Peppermint Meltaway Cookies Recipe

Servings: 30 Total Time: 14 mins
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Irresistibly soft, buttery, and sweet, these peppermint meltaway cookies are a festive favorite during the holiday season. Their texture is so unique; it’s a cross between a shortbread cookie and a cakey cookie, and they completely melt in your mouth. The cornstarch and confectioners’ sugar are KEY here, and don’t forget that pretty pink candy cane buttercream!

You know those meltaway after-dinner butter mints you sometimes see at restaurants… individually packaged, piled in a basket by the door, beckoning you to grab one on your way out? They’re buttery smooth, melt in your mouth, and leave behind a sweet but not overpowering taste of peppermint. Imagine those… but in cookie form. Now add frosting.

These cookies are downright delectable!!

Peppermint Meltaway Cookies Recipe Snapshot

  • Texture: They’re called meltaways for good reason! These ultra-soft, light and tender cookies practically melt in your mouth. Think: softer than a peppermint snowball cookie, and less cakey than these buttercream-frosted soft cakey sugar cookies, and not at all chewy. A little crushed candy cane crunch on top adds another dimension of texture.
  • Flavor: Peppermint extract in both the cookie dough and the buttercream adds the perfect pop of peppermint flavor.
  • Ease: This is a simple 1-bowl cookie dough, and the buttercream topping is very basic (but delicious!). Easy enough for beginner bakers and cookie decorators.
  • Time: The dough only needs to chill for 30 minutes. Compared to other cookie recipes that include hours-long chill times, this is relatively quick!

Ingredients for the Cookie Dough:

To create the ultimate soft cookie texture, you need some key ingredients:

You need an electric mixer—either stand or hand—to make these peppermint meltaway cookies. You’ll need to cream the butter for the cookie dough, and for the buttercream frosting, as well.

Good news: you can make this cookie dough all in one bowl!

This cookie dough only needs a minimum of 30 minutes of chill time in the refrigerator, so you won’t have to wait too long to taste that sweet, melty peppermint goodness.

Tips for Shaping Peppermint Meltaway Cookies

Scoop, roll, and flatten. Each cookie is around 1 Tablespoon of cookie dough, so you can use your Tablespoon measuring spoon to portion out each cookie. If you have a kitchen scale, each cookie dough ball should weigh about 20–22g.

Be sure to slightly flatten the dough balls. You can flatten with the palm of your hand right on the lined baking sheet, or between both your palms before placing on the baking sheet. These cookies puff up but don’t spread much, and we want to encourage them to bake up with a flat surface for frosting.

Bake just until the edges are set. These cookies stay light in color, so you’re not waiting for them to turn golden brown.

Peppermint Buttercream Frosting

While the meltaway cookies are cooling, you can go ahead and make the frosting using the electric mixer again. I tint the frosting light pink with a drop of pink gel food coloring. I always use gel food coloring in frostings, because adding more liquid can throw off the consistency. However, with such a small amount of coloring, liquid food dye would be fine here.

And, of course, you don’t have to tint the frosting at all! Feel free to keep it white, like I do with these peppermint frosted chocolate cookies. Spread it onto the cooled meltaway cookies; feel free to pipe it on top, but I just use a knife or small icing spatula.

Is there anything better than a frosting-covered cookie? That’s a rhetorical question. I’m not taking answers at this time. 😉

Peppermint Meltaway Cookies Recipe

Prep Time 1 min Cook Time 13 mins Total Time 14 mins Servings: 30
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Ingredients You’ll Need

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Instructions

  1. In a large bowl using a handheld or stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat the butter on medium speed until creamy, about 1 minute. Add the confectioners’ sugar and beat on low speed for 30 seconds, then increase to medium-high speed and beat for 2 full minutes, until light and fluffy. Scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl as needed. Add the egg yolk, vanilla extract, and peppermint extract and beat on high speed until combined. Scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl as needed.
  2. Add the flour, cornstarch, baking powder, and salt. Beat on low speed until combined. The cookie dough will be thick and creamy. Cover dough tightly and chill in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes and up to 3 days. Chilling is mandatory for this creamy cookie dough.
  3. Preheat oven to 350°F (177°C). Line large baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone baking mats. Set aside.
  4. Scoop and roll dough into balls, about 1 Tablespoon or 20–22g each. Place dough balls 3 inches apart on the baking sheets, and then flatten each slightly with the palm of your hand; they should be just under 2 inches in diameter.
  5. Bake the cookies for 13–14 minutes or until the edges appear set. The cookies won’t darken/brown, so be careful not to over-bake them.
  6. Remove from the oven and allow cookies to cool on the baking sheet for 10 minutes, then transfer to a cooling rack to cool completely before frosting.
  7. With a handheld or stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat the butter on medium speed until creamy, about 1 minute. Add the confectioners’ sugar, milk, vanilla extract, and peppermint extract. Beat on low speed for 30 seconds, then increase to medium-high speed and beat for 2 full minutes. Taste. To thicken the buttercream, beat in more confectioners’ sugar. To thin out the buttercream, beat in more milk. To help offset more sweetness, beat in a pinch of salt.
  8. If you’d like to tint the frosting, beat in 1 tiny drop of food coloring. Add more to deepen the color, if desired. Using a knife or icing spatula, spread frosting onto the cooled cookies. Sprinkle each lightly with crushed candy canes.
  9. Cover and store frosted cookies at room temperature for up to 1 day, or in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. Frosting “soft-sets” on the cookies after a few hours, meaning it will slightly dry on top.
Keywords: candy canes, confectioners-sugar, cornstarch, peppermint extract
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