Holiday Tasting Party Recipes

RECIPE NAME: PEPPERMINT BONBON COOKIES

INGREDIENTS:
8 oz. semisweet chocolate, chopped
1/2 cup unsalted butter
1 1/2 oz. unsweetened chocolate, chopped
1/2 cup finely crushed hard peppermint candies
6 Tbs. granulated sugar
3 large eggs
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1 tsp. peppermint extract
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. salt
1/2 cup semisweet chocolate morsels
Additional coarsely crushed hard peppermint candies

HOW TO MAKE THIS:
Combine first 3 ingredients in top of double boiler. Cook over low heat until chocolate melts and mixture is smooth, stirring occasionally. Remove from heat, and stir in 1/2 cup crushed peppermint and granulated sugar. Let cool 30 minutes.

Add eggs to melted chocolate, 1 at a time, stirring well. Stir in extracts.

Combine flour, baking powder, and salt, add to chocolate mixture, stirring until combined. Stir in chocolate morsels. Cover and chill dough 2 hours or until firm enough to shape.

Shape dough into 1 inch balls, place on parchment paper or wax paper lined baking sheets. Bake at 325 degrees for 10 minutes or until cookies are puffed and cracked on top. Sprinkle coarsely crushed peppermints onto cookies, press candy lightly into cookies. Let cookies cool 5 minutes on baking sheets. Transfer to wire rack to cool completely.

MY TIP:
Sprinkle peppermint pieces on immediately after baking so they will stick to the cookies.

MY NAME: Kathy Butler