The flavors of mint and chocolate just melt in your mouth from the soft and chewy texture of these Junior Mint chocolate chip cookies! Use this recipe year-round, with your leftover Halloween candy, or for your Christmas cookie exchange!
These Junior Mint chocolate chip cookies are candy cookie #4 as part of my candy cookie baking series!
Junior Mints have an icy cool peppermint filling that is surrounded by a dark chocolate coating. These little candies are one of my favorites, and when combined inside of a soft and chewy chocolate chip cookie, you've got one amazing bite.
Mint and chocolate pair so well together and that's why both the peppermint candies and a little bit of peppermint extract is mixed straight into the cookie dough.
Looking for the other cookies from this baking series? Check them out here: Rolo stuffed cookies, peanut M & M cookies, mocha Reese's Pieces cookies, and Almond Joy cookies.
Jump to:
Why You'll Love These Cookies
- They're both soft and chewy.
- The flavors of chocolate and mint go so well together.
- Everyone at your cookie exchange will love them.
- They're loaded with both Junior Mint candies and mini chocolate chips.
- Each bite just melts-in-your-mouth!
This cookie recipe has become one of my favorites and now I make them every year in Demcember around Christmas time. Peppermint and chocolate, in my opinion, is a match made in heaven.
It is absolutely important that the cookie dough chills in the refrigerator for 2 hours before baking. The melted butter needs that time to resolidify to avoid being a greasy mess all over the baking sheet.
Ingredients Needed
Let's take a look at some of the ingredients we'll need.
- All-Purpose Flour: Be sure to properly measure your flour (check out Baking Tips above).
- Corn Starch: Adding a little bit of corn starch helps to produce a thicker cookie.
- Butter: This recipe calls for the butter to be melted, which makes the cookies super soft and chewy. Be sure to use unsalted butter.
- Peppermint Extract: Using just a ¼ teaspoon of peppermint extract helps to enhace the minty flavor from the Junior Mints.
- Mini Chocolate Chips: Feel free to use whatever chocolate chips you have on hand (milk, dark, white). I think the mini chocolate chips are fun and give you that chocolate flavor in every bite!
- Junior Mints: You will need a ½ cup of Junior Mints cut in half. If you don't have this candy on hand, using York Thins Peppermint Patties works great too.
Instructions
Here are the step by step instructions:
- Dry Ingredients: In a medium-sized mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, corn starch, baking soda, and salt. Set aside.
- Wet Ingredients: In a large bowl, whisk together the melted butter, brown sugar, and sugar until combined. Add the egg, vanilla extract, and peppermint extract and whisk until incorporated.
- Combine Ingredients: Add the flour mixture to the bowl and mix together with a wooden spoon or silicone spatula just until combined. Then fold in the mini chocolate chips and Junior Mints. Place the cookie dough into the refrigerator to chill for 2 HOURS.
- Bake: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and use a 1.5 tablespoon cookie scoop to scoop out the dough into your hands. Shape the cookie dough into a ball and place onto the prepared baking sheet. Bake for 9-11 minutes and allow the cookies to cool on the pan for 10 minutes before transferring them over to a wire cooling rack.
Expert Baking Tips
- Baking Sheet: I recommend this specific baking sheet because it perfectly fits 12 cookies on the pan. I use them for all of my cookie recipes!
- Measuring Flour: To help ensure you don’t add extra flour, follow these three simple steps: 1) Fluff up the flour using a fork. 2) Spoon the flour into your measuring cup. 3) Scrape a knife across the top of the measuring cup to level out the flour.
- Chilled Dough: This cookie dough needs to chill in the refrigerator for 2 HOURS before baking. I tested this recipe several times without chilling and each time the cookies were a mess all over the cookie sheet. Because this recipe uses melted butter, chilling is absolutely necessary for the dough to not spread too much when baking.
- Cookie Dough: Once the dough has chilled, use a 1.5 tablespoon cookie scoop to scoop the dough into your hands. Shape the dough into a ball using your hands and press into the dough extra mini chocolate chips and half of a Junior Mint, if desired.
- Perfectly Shaped Cookies: The trick to getting more circular cookies is to use a round cookie cutter to essentially “rotate or spin” around each cookie immediately when they come out of the oven. Since they’re really hot, the cookies will easily mold to that circular shape as you move around them. Some of the junior mints might ooze out of the cookies when baking. Using a round cookie cutter helped mold the cookies back into their circular shape.
Recipe FAQs
Yes, this cookie dough needs to chill in the refrigerator for 2 hours before baking. No exceptions. The wait will be well worth it!
The cookie dough was too dry. Make sure that you properly measure your flour by spooning it into the measuring cup and scraping off the excess flour (check out Baking Tips above).
Not having enough flour in the cookie dough can cause the cookies to spread too much when baking. Again, make sure you properly measure your flour. Also, if you don't chill the dough for at least 2 hours you'll run the risk of your cookies spreading too much. Use a round cookie cutter to help mold the cookies back into shape if needed (check out Baking Tip above).
Yes you can. I just really like to use mini chocolate chips to ensure that each bite has the taste of chocolate.
When I don't have Junior Mints, I will use thin Peppermint York Patties. Just cut them up into smaller pieces and fold them into the dough.
If you made this recipe, please leave a comment and star rating below. I love hearing from you! Also, please tag me on Instagram and check out my Pinterest for even more recipe ideas.
It brings me so much joy to see you make my recipes. 🙂
Happy Baking!
More Cookie Recipes
📖 Recipe
Junior Mint Chocolate Chip Cookies
Equipment
- Baking Sheets
- Silicone Baking Mats
- Mixing Bowls
Ingredients:
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon corn starch
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ½ cup unsalted butter, melted
- ¾ cup brown sugar
- ¼ cup sugar
- 1 large egg, room temperature
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ¼ teaspoon peppermint extract
- ¾ cup mini chocolate chips
- ½ cup junior mints, halved
Instructions:
- In a medium-sized mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, corn starch, baking soda, and salt. Set aside.
- Melt the butter and let it cool for 5 minutes. In a large bowl, whisk together the melted butter, brown sugar, and sugar until combined. Add the egg, vanilla extract, and peppermint extract and whisk until incorporated.
- Add the flour mixture to the bowl and mix together with a wooden spoon or silicone spatula just until combined. Then fold in the mini chocolate chips and Junior Mints. Cover the bowl with saran wrap and place into the refrigerator to chill for 2 HOURS (chilling the cookie dough prior to baking is mandatory).
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and line your baking sheets with silicone baking mats. Use a 1.5 tablespoon cookie scoop to scoop out the dough into your hands. Shape the cookie dough into a ball and place onto the prepared baking sheet. Press into the dough extra chocolate chips and half of a Junior Mint (optional).
- Bake for 9-11 minutes (10 minutes is perfect for me), and allow the cookies to cool on the pan for 10 minutes before transferring them over to a wire cooling rack. If the cookies spread too much or some of the Junior Mints ooze out from the cookies, use a circular cookie cutter to "rotate" the cookies back into place (see notes below). The cookies will look slightly underdone when you remove them from the oven but they're not. Just let them cool for those 10 minutes before removing them.
- Keep any leftover cookies in an airtight container on the counter for up to 7 days.
Notes:
Nutrition
This recipe was originally published in October of 2020, but was updated on November 16, 2021 with newer content and fresh pictures.
Candy Cookie Baking Series:
- Peanut M & M Cookies
- Rolo Stuffed Cookies
- Junior Mint Chocolate Chip Cookies
- Almond Joy Cookies
- Mocha Reese's Pieces Cookies
These cookies are thick, chewy, and have just the right amount of peppermint!
Do you use light or regular brown sugar? Does it matter what type of brown sugar to use?
Hi Angela! It does not matter which brown sugar you use. I definitely switch between which one I use depending on which one I have at home.
Can I use junior mint minis and just not cut them in half?
Yes, that would work!
These are so delicious.
Thank you!!
Junior mints was one of my favorite candies when I was a kid! Love the idea to use them in cookies!