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These peppermint meltaways literally melt in your mouth with every bite. The combination of butter, powdered sugar, and cornstarch creates a fluffy and delicious cookie that is the perfect holiday treat!
Reasons You’ll Love This Recipe
- Peppermint Perfection: I feel like peppermint is the one flavor that is saved for the holiday season. These cookies scream Christmas and are a great neighbor or teacher gift.
- Cookie Exchange: Cookie parties are my favorite, and these are the best! My other favorite cookies to share are Christmas butter cookies, Italian Christmas cookies, or these triple chocolate peppermint cookies.
Ingredients For the Peppermint Meltaways
These easy peppermint meltaways are deliciously sweet and easy to make! You probably have most of the ingredients on hand. For exact measurements, scroll to the bottom of the post.
Peppermint Cookie
- Unsalted Butter: Softened butter is best when mixing dough.
- Powdered Sugar: This adds a light and fluffy sweetness!
- Peppermint Extract: Find this in the baking aisle by the spices.
- All-purpose Flour: A very common flour for baked goods.
- Cornstarch: Adds a light and fluffy texture to the cookies.
- Candy Canes: Crushed candy canes are used for sprinkling on top because they’re so cute.
Peppermint Cream Cheese Frosting
- Cream Cheese: Make sure you set your cream cheese on the counter to get it to room temperature.
- Salted Butter: Salted butter is great for baking.
- Powdered Sugar: Powdered sugar is a must for adding sweetness.
- Peppermint Extract: More extract flavor is delicious in the cream cheese frosting. You will LOVE it!
Recipe For Peppermint Meltaways
Grab the kids and make these fun peppermint meltaways! With a quick, easy recipe and creamy peppermint frosting, they’re perfect. Just sprinkle with crushed candy canes, and you’re all set. Can’t wait for you to try them!
Peppermint Meltaways
- Combine: In a small mixing bowl, combine the flour and cornstarch, then set aside.
- Cream: In another bowl, cream the butter and powdered sugar together.
- Add: Mix in the peppermint extract because it adds great flavor.
- Combine: Slowly add the flour and cornstarch mixture to the butter and powdered sugar mixture.
- Chill: Cover the dough, then pop it in the fridge for 1 hour.
- Preheat: After the dough has chilled, then preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
- Shape the Dough: Roll the dough into 1 to 1 ½ inch balls, then place them 2 inches apart on a parchment lined baking sheet.
- Bake: Bake for 10-12 minutes in the oven until the edges start to lightly turn brown. Remove from the oven, then let them cool completely.
Peppermint Cream Cheese Frosting
- Beat the Cream Cheese and Butter: Mix the cream cheese and butter using a hand mixer. Beat the mixture until creamy.
- Add the Extract: Add the extract and mix to combine.
- Add the Powdered Sugar: Slowly add the sifted powdered sugar, then mix until creamy and combined.
- Frost the Cooled Cookies: Once the cookies have cooled, you can frost them using a fun tip. Garnish with crushed candy canes on top.
Meltaway Cookie Variations and Addins
Peppermint meltaways are just one variation of these popular meltaway cookies. It’s easy to change the flavors and frosting to fit your theme. Here are some of my favorite substitutions for these yummy cookies. You will love all of the possibilities!
- Change the Extract Flavors: The easiest way to change the flavor is to change the extract! Experiment with your favorite flavors because you really can’t go wrong. Vanilla, almond, and orange extract flavors are my favorite, but you choose yours.
- Add Zest: The zest of any citrus fruit is a great way to pack in flavor! I love adding zest in the spring and summer. Lemon, lime, and orange zest are all delicious.
- Frosting: Any flavor of frosting would be delicious on these meltaway cookies. For instance, buttercream or chocolate would be my first pick. Additionally, it’s fun to change the color of the frosting. Simply use food coloring to match the theme of your party!
- Add Nuts: Add chopped nuts to the dough or on top of the frosting. Pistachios and pecans would be yummy!
Storing Leftover Cookies
These fun, delicious peppermint meltaways are perfect for the holidays! Here’s how to keep them fresh all week—or freeze them for later.
- At Room Temperature: Place cooled meltaway cookies in an airtight container. Then, store them at room temperature for up to 1 week.
- In the Freezer: Once the cookies are baked and cooled, you can store them in the freezer. Use a piece of parchment paper between layers. This prevents the frosting from sticking to other cookies.
More Peppermint Desserts to Try
Peppermint flavored desserts is the best way to celebrate the holidays! I love how versatile this flavor is and the many different desserts you can make. From shakes, to brownies, to cheesecakes…you can’t go wrong! Here are some yummy desserts you have to try! I am excited for you to make these.
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Peppermint Meltaways
Ingredients
Peppermint Meltaways
- 1 cup unsalted butter, softened
- 1/2 cup powdered sugar
- 1 teaspoon peppermint extract
- 1 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
- 1/2 cup cornstarch
- candy canes for garnish, crushed
Peppermint Cream Cheese Frosting:
- 1 package cream cheese 8 oz.
- 1/2 cup salted butter, softened
- 1 cup powdered sugar, sifted
- 1 teaspoon peppermint extract
Instructions
- In a small mixing bowl, combine flour and cornstarch, then set aside.
- In another small mixing bowl cream together the butter and powdered sugar. Add peppermint extract. Slowly add the flour and cornstarch mixture to the butter and powdered sugar mixture. Combine well and refrigerate for an hour.
- After the dough has chilled preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Roll the dough into 1 to 1-1/2-inch-sized balls and place them 2 inches apart on a parchment-lined baking sheet.
- Bake for 10-12 minutes until the edges start to lightly turn brown. Remove from the oven and let cool completely.
Frosting
- To make the peppermint cream cheese frosting, cream together cream cheese and butter.
- Add peppermint extract and slowly add the sifted powdered sugar.
- Frost the cookies with the frosting and garnish with crushed peppermint candy canes.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
@ Yeni- make sure you are using Butter and not margarine or spread.
Yes, I always use butter, unsalted.
I’m always baking cookies of all kinds and I really don’t get why these don’t turn out the way they’re supposed to, I’ve tried everything 🙁
Did you use salted butter? That might be it you have to use unsalted butter.
Nope, I always use unsalted butter for all the recipes, I’m not a newbie at baking but I just can’t get these to come out right 🙁
I just made these this morning for an office party…and YUMMY! These are the perfect holiday cookie…melt in your mouth butter cookie with creamy icing with a peppermint twist! The only thing I did differently was use salted butter for the cookie and the taste is still marvelous. Highly recommend – and thanks for posting! 🙂
When cooking these or any other cookie of the recipe calls for softened butter it needs to be about the consistency of play dough otherwise you will end up with flat cookies. Also make sure not to over mix the butter and powdered sugar as this causes too much air to get into the mix and this will also make your cookies flat and fragile. Baking cookies really is a science 🙂
Yep, I know, I’m always baking cookies of all kinds, and they never turn out flat or crumbly… But these are my nemesis, I just can’t make them turn out right, I’ve followed the instructions and even changed things with every batch, but nothing seems to work 🙁 And I really love the flavor
Was wondering how you put the frosting on, was it put in a bag and tip on end? I don’t do much of this kind baking..thank you!!
Are you sure your frosting recipe is correct? Most cream cheese and buttercream frosting recipes have 3 cups of powdered sugar. That much butter and cream cheese needs more sugar.
Please heeeelp! 🙁
I found this recipe and I decided to make it because it looked delicious and pretty easy.
I made the dough following all the instructions, refrigerated it overnight, but when I baked them they came out flat, like super super flat and so fragile that when they cooled and tried to take them out of the tray, they just fell apart :'(
I mean, the crumbles are delicious, but I wanted cookies 🙁
I want to try and make them again, does anyone know or have a theory of what happened? Please help me
I made these last night and they turned out great. I am thinking you wither miss measured or you should only chill them for an hour.
I have the same issue! Mine is so crumbly I can hardly make the balls hold together to get them in the oven! I too would apprciate any suggestions!
A couple things could cause a cookie to go flat. 1. Over beating the butter and sugar. 2. Using butter that is too warm–you should be able to press a knife into the butter to make an imprint, but it shouldn’t be mushy. As for the crumbly cookie, make sure the cookie is completely cool before moving. I slide the parchment paper (with the cookies on it) onto a cooling rack.
Thanks Lynn
Yeah, I’m not such a newbie, but I just can’t get these to turn out right, I’ve tried several times
I didn’t over beat the butter, when it calls for softed butter I always use it at room temperature and not melted, just soft enough, plus, I chill the dough overnight, so it shouldn’t be a problem.
And yeah, of course I move the cookies when they are cold enough, but they are so flat and so thin that they break easily, even if I let them get a little bit crispy, so that they are harder.
I wish I could post a pic here
The same thing happened to me. You can’t pick one up and break a piece off, hey just crumble. Dies anyone have ny ideas what happened.
I let them get crispy, a little bit brown on the edges and at least you can pick them up, but they still look like a tortilla
Did you use margarine or real butter? I always use butter when I bake because margarine sometimes contains water. That can cause cookies to be flat.
Yes, I always use real butter
I had the same experience. They were out this world delicious. BUT how in the world to get them to look like this picture???? I tried making bigger balls that didn’t work either. Leaving them on the pan till they cooled helped me to be able to get them off the pan but they still broke when we picked them up to eat them.
They are essentially shortbread drop cookies I guess we should go research shortbread cookie making. Anyone have any suggestions would be helpful. This is my new favorite flavor of cookie.
YES!!! I thought I was the only one!!
The same thing happens to me, I’ve tried to make them SEVERAL times and changed stuff, I added more flour, cornstarch, sugar, tried refrigerating the dough overnight, freezing it, turning up the temperature (so that they baked faster and didn’t have a chance to melt so much, or that was my idea but they just got crispy, but still super flat)… I’ve tried a different thing every time, and they always turn out SUPER flat, so flat that you can’t pick them up, they break , they melt so much that even if they are far from each other, they end up all together, it’s like a big flat cookie.
The only time they barely melted was when I added god knows how much sugar until the dough didn’t stick to the bowl, and they turned out like meringues… They weren’t bad, but I used too much sugar.
Can you please help us, Alyssa?
Ps. I also noticed today that on the recipe that’s on Pinterest it says 1 1/2 cup of sugar and here it says 1/2 cup, sooo… Which is the right one?
THANKS
Maybe the brand of butter? I have found Land o Lakes to be my favorite. When I have used store brands in the past, I have been disappointed…
My only other thought is flour? Again, sometimes brand can matter. I stick with King Arthur because it seems more consistent in weight than other brands.
How many does this recipe yield? Looks great!
I ended up with 3 dozen
Prep time about 30 minutes
Would you please tell me about how many cookies this recipe makes? Thank you.
I am just wondering about how long these take with prep time and how many this recipe makes.
I got 30 cookies using a cookie scoop.
These look really yummy! Do they have to be refridgerated because of the creamcheese frosting? let me know. Happy Holidays!
If you don’t eat them within a couple of hours I would store them in the fridge. 🙂
Alyssa
How many cookies does this recipe make?
They tastes so much better from the fridge. 🙂 It adds that coolness with the peppermint and the creamcheese icing just tastes the best when it’s cool. I tried these yesterday and they are phenomenal – I’ve never had a favorite cookie until now! The soft peppermint puff candies are best to use and really enhance the flavor! I doubled the peppermint extract in the icing because it originally tasted so buttery and we loved it even more!
I make this cookie every Christmas (got it from landolakes.com) and it’s the perfect cookie for holiday trays – they’re just as good a few days later as they are the day you make them. I normally just make a peppermint buttercream frosting but think I’ll try the peppermint cream cheese frosting this time. Sounds amazing! Thanks!!
How long do they stay fresh with cream cheese frosting?
These cookies look so pretty Alyssa! I can never get enough of peppermint during this time of year especially in soft cookies 🙂
These really do look like the best Christmas cookies.
These look absolutely beautiful and delicious! thanks for sharing, Happy Holidays!