These soft and thick chocolate peppermint thumbprints are a new favorite Christmas cookie. Combining chocolate cookies, chocolate peppermint ganache, and crushed candy canes, they’re undoubtedly festive and bound to disappear off cookie platters.
This recipe is part of my annual holiday cookie countdown called Sally’s Cookie Palooza. Every year since 2013, I work on a handful of new cookie recipes and publish the 10 best ones for readers to enjoy. It’s the biggest, tastiest event of the year on my website!
These are Chocolate Peppermint Thumbprints.
Tell me About Chocolate Peppermint Thumbprints
These chocolate peppermint thumbprint cookies channel my peppermint bark cookies, Andes mint chocolate cookies, and chocolate cookies with candy cane buttercream with the same irresistible chocolate and peppermint flavor combination. They’re also:
- Adorable 2 bite cookies
- Thick + mega festive
- Super soft in the centers
- Filled with chocolate peppermint ganache
- Topped with crushed candy canes
We honestly COULD NOT STOP eating these. Besides the unbeatable texture and festive flavor, you’ll also appreciate that this Christmas cookie recipe comes together with basic kitchen ingredients like flour, cocoa powder, butter, and sugar. Love that.
How to Make Chocolate Peppermint Thumbprints
- Whisk the dry ingredients together.
- Cream the wet ingredients together.
- Combine the wet and dry ingredients.
- Roll balls of dough + coat with sugar. Use a little less than 1 Tablespoon of dough for each (about 1 inch balls).
- Indent each cookie.
- Chill the indented dough.
- Bake.
- Fill with ganache.
I developed the base of this recipe from my chocolate crinkle cookies. The recipes are different because I needed a slightly sturdier cookie to hold the ganache inside. A higher ratio of brown sugar to white sugar keeps the cookies extra soft and cocoa powder lends all the chocolate flavor in the dough. Remember the difference between dutch-process vs. natural cocoa powder? Use natural cocoa powder here.
Baker’s Tip: Chill the cookie dough AFTER rolling the dough balls in sugar and making indents. Why? Chilling cookie dough at this stage is the most important step. In my recipe testing, I found that chilling the dough before indenting made it a little too firm and difficult to work with. Chilling the dough after indenting was much easier. And if you chill the cookies like this (picture below), they’ll hold their shape much better when baked. Place the whole cookie sheet in your refrigerator for 2 hours or freezer for 1 hour.
Arrange the cold dough 2-3 inches apart on baking sheets, then bake.
My Indent Trick
This is my #1 trick for indenting thumbprints: Instead of using your thumb, use the end of a wooden spoon or rubber spatula. This way you don’t dirty your thumbs or get dough under your nail AND you obtain a perfect uniform indent in each cookie. Are you a control freak/neat freak like I am? Then you’ll totally appreciate this hack.
I do the same thing with my caramel apple spice thumbprints and lemon thumbprint cookies.
Of course, you can still use your thumb if that’s easiest for you.
Bake Without the Filling
Unlike most thumbprint cookies where you bake the cookies WITH the filling inside, you actually bake today’s thumbprints WITHOUT the ganache filling inside. (Baked ganache is not a good idea!) Since the indented cookies are empty, they’re going to puff up in the oven and lose some of that thumbprint indentation. See photo on the left above.
Here’s what you do: When the cookies come out of the oven, grab the wooden spoon or rubber spatula again and press the center of the warm cookies down to make a deeper indent. You’re just reshaping the thumbprints here—very easy. Deeper indent = bigger pool of ganache. See photo on the right above.
Chocolate Peppermint Ganache
Do you remember when I taught you how to make chocolate ganache? We’re doing the same exact thing here! Chocolate ganache requires two ingredients:
- Heavy Cream
- Chocolate
Chop chocolate into tiny pieces. Use chocolate labeled “baking chocolate” that’s sold as 4 ounce bars in the baking aisle right next to the chocolate chips. I prefer Ghirardelli or Bakers brands. TIP: The best tool for chopping hard chocolate is a large serrated knife. Pour warm cream over the chopped chocolate. Let it sit for a few minutes, then stir until thick and smooth. To make this ganache extra special, add a drop of peppermint extract. Start with only 1/8 teaspoon, then taste it. If you want more, add more. Peppermint extract is VERY potent and if you add too much, your ganache will taste like toothpaste.
The chocolate ganache will eventually set, making these chocolate peppermint thumbprints easy for packing, gifting, and traveling. It’s still creamy when you take that first bite, though—perfectly messy just like all the best Christmas cookies are. 🙂
If you can’t get enough peppermint cookies try these candy cane kiss cookies, peppermint snowball cookies, or peppermint mocha cookies next.
Sally’s Cookie Palooza
This recipe is part of my annual cookie countdown called Sally’s Cookie Palooza. It’s the biggest, most delicious event of the year! Browse dozens of cookie recipes over on the Sally’s Cookie Palooza page including:
- Mint Chocolate Checkerboard Cookies
- Iced Oatmeal Cookies
- Brownie Cookies
- Cookies in a Jar (with free printable)
- Peanut Butter Blossoms
and here’s my video tutorial & guide for how to freeze cookie dough.
Chocolate Peppermint Thumbprints
- Prep Time: 30 minutes
- Cook Time: 14 minutes
- Total Time: 3 hours
- Yield: 30-32 cookies
- Category: Desserts
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Description
Combining chocolate cookies, chocolate peppermint ganache, and crushed candy canes, these chocolate peppermint thumbprints are extra festive and bound to disappear off cookie platters. Chill the shaped dough for at least 2 hours to help guarantee the cookies hold their shape.
Ingredients
- 1 and 1/2 cups (188g) all-purpose flour (spooned & leveled)
- 1/2 cup (41g) unsweetened natural cocoa powder
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 cup (8 Tbsp; 113g) unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
- 1/2 cup (100g) packed light or dark brown sugar
- 2/3 cup (135g) granulated sugar, divided
- 1 large egg, at room temperature
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 1/2 teaspoon peppermint extract
- 2 teaspoons milk
Ganache
- one 4 ounce semi-sweet chocolate bar (113g), finely chopped
- 1/2 cup (120ml) heavy cream
- 1/8 teaspoon peppermint extract
- 1/4 cup crushed candy canes (2 large candy canes)
Instructions
- Whisk the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, and salt together in medium bowl. Set aside.
- In a large bowl using a handheld or stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat the butter, brown sugar, and 1/3 cup (67g) granulated sugar together on medium-high speed until smooth and creamy, about 2 minutes. Add the egg, vanilla extract, and peppermint extract and beat on high speed until combined, about 1 minute. Scrape down the sides and up the bottom of the bowl and beat again as needed to combine. Pour the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients, add the milk, and mix on low until combined. The cookie dough will be thick.
- Roll balls of dough, a little less than 1 Tablespoon each (about 1 inch balls), and roll each into remaining 1/3 cup (67g) granulated sugar. Place dough balls onto a large lined baking sheet. Using your thumb or the end of a spatula (see post above), make an indent into each cookie. If you find that the balls are cracking when you make an indent, use your hands to push back together. (Some cracks are bound to happen as the cookies expand in the oven—see my photos. No worries there!)
- Chill the shaped cookies for at least 2 hours in the refrigerator or 1 hour in the freezer (or up to 4 days in the refrigerator). Cover them if chilling for longer than 3 hours.
- Preheat oven to 350°F (180°C). Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat. Remove chilled and shaped cookies from the refrigerator. Divide between both baking sheets, spacing the cookies about 2-3 inches apart. This recipe yields about 30 cookies, so you’ll have a 3rd batch with only a few cookies on the sheet.
- Bake for 12-14 minutes or until the edges are set. The cookies will still look and feel a little soft. Remove from the oven. The indents will have lost some shape or have puffed up, so use the end of a spatula to make an indent again into the warm cookies.
- Allow cookies to cool on the baking sheets for 5 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely before filling with ganache.
- For the ganache: Place chocolate into a heat-proof bowl. Heat the cream in a small saucepan until it begins to gently simmer. (Do not let it come to a rapid boil—that’s too hot!) Pour over chocolate and let it sit for 2-3 minutes to gently soften the chocolate. Slowly stir until completely combined and chocolate has melted. Stir in the peppermint extract. Taste and add another drop if desired. (It’s potent so don’t go overboard!) Allow to cool for at least 10 minutes before spooning into cookies.
- Spoon 1/2 – 1 teaspoon of ganache into each indentation. I fit about 3/4 teaspoon into each. Sprinkle ganache with crushed candy canes. Ganache will thicken inside the cookies and set on the tops after a few hours, but will still be creamy when you bite into the cookies.
- Cookies stay fresh covered at room temperature for up to 3 days or in the refrigerator for up to 1 week.
Notes
- Make Ahead & Freezing Instructions: Store any leftover ganache in the refrigerator for up to 1 week. You can make and shape the cookie dough and chill it in the refrigerator for up to 4 days, as noted in step 4. Baked and filled (or unfilled) cookies freeze well for up to 3 months. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator and bring to room temperature before serving.
- Special Tools (affiliate links): Glass Mixing Bowl | Whisk | Electric Mixer (Handheld or Stand) | Baking Sheet | Silicone Baking Mat or Parchment Paper | Silicone Spatula | Cooling Rack
- Troubleshooting Chocolate Ganache: See my Chocolate Ganache post if you need more information on the ganache. I answer a lot of ganache FAQs there!
- Be sure to check out my top 5 cookie baking tips AND these are my 10 must-have cookie baking tools.
So I am looking for a chocolate and raspberry cookie for a friend’s party, and I was wondering if I could fill these with raspberry jam like you do in the PB&J thumbprints? Would using this dough (omitting the peppermint extract) and following those shaping/filling instructions work? Thanks for the help!
Hi Kate, that should work well! Please do let us know how it goes. We hope the cookies are a hit!
It worked! On my first batch, the jam melted into the dough a little more than I wanted, so I ended up filling the cookies with jam around half way through the bake time on my next batches. After that minor adjustment, they turned out great! Chocolate and raspberry will always be a top-tier flavor combination. 🙂
I love these! They are so easy and love the peppermint and chocolate. I doubled the batch without a problem. They are definitely on my cookie list for next year.
Not a fan. I love all the recipes I try from this site but this one is not for me. The cookie was soft but somehow dense and crumbly (not dry just more of an odd texture). That being said, I think it turned out just as it should but I don’t like them personally. I will admit, these are absolutely beautiful. And my husband keeps eating them. So who knows
Would it be possible to put raspberry jam in the middle instead of the ganache? My daughter thought it’d be a good combination.
Hi Christy, you could certainly do that. Let us know how it goes!
Can you make the chocolate peppermint thumbprint cookies and put a Hershey kiss in the middle?
And would you just follow the recipe as is?
Thank you
Hi Annette, that should work just fine! Or, you can use the dough from these chocolate crinkle cookies instead (feel free to leave off the powdered sugar topping).
I love and use your recipes. Can these be made with raspberry jam/thick compote filling and baked with it? I’m looking for a chocolate thumbprint with fruit filling but cooked with the cookie so it will be set. Thanks for your help!
Hi Sue, yes, you can skip the ganache. And you can fill the shaped cookies with jam before baking, about 1/2 teaspoon of jam each.
The family loved the cookies especially my son in law. I left off the peppermint out of the ganache.
This recipe looks yummy! Do you have a vanilla, white chocolate peppermint version?!
Hi Patte, I don’t, but you can try using the lemon cookie dough from this recipe, and leave out the lemon juice and zest. Increase the vanilla a bit, perhaps by another teaspoon. Let me know if you try a white chocolate ganache filling!
These look yummy! Question: I have a large jar of amarena cherries in a thick syrup. Do you think I could top the ganache with a cherry instead of peppermint?
Hi Lee, we can’t see why not! The ganache may not set as well with the added liquid from the cherries, but should still be delicious nonetheless. Let us know if you try it!
Thank you! I will update you once I’ve tried it.