Fresh Mint Chocolate Chip Cookies
It feels like that at any given point our refrigerator has an abundance of either cilantro or mint. We’ll buy one of them for a recipe, but it’s hard to buy an amount small enough for just one dish. As a result we’ll be left wondering what to do with the bulk of a bunch of cilantro or mint. I find that cilantro is much easier to incorporate into other dishes, but I’m never really sure what to do with mint. This no doubt comes from the fact that until a few weeks ago I hadn’t made anything myself that heavily featured mint.
So when I looked in the fridge after making the mint pesto I scratched my head thinking of things I’d eaten before with mint. I wasn’t about to spend my night hand churning mint chocolate chip ice cream but I loved the idea of making cookies with fresh mint instead of an extract. And wow, these cookies were amazing! Within a week of making a dozen I made a second batch with the last bit of leftover mint. And thanks to a generous friend we now have an herb garden at our window which features a constant supply of fresh mint!
I don’t make cookies all that often so I lack a go-to basic recipe, but I really enjoyed this one. The recipe calls for 1/4 cup of mint leaves finely chopped and a cup of chocolate chips, so you could just add those to your favorite cookie recipe. The first batch I made I used the recommended 1/4 cup of mint and thought the mint taste was a bit too faint. So if you like, I’d recommend adding up to 1/2 cup of leaves.
These cookies really are a must make for you. They have a perfectly crisp bottom layer and hold up very well keeping them at room temperature or in the freezer.
I mentioned this last week and will again: next Monday will be my last post of new content for about a month since my fiancée and I are getting married and then going to France for 3 weeks! I am currently working on revisiting some old posts with my accrued bread knowledge, and those will keep things lively while we’re gone. If there is anything in particular you’re interested in learning more about, let me know!
Upon our return I am sure to have a bounty of pictures and stories to share from our time in France. Until next week, enjoy these cookies!
- ½ C butter, chilled
- ½ C white sugar
- ½ C brown sugar, packed
- 1 egg
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1½ C AP flour
- 1 tsp baking soda
- ½ tsp salt
- ¼-1/2 C fresh mint leaves, finely chopped
- 1 C chocolate chips
- In the bowl of a stand mixer (or in a large bowl with a fork) mix together butter and sugar until well combined. Add in the egg and vanilla extract and mix again until everything has been combined.
- In a separate bowl mix together the flour, baking soda, and salt, then add to the butter mixture. Mix well until there are no dry bits of flour.
- Add in the mint leaves and chocolate chips and mix until even once again. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least one hour (up to overnight).
- Shortly before making the cookies preheat the oven to 350 F. Line a baking sheet with a baking mat or parchment paper and shape the dough into 1 inch balls, leaving about 2 inches of space between each on the baking sheet.
- Bake in the preheated oven for 9-12 minutes, until they are golden brown. Let cool on the baking sheet for 10 minutes and then transfer to a wire cooling rack.
