peppermint kiss cookies

I have always wanted to make kiss cookies before and when I had a chance to make some treats for a bake sale at school I knew these were the perfect fit. These are a more amped up version of sugar cookies, they are festive and pack in holiday flavors perfect for Christmas. The cookies took about an hour to make plus time for chilling. They turned out wonderful and everyone asked if they were store bought, I guess they were that good! If you have sprinkles on hand and peppermint kisses I would suggest start whipping up a batch of these cookies. Even if it isn't the holiday you can use regular chocolate kisses and leave out the sprinkles.

What you need:

10 Tablespoons (145g) unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
1 cup (200g) granulated sugar
2 egg yolks1
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 and 1/2 cups (190g) King Arthur unbleached all-purpose flour (measured correctly)
3/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
sprinkles
24 Candy Cane Hershey Kisses

Preheat oven to 350°F (177°C). Line two large baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone baking mats. Set aside.

Using a hand-held or stand mixer with a paddle attachment, cream the butter and sugar together on medium speed for 5 full minutes, scraping down the sides and the bottom as necessary. Add the egg yolks and vanilla, beating on medium-high until fully combined. Scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl as necessary.

In a medium bowl, toss the flour, baking powder, and salt together. Add the flour mixture to the wet ingredients on low speed until fully combined. The dough will be very thick. If the dough is extremely sticky, chill for at least 45 minutes.

AFTER CHILLING

Roll dough into balls, a little less than 1 Tablespoon of dough each.* The dough may seem dry*, but the warmth of your hands will allow it to come together in a ball. Roll into assorted sprinkles and bake for 8-10 minutes.

the dough rolled in an assortment of red and green sprinkles

The cookies will look very, very under baked. That's what you need. Do not over bake. Allow the cookies to cool on the baking sheet for about 5 minutes. Press a Hershey Kiss into the center and immediately put the cookie sheet into the freezer for 5 minutes. Doing this will prevent the kiss from melting. Cookies remain fresh tightly covered at room temperature for 1 week. Cookies may be frozen up to 2-3 months. Cookie dough balls may be frozen up to 2-3 months. Roll into sprinkles right before baking. Do not thaw; simply bake for an extra minute or two.

Tips:

Once the kiss is pressed into the cookie do not touch it because the kiss will be very soft and it will looked messed up.

I just use a cookie scoop for the dough. Don't worry about getting them 1 tablespoon each. You can make them whatever size you prefer.

Have fun with the sprinkles. Lighter colored sprinkles tend to not show up well against the cookie. I wouldn't roll them in white or light yellow. I tried with light green and it still didn't show up.