You will love these easy, chewy cookies if you like the mint and chocolate flavor combination. They have two kinds of chips and that homemade buttery flavor we love so much. The unbaked dough is great to have frozen so you can bake fresh cookies when the craving hits and plan ahead for the holidays.
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Chocolate and mint chips
I think you should add these simple but very delicious chocolate and mint chip cookies to your holiday list.
They're very different from the much-loved chocolate peppermint cookies with crushed candy canes and, similar to how I feel about these chocolate chip raisin cookies, they're not just a spin on our favorite chip cookies, but have enough character to be a favorite on their own, with soft centers, crisp edges, and a balanced mint and semisweet chocolate flavor.
The mint chocolate chips by themselves are hard to resist, let me tell you. My hand seems to find a way into the bag often.
- Flavor: the mint is there, but it doesn't overwhelm the chocolate. We use both mint extract and chips, and it works much better than using just one of them.
- Easy to make: like other chocolate chip cookie recipes, this is one bowl and takes ten minutes in the oven.
- Make ahead: scoop the unbaked dough and freeze it if you need to bake ahead for the holidays. Then bake the cookies directly without thawing them. Freshly baked cookies whenever you want!
- Versatile: besides making them for the cookie tray or a Christmas holiday potluck, they are perfect for warm weather picnics and outdoor gatherings, and even for St. Patrick's Day and Easter brunch if you want to add something different.
Ingredients
Quantities are listed in the recipe card towards the end of this post. The Ingredients page has more details and lists the brands we use.
- Mint chips: they are green and have a great minty flavor.
- Chocolate chips: the traditional semisweet chocolate chips that are used for cookies.
- Mint extract: I use peppermint extract, but spearmint can work if you're used to it.
- Sugars: white granulated sugar and light brown sugar are used for this recipe. If you use dark brown sugar, the flavor will still be great, but the color will be darker.
- Baking soda and baking powder: make sure they haven't expired.
Variations & substitutions
- Mint chocolate chips for baking: though they're not always available, you can sub them for both the mint and chocolate ones.
- Chopped Andes mints (thin mints) or Andes mint chips are another option instead of the two chips in this recipe.
- Chocolate chunks instead of the dark chocolate chips.
- Green food coloring: I'm not a fan of it, but it's a nice touch for kids; they love green cookies for Christmas. Add a very small amount to the batter before adding the chips. Integrate well and add more if needed. The green color might change during baking, which has to do with the different brands.
It's a straightforward drop cookie recipe that doesn't need to be chilled if you don't want to. I sometimes leave the dough in the refrigerator for several hours or a day if, for some reason, I don't bake the whole batch right after I mix the dough.
- Butter at room temperature is soft and cool but not greasy or starting to melt.
- Creaming the ingredients: for best results, use an electric mixer or a stand mixer with the paddle attachment.
Basic cookie dough: after adding the dry ingredients, the cookie dough is light brown, thick and smooth, with no traces of flour or egg.
Chocolate and mint chips are added at the end and combined with a rubber or silicone spatula.
Vintage Kitchen Tip
Don't overmix after adding flour to cookie dough. You don't want to develop gluten, as it will result in tougher cookies.
Baking drop cookies
Extra chips: if adding chips after you make the dough balls, you can reserve some from the total amount or use more than called for in the recipe ingredients.
You can add all the chips to the cookie dough and leave it at that.
Or manually add mint and chocolate chips before baking. I find they make prettier cookies, and I'm all for that.
Chocolate chip cookies don't take long to bake, about 10 minutes for regular-sized ones.
If you like softer cookies: the center will still be soft when you remove them, and you might feel they're not done, but they are ready to be removed. They will become firmer as they cool.
If you like crisper cookies: let them bake for a minute or two longer, or even more, until they are a deeper golden brown and the center appears firmer. They will harden further as they cool and will be crisp when you bite them.
Kitchen notes
- Organization: read the recipe first and ensure you have enough workspace, the ingredients at the correct temperature and other equipment you need. This will make the process so much easier.
- Baking time: consider that all ovens and pans are different, even if they look similar. The baking time in my recipes is as accurate as it can be, but it might take you more or less time. You can use a thermometer (like the OXO oven thermometer) to check that your oven is at the right temperature. I recommend you keep track of how your oven works and what tiny details you might need to adjust.
- Size: you can make any size of cookies you want. For larger cookies, you need extra minutes in the oven, and the yield will be lower. For smaller cookies, it's the opposite: less baking time and more cookies.
- Storing: the baked cookies keep for several days in airtight containers or cookie jars.
- Freezing: the unbaked dough can be stored in the freezer: scoop the portions on the baking sheets (without touching, but no need to leave much space between them) and freeze the pan until the dough is rock solid. Transfer them to airtight bags so you can remove the baking sheet from the freezer and use less space to store the pieces of dough. Bake directly, without thawing.
- Ice cream sandwiches: they are great with chocolate or vanilla ice cream as filling if you need a quick dessert. I suggest you take them out of the oven slightly underbaked, about a minute early, so they will be softer when you bite. Use mint chip ice cream and roll the sides in mini chocolate chips for an extra dose of both flavors.
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Chocolate Chip Mint Cookies (chewy and easy)
Ingredients
- ½ cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
- ½ cup white sugar
- ½ cup light brown sugar
- 1 egg, at room temperature
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ¼ teaspoon peppermint extract, I use Simply Organic peppermint extract
- 1 ½ cups all-purpose flour
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- pinch of baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 1 cup semisweet chocolate chips, I use Ghirardelli semisweet premium baking chocolate chips or Guittard's Semisweet baking chips.
- ½ cup mint chips, like Guittard mint chips that don't include chocolate
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350ºF (180ºC). Butter baking sheets or line them with parchment paper.
- Beat ½ cup unsalted butter with ½ cup white sugar and ½ cup light brown sugar in a large bowl until creamy. You can use the stand mixer or a hand-held beater.
- Add 1 egg, 1 teaspoon vanilla extract and ¼ teaspoon peppermint extract and mix well.
- Add the sifted dry ingredients (1 ½ cups all-purpose flour, ½ teaspoon baking soda, pinch of baking powder and ¼ teaspoon salt) and mix until a few dry spots remain. Don't overbeat at this point.
- Add 1 cup semisweet chocolate chips and ½ cup mint chips and mix until no dry spots remain. I like to switch to a spatula for this part.
- Scoop portions of cookie dough and place them on the prepared sheets, spacing them two inches or so apart.
- Bake for about 10 minutes, until edges are firm and cookies are golden but still soft in the center. It might take a minute or two more if your cookies are larger.
- Let cool completely on a cooling rack.
- Keep in tins or cookie jars.
- Bake for about 10 minutes, until cookies are soft in the center with firm, golden edges. It might take a minute or two more if your cookies are larger.
- Let cool completely on a cooling rack.
- Keep these chewy cookies in tins, cookie jars or an airtight container.
Gill says
These Choc chip cookies are fabulous. I have tried several recipes but this is now the only one i shall be using. Thank you Paula for sharing
Paula Montenegro says
SO happy to know you loved them Gill, it made my day!
John / Kitchen Riffs says
Cookies! Who doesn't love them? Mint + chocolate = mouth happiness. Good stuff -- thanks.
Paula Montenegro says
Thanks John!
angiesrecipes says
These cookies sure look very tempting! Mint chips are an interesting addition.