Jennifer's Recipe: Mint Chocolate Chip Cookies

Merry Christmas! Do you have a Christmas wish list?  Generally, that means a list of gifts you are hoping for.  My list is a little different. Mine is a list of all the things I want to make or bake!  This year, I have made very little progress on my list. This month has been preoccupied with other things, including a new granddaughter who arrived last week!  So I have to be realistic and cut my list way back, but I am hoping to at least bake my Mint Chocolate Chip Cookies. 

Mint Chocolate Chip Cookies are perfect for Christmas time.  It is a soft mint cookie that is chock-full of chocolate chips, green mint chips, and Andes mints. Beautiful to serve at Christmas. They are a nice size, but not too large. The recipe is very basic and does not include any chill time or special equipment.  The trick, if possible, is to serve them warm. They are a warm, gooey, minty treat. You can serve them right as you are baking them if you want to.   What I tend to do, though, is freeze them, thaw them, then heat them in the oven for about 5 minutes at 350. I just use a parchment-lined metal pan to reheat. Then inhale all that mint and chocolate smell and dive into a warm, amazing cookie. 

As I was thinking about my wish list, I remembered an old favorite Christmas song performed by Amy Grant called Grown Up Christmas List. Do you know this song?  It really is a timeless song.  The words are as true for today as when she made it popular in 1992.  Here is her Christmas list: "No more lives torn apart, and wars would never start, and time would heal all hearts, and everyone would have a friend, and right would always win, and love would never end."  What a beautiful wish list.  Let's hope this Christmas that some of these wishes will come true. It doesn't include cookie baking, but I am pretty sure she just forgot to add that!

Mint Chocolate Chip Cookies

Ingredients:

• 1 2/3 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup unsalted butter - softened slightly but still cool
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 1/4 cup granulated sugar
• 1 large egg
• 1/2 teaspoon pure peppermint extract
• 1/3 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
• 1/3 cup Guittard mint chips
• 1/3 cup chopped Andes candies
• Plus extra chips and candies to top the cookies with

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350. In a small bowl, combine the flour, baking soda, and salt.  Set aside. Beat the butter and both sugars using a stand mixer or hand mixer for 1-2 minutes.  Scrape the sides if needed. Add the egg and peppermint extract.  Beat till combined. Slowly add the flour mixture.  Beat just till combined. Mix in the two kinds of chips and the Andes mints.  Scoop 2 tablespoons of dough per cookie onto a parchment-lined baking sheet. Place them about 2 inches apart. At this time, you can add a few more chips and mint pieces to the top. Or you can do it when the cookies come out of the oven. This makes for a prettier cookie.  Slightly press down on the cookie.  Don't flattem completely. Bake for 7- 10 minutes, depending on the oven and what kind of sheet being used. The edges should be golden brown, but the center should be underdone.  Watch carefully. Remove from oven and cool on the sheet.Serve while warm or freeze, then thaw, then reheat for 5 minutes at 350. Serve while warm. 

Recipe Notes:

•  There might be other brands that make a green mint chip, but Guittard is the one I use. Watch for a sale.
• I cut the Andes mints into quite small pieces, but not so small that you can't see them. They do tend to melt.  
• I add about 3 extra pieces to the top, one of each kind. But add as many as you want. 
• I only bake one sheet at a time and rotate it halfway through. 

Recipe Source: Celebrating Sweets