Pink Velvet Chocolate Kiss Cookies
Skip the mistletoe and pucker up for these Pink Velvet Chocolate Kiss Cookies. A delicious twist on a Christmas classic and a pretty addition to your cookie tray, these pink crinkles are soft, chewy and melt-in-your-mouth delicious.
Is it just me or is mistletoe creepy? On one hand it’s a toxic, parasitic plant that can kill its host tree and on the other it’s a tradition of kissing people you don’t want to at Christmas. There are no conceivable positives with the leafy plant. Consume mistletoe and you’ll be poisoned and die. Cross paths with the wrong person under the mistletoe and you’ll wish you were dead.
We can thank Merry Olde England for giving men carte blanche to kiss any woman caught standing under the mistletoe. Obviously this was way before Covid, but it wasn’t before mononucleosis. If a female refused to lock lips with a bloke, it was said bad luck would befall her. But submit to a smooch and she ran the risk of her spleen rupturing in the next 6 months.
To summarize, canoodling under poisonous Christmas decorations was a no-win situation for women.
On behalf of two centuries of females, I say skip the mistletoe and save your kisses for cookies. Not just any cookies, though, I’m talking about Pink Velvet Chocolate Kiss Cookies. Kiss your old cookie recipe goodbye and pucker up for for these soft, chewy blossoms topped with dark chocolate Hershey Kisses. Their melt-in-your-mouth goodness will make you fall in love without any mystical powers of a poisonous plant.
Before sharing the recipe for Pink Velvet Chocolate Kiss Cookies, here are a few tips and tricks to help you out:
Ingredient Tips and Tricks
I recommend gel dye for this recipe because gel is more vibrant in color and less batter diluting than liquid dye.
Above all, always use the spoon and level method to measure flour. Scooping overpacks flour into the measuring cup and, as a result, leads to dry, dense cookies.
Hershey Kisses come in tons of different flavors but I used the special dark chocolate for this recipe. Milk chocolate, vanilla creme and candy cane would also be great substitutes.
Preparation Tips and Tricks
For evenly proportioned cookies, cookie scoops are the way to go. The one I used had a 4 teaspoon/1.3 Tablespoon capacity.
Chill cookie dough for 2 hours prior to baking. Chilling helps cookies maintain their shape in the oven. Therefore, if you skip this step don’t be surprised if your cookies are sad and flat.
Storage and Freezing Tips for Pink Velvet Chocolate Kiss Cookies
Unbaked cookie dough can be formed into balls then frozen in an airtight container up to 3 months. Let cookies set at room temperature for 30 minutes then roll in sugar and bake.
Cover cookies then store at room temperature up to 1 week.
I hope you enjoy this recipe for Pink Velvet Chocolate Kiss Cookies. Please leave a comment and rating at the bottom of this blog when you try it for yourself. Don’t forget to tag #whiskingwolf on social media so I can drool over your pics on Instagram.
Finally, if you like pink food check out my recipes for Pink Velvet Thumbprint Cookies, Pinwheel Cookies with Crushed Candy Canes and Spiced Donuts with Cranberry Glaze.
Pink Velvet Chocolate Kiss Cookies
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter softened to room temperature
- 1/4 cup light brown sugar packed
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 2 large eggs at room temperature
- 1 tsp vanilla pure
- 1/4 tsp pink gel food coloring
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1/4 tsp sea salt fine
- 2 cups all-purpose flour unbleached
- 1/4 cup granulated sugar for rolling
- 2/3 cup powdered sugar for rolling
- 24 Hershey Kisses
Instructions
- Cream butter and both sugars with an electric mixer until light and fluffy.
- Add eggs, one at a time, beating after each until combined.
- Add vanilla and gel food coloring then beat until evenly incorporated. Note: If a more intense shade of pink is desired, add food coloring one drop at a time stirring after each addition. Do not mix in food coloring after this step or you risk the chance of overmixing the batter.
- In a separate bowl, whisk together baking soda, salt and flour.
- Gradually add flour mixture to wet ingredients. Beat with an electric mixer on low speed until just incorporated.
- Cover bowl with plastic wrap and chill in the refrigerator for 2 hours.
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line baking sheets with parchment paper and set aside.
- Use a cookie scoop to form dough into 24 balls. Roll each ball in a granulated sugar then roll in powdered sugar until evenly coated.
- Place balls on parchment-lined cookie sheets spaced 2 inches apart then bake for 9 to 11 minutes until edges are set.
- Remove cookies from oven and roll in powdered sugar again. Press one Hershey Kiss into the center of each cookie then place on a wire rack to cool completely.
- Store cookies covered at room temperature up to 1 week.