My Table For Eight {by Jen}: Peppermint Sour Cream Sugar Cookies

1/2 cup (113g) butter, softened
1/2 cup (110g) vegetable oil
1 cup (240g) sour cream, full fat
1 large egg
1 ½ (300g) cups granulated sugar, plus more for rolling
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon almond extract, or use peppermint extract if you prefer more mint flavor
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
3 3/4 (560g) cups flour
1 cup Andes Peppermint Crunch Baking Chips or Andes Peppermint Crunch Thins, chopped

Preheat the oven to 350F. Line 2 large baking sheets with parchment paper.
In the bowl of a stand mixer (or in a large bowl with an electric hand mixer), add the butter and mix on medium speed for 2-3 minutes, until light and fluffy.
Add the oil and mix for another 1-2 minutes.
Add the sour cream, egg and granulated sugar, vanilla extract and almond extract and mix on medium-low speed until well combined.
Add the baking powder, salt and ⅓ of the flour. Mix until well combined. With the mixer running on low, slowly add the rest of the flour and mix until evenly combined. Mix in the Andes Peppermint Crunch Chips.

Scoop the dough into about ¼ cup-sized portions and roll into balls. Place several inches apart on the prepared baking sheets - I do 6 per baking sheet.
Add about 1/2 cup granulated sugar to a shallow dish or bowl. Lightly spray the bottom of a ¼ or ⅓ cup measuring cup (or small glass) with cooking spray and dip the bottom of the measuring cup into the sugar.
Press each cookie into an even thickness dipping the bottom of the glass into the sugar between each press (no need to spray it again with cooking spray after the first time). The edges of the cookie will ruffle out in an uneven way (imperfect is what you want!) They should be about 1/2-inch thick.

Bake for 8-10 minutes. DO NOT OVERBAKE! The cookies should not turn golden. You want them to be soft and creamy when chilled.
Let the cookies cool almost completely on the baking sheet before transferring to a wire rack.
FROSTING: Using a hand mixer, mix together the butter, sour cream, powdered sugar, salt, almond extract, vanilla extra and 1 drop of red food coloring. Mix in a tablespoon or so of milk to get the frosting consistency you want. (I usually add 1 tablespoon.)
Frost the cookies. For best results chill for at least 1 hour (or up to 2 days) before serving. Cookies are best served chilled right out of the fridge! Enjoy :)

RECIPE NOTES

My family prefers the traditional sugar cookie flavor with the almond extract. We tried it with peppermint extract and it was a little too minty for us. But we love the peppermint flavor the Andes Thins gives these cookies! It’s perfect and just enough mint.
You want to use the RED Andes peppermint crunch variety for these cookies. You can either use the Andes Peppermint Crunch Baking Chips that come in a bag, or chop up 1 cup of the Andes Peppermint Crunch Thins.
Don’t be tempted to overbake these cookies! They should not be golden at all. You want them to be slightly underbaked so they’re soft and creamy when chilled.

Calories: 347 | Carbohydrates: 36g | Protein: 1g | Fat: 23g

My Table For Eight {by Jen}