Sugared Andes Mint Cookies

Not a Christmas passes by in our home without a packet or two of our favourite chocolates. This year, I added them to my holiday cookie recipes in these Sugared Andes Mint Cookies. These cookies are both minty and chocolatey, which is a perfect sweet treat combination. In this case, I’m not sure if it’s the cookie that elevates the Andes Mint or the other way round! You can be the judge of that!

Have you ever been so satisfied with a recipe you’ve prepared that you hated to see it get eaten up?  That was the case with these Sugared Andes Mint Cookies.  To fully understand why, let me tell you a little story about the Andes Mints. For some unknown reason or another, it can be rather difficult to find certain food items in Canada.  Andes Mints are one of those items; others include Kraft Caramel Bits, or Cinnamon flavoured chips. Seriously, Dear Reader, I have almost moved mountains trying to find some of these items.

Well, whenever I get an opportunity to go across the border into the United States, I try my best to load up on the things I can’t find here.  Obviously, I have not been able to do that for the past few years, because of covid. So, I tried to order the mints on Amazon. They were extremely overpriced, so I basically gave up on the idea of making this fudge.

Last Christmas, I needed Andes Mints to make fudge. I couldn’t find any at all. It just so happened that John.e had to run into Smiths Falls to get the winter tires on the car. I asked him to check Shoppers Drug Mart for the mints because I saw them there in the past. No luck, though. So, he decided to check the dollar store. Guess what he found!? The dollar store saved my sanity!

Here we are again, heading into another Christmas season. This year, I wanted to make these Sugared Andes Mint Cookies. Again, I couldn’t find the Andes. Eventually, I did find them at a discount store – much like the dollar store – that we have here in Canada called Giant Tiger. I bought so many I think I’ll have enough to last right into January!

With so many of them on hand, you might find another Andes Mint recipe coming your way in this series. I’ve worked on a few of them, but I never know which recipes will show up in the series until I get ready to publish. It all depends on how I feel that day. Actually, I have a folder on my computer full of unpublished recipes simply because I didn’t like the styling of the photos! We do eat with our eyes first, and I want my recipes to look just as great as they taste!

But that’s a story for another time. Some day, I’ll go back and re-make those recipes with the sole purpose of aiming to get better pictures. For now, we’ll just get back to these Sugared Andes Mint Cookies!

LORD BYRON’S 24 COOKIES OF CHRISTMAS – VOLUME 5

I’m so excited about this year’s cookie countdown! This is the fifth consecutive year; can you believe that? Each of the previous years has included 24 cookies and this year will not be any different. I’ll share a new Christmas cookie recipe each and every single day for the next 24 days – even on Saturday and Sunday!

You might be asking yourself, how many Christmas cookie recipes could one possibly have or need? Well, I say you can never have too much of a good thing. And, I love having lots of choices. Who wants to bake the same holiday cookies year after year?

So, welcome, Dear Reader, to Volume 5 of Lord Byron’s 24 Cookies of Christmas! Fresh off of my 12 Edible Wreaths of Christmas and my 12 Bars and Squares of Christmas series, I’m ready to plow through the next 24 days with you!

You really don’t want to miss one of these recipes, so if you have not yet subscribed to Lord Byron’s Kitchen, I encourage you to do so. That way, a new recipe will be emailed to you every day. You won’t have to bother to come looking for it! Like in previous holiday baking countdowns, I like to mix up the recipes in the series so that there is something for everyone. Are you ready!!??

INGREDIENTS NEEDED TO PREPARE THIS RECIPE

The following is a list of the ingredients needed to prepare this recipe. For exact amounts and measurements, refer to the printable recipe card located near the bottom of this post.

• Butter – Make sure your butter is at room temperature! To be perfectly honest, I have made these with both salted and unsalted butter and there’s no difference in taste or appearance once all is said and done. Use what you have on hand.
• Sugar – Sugar will caramelize when baked, which will help to brown cookies and cakes.  In cookies, the sugar will help the dough to spread and will create a crispness to the bottom of the cookie.
• Mint Extract – Mint extract is different from peppermint extract, but they are often used interchangeably. Mint is a combination of spearmint and peppermint, while peppermint is just peppermint. Mint is a bit milder than peppermint. If you don’t have mint extract, you can use peppermint instead.
• Eggs – Whenever you set out to bake, make sure your eggs are at room temperature too – just like your butter!
• Flour – No need for anything special. Just use regular all-purpose flour. I have not tried this recipe with any other type of flour.
• Cocoa Powder – Cocoa powder is an unsweetened chocolate product which adds deep chocolate flavour to desserts and beverages.  Use a good quality cocoa powder, not the kind we used to stir into milk as kids!
• Baking Soda – Commonly known as sodium bicarbonate, or just bicarb, it is a baking ingredient that’s activated by a liquid and an acid to help with leavening or rising.
• Salt – Do not add the extra salt if you used salted butter!
• Andes Mint Chocolates
• Sprinkles

WHAT ARE ANDES MINTS?

Andes Chocolate Mints are small rectangular candies consisting of one mint-green layer sandwiched between two chocolate layers. They’re usually wrapped in green foil and imprinted with the company’s logo, the word Andes written amidst a drawing of snow-capped peaks. At Christmas time, variations of the packaging are often used.

In 1921, Andrew Kanelos opened a small candy store in Chicago. He called it Andy’s Candies. He quickly realized, however, that his male customers did not like giving boxes of candy to their wives or girlfriends with another man’s name imprinted on the packaging. So, he changed the spelling of the business to Andes Candies. The company has since switched owners and brands a few times, but Andes Mints are still quite popular.

In the United States, Andes Mints are a popular after-dinner mint and are often distributed at restaurants, particularly the Olive Garden. However, the version used at the Olive Garden is a special flavour manufactured exclusively for the restaurant.

CHOCOLATE AND MINT

If you love the combination of chocolate and mint, there are several recipes here at Lord Byron’s Kitchen that you should take advantage of! You will have to try my No Bake Mint Squares. I shared this one with my readers a few weeks ago as a part of my 12 Bars & Squares of Christmas series. It was quite the hit!

How about these Mint Candy Melts? They are so delicious and addicting too! I also have these Mint Patty Thumbprint Cookies. There’s a whole mint patty pushed right into the center of the cookie! Also, don’t forget to check out my Mint Oreo Cookies and Cream Cookies, as well as my Mint Chocolate Ice Cream Scoop Cookies!

LET’S TALK SPRINKLES!

Where do you buy sprinkles?  Do you have a favourite vendor or brand?  A few Christmases back, I changed my sprinkle game.  I would always buy sprinkles from the baking supply section at Bulk Barn, but not anymore – no way!  Let me tell you how this all went down.

In November 2018, I was baking a few Christmas goodies and just could not source sprinkles that looked anything like what I was imagining in my head. John.e was on a major sprinkle hunt.  He used to work in close proximity to Michael’s, HomeSense, Winners, and Marshall’s.  He purchased at least ten different sprinkle colours, shapes, and brands.  But, I wasn’t impressed with any of them as much as I was with Sweetapolita.

After Christmas, I needed Valentine’s sprinkles, so I tracked down the brand and found their online store.  I ordered enough sprinkles to last a lifetime!  Shopping for sprinkles online might seem a little over the top, but I’ve never once pretended to shy away from getting what I want! For this recipe, you can use any Christmas-themed sprinkles. As you can see, I used red, green, and white sprinkles.

HOW TO MAKE SUGARED ANDES MINT COOKIES

Add the softened butter and the sugar to a large mixing bowl. Beat the two together for 2-3 minutes until the mixture is light and creamy. Be sure to scrape down the bowl with a rubber spatula halfway through beating. Add the extract and eggs. Beat into the butter mixture until well incorporated.

Next, measure out the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, and salt. Dump these ingredients into the butter and egg mixture. With your beater on a low speed, beat the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients until just mixed through. The dough will form a ball. Once done, place the bowl of cookie dough into the fridge for 30 minutes.

In the meantime, prepare a baking sheet by lining it with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat. Set aside. Place the remaining ½ cup of sugar into a separate bowl and set it aside. When ready to bake, preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Portion the chilled cookie dough into slightly heaping tablespoons. Roll into a ball into the remaining half cup of sugar and place on the prepared baking sheet. Leave two inches of space between each cookie. Bake for 10 minutes.  Remove from the oven and immediately top each cookie with an unwrapped Andes Mint Chocolate. 

Allow the cookies to sit on the baking sheet for 5 minutes before using a teaspoon to smooth and swirl each melted Andes Mint.  Top with festive sprinkles, if desired. Transfer the cookies to a wire cooking rack to finish cooling.

STORING, PACKAGING, & FREEZING

When it comes to most cookies, they taste best at room temperature, but they don’t hold up well to being left out on your countertop for long periods of time. Cookies will stay fresh in a cookie jar or food-safe container with a lid for 3-5 days if left to sit on your kitchen countertop. You can store them in a food-safe container in your fridge. When you want one, two, or half a dozen, take them out of the container and place them in a single layer on a plate. Let them sit at room temperature for 5 minutes and they’re ready!

If you plan to freeze your Sugared Andes Mint Cookies, you certainly can! Once the chocolate has hardened, pile them into a clean, food-safe container. The container must be freezer friendly! You’ll want to ensure a very tight-fitting lid too. I use these quite often when freezing baked goods. I like to place a sheet of plastic wrap over the top of the container before pushing the lid on. This helps to create a better seal. The goal is to keep all of that freshness locked in!  

You can freeze these cookies for up to three months. If you plan to give previously frozen cookies as a gift, I would lay them out on a wire cooling rack to thaw completely. If packaging, wait until the condensation has evaporated. Whenever I work with anything covered in chocolate, I like to use a glove to prevent getting fingerprints on it as much as possible! Once thawed, pile into cellophane bags and tie with a ribbon, or stack in a cookie tin/box.

QUESTIONS?

If I have not answered all of your questions in the text above, don’t hesitate to reach out to me! You can contact me by sending me a message in the comments section further down the page. I will try my best to answer as soon as possible! You might reach me even faster by following me on Facebook and sending me a private message. Scroll down to follow me and never miss another recipe!

Finally, as I stated previously, every day I will be posting a new recipe. If you miss one, don’t fret. You can find my entire collection of Christmas Recipes right here! There are over 200 Christmas recipes and counting. There’s something for everyone! Cheers!