These Grinch cookies are festive, cakey cookies that look exactly like a certain Christmas Grinch! They’ll be ready to serve with chocolate sugar cookie cut-outs and chewy ginger molasses cookies in 20 minutes.
This is arguably the most Christmas-y Christmas cookie recipe I’ve ever made, despite the lack of a Christmas tree, gingerbread man, or ornament.
These cookies are the culinary incarnation of the Grinch himself, complete with a heart that is three times too big, no, it is the right size.
If the heart was larger, it would seem that the cookie had a hazardous aortic enlargement, which is quite concerning.
I’d seen a number of recipes for Grinch cookies like these on Pinterest, but they all used a boxed cake mix and oil, and I didn’t want to go that way. I have to make things more complicated, obviously.
The Grinch then had an idea he hadn’t had before! What if Christmas doesn’t come from a store, he wondered. What if Christmas meant a little bit more to you? How the Grinch Stole Christmas! by Dr. Seuss
Contents
- How to make Grinch cookies
- Have patience with the dough
- Roll the dough into balls
- Adding a red heart sprinkle
- Don’t like mint?
- Try rolling in sugar for added decoration and flavor
- Grinch Christmas cookies are great for cookie exchanges
- Easy Crinkly Grinch Cookies
- FAQs
- Why didn t my crinkle cookies crinkle?
- Why are my crinkle cookies hard?
- How do you decorate cookies to look like the Grinch?
- What can I use instead of powdered sugar for crinkles?
- What makes cookies crackle?
- What makes cookies crunchy instead of soft?
- How to make nice crunchy cookies?
- How do you soften crinkles?
- How do you dress up as the Grinch easy?
We were planning to bake everything from scratch for my cookies. So don’t worry, it’s not difficult!
- It’s as simple as combining a few dry ingredients in a single dish and mixing them together.
- Next, in a separate dish, mix the butter, sugar, eggs, vanilla, and mint essence, and finish with some green food gel paste to provide that crucial Grinchy green. I prefer green food gel paste over green food coloring since it is more concentrated, which means you don’t need as much.
- You’ll even use a mixer to save your arms from becoming fatigued from mixing the dough by hand. A stand mixer (affiliate link) will even free you of all effort!
- Let them to cool for a few minutes on the cookie sheet before transferring to a wire rack to cool fully.
See? That isn’t so difficult.
Have patience with the dough
It will begin crumbly, but after a few minutes of mixing, it will come together to create a dough with the consistency of playdough (I know, what an appetizing comparison, hah).
Therefore, if it’s still creating giant crumbs, keep going; it’ll come together eventually and just needs a little more time!
Roll the dough into balls
You want to roll each bit of dough between the palms of your hands (rather than leaving them the way they drop out of the little cookie scoop (aff link)). This gives them a more uniform appearance, and they stretch out more and crumple on top.
If you do not roll them, they will remain puffier, more uneven, and have a different texture.
Adding a red heart sprinkle
To be honest, the most difficult part will be adding the small heart sprinkle on top of each cookie as it comes out of the oven. You must act swiftly before the cookies harden, so have them ready!
You’ll gently push them in so they stick, but not so firmly that the cookie appears like it’s eating its own heart. Even for me, that’s rather dark.
You could press the hearts into the tops of the cookies before baking to eliminate the tiny rush when they come out of the oven, but they simply look different and less clean.
Also, when the cookies bake and spread, the heart may not finish up where you expected it to!
Don’t like mint?
Just omit it! I know some people believe mint tastes like toothpaste, so if you’re one of those folks, simply leave it out.
- 2 teaspoon, or more if you like a stronger peppermint taste. You could also substitute peppermint extract for the mint extract, but because it has a stronger flavor, I would start with 1 teaspoon.
- If you want to spice things up, try a 1:1 exchange of another flavor extract!
Try rolling in sugar for added decoration and flavor
For a little extra something something, roll each ball of dough with granulated sugar or powdered sugar (confectioners sugar).
The granulated sugar makes them sparkle, but the powdered sugar makes them look like snow!
You’ll finish up with a batch of utterly gorgeous Grinch crinkle cookies that are ideal for Christmas cookie exchanges. They’ll not only be pretty and delicious, but they’ll also be a terrific little conversation starter.
Kids and adults alike will be yearning for one, and they are unquestionably Instagram-worthy.
Put on a Christmas movie, eat on them, and enjoy the festivities!
Easy Crinkly Grinch Cookies
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Description
Equipment
- Baking pans
- Silicone nonstick mat
- Paper made with parchment (precut)
- blending bowls
- Whisk
- Stand Mixer
- Paste of food coloring gel
- Cookie scoops
- Cooling racks made of wire
Ingredients
- 2 cups regular flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- teaspoonsalt
- 1 cup sugar, granulated
- softened cupunsalted butter
- 2 big room temperature eggs
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla essence (yep, a teaspoon!)
- 1 teaspoon mint essence, or less as desired (can omit, if desired)
- Start with 4 drops of green gel food coloring paste and add more as required to get the desired hue.
- Sprinkles in the form of a heart, affiliate link
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 375°F and place the baking rack in the center. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper or nonstick silicon mats. Set aside.
- a teaspoon of salt
1 teaspoon baking powder, 2 cups all-purpose flour 1
In a large mixing basin, combine the flour, baking powder, and salt.
2 1 - 3 tablespoons unsalted butter
granulated sugar, 2 cups 1
In a separate large mixing bowl, blend sugar and butter until light and fluffy using a stand mixer equipped with the paddle attachment or a hand mixer.
1 1 - Beat in the eggs, vanilla, and mint extracts.
1 teaspoon mint essence, 1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract - Add half of the flour mixture and mix on low speed to blend, then add the remaining flour mixture and mix until mixed. The dough will be crumbly for the first few minutes, but will begin to come together around minute 3; continue to stir until it does!
- Add 4 drops of gel paste and beat until well combined and no white streaks remain in the dough. To get the desired hue, add extra food coloring, having in mind that the color may fade *slightly* while baking.
Paste of green gel food coloring - To portion the dough, use 2 teaspoons. Roll each between your palms to form a ball, then drop each dough ball onto the prepared baking sheets, no more than 6 on per sheet (they need room to spread while baking).
1 12 teaspoon cookie scoop
- This is an optional step: Roll each dough ball in powdered sugar or granulated sugar for added decorating!
- Shape each dough ball in your hands to form a smooth ball and gently push down on the top of each. Bake for 8 minutes, or until the cookies begin to crinkle; they will firm and crinkle even more as they cool.
- As soon as they come out of the oven, sprinkle a heart sprinkle on top of each cookie. Let them cool for a few minutes on the baking sheets before transferring to wire racks to cool fully. Enjoy!
Sprinkles in the form of a heart
Notes
- Moisture: The size of the eggs you utilize might affect moisture! You may lose some of the required moisture if they are smaller in size. If the mixture is too dry, add a little melted butter or oil. Bear in mind that the dough will be crumbly at first but will come together after approximately 3 minutes of mixing.
- Putting the hearts: You may place the heart sprinkles on top before baking, but you can’t be sure they’ll be precisely where you want them after they bake and spread.
- 2 teaspoon, or more if you like a stronger peppermint taste. Do you dislike mint? Just leave it out! I know some people associate mint with toothpaste. You may also use peppermint extract for the mint extract, but since it has a stronger taste, I would start with 1 teaspoon.
Nutrition Facts
Note: My original 2015 recipe asked for two types of butter, one softened and one melted. To simplify the recipe, I modified it in December 2021 to use just softened butter (slightly more than the original recipe) and a slightly different way of mixing the cookie dough. Although I like the original recipe, I want it to be simple to prepare! The final cookies are almost identical; enjoy, and Merry Christmas!