Healthy Chocolate Peppermint Cookies

These chewy Healthy Chocolate Peppermint Cookies are rich, fudgy and packed with chocolate flavor with a festive candy cane crunch. Made healthier with less butter and whole wheat flour, these easy Christmas cookies are perfect for holiday baking, cookie exchanges and gifting!

If there’s one cookie that instantly feels like Christmas, it’s these Healthy Chocolate Peppermint Cookies. They’re rich, soft, fudgy, and loaded with deep chocolate flavor while being finished with crunchy crushed candy canes that melt slightly into the tops of the cookies for the perfect holiday bite. These chewy cookies remind me of warm, fudgy brownies in cookie form!

Unlike traditional chocolate peppermint cookies that are loaded with butter and sugar, this healthier version lightens things up by using a combination of butter and coconut oil, whole wheat pastry flour, and just enough sugar to keep them perfectly sweet. A little espresso powder intensifies the chocolate flavor (without tasting like coffee), while peppermint extract gives every bite that classic holiday taste we all love. Nothing better than Christmas cookies this time of year!

Why You’ll Love These

• Made healthier – these double chocolate peppermint cookies are made with less butter, coconut oil and whole wheat pastry flour for a lighter twist on the classic Christmas cookie.
• Easy to make – these festive cookies easily come together in under 30 minutes with zero chilling required.
• Rich and fudgy – these brownie-like cookies stay incredibly soft with rich centers thanks to the combination of cocoa powder, espresso powder and chocolate chips.
• Great for holiday baking – these cookies are perfect for Christmas parties, gifting in cookie tins, or simply enjoying a sweet treat with your morning coffee or hot cocoa.

Ingredients You’ll Need

• flours – I used a combination of whole wheat pastry flour for extra fiber and whole grains along with all-purpose flour to help keep these cookies soft. You could also use a gluten-free 1 to 1 baking flour if making gluten-free cookies.
• unsweetened cocoa powder – creates the rich chocolate base. Use a high-quality Dutch-process cocoa powder for the deepest flavor. Regular unsweetened cocoa powder works too.
• espresso powder – don’t skip this! Espresso powder won’t make the cookies taste like coffee, it simply intensifies the chocolate flavor.
• baking soda – this acts as a leavening agent to help these cookies bake up nicely and gives them that chewy texture.
• butter – we are only using 4 tablespoons of butter which really adds that classic cookie flavor and helps create a tender texture. You could also substitute coconut oil, if you prefer.
• coconut oil – melted and cooled coconut oil replaces some of the butter, creating an incredibly moist cookie while reducing saturated fat from butter alone.
• egg – you’ll need one large room temperature egg to bind everything together and keep the cookies soft.
• cane sugar – naturally sweetens these cookies and helps them spread just enough. You could also use coconut sugar, light brown sugar or other granulated sugar.
• chocolate chips – I used Lily’s dark chocolate chips which are sweetened with stevia making the sugar content really low and gives these cookies even more chocolate flavor. White chocolate chips would make a great addition as well!
• salt – needed to balance the sweetness and enhance every ingredient.
• vanilla + peppermint extracts – adds warmth and gives these cookies their signature holiday flavor that enhances the chocolate flavors.
• candy canes – crushed candy canes are mixed into the dough and sprinkled on top of the cookies for festive peppermint crunch and beautiful holiday color.

How to Make Healthy Chocolate Peppermint Cookies

1. Prepare your oven. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F and line a cookie sheet with parchment paper or silicone baking mat.
2. Cream the wet ingredients. Using a stand mixer or hand mixer, beat together the softened butter and sugar in a large bowl until light and fluffy, about 2–3 minutes. Mix in the melted (and cooled) coconut oil, followed by the egg. Stir in the vanilla and peppermint extracts until everything is smooth and creamy.
3. Mix the dry ingredients. In a separate bowl, whisk together the flours, cocoa powder, espresso powder and salt. Gradually add the dry ingredients into the wet mixture, mixing just until combined.
4. Fold in the mix-ins. Using a rubber spatula, gently fold in the chocolate chips and crushed candy canes.
5. Scoop and bake. Using a tablespoon-size cookie scoop, place dough balls about 2 inches apart on the prepared baking sheet. Bake cookies for 12–13 minutes, or until the edges are set while the centers still look slightly soft.
6. Finish with candy canes. Immediately after removing the cookies from the oven, sprinkle extra crushed candy canes over the tops while they’re still warm. The candy will lightly adhere without completely melting.
7. Cool. Allow the cookies to cool on the baking sheet for about 5 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely. You should get about 24 to 25 cookies.

Tips for the Best Healthy Chocolate Peppermint Cookies

• Use room temperature ingredients – butter and eggs mix together much more smoothly, creating a better cookie texture.
• Don’t overmix the dough – mix only until the flour disappears. Overmixing develops gluten and can make cookies tougher.
• Use high-quality cocoa powder – for the richest chocolate flavor, I like to use Dutch-process cocoa powder that gives a a darker color and smoother taste.
• Measure peppermint extract carefully – a little goes a long way and too much can overpower the cookies.
• Use parchment paper – this helps prevent sticking and makes for really easy clean-up. If you don’t have parchment paper, a silicone baking mat works great too.
• Don’t over-bake – the cookies should still look slightly underdone in the center when you remove them. They’ll continue cooking on the hot baking sheet and this gives you those soft, fudgy centers.
• Use a cookie scoop – using a tablespoon-size cookie scoop gives you uniform cookies which helps everything bake evenly.
• Store cookies properly – store in a sealed, airtight container to keep the cookies soft and fresh for several days. If stacking, place parchment paper between the layers to prevent the peppermint topping from sticking.

Frequently Asked Questions

Prepping and Storage

• Make Ahead: The dough can be mixed up to 2 days in advance and stored covered in the refrigerator until you’re ready to bake.
• To Store:  These cookies will last at room temperature stored in a sealed, airtight container on the counter for 3 to 4 days. You can also store these in the fridge to keep them longer for up to 1 week.
• To Freeze Baked Cookies:  For longer storage, place cookies in a freezer-safe container and store in the freezer for up to 3 months. Thaw at room temperature before serving.
• To Freeze Cookie Dough: Scoop the dough into cookie portions and freeze on a baking sheet. Once frozen, transfer to a freezer bag and bake straight from frozen whenever you’re craving fresh holiday cookies.

More Cookie Recipes to Make

• The BEST 5-Ingredient Peanut Butter Cookies
• Healthy Chocolate Chip Cookies
• Peanut Butter Oatmeal Cookies
• Iced Pumpkin Cookies
• Grain-Free Sugar Cookies
• Triple Chocolate Cookies

Hope you all enjoy these Healthy Chocolate Peppermint Cookies! If you love this easy recipe as much as we do, please leave a ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ star rating below and don’t forget to tag me on Instagram using the hashtag #eatyourselfskinny!