day 4 … Andes Mint Chip Cookies

I have an uneasy relationship with all things mint flavored. Are they minty deliciously good or are they minty mouthwashy bad? It could go either way. There’s a fine line between the two though there’s something incomplete about a holiday season without candy canes, Frango Mints and Andes Mints. There just is. Growing up I knew, I just knew, my Chicago based grandmother would send us a big box of Frango Mints for Christmas. Most of the time they were the standard green box with the mint flavor but once in a while, we’d get the offshoots – raspberry and maybe orange. They weren’t also mint, just other flavors, and while I liked them very much it didn’t seem like Christmas unless we also had the mint variety. That’s just how it was. Mint and Christmas just go together.

Being raised a Frango kid, I grew a rather snobby attitude toward that other minty chocolate candy, Andes Mints. This is just absurd because while today I do still think Frango are better, those Andes are pretty good. It’s that green middle layer – it’s rather festive. So today, for Day 4 of the 12 Days of Chocolate Cookies, I’ve taken those Andes Mints and added them to the base chocolate dough for a delightful fudgy cookie. But fair warning here … they will do what all mint things do. They will make everything taste like mint. It’s annoying but a hard learned fact so store this one by itself and add it to your cookie box, tray or whatever at the last moment otherwise everything will take on a faint minty aroma.

36 One Dough/Many Cookies from years past:

Fruity: Jam Thumbprints, Jam Streusel Tarts, Raspberry Linzer Squares, Lemon Poppyseed Buttons, Orange Sesame Crisps, Cranberry Pistachio Coins, Almond Raspberry Strips, Orange Sandwich Cookies, Apricot Rosemary Shortbread, Coconut Lime Sticks, Bourbon Glazed Fruitcake Buttons, Lemon Cornmeal Biscotti, Blueberry Lime Buttons, Date Swirls

Nutty: Mexican Wedding Cookies, Russian Tea Cakes, Pecan Tassies, Maple Black Walnut Cookies, PB&J Sandwich Cookies, Pecan Triangles, 

Spiced: Cinnamon Sugar Pinwheels, Candied Ginger Spice Buttons, Cardamom Rose Coins, Brown Sugar Wafers with Lemon Lavender Glaze

Chocolate: Mexican Chocolate Crinkles, Chocolate Cocoa Nib Wafers, Raspberry Chocolate Drops, Chocolate Hazelnut Buttons, Dark Mocha Sandwich Cookies, Espresso Crinkles, 

Bars: Rum Butter Bars, Peppermint Brownie Bars, Banana Walnut Bars

Holiday Classics: Cream Cheese Wreaths, Classic Molasses Cookies, Peppermint Candy Canes

2020 12 Days of Cookies line up to date:

Basic Chocolate Butter Cookie Dough

Day 1: Cranberry Cocoa Nib Wafers

Day 2: Chocolate Banana Petit Four

Day 3: Dulce de Leche Sandwich Cookies

DAY 4: ANDES MINT CHIP COOKIES

Start with the base chocolate dough – recipe here. I used a dutched cocoa for this one. An important thing to note with this one is to slightly underbake the cookie; you want it on the fudgy side. FYI – a 4.67oz box of Andres Mints contains 28 mints. And one more thing – yes the smallest batch does call for ½ an egg white. I warned you at the beginning things might get a little weird as we scale down. And here we are.

1. Preheat oven to 350°F.
2. Unwrap and chop the Andes Mints to about the size of chocolate chips. Set aside.
3. In the bowl of a standing mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, add the room temperature cookie dough, broken into small pieces.
4. Add the brown sugar, baking soda, salt and egg whites and mix on medium speed until well combined.
5. On low, stir in the chopped mints.
6. Roll Tablespoon sized pieces of dough into balls and place on parchment paper or silicone baking mat lined sheet pans, about 2” apart.
7. Bake for 4-5 minutes, until just on the outside but still very soft in the centers.
8. Let cool on wire racks.
9. Do ahead: roll the dough, nestle on a parchment line sheet pan and freeze until solid. Once frozen, transfer to a Ziploc for longer storage (label with cookie name and baking time.)