Chocolate Peppermint Cookies (and BIG giveaway news)!

Being engaged really has its perks.

One (of many) is that we get to have two Christmases--one with his family and one with mine!

I seriously lucked out with my in-laws to be (they'll officially be my in-laws in 3 weeks--soooo exciting!!). I've told this to my MIL2B (mother-in-law to be) multiple times, but I seriously couldn't have picked a nicer or more fun group of people to call my family. And we get to celebrate Christmas with them this weekend!

I've been baking up a storm tonight so I could contribute some yummy desserts to our get together. One of these yummy desserts is chocolate peppermint cookies (and Ninja Bread Men, which I will post more about later!).

Do you like Girl Scout Thin Mints? Silly question, EVERYONE likes Thin Mints! This is what these taste like! They are super easy to make, look festive and taste wonderful!

But before I get to the recipe, I have some BIG giveaway news!! The lovely Kristine from Heart Shaped Sweat, talented Tricia from Mama Marchand's Nest and I will be hosting a 'Beautiful You, Beautiful New Year' giveaway beginning Monday! I don't want to give away too much, but the prizes are fabulous and will leave you glowing and sparkling all the way through 2013! Be sure to check back on Monday!!

Okay, onto the recipe!

No, wait, one more side note--the chocolate can be pretty messy, so I recommend sticking the finished cookies in the freezer after they are finished so the chocolate can set. Make sure to only freeze them for 5 minutes though or you'll wind up with a bunch of frozen chocolate and broken cookie stuck to the plate--yes, I'm speaking from experience. I ruined about 4 cookies from doing that which I guess wasn't too terrible because I got to eat all of them so it was a total waste!

Anngredients (recipe from Pillsbury):

• 1 roll refrigerated sugar cookie dough (or if you're not as lazy as me, you can make homemade cookie dough)
• 1 1/2 cups semisweet chocolate chips
• 2 crushed up candy canes (or 8 crushed round hard peppermint candies, your call)

1. Heat oven to 350°F. Evenly slice dough and lay on cookie sheet. Bake 10 to 14 minutes or until edges are golden brown. Cool 1 minute; remove from cookie sheets to cooling rack. Cool completely, about 5 minutes. 
2. In small microwavable bowl, microwave chocolate chips and 1 tablespoon vegetable oil uncovered for 2 to 3 minutes, stirring once halfway through microwaving, until melted. Stir until smooth. 
3. Dip half of each cookie into melted chips mixture, allowing excess to drip off; place on waxed or parchment paper-lined cookie sheets. Sprinkle each with about 1/2 teaspoon crushed candy. Let stand until set.

Don't these just scream Christmas?!

Party, Party, I like to Party
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