This gluten free chocolate peppermint cookie recipe is the ultimate Christmas dessert. They’re chewy with the perfect balance of chocolate and peppermint and just sweet enough. Plus, they’re completely dairy & gluten free!
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Thanksgiving is a thing of the past and it’s now time for all thing Christmas! I make this chocolate peppermint cookie recipe probably once a week or alternate with my gingerbread cookies and love all of the festive smells in my kitchen!!
They’re perfectly chewy (the way cookies should be if you ask me. Anyone else hate crunchy cookies?!) and neither the peppermint nor the chocolate is overpowering.
These are the perfect Christmas dessert for a cookie swap, Christmas Eve, or just when you feel like doing some Holiday baking!
How to make this recipe
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
In a large bowl, beat together all of the wet ingredients with an electric mixer. This includes both types of sugar, the egg, milk, apple cider vinegar, almond butter, oil, and peppermint extract.
Beat in all of the dry ingredients just until a dough forms, be sure not to over mix.
Let the dough set in the fridge for 10-30 minutes to make it easier to scoop. If you’re in a rush, you can get away with not putting them in the fridge, but it does make the dough less sticky and therefore much easier to roll into balls.
Use a small cookie scoop or a spoon and use your hands to roll into balls. Dip the top in crushed candy canes (try not to go overboard or the cookies will end up kind of soggy since the candy canes will just melt all over the place).
You can also just add the crushed candy canes on either right when the cookies come out of the oven or after you drizzle on the white chocolate so they stick to that instead.
If you add them before they go in the oven, they get really melty and chewy which I love! But you don
Place on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper and bake for 11-14 minutes. With my oven, they do best at 12 minutes, but all ovens are different so keep an eye on yours!
The cookies will continue to harden as they cool, so let them sit and cool before eating or adding the melted white chocolate so it doesn’t drip everywhere.
How to tell when they’re done
With darker cookies like this chocolate peppermint recipe, it can be hard to tell when they’re done because you don’t base it off of when the edges are golden brown.
With this recipe, they’ll start off in round balls and will (almost) completely flatten in the approximately 12 minutes that they cook.
You’ll know they’re done when the peppermint has melted and the cookies are an even flat circle cookie shape. They will continue to harden as they cool, so avoid leaving them in the oven for too long even if they appear really soft.
If you want them puffier, you can use just 1 tsp of baking soda which will prevent the cookies from spreading so much.
If you want the cookies to be chewy, leave them in the oven for no more than 12 minutes and let them cool for about 15 so they get the perfect chewy texture.
Recipe tips & tricks!
- If using 2 tsp of baking soda, the cookies will spread quite a bit and end up pretty flat (but will still be very soft). If you want the cookies to be fluffier, use 1 tsp of baking soda which will prevent the cookies from spreading as much. More baking soda = more spread.
- High quality dairy free white chocolate is unfortunately hard to come by! The one I used melts really well and tastes great when drizzled on the cookies, but I personally was not a fan of how it tasted raw. If you find a brand you love, leave a comment and let use know!
- Be sure to use peppermint extract, not peppermint flavor. Peppermint flavor is diluted and won’t yield quite the same end result. If you can only find peppermint flavor, I’d suggest using a smidge extra so the flavor really comes through.
- With the white chocolate drizzle on top, these cookies are technically double chocolate, but you can make them triple chocolate by adding in 1/3 cup of chocolate chips to the batter. I prefer them without, but they are delicious both ways!
- To keep these cookies soft and fresh for as long as possible, allow them to cool completely and then store them in an air tight container at room temperature for about 5 days.
- To make these cookies vegan, you can sub the egg for a flax egg or use another kind of egg replacer. The texture will be quite different if you omit the egg, but still delicious!
- To ensure an even size to all of the cookies, use a small cookie scoop (I used the smallest of these) and then use your hands to roll into even balls.
Try these next!
- Chewy Vegan Gingerbread Cookies
- Chocolate Chunk Cookies
- Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies
- Iced Pumpkin Cookies
- Double Chocolate Cookie
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Gluten Free Chocolate Peppermint Cookies
Ingredients
Dry:
- 1 1/2 cups + 2 tbsp gluten free all purpose flour (Bob’s red mill in the blue bag)
- ½ cup cocoa powder
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp baking soda
- ½ tsp salt
Wet:
- 1 tsp apple cider vinegar
- 1/2 tsp peppermint extract (ideally not peppermint flavor*)
- 1 egg
- 1/4 cup non dairy milk
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1/2 cup pure cane sugar
- 1 cup light brown sugar
- 1/4 cup unsalted almond butter
- ½ cup oil
Topping:
- 2 crushed candy canes
- 4 oz melted white chocolate
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
- In a large bowl, beat together all of the wet ingredients with an electric mixer.
- Beat in all of the dry ingredients just until a dough forms, be sure not to over mix. Scoop and level to measure, don’t measure straight from the bag.
- Let the dough set in the fridge for 10-30 minutes to make it easier to scoop.
- Use a small cookie scoop or a spoon and use your hands to roll into balls. Dip the top in crushed candy canes (try not to go overboard or the cookies will end up kind of soggy). If you do not have a cookie scoop, I suggest using a metal spoon to scoop the dough and then using slightly damp hands to roll into balls. The dough can stick to dry hands pretty easily, but damp hands make it much easier!
- Place on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper and bake for 11-14 minutes. With my oven, the cookies do best at 12 minutes, but all ovens are different. The cookies will continue to harden as they cool, so let them sit and cool before eating or adding the melted white chocolate. If you want the cookies to stay chewy, 11-12 minutes is ideal. This recipe makes 24 cookies, but most cookie sheets only fit 12. Avoid putting two cooking sheets in the oven at the same time, it’s best do to one at a time to ensure they cook properly.
Amanda McNeal
I made the vegan variation of this recipe for a cookie exchange. These cookies took the top prize matched up against all the non GF, non-vegan competition. Thanks for the recipe!
Claire Cary
So happy to hear that!! Thanks for the feedback Amanda! If you don’t mind leaving a star rating with your next review, that would be great 🙂
Olivia
These are so delicious. I’m going to a cookie swap soon and they will be a hit. I can not even tell these are gluten and dairy free.
Claire Cary
Thanks Olivia! I hope everyone loves them 🙂