Friday, December 30, 2011

Candy Cane Cookies

The other day I was doing a search on Tasty Kitchen for recipes to help me use up my extra candy canes from the holidays and came up with this lovely cookie recipe, originally called Candy Cane Crinkles, that is my new holiday addiction. I just might have to stock candy canes in my cupboard year-round so I can make these whenever I want. Compared to the original recipe, my alterations save you 14 calories and 1 g fat and add 1 g of fiber per cookie. And, trust me, you are not going to eat just one!

Candy Cane Cookies

Cream together:
5 T margarine (or butter)
3 T ground flax seed meal
1 c white sugar

Add:
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1 egg
1 1/2 T nonfat milk

In a separate bowl, sift together:
1 1/2 c whole wheat flour
1/4 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
1/8 tsp baking soda

Add dry ingredients to wet ingredients and combine until just mixed. Then add:
1/4 c crushed peppermint candy (about 4 regular-sized candy canes)

Roll dough into balls and lightly coat in:
powdered sugar (I use about 1/4 c for the whole recipe)

Place coated balls of dough on a well-greased baking sheet. Bake at 350 degrees for about 15 minutes or until just barely done (Do not over bake! I bake these on the top rack of my oven to prevent over baking). Leave on cookie sheet for 1-2 minutes and then move cookies to cooling rack (you want them to be movable but still quite warm so they don't stick to the pan). Makes 2 dozen.