Peppermint Schnapps Chocolate Drop Cookies

I remember eating a version of these cookies every year around the holiday season. They were allegedly a recipe made by my grandma and then remixed by my mother (nailed it), and now it is my turn. My daughters wanted to make cookies for Santa......their suggestions were gingerbread cookies and sugar cookies...lame. Santa wants some cookies with a kick!!! Maybe some Peppermint Schnapps is in order.

Supplies

Materials

• Bowls
• Measuring Cups
• Measuring Spoons
• Parchment Paper
• Cookie Sheets
• Whisk or Machine Mixer
• Rubber Scraper
• Oven (Baking time 350 F 8-10 minutes)
• Two little girls who want to make cookies for Santa (Santa and little girls are optional)

Wet Ingredients

• 1/2 Cup Softened Butter (one stick)
• 1/2 Cup Shortening
• 2 Cups Sugar
• 2 Eggs
• 2 teaspoons Peppermint Extract or 1/8 Cup of Peppermint Schnapps (maybe more....)
• 1 1/2 Cups of Buttermilk or Soured Milk

Dry Ingredients

• 1 Cup of Cocoa
• 1/2 teaspoon of Salt
• 1 teaspoon of Baking Soda
• 4 Cups Flour
• 12 oz of Chocolate Chips

Step 1: Soften Butter and Sour Milk

I do not have buttermilk lying around the house, but I do have milk and lemon juice. To sour the milk add two teaspoons of lemon juice to your 1 1/2 cups of milk, and just let that mixer sit out. By the time you need the sour milk in the recipe it will be ready to go. Also, set out some butter to soften.

Ingredients in this step

• 1 1/2 Cups of Buttermilk or Soured Milk
• 1/2 Cup soon-to-be-Softened Butter (One Stick)

I know it was a tablespoon in the picture....but the moment already happened. Use a teaspoon.

Step 2: Mixing Time

Mix butter, shortening, and sugar until fluffy. Then add the eggs and peppermint schnapps or extract.

Ingredients in this step

• 1/2 Cup Softened Butter (one stick)
• 1/2 Cup Shortening
• 2 Cups Sugar
• 2 Eggs
• 2 teaspoons Peppermint Extract or 1/8 Cup of Peppermint Schnapps (maybe more....)

Step 3: Mix Dry Ingredients

Mix the dry ingredients together in a separate bowl. I used a super big bowl because....you know...little girls sometimes mix a little bit too aggressively and mixture ends up everywhere.

Ingredients in this step

• 1 Cup of Cocoa
• 1/2 teaspoon of Salt
• 1 teaspoon of Baking Soda
• 4 Cups Flour

Step 4: Mix Wet and Dry Ingredients

Now that your dry ingredients are super mixed by little hands, it is time to add the dry mixture and soured/butter milk to that wonderful schnapps-smelling butter batter that has been sitting all alone in your mixing machine.

I would suggest alternating adding the dry ingredient mixture and the sour/butter milk to the mixture until both are gone.

Ingredients in this step

• No new ingredients in this step

Step 5: More Chocolate

Add the chocolate chips to the batter and mix.

Ingredients in this step

• 12 oz of Chocolate Chips

This is a good time for me to point out that you can use peppermint chocolate chips instead of extract or schnapps, but why would anyone ever do such a thing?

Step 6: Chill Time

Set the batter in the fridge next to the super huge bag of cheese to chill for 1 hour. I know you are all jealous. I am from Wisconsin. What is not pictured is the entire drawer of cheese above the batter. Although, if you look closely you can see some feta.

While that batter is chilling in the fridge it seems like a good time to take a nap.......ummmm....this was not staged at all.

Step 7: Drop It Like It Is Not Hot...because It Was Just in the Fridge for an Hour

This dough is sticky. Chilling it helps, but it is still a sticky dough. Lay down some parchment paper over your cookie sheets so that you are not super duper mad at yourself later. I scoop the dough up with a spoon and drop it on the parchment paper. Repeat.

I scoop the dough up with a spoon and drop it on the parchment paper....Okay a bad dad joke...

Before your hands are covered in a sticky delicious mess I would suggest preheating the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.

Step 8: Bake

Bake for 8-10 minutes at 350 F. If your little helpers were heavy handed with the spoon, you may have to go 12 minutes. Do the toothpick test on a cookie. If it comes out clean you are good to go. Assuming you do not hit a chocolate chip.

Step 9: Cool It and Eat It

Put those cookies on a rack to cool and then eat them. Or be impatient and eat them super hot out of the oven using the reverse blow technique to prevent your entire mouth from burning. Also enter your "All I Want For Christmas is My Two Front Teeth" joke here.