With a hint of coffee and mint flavors, these Peppermint Mocha Chocolate Chunk Cookies are perfect for Christmas parties or holiday gifts.
When you think of flavors that remind you of Christmas what are the first ones that pop into your head? Cinnamon? Roasted nuts? Hot cocoa?
I love a good cup of coffee in the morning, so when I think of Christmas, I have visions of peppermint mochas dancing in my head. I couldn’t help but turn those visions into warm, delicious melt-in-your-mouth cookies for my latest Ideas for the Kitchen exchange with Ashlyn at Belle of the Kitchen – Peppermint Mocha Chocolate Chunk Cookies!
Each month, Ashlyn and I trade blogs to bring you a new voice and new recipe ideas. For December we decided a holiday cookie exchange would be appropriate. She brought over some incredible looking Cranberry White Chocolate Chip Cookies to share with you a few weeks ago.
While she was here, I shared these Peppermint Mocha Chocolate Chunk Cookies with her readers and today I’m going to share it with all of you. (Total side note, if Christmas makes you think of roasted nuts, you totally need to check out Ashlyn’s recipe for Cinnamon and Sugar Roasted Pecans. They look AMAZING!)
WHAT YOU NEED:
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kitchen tools NEEDed:
- Stand mixer or hand mixer
- Mixing bowls
- Mixing spatula
- Baking sheet
- Parchment paper or cooking spray
- Cooling rack
INGREDIENTS needed:
Here’s what you’ll need from the store. The exact amounts are in the printable recipe card at the bottom of this post.
- Butter
- Sugar
- Light Brown Sugar
- White Chocolate Instant Pudding and Pie Filling Mix Package – 4 serving size
- Vanilla
- Eggs
- Brewed Coffee
- Peppermint Extract
- Baking Soda
- All-Purpose Flour
- Chocolate Chunks
- Candy Canes, optional
- Green Food Coloring, optional
TIPS AND IDEAS FOR MAKING PEPPERMINT MOCHA CHOCOLATE CHUNK COOKIES
Before we get to the recipe card, I’d like to go over a few tips and answer a few frequently asked questions about this recipe
the secret to moist cookies
I created these Peppermint Mocha Chocolate Chunk Cookies based on our favorite chocolate chip cookie recipe given to us by our friend, Arlene. She uses an instant pudding mix in her cookies to give them the most amazing flavor and fluffy texture. I chose a white chocolate pudding mix instead of the vanilla mix listed in her recipe to increase the chocolatey taste.
DO YOU USE REGULAR OR INSTANT COFFEE FOR BAKING?
To give the Peppermint Mocha Chocolate Chunk Cookies a hint of coffee flavor, I brewed 1 K-cup of medium roast coffee in my Keurig on the smallest brew size. This gave me about 4 ounces or a half a cup of coffee for the recipe.
If you prefer a stronger coffee flavor, I’ve heard you can use instant coffee granules when you bake. I’ve never tried it, though, so I’m not sure how much you should use.
If you don’t love coffee, simply omit it from the recipe. You can easily make these as mint chocolate chip cookies instead.
how do these cookies get the peppermint flavor?
As the name Peppermint Mocha Chocolate Chunk Cookies implies, I also added peppermint extract. To increase the peppermint flavor even more, crush up candy canes to mix into the batter. To make them even more visible, don’t mix them all in. Save a few to press into the cookie dough balls just before you bake it.
can i leave the peppermint out?
Yes, if you’re not a huge fan of peppermint, you can reduce the amount of extract or remove it entirely from the recipe. They will still be delicious as mocha chocolate chunk cookies.
How can I make these cookies even more festive for Christmas?
If you want to make these cookies really stand out on your cookie tray, here are a few ideas:
- Give the cookies a minty green hue for the holidays by adding green food coloring to the cookie batter. Add as many drops as you need to get the color you desire.
- Replace half the chocolate chunks in the recipe with red and green holiday M&Ms.
- Add red or green sprinkles to the tops of your cookie balls before your baking.
can i freeze cookie dough?
Absolutely! This is one of my favorite tips to save time and make life easier during the busy holiday season. Make your cookie batter ahead of time per the instructions on the recipe card. Line a baking sheet with wax paper. Use a tablespoon to create large balls of cookie dough on the baking sheet, leaving just a small amount of space between each ball.
Pop the whole baking sheet into your freezer for at least four hours. (I usually let the tray sit in the freezer overnight.) Once the individual cookie dough balls are frozen solid, move them into a large gallon sized Zip-loc bag and store them in your freezer until you’re ready to do you holiday baking closer to Christmas.
HOW FAR IN ADVANCE CAN I MAKE THE COOKIE DOUGH?
If you’re going to freeze it in individual balls like I described above, you can make it several months in advance. Otherwise refrigerated cookie dough should be baked into cookies within a week of mixing it up. Because of the pudding in the mix, refrigerated dough will stiffen.
do i need to thaw frozen cookie dough balls?
No, you can take the cookie dough balls directly out of your freezer and bake them. Use the same temperature listed on the recipe card. You’ll just need to leave them in the oven for a few minutes longer so they bake all the way through.
Peppermint Mocha Chocolate Chunk Cookies
Ingredients
- 1 cup Butter Softened
- 1/4 cup Sugar
- 3/4 cup Light Brown Sugar
- 3.4 oz White Chocolate Instant Pudding and Pie Filling Mix Package – 4 serving size
- 1 teaspoon Vanilla
- 2 Eggs
- 1/2 cup Brewed Coffee
- 1 teaspoon Peppermint Extract
- 12 Drops Green Food Coloring optional
- 1 teaspoon Baking Soda
- 2 1/4 cups All-Purpose Flour
- 11.5 oz Chocolate Chunks
- 10 Candy Canes crushed
Instructions
- In a large mixing bowl, beat together butter, sugar, brown sugar, pudding mix and vanilla until creamy.
- Stir in flour.
- Pour in the chocolate chunks and stir until combined. The batter will be stiff.
- Drop by the tablespoon full onto ungreased baking sheets. Gently press crushed candy canes into the top of the cookies.
- Bake at 375 degrees for 10-12 minutes. After you remove the baking sheet from the oven, let the cookies cool for 5 minutes before moving them with a spatula to a cooling rack.
Notes
Nutrition
Serving Suggestions for Peppermint Chocolate Chunk Cookies
Enjoy the Peppermint Mocha Chocolate Chunk Cookies fresh from the oven with a warm glass of milk, egg nog or your favorite holiday beverage.
Serve them at your Christmas party or wrap them up in cellophane with a festive bow and give them as gifts to friends and neighbors.
I’d love to know what kind of cookies you’d bring if we were hosting a REAL cookie exchange rather than a virtual one.
What’s your family’s favorite go-to Christmas cookie they insist you make every year? Please comment below and share. We’re always looking for new ideas!
What’s next?
While you’re here, be sure to check out other Christmas ideas on Ideas for the Home by Kenarry® –
- Hot Chocolate Pops: The Perfect Snow Day Treat
- Mini Christmas Cakes Make for the Most Festive Treats
- Easy Reindeer Brownies: A Holiday Recipe
If you liked this recipe for Peppermint Mocha Chocolate Chunk Cookies, please share it with your friends or pin it for later:
Originally published December 2014. Updated December 2019.
These look absolutely amazing! These are going on my HAVE TO TRY list:) Thank you for sharing on Tasty Tuesdays!
They are so delicious, Dina! I hope you enjoy the cookie recipe.
Oh how yummy these look! They are going on my list to make for Christmas. Or now. 😉 I love basic cookies too so I would bring my favorite Chocolate Chunk cookies.
It’s never to early to start making holiday cookies if you ask me, Julie! 🙂 Enjoy the recipe.
These look so yummy – perfect for our Christmas cookie swap! Thank you for sharing with us at the #HomeMattersParty
Oh yes, these would be a big hit at your Christmas cookie swap, Jamie! Enjoy!
What a great sounding Christmas cookie. Thanks for sharing at #Throwback Thursday. Please join us again and remember this week will focus on Thanksgiving recipes.
Thanks, Quinn! I’m so glad you enjoyed the cookie recipe and appreciate that you came over to visit us from Throwback Thursday.