When I was little one of our family traditions was making cookies during the holidays to share with family and Santa. What were my favorite cookies to make for Santa (and for me to eat) as a kid? Candy Cane Cookies. They are so festive and delicious and I remember having so much fun making them with my mom. Recipe courtesy of Chelsey Andrews from The Paper Mama.
Thoroughly mix the butter, powdered sugar, egg and extracts. Blend in the flour and salt.
Divide the dough in half and blend the red food coloring into one. Wrap the dough into plastic and refrigerate for about 30 minutes. Note: some people like to refrigerate their dough for longer.
Pull the dough out of the fridge and shape about a 1/2 teaspoon of each dough color into 4 - 5 inch ropes. Place the ropes side by side, press together the ends, and lightly twist. Curve one end into the hook shape to make the candy cane. Continue this step for each cookie.
Crush up the candy canes in a plastic bag (I used the back of a spoon to crush). Note: don't crush up the candy cane too early, it will stick together if you crush it too soon.
Bake the cookies for about 9 minutes, or until the dough is light brown. When the cookies are ready, pull them out of the oven. Let them cool for about a minute, then remove from the cookie sheet and place on a plate. Sprinkle the crushed candy cane onto the cookies. They should stick to the warm cookies on their own.