Mint Chocolate Shamrock Cookies

Today I thought we would jump right into the St. Patrick’s Day fun starting with these cute Mint Chocolate Shamrock Cookies.  They are kind of like a yummy treat and a craft all at once which is always a bonus, don’t you think?  You can make these for your family, friends, visiting teachees, neighbors…. whoever!  It’s a fun & festive treat even if you don’t usually go all out for St. Patrick’s Day.  Plus, delish!

The basic idea of these cookies comes from my Landee’s Andes Peppermint Crunch Cookies (which is one of my favorites) and you can find more detailed instructions by clicking that link if you need them but here is the recipe for a fun St. Patty’s Day twist!

MINT CHOCOLATE SHAMROCK COOKIES

3/4 C. butter

1 and 1/2 C. brown sugar

2 T. water

Melt above ingredients in saucepan over medium heat until melted and then add:

2 C. semi-sweet chocolate chips

Stir until completely melted.  Cool for 10 minutes then pour into a mixing bowl and beat in

2 eggs

Add:

2 and 1/2 C. flour

1 and 1/4 tsp. baking soda

1/2 tsp. salt

Mix together and chill for 45 minutes.  Roll into 1″ balls, flatten slightly and place on cookie sheet.  Bake at 350 for 10 minutes.  When cookies come out of oven, place an unwrapped Dove Mint & Dark Chocolate Swirl chocolate on each cookie and allow to melt for a few minutes.

I didn’t want to mess up the fun swirl pattern of the Dove chocolates but I did want the chocolate to spread out on the cookie a little bit, so after I could see that the chocolate was pretty well melted, I picked up the cookie sheet and tapped it down on the counter a couple of times which made the chocolate spread out on the cookie perfectly!

Then go through a bag of Mini M&M’s and pick out the green ones to put on top of the chocolate in the shape of a shamrock!

I also added a little stem to my shamrocks by going through a bottle of sprinkles I had on hand and picking out the green sprinkles but that is totally optional.

Some cute little cookies for the leprechauns in your life this year!  I love the combination of chocolate and mint so these are definitely a winner for me.   Plus, if you carry these around and hand them out on St. Patty’s Day I’m pretty sure you won’t get pinched.  🙂

(This post may contain affiliate links.  See my full disclosure here.)

By the way, as a seasoned veteran of the cookie making game, I have definitely decided on a few favorite items that I use pretty much every time I pull out the ingredients to make cookies!  I’ve complied a list below with links to each item … do you have any favorites that I missed?

1. Kitchenaid Mixer:  The one should come as no surprise!  And if you can get it in aqua, all the better! I can’t remember the last time I made cookies without it!
2. Measuring Cups & Spoons:  I love this set because of the odd cup and spoon sizes… 3/4 Cup?  Yes!  No more measuring 1/4 three times or worse, dirtying a 1/2 cup and a 1/4 cup!
3. Spatula: Of course you need a spatula to get those cookies off the cookie sheet!  I love this metal one with the slots to make it all that much easier to transfer.
4.  Silpat Baking Mat: No more need to “grease” a cookie sheet!  Just lay this baby down on your cookie sheet and away you go.  Nothing will stick to this.
5. Cookie Scoop:  What did I do before I had a cookie scoop?  The easy way to get uniform cookies!  I looooove my cookie scoop.  I wish I were over-exaggerating here but I’m not.
6. Cookie sheet:  I love these heavy duty Nordic Ware ones!  Mine have been perfectly “seasoned” over the years and they just seem to get better and better!
7. Rubber/Silicone Spatulas: How else will you lick the bowl clean?  This is a must-have tool to scrape down the sides of that bowl.

Enjoy and happy cookie making!