These classic candy cane sugar cookies are buttery, soft, colorful, and just plain cheerful! Red and white sugar cookie dough is twisted together to create festive candy cane shapes that are perfect for Christmas cookie trays, cookie exchanges, and holiday baking.
If you're planning your holiday baking, don't miss my 40 Christmas Cookie Recipes for more classic and festive cookies to add to your Christmas cookie tray.
Candy cane sugar cookies are a classic Christmas cookie. They've been around for decades and for good reason. They're just so cheerful! The bright red and white striped cookies keep their shape and taste amazing.
Why I Like This Recipe
- Perfect for cookie exchanges: One batch makes 50 small cookies, making them great to make and share during the holidays.
- Simple ingredients: These cookies are made with butter, sugar, flour, and basic pantry ingredients. Nothing fancy.
- Choose your flavor: Peppermint extract is the classic flavoring for candy cane cookies, but I prefer almond extract in mine.
- Tried and true recipe: I use the same sugar cookie recipe for making my Chubby Snowman Cookies. It's a good one and super flavorful!
What Others Are Saying
These were so yummy and stayed bright in color after baking.---Mona on Pinterest
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Tips and Tricks
- Gel food coloring. For the most vibrant color, use gel food coloring. You can, of course, use liquid coloring too.
- Use a cookie scoop for uniform cookie dough balls. The dough is formed into teaspoon-sized balls. I use a teaspoon cookie scoop to ensure they are all the same size.
- Chill the dough. My go-to sugar cookie recipe is a no-chill recipe, but these need to chill to keep their perfect candy cane shape. DO NOT skip this step.
- Chill the cookies on the cookie sheets before baking. After rolling the dough out, it will soften from the warmth of your hands. Chilling the shaped candy canes on the baking sheets will bring the dough back to a nice cool temperature, perfect for baking.
Ingredients
- Butter: I always use salted butter. If you use unsalted butter, add ½ teaspoon of salt to the recipe (add when you mix in the flour and corn starch).
- Sugar: some sugar cookie recipes call for powdered sugar, but I use granulated sugar in mine.
- Egg: room temperature or chilled.
- Vanilla Extract: have you tried making your own vanilla extract? It adds amazing flavor to any recipe.
- Almond or Peppermint Extract: peppermint extract is the classic flavoring used for making these cookies, but I prefer to use almond extract in mine.
- Baking Powder: for leavening.
- Corn Starch: if you don't have any corn starch on hand you can omit it, but I highly recommend adding a bit to your recipe. It makes for a more tender cookie.
- Flour: all-purpose flour works great, but you can use bread flour too.
See the recipe card for full information on ingredients and quantities.
How to Make Candy Cane Cookies
Step 1: In a large mixing bowl, combine butter and sugar. Beat until fluffy. Turn the mixer down and add the egg and extracts. Add baking powder. Add the flour and cornstarch and mix thoroughly. Keep mixing until the dough comes together.
Divide the dough into two balls and color one ball with red food coloring. You can do this by hand (I highly recommend wearing disposable gloves to protect your hands from being dyed) or using your stand mixer to mix the color into the dough.
Step 2: Flatten each ball of dough into a disc shape and wrap it with plastic wrap. Chill the cookie dough for 3-4 hours.
Step 3: Divide the cookie dough into 1 teaspoon-sized scoops. You can eyeball it or use a tiny cookie scoop.
Step 4: Roll into balls.
Step 5: Roll each ball into a 5" log and twist to create candy cane stripes.
Step 6: Fold the top over to look like a candy cane.
Step 7: Place cookies on baking sheets and freeze for 20-30 minutes. This gives the dough a chance to cool again after being rolled in your warm hands.
Step 8: Bake at 350 degrees for 10-12 minutes. I only bake one tray at a time and keep the other trays in the freezer until they go into the oven.
Candy Cane Cookies FAQs
Store baked cookies in an airtight container for up to 5 days. Sugar cookies freeze really well and can be made in advance for holiday treat plates.
Cornstarch softens the dough and gives the finished sugar cookies a softer, more tender texture.
Yes! My go-to sugar cookie recipe is a no-chill recipe, but these cookies need to chill to keep their perfect candy cane shape. First, chill the dough for 3–4 hours before shaping. Then chill the shaped candy cane cookies on the baking sheets before baking. After rolling and shaping, the dough softens from the warmth of your hands. Chilling the cookies again brings the dough back to a nice, cool temperature before baking.
Absolutely. Peppermint extract is the classic flavoring used for candy cane cookies. I personally prefer almond extract in these sugar cookies, but peppermint extract is a great option if you want that traditional candy cane flavor.
Yes. I always use salted butter, but if you use unsalted butter, add ½ teaspoon salt to the recipe when you mix in the flour and cornstarch.
Yes. All-purpose flour works great, but you can use bread flour too.
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Candy Cane Sugar Cookies
Ingredients
Sugar Cookie Dough
- 1 cup salted butter softened (if using unsalted butter, add ½ teaspoon salt to recipe)
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 1 egg
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 teaspoon almond or peppermint extract
- 2 ¾ cups flour
- ¼ cup corn starch
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- red food coloring (I prefer gel coloring)
Instructions
Cookies
- In a large mixing bowl combine butter and sugar. Beat until fluffy. Turn the mixer down and add egg and extracts. Add baking powder. Add the flour and cornstarch and mix thoroughly.
- Lightly flour your working surface and shape the dough into a large ball.Slice the ball of dough into 2 equal pieces.Flatten one piece into a disc and wrap it in plastic wrap.Place the other dough ball back into the mixing bowl and add food coloring. Mix until the food coloring is fully incorporated. Note: you can also hand-knead the food coloring into the cookie dough (it's a good idea to wear disposable gloves to protect your hands if doing it this way). Flatten the ball of red cookie dough into a disc and wrap it with plastic.
- Refrigerate cookie dough for 3-4 hours. DO NOT SKIP THIS STEP.
- Portion the cookie dough into 1 teaspoon-sized balls.
- Roll each ball into a 5" log.Twist one red log and one white log together, pinching the ends.Bend the top over to form a candy cane shape.
- Place cookies 2" apart on baking sheets lined with parchment paper.Freeze cookie sheets for 30 minutes before baking.
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and bake cookies, one sheet at a time (leaving the other cookie sheets in the freezer) for 10-12 minutes.
- Let the cookies cool on the cookie sheet for 3-5 minutes before transferring cookies to a wire cooling rack.
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