First of all, these taste spectacular! If you only make one cookie to share with friends and family this holiday season then this recipe definitely would get my vote. I liken them to something along the lines of a soft and chewy Girl Scout Thin Mint. Andes Crème de Menth candies are added to the cocoa laden cookie batter, which is then rolled into small balls, and dipped in powdered sugar. When they bake, the chocolate mints melt and create a delicious minty coating on the bottom of the cookie, not to mention the amazing smell that emanates from your oven and spreads throughout the house. Scrumptious! Scrumptious! Scrumptious!
The one drawback: I absolutely despise the name of the cookies. The company website dubbed these “Andes Mint Doodles.” Could they possibly have used a more unappealing name to describe something that is so unbelievably good? To protest the absurdity of this I’ve re-christened them “Minty Cocoa Cookies.” It’s pretty hard to find the Andes Crème de Menthe Baking Chips at this point in the holiday baking game (unless you want to purchase a whole case), so I would recommend simply purchasing the full sized Andes Crème de Menthe mints and chopping them up.
Minty Cocoa Cookies (aka Andes Mint Doodles)
Adapted from the Andes Candies website
2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour, sifted
3/4 cup cocoa, sifted
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 cup shortening
1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
3/4 cup sugar
3/4 cup dark brown sugar, firmly packed
2 large eggs, beaten
2 tsp. vanilla
2 cups (1 – 10 oz. package) Andes Crème de Menthe Baking Chips (Note: Or regular Crème de Menthe candies, chopped)
1 cup powdered sugar
Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees.
Sift the flour, cocoa, baking soda and salt together into a bowl and set aside.
With a hand held or standing mixer, beat together the shortening and butter until creamy. Add the sugars and continue beating until light and fluffy. Add the eggs and vanilla and beat until thoroughly incorporated. Add the flour mixture and blend until smooth. Fold in Andes Crème de Menthe Baking Chips.
Roll the dough, by hand, into a 1 ½ inch balls. Roll the balls in the powdered sugar to fully cover ball. Flatten the balls gently into ½” thick disks and place about 2″ apart, spacing them evenly on un-greased baking sheets. Bake cookies at 350 degrees for 10-12 minutes. Remove from oven and let cookies set 1 minute on baking sheet. Remove from sheet and move to wire rack to cool completely.
