BRUSH
Keeping It Clean

These cookies appeared a couple of years ago at Christmas time, but they're really a delicious minty treat any time of the year. I wrote the recipe out so many times that I really thought I had already posted it for everyone. So, when we recently went looking for the recipe so we could replenish the office supply (yes, there are still cookies in the office everyday), we realized that we could not find it on the web site. Well, now we can consider that problem resolved. Enjoy them!

Please read the whole recipe and the notes at the end before you begin.

Prepare the candy canes and white chocolate

Combine:

• (skimpy) 2/3 c. candy canes, crushed
• 1 Tbsp. all-purpose flour

Mix together and set aside. Then melt over simmering (not boiling) water:

• 4 oz. white chocolate, chopped

Set aside to cool a little.

Prepare the batter

Beat together at medium speed

• ½ c. (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened
• 1 c. sugar
• 1 tsp. baking powder
• ½ tsp. salt

Beat together for about 5 minutes. Scrape the bowl to be sure it all mixes well.

Beat in the following:

• 2 large eggs
• 1 tsp. good vanilla extract
• a few drops, no more, peppermint extract (optional)

Stir into the melted white chocolate. Add the crushed candy cane pieces.

Line cookie sheets with parchment paper or use a Silpat liner. Drop dough by rounded teaspoons onto the cookie sheets about 2 inches apart.

Bake at 375° for 8 to 10 minutes until the cookies are lightly browned at the edges. Leave on cookie sheet 2 minutes. Then remove them to a wire rack to cool completely.

Serves: one orthodontist, plus an office full of hungry siblings waiting for their brothers and sisters to be done with their appointments.

Notes:

1. The easiest candy to break up is the very small, skinny candy canes offered at Christmas, but any red and white candy mint is fine. Just be sure to really crush them well.
2. Resist any desire to be generous with the candy. Be stingy, because as the cookies bake, the candy melts and too much of it just makes a big mess.
3. When the cookies come out of the oven, if any of the candy melted out of the perimeter of a cookie, you can push the melted candy back to the cookie's edge or just cut it off with a butter knife while it is still on the warm pan.
4. These cookies also work with crushed fruity flavored candy (we had Jelly Belly brand candy canes). Just leave out the peppermint extract.
5. If you have them, use really good white chocolate chips (I have used Ghirardelli), but make sure you chop them up so they melt easier and combine with the dough better. They are also softer for orthodontic patients.

A Cookie Lady Recipe