Mocha Mint Cookies

I was going to post the recipe for my Fourth of July Cookie tonight, but a Starbucks mocha mint frappuccino pointed me in a new direction as Jon and I were walking home from the park this afternoon. (Isn't the Starbucks naming convention for sizes completely stupid? Small, medium, and large are perfectly descriptive enough...why front with the pseudo-Italiano barista speak? But I digress.) Don't worry: I'll post the Fourth of July Cookie later this week--just in time for you to enjoy during the fireworks.

I've had the Mocha Mint Cookie on The List since the beginning, but this recipe is a little different from--and an improvement upon--my original. I upped the coffee flavor by using both instant espresso powder and brewed coffee, and I used easily accessible Junior Mints candies instead of less common mint chips. I also use three kinds of chocolate--cocoa powder, milk chocolate, and semisweet chocolate--to compliment the coffee and mint flavors.

Make sure you freeze the cut-up Junior Mints before you add them to the dry ingredients, and also make sure you refrigerate the dough before you form the dough balls. If you don't keep the Junior Mints chilled before baking, they will melt quickly in the oven and "bleed out" of your cookies. Makes 4 dozen cookies.

Creamables	2 sticks butter 2 cups dark brown sugar 1/4 cup white sugar 1/4 cup cocoa powder 1 teaspoon instant espresso powder
Wet Ingredients	1 egg yolk 1/2 cup coffee 1 tablespoon instant espresso powder 2 ounces milk chocolate 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla
Dry Ingredients	3 3/4 cups oatmeal 1 1/2 cups flour 1 cup mini semisweet chocolate chips 2/3 cup frozen and quartered Junior Mints candies 1/4 cup cocoa powder 2 ounces milk chocolate, microplaned 2 teaspoons instant espresso powder 1 teaspoon baking soda 1/2 teaspoon salt

1. Cut Junior Mints candies from a 4.75-ounce package into quarters. Place quartered candy pieces in the freezer until Step 5.
2. In your Kitchen Aid or a large mixing bowl, cream together the creamables.
3. In a small bowl, combine all the wet ingredients except for the egg yolk and microwave on high for 1 1/2 minutes. Whisk together until smooth. Let liquid mixture cool and then whisk in the egg yolk.
4. Add the combined wet ingredients to the creamables. Mix together until well incorporated.
5. In a large mixing bowl, add the dry ingredients, including the frozen, quartered Junior Mints. Using a spatula, fold together until evenly distributed.
6. Slowly add the dry ingredients to the combined creamables and wet ingredients. Mix until evenly combined.
7. Preheat oven to 350º
8. Refrigerate dough for 30 minutes.
9. Shape dough into balls--about 2 tablespoons each.
10. Place dough balls about 2 inches apart on Silpat- or parchment paper-lined cookie sheets.
11. Bake at 350º for 10-12 minutes. Remove the cookie sheets from the oven and let stand for 2 minutes. Then place cookies on wire racks to cool.

Comments

[Lorraine]

These look sooooo delicious!! I think the idea of using junior mints is brilliant. I imagine that the flavor is more subtle then mint chips and you have the added bit of chocolate!

[Gloria from Texas]

When Nestlé's discontinued their mint chocolate chips a few years ago, I wrote to them about where I could get them. They were kind enough to send me a "recipe" for a substitute. I thought I'd share it with you.

Creating Mint Morsels Using Semisweet Morsels

Place 2 cups (12-oz. pkg.) Nestlé Toll House Semisweet Chocolate Morsels in a medium, heavy-duty plastic bag or container. Add ¼ tsp. pure peppermint extract; seal bag or cover container. Shake to coat. Store for 24 hrs to allow sufficient time for morsels to absorb the mint extract.
Don't have 24 hrs to spare? Here is what we recommend. The results are almost as good as waiting 24 hrs:
Place 2 cups Nestlé Toll House Semisweet Chocolate Morsels in a medium, heavy-duty plastic bag or container. Add ½ tsp. pure peppermint extract; seal bag or cover container. Shake to coat.
The mint-favored morsels can be added directly to your recipe or melted according to morsel package directions.
Note: Peppermint Flavoring and Pure Peppermint extract can be used interchangeably.

[Oatmeal Cookie Guy]

Thanks, Lorraine. The Junior Mints have a more "natural" flavor than the green mint chips I bought online and used in the first iteration of this recipe. And you're right...they add another touch of chocolate. To quote Ina Garten: "How bad can that be?"

[Oatmeal Cookie Guy]

Hi, Gloria! Thanks for the info *and* the recipe! I'm going to move this to up to the main page for everyone else to see. Thanks again!

[Em]

Oh. My. God.
These are amazing. And I've only tasted the dough.
Instead of using Junior Mints, I used what I had on hand (ground up coffee beans into my own version of espresso powder, Andes Creme De Menthe Baking chips, and Cappuccino chips I found at World Market).
Amazing.
My favorite, by far.

[Em]

and after eating the very vast majority of them, I am reminded why I don't bake your cookies as often. Because I eat them all.

[Oatmeal Cookie Guy]

Ha! Thanks, Em. :-) That's how Cookie Mondays were born...I need to have other people eat the cookies before I could. Glad you liked these guys. :-)