Candy Cane Cookies

Christmas would not be Christmas at the inn or in my family without Candy Cane Cookies. I started making them when my boys were small. They are now adults are making them themselves. Because it’s so much fun to make these with children, I draft the little girls next door. And the tradition continues…

1 cup butter
1 cup confectioner’s sugar

1 egg
1 tsp. peppermint extract
1/2 tsp. almond extract
1 tsp. vanilla extract
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. red food coloring (more if needed)
1/4 cup crushed candy canes or peppermint candy
1/4 cup sugar
  

Preheat oven to 375F.
Mix the butter, sugar, egg, and extracts thoroughly.
Mix the flour and salt, and stir into the butter mixture.
Divide the dough in half.
Blend the food coloring into one half.
Mix the sugar and crushed candy together.

Roll 2 tsp. of each color into 2 5-inch “snakes,” rolling each “snake” back and forth on a lightly floured board. Place the two “snakes” next to each other, press together lightly and twist like a rope (so it looks like a barber’s pole).
Make the cookies one at a time.
Curve the top to make the handle of the candy cane.
Bake for approximately 8-10 minutes, until just lightly brown on the bottom. Remove the cookies immediately and sprinkle with the sugar-candy mixture.

Makes approximately 3 dozen candy canes.

Birchwood Inn
http://www.birchwood-inn.com
Ellen Gutman Chenaux, Bed and Breakfast Foodie