The idea that it’s December 2nd astounds me.
It probably shouldn’t. We’re a family that puts our tree up the day after Thanksgiving (more for the convenience of a 4 day weekend and having extra hands around, but still), and the Christmas decorations have been decking these halls for a solid week.
But when I look at my work calendar, my editorial calendar, and the plans we have throughout the month of December, I’m kind of wondering how we’re actually going to fit it all in.
I’ll be honest right up front and state that in a few cases, the way I’m going to fit it all in is to let a few shortcuts help me along the way.
Take these delectable Candy Cane Crinkle Cookies. Everyone loves a crinkle cookie, right? They’re oh-so-simple to make, but they really pack a punch visually.
Side by side with a standard chocolate chip or shortbread, and I’d choose the crinkle cookie every time.
In this case, I’ve used the Double Chocolate Ghirardelli Brownie Mix as my shortcut to crinkle cookie perfection, and topped each one with a Hershey’s Candy Cane Kiss as it exits the oven.
I don’t know about you, but I wait all year for Candy Cane Kisses. They are my favorite from the Kisses line. I may or may not dedicate a portion of our freezer to excess bags of these babies so that I can enjoy them all year long.
You should probably know now that you’ll be seeing a lot of peppermint and chocolate variations on B&B over the next month.
It is my absolute favorite winter flavor combination, and I simply can’t get enough of it. From Peppermint Bark Cheesecake to these cookies, I am addicted. You’ll be seeing peppermint paired with chocolate – both milk and white – a lot around here.
How about you? Ready for it to be December? What’s your favorite Winter flavor combination?
Candy Cane Crinkle Cookies
makes approximately 30 cookies
Ingredients
1 box Ghirardelli Double Chocolate Brownie Mix
1 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
3 eggs
1/3 cup vegetable oil
1/4 cup granulated sugar
3/4 cup powdered sugar, reserved
Directions
Preheat oven to 350°F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside.
In a large mixing bowl, add brownie mix, flour, eggs, oil, and granulated sugar. Mix well with a wooden spoon or spatula until you have a stiff dough.
Place the powdered sugar in a separate small bowl. Using a medium cookie scoop, portion out the dough, rolling one dough ball at a time in the powdered sugar. Coat the dough ball completely, then place it on the baking sheet.
Dough balls should be 2″ apart on baking sheet. Bake for 11-13 minutes.
While the cookies are in the oven, unwrap one Hershey’s Candy Cane Kiss for each cookie. As soon as the cookies are removed from the oven, push one Kiss into the center of each cookie. Allow to cool for about 3 minutes on the sheet, then remove the cookies to a cooling rack.
Keep in an airtight container for up to 3 days.
{ 22 comments… read them below or add one }
I feel exactly the same way about December (and I remember feeling this way last year too…). I definitely need a couple of cookies to help my through the holiday madness…
And lists, Kathryn. Lots and lots of LISTS.
The peppermint ones are my favorite of the Kisses too. I could easily eat an entire bag in one sitting. These are gorgeous!
Me too, Amanda. It’s really a dangerous thing. Having them in the freezer helps two-fold. I can’t eat them frozen, my teeth can’t handle it. So by keeping them there, I tend to only take out a handful at a time, let them defrost, and then go to town. ;)
SO these are a brownie crinkle cookie? Topped with a Candy Cane Kiss? This can’t be real life!
Yup, they’re actually a brownie cookie. I’ve made them before using different flavored cake mixes, but then I picked up these Ghirardelli brownies and the adaptation was kinda sorta on the back of the box! I ended up playing with it a bit – the recipe on the back resulted in a VERY sticky dough.
yummmm
They look really good
although I can’t find these candy cane kisses where I live :(
they add a special twist to the overall look of the cookie
Aya, have you tried somewhere like Amazon? If you really have your heart set on them, a lot of times Amazon sellers will have these in stock and ship internationally. Thanks for stopping by!
I am so ready for the holidays! And I agree, peppermint-chocolate is a killer combination. Have you tried the mint truffle Kisses yet? I may have eaten half the bag already.
I have a bag of those in the freezer, Casey. Just waiting until my brain comes up with a genius way to use them in a baked good. Then I’ll eat the rest as-is!
I love how easy this recipes is…they look great!! Happy December, Amber :)
Thanks, Kristan! Give Lucy a cuddle from me! :)
These sound delightful!
Thanks, Katrina!
Do you have a from scratch recipe for the crinkle cookies?
Sam, I don’t have one hosted on my site currently. Here’s one I found via google:
http://www.yummly.com/recipe/external/Chocolate-Crinkle-Cookies-_from-Scratch_-Recipezaar
As of right this very second, I am now officially excited for December on B&B :) I loooove chocolate and peppermint together! In fact, you may see that over on Food Babbles a bit this month too. I can’t wait to see all your fabulous creations! These cookies already have my mouth watering. Love peppermint kisses and these cookies sound amazing.
I cannot trust myself around a bag of those Candy Cane Kisses. They obliterate my willpower. These cookies look SO scrumptious and easy to make–great for Christmas gift-giving!!
Oooh, brownie cookies! I’ve only had the Candy Cane Kisses once or twice…I guess I’m headin’ to Target. ;)
Hey Girl! I just posted Crinkle Cookies today, but love how you used brownie mix for yours. Brilliant idea–that’s exactly what the dough tastes like!
Hi! I loved the idea of these! I just made them and they are incredibly salty. It tastes like I dumped spoonfuls of salt into that batter. Any idea what I did wrong?
Jess
Jess, that sounds really odd! I mean… the only thing I could think of is accidentally using table salt instead of granulated sugar? I’ve done that before.. Unless there’s something up with the box mix? They weren’t salty to me, and as you can see from the recipe, you don’t add any additional salt to the recipe. So it could be something up with the box mix, maybe?
I’m really sorry about that! I wish I could troubleshoot more.
{ 1 trackback }