These Chocolate Peppermint Cookie Stars are a festive cookie for the holidays. They are an easy cutout cookie because the dough is wonderful to work with.

Chocolate stars on a red placemat. — Photo Credit: Binky’s Culinary Carnival.

These fun cutout cookies are great for gifting and eating. They are a festive, delicious chocolate cookie that the whole family will love. The chocolate and peppermint really pair very well together.

Star shaped cookies topped with peppermint pieces and drizzled with chocolate. — Photo Credit: Binky’s Culinary Carnival.

These cookies are so different from my usual Christmas cookies. Very festive and really set off a cookie platter! Oh, yea, and chocolate!

What you Need

Butter: Always use unsalted butter when baking.
Sugar: Granulated sugar is fine. There is no reason to use expensive sugar.
Eggs: Grade A large eggs are the best. If you use fresh eggs be careful oftentimes farm stand eggs are extra large or jumbo.
Vanilla: Pure vanilla extract, not imitation vanilla flavoring.
Flour: All-purpose flour is fine.
Cocoa Powder: Use Dutch-process cocoa powder.
Leavening: Baking powder is the leavening to use here.
Salt: Just a table salt is fine for these cookies.

How to Make Them

Butter and sugar creamed together in a bowl. — Photo Credit: Binky’s Culinary Carnival.

Cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy.

Eggs added to the mixing bowl. — Photo Credit: Binky’s Culinary Carnival.

Beat again until light,

Measured dry ingredients in a bowl, whisked to combine. — Photo Credit: Binky’s Culinary Carnival.

Measure dry ingredients into a large bowl.

Combined dry ingredients. — Photo Credit: Binky’s Culinary Carnival.

Whisk them together.

Dry ingredients added to the mixing bowl and mixed into a dough. — Photo Credit: Binky’s Culinary Carnival.

Add dry ingredients in three increments. Mix well. Make sure to scrape the bowl.

Dough formed into a log on a piece of waxed paper. — Photo Credit: Binky’s Culinary Carnival.

Place dough on a large sheet of waxed paper.

To Cut the Cookies Out

Rolled dough between sheets of waxed paper. — Photo Credit: Binky’s Culinary Carnival.

To roll, flour your board or a sheet of waxed paper. Place a small amount of dough on. Cover with another sheet of waxed paper. It’s easiest to roll it on waxed paper.

Rolled out dough on the waxed paper. — Photo Credit: Binky’s Culinary Carnival.

Roll to 1/4″ thickness. Peel the waxed paper from the top. Then, replace it and flip the dough over. Remove the other piece of paper from the dough.

Cutting out stars with a cookie cutter. — Photo Credit: Binky’s Culinary Carnival.

Cut out desired shapes.

Dough cut into stars. — Photo Credit: Binky’s Culinary Carnival.

Pick up the cookies up off of the board with a thin spatula.

Unbaked cookies on a rimmed baking sheet. — Photo Credit: Binky’s Culinary Carnival.

Place on cookie sheet. Bake for 10-12 minutes, until set. Don’t let the cookies brown. Put them on cooling racks to thoroughly cool.

Crushing candy canes with a hammer. — Photo Credit: Binky’s Culinary Carnival.

To decorate the cookies, melt chocolate and drizzle on cookies in a zigzag pattern. Crush candy canes in a plastic bag. Sprinkle candy cane pieces on the cookies while the chocolate is still wet.

Drizzle the remainder of the chocolate on top of the cookies. Allow to dry for at least an hour until chocolate hardens.

Make Them Ahead

There are a few steps, as with all cutout cookies, but these are not difficult by any means. Chocolatey goodness!

How to store the cookies

Store cookies on the counter for 3-4 days or store in the refrigerator for about a week.

Another great thing is that these Chocolate Peppermint Cookies freeze well. Just freeze them in an airtight container between sheets of waxed paper for up to a month.

Chocolate and pepper cookie stars on a wire cooling rack. — Photo Credit: Binky’s Culinary Carnival.

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I hope you enjoyed the recipe today.

Enjoy. And have fun cooking!

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Originally published December 5, 2018. Updated December 22, 2024.