My Favorite Christmas Cookie

Peppermint Wedding Cookies

This recipe tastes like a hybrid of a wedding cookie and a melt-away mint. The

peppermint candy crumbs give a burst of refreshing sweetness with each bite.

1 cup unsalted butter, softened

1⁄2 cup powdered sugar, sifted

1 tsp. peppermint extract

2 cups all-purpose flour

1⁄2 tsp. salt

10 hard peppermint candies, crushed

1⁄2 cup powdered sugar

Parchment paper

1. Beat butter at medium speed with an electric mixer until creamy; gradually add 1⁄2 cup sifted powdered sugar and peppermint extract, beating well. Add flour and salt, beating until blended. Cover and chill dough 30 minutes.

2. Preheat oven to 350°. Place crushed peppermints in a bowl. Place 1⁄2 cup

powdered sugar in a second bowl. Shape dough into 20 (11⁄4-inch) balls; place 1 inch apart on parchment paper-lined baking sheets.

3. Bake at 350° for 18 minutes or until bottoms are golden (tops will be pale). Immediately roll each cookie in crushed peppermints and then in powdered sugar. Generously sprinkle peppermints on top of each cookie, mounding slightly. (Peppermints will stick to cookies as they cool.) Cool completely on wire racks (about 30 minutes).

Makes: 20 cookies

Hands-on Time: 20 min. Total Time: 1 hr., 40 min.

Recipe from Southern Living Around the Southern Table by Rebecca Lang. Copyright 2012 Oxmoor House