Peppermint Mocha Cookies

This past weekend I attended a third annual cookie exchange party with friends. The party was filled with delicious, creative recipes and I am still working my way through tasting them all.

I am one of those people who loves to see the red cups arrive at Starbucks signaling the holiday season growing near. Gingerbread lattes and peppermint mochas are my seasonal drinks of choice, so I decided to channel one into a cookie. In the end, I chose peppermint mocha cookies and was happy with the results. If you love chocolate combined with mint and a hint of espresso then this is the cookie for you. I highly recommend eating them right out of the oven. :) Enjoy!


Peppermint Mocha Cookies

Ingredients:
-8 oz semisweet chocolate, roughly chopped
-4 Tbsp unsalted butter
-2/3 cup flour
-1/2 tsp baking powder
-2 teaspoons espresso powder
-1/2 tsp salt
-2 large eggs
-3/4 cup packed light-brown sugar
-1 tsp pure vanilla bean paste (substitute vanilla extract as needed)
-1 tsp peppermint extract
-12 oz package semisweet chocolate chips
-Sprinkles and/or chopped peppermints for garnish

Directions:
-Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Cover 2 baking sheets with parchment paper.
-Heat chopped chocolate in microwave in 30 second intervals until melted. Set aside to cool for a few minutes. Do the same with the butter.
-In the bowl of your mixer beat eggs, brown sugar, vanilla, vanilla bean paste and peppermint extract on high speed until the sugar has completely dissolved (4-5 minutes). Reduce speed to low and add the melted chocolate. Mix until uniform. Add the melted butter. Add espresso powder, baking powder and salt. Add in flour and mix until combined. Mix in the chocolate chips.
-Refrigerate dough for 15 minutes. (Dough should easily form round circles when scooped.)
-Using a cookie scoop, drop heaping tablespoons of dough 2 to 3 inches apart onto baking sheets. Bake approximately 10 minutes. Place your garnish onto the top of the cookies while hot so that they will set on top. Allow to cool 15 minutes before transferring.

Yields 2 dozen cookies

Adapted from: Confections of a Foodie Bride via Martha Stewart