The first time I made these cookies I was pressed for time so I skipped letting the dough sit overnight. The next time I made them I planned ahead and I must say, allowing the dough to sit really did intensify the flavors and made the wait worth it.

SALTED WHITE CHOCOLATE PEPPERMINT COOKIES

1/2 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature

2 tablespoons granulated sugar

2 tablespoons turbinado sugar

3/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons dark brown sugar

1 egg, at room temperature

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour

3/4 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

1 cup white chocolate chips

2 tablespoons crushed peppermint candies (or candy canes)

Coarse sea salt

• In a medium bowl, cream the butter and sugars together with an electric mixer on medium speed, until light in color and texture, 5 minutes. Scrape down the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula as needed.
• Add the egg and vanilla and mix well to combine. Again, stop the machine and scrape down the bowl with a spatula.
• In a medium bowl, whisk the flour, baking soda, and salt to combine.
• With the mixer on low, slowly add the flour mixture. Mix until streaks of flour still run throughout.
• Add the chocolate and peppermint candies then mix until everything just comes together.
• Finish the dough by hand, taking care to scrape the sides and the bottom of the bowl to make sure everything is evenly distributed.
• At this point, it is best to refrigerate the dough for 24 hours. Resting the dough intensifies the deep toffee flavors, and the texture of the baked cookie improves.
• When ready to bake, preheat the oven to 360° F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
  Scoop the dough onto the baking sheets. Top the cookies with a pinch of sea salt just before baking.
• Bake for 10 to 12 minutes. Rotate the sheets halfway through if the cookies appear to be baking unevenly. The cookies should be lightly golden on the outside but still look quite gooey on the inside.
• Let the cookies cool on the baking sheets for at least 5 minutes. Transfer the cookies to a wire rack to finish cooling.

Yields: 24 cookies

Tagged: peppermint candies, white chocolate