Reviews & Comments

There was a question about the dough being super sticky. I refrigerate mine for the full 4 hrs or more. Then I can make about 6-9 at a time. While they bake I put the remaining dough in the freezer. This makes it much easier to roll out. When it gets too warm it gets sticky. I still use a light dusting of flour to roll them as well. Good luck :)These are my husbands favorite! I use the recipe as is.

Answer to question about what 1 cup shortening (one half butter) means. May use 1/2 cup butter and 1/2 cup shortening. May be too runny if you use butter alone, but 1/2 will add flavor.

Every Christmas my Godmother would send a big box of cookies. I couldn't wait to rip into it to get at these candy cane cookies. To this day they are still my favorite. I started making them for my family when I inherited the Cooky Book from my Mom. Everyone loves them! I leave off the crushed peppermint candy, and I ALWAYS use Almond extract. They come out perfect every time. I'm drooling just thinking about them!

Postscript I suggest using the original recipe as submitted by mrsshoegal This is the recipe I am familiar with. Here it is: The Original recipe did use almond flavoring and powdered sugar here it is and these are yummy! 1 cup shortening (half butter or margarine) 1 cup sifted confectioners’ sugar l egg 1 1/2 tsp. almond extract 1 tsp. vanilla 2 1/2 cups Gold Medal Flour* 1 tsp. salt 1/2 tsp. red food coloring FOR TOPPING: 1/2 cup crushed peppermint candy 1/2 cup granulated sugar Hear oven to 375 degrees F (quick moderate). Mix shortening, sugar, egg, and flavorings thoroughly. Measure flour by dipping method or by sifting. Mix flour and salt; stir into shortening mixture. Divide dough in half. Blend food coloring into one half. Roll a 4-inch strip (using 1 tsp. dough) from each color. For smooth, even strips, roll them back and forth on lightly floured board. Place strips side by side, press lightly together and twist like rope. For best results, complete cookies one at a time - if all the dough of one color is shaped first, strips become too dry to twist. Place on ungreased baking sheet. Curve top down to form handle of cane. Bake about 9 minutes, until lightly browned. While still warm, remove from baking sheet with spatula and sprinkle with mixture of candy and sugar. *If you use Gold Medal Self Rising Flour, omit salt. Makes about 4 dozen canes I like the option of adding the peppermint extract to the mix. I am going to try it. I also like the suggestion of dipping the cookies into the peppermint candy mixture before placing them on the baking sheet. Just making sticks seems easier and less frustrating as there is a lot of breakage with the cane form.

My Second Attempt: First read the instructions (almost completely) and did NOT include the 1/2 cup of broken up candy canes in the cookie dough. As soon as the candy cane cookie dough was made I split it into three parts. 1/2 white dough 1/4 red dough 1/4 green dough. Food color was used to color the dough red and green. The dough was then immediately rolled into the Candy Canes skipping the 4 hours in the fridge. (I forgot to read that part in my rush to get baking.) The colored dough I found rolled out nicely, while the white dough seemed to break apart more easily when rolled. The food color had something to do with this better rolling ability. However no problems making the Candy Cane cookies with red and white strips, green and white strips, and red and green strips. This recipe easily fills up two cookie sheets. The cookies were baked for 12 minutes at 375F and the results were ideal. All the candy cane cookies came off the cookie sheet intact, a BIG first for me! And the taste. YUMMY! Maybe its because this is my first time baking but the recipe seems to be just fine. I do not understand the initial negative comments that this Candy Cane recipe is bland. I find these Candy Cane cookies to taste just fine. I did use margarine instead of butter but this should not have made a difference. Arnold Vinette Ottawa, Canada