Red-and-white-striped candy canes are probably the most iconic sweet of the holiday season, but on their own they aren’t all that interesting. We wanted to take the candy cane concept the big peppermint flavor, the hooked shape, and the bold stripes and reimagine it in cookie form. Two teaspoons of peppermint extract ably flavored basic butter cookies with a smooth, cool peppermint flavor. To achieve decorative stripes, we made one dough, divided it in half, and mixed red food coloring into one half. Then we rolled the portions of different colored dough into squares and stacked them before cutting them into strips. Twisting the two-toned dough strips and forming them into a cane shape gave them the classic pattern. If the dough becomes too soft to twist, simply return it to the refrigerator to firm up. You can substitute sanding sugar for the granulated sugar used to decorate the exterior of the cookies, if desired, for a super sparkly finish.
Ingredients
- 2¼ cups (11¼ ounces) all-purpose flour
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 16 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
- ¾ cup (5¼ ounces) granulated sugar, plus ½ cup for rolling
- ½ cup (2 ounces) confectioners’ sugar
- 2 large egg yolks
- 2 teaspoons peppermint extract
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 12 drops red food coloring
- Whisk flour and salt together in bowl. Using stand mixer fitted with paddle, beat butter, ¾ cup granulated sugar, and confectioners’ sugar on medium-high speed until pale and fluffy, 3 to 6 minutes. Add egg yolks, peppermint extract, and vanilla and beat until well incorporated. Reduce speed to low, slowly add flour mixture, and mix until combined. Set aside half of dough; add food coloring to remaining dough and mix until fully incorporated. Shape each half into 5-inch square, wrap tightly in plastic wrap, and refrigerate until firm, about 2 hours.
- Adjust oven racks to upper-middle and lower-middle positions and heat oven to 325 degrees. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper. Spread remaining ½ cup granulated sugar in shallow dish.
- Roll each dough square into 9-inch square on piece of parchment. Flip 1 dough square on top of other dough square and gently roll to adhere. Cut square in half and refrigerate until firm, about 15 minutes. Cut 1 half into 4½ by ¼-inch strips. Gently twist each strip into spiral, rolling to smooth out edges. Roll in granulated sugar, shape into candy canes, and space 1 inch apart on prepared sheets. Bake until edges are light brown, 13 to 15 minutes, switching and rotating sheets halfway through baking. Let cookies cool on sheets for 5 minutes, then transfer to wire rack. Repeat with remaining dough. Let cookies cool completely before serving.