Description
These Christmas Cheesecake Cookies are a festive treat combining creamy cheesecake flavor with a soft, buttery sugar cookie. Marbled with red and green hues and a hint of peppermint, they make a perfect holiday dessert to share and enjoy.
Ingredients
Scale
Wet Ingredients
- 8 oz cream cheese, room temperature
- 1/2 cup butter, room temperature
- 1 1/4 cup granulated sugar
- 2 eggs
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1/2 teaspoon peppermint extract
Dry Ingredients
- 2 1/2 cups flour
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
Other
- Red food coloring
- Green food coloring
- Optional: powdered sugar for dusting
Instructions
- Preheat the oven: Set your oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit and line two baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone mats for easy cleanup.
- Prepare the butter and cream cheese mixture: Beat the cream cheese and butter together on high speed until fluffy and smooth, about 1-2 minutes. Add the sugar and continue beating until fully incorporated and fluffy, another 1-2 minutes. Then beat in the eggs and vanilla extract for 1 minute.
- Mix the dry ingredients: In a separate medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt until well combined.
- Combine wet and dry ingredients: Gradually add the dry ingredients to the butter mixture, stirring just until incorporated to avoid over-mixing.
- Divide and chill the dough: Separate the dough evenly into three small bowls and refrigerate for 15 minutes to make handling easier.
- Add color and flavor: After chilling, add red food coloring to one bowl, green food coloring and peppermint extract to another, and leave the third plain. Mix until you reach your desired coloring but be careful not to over-blend as it should stay slightly marbled. If dough feels too sticky, chill again briefly.
- Form the cookies: Take ½ tablespoon of each colored dough and gently roll them together between your palms to create a marbled effect without fully combining the colors. Repeat this for all dough portions and place the formed dough balls on the prepared baking sheets.
- Bake the cookies: Bake in the preheated oven for 11 minutes. Cookies should be lightly colored, not browned, with just a slight golden bottom. Baking times can vary by oven.
- Cool and optionally dust: Let cookies cool on the baking sheet for a few minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely. Optionally, dust with powdered sugar before serving for a festive look.
Notes
- Store cookies in a tightly sealed container for up to one week, or freeze for up to three months to maintain freshness.
- For a tangier cheesecake flavor, substitute the vanilla extract with 1 teaspoon lemon juice or omit extracts entirely.
- Peppermint extract is optional and can be omitted or replaced with another flavor if preferred.
- Do not overbake; overbaking will cause cookies to become dry and biscuit-like, losing their soft texture.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 cookie
- Calories: 120 kcal
- Sugar: 8 g
- Sodium: 90 mg
- Fat: 6 g
- Saturated Fat: 3.5 g
- Unsaturated Fat: 2 g
- Trans Fat: 0 g
- Carbohydrates: 14 g
- Fiber: 0.5 g
- Protein: 2 g
- Cholesterol: 25 mg
