Peppermint Bark Cookies

Chocolate and peppermint go hand in hand this time of year (hello peppermint mocha!), and the combination is always present in some form during my yearly holiday baking extravaganza. So when I came across these lovely cookies in the Williams-Sonoma holiday catalog and balked at the price tag ($23 for a mere dozen), I set out to create a homemade version. I scoured the web to find a chocolate wafer cookie recipe and stumbled upon the perfect one from Smitten Kitchen, a blog I have known to be a reliable recipe source for years. After that it was just a matter of melting the chocolate, crushing the candy canes, a little dip here and a sprinkle there, and voila! Better than store-bought, positively jolly peppermint bark cookies. And the icing on the cake (or cookie, in this case): by making these yourself at home, you'll end up with four times as many cookies for a fraction of the cost. What are your favorite treats to bake during the holidays?

makes about 40 cookies
Ingredients
1 1/2 cups flour
3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 cup plus 2 tablespoons sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
14 tablespoons unsalted butter, cubed and slightly softened
3 tablespoons whole milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
4 cups white chocolate chips
4 tbsp vegetable shortening
1 tbsp peppermint extract
3 candy canes, crushed

Instructions
1. Combine the flour, cocoa, sugar, salt, and baking soda in the bowl of food processor and pulse several times to mix thoroughly. Add butter, milk and vanilla and continue to pulse until dough begins to clump. Transfer dough to a large bowl or a cutting board and knead a few times until evenly blended.
2. Form the dough into a log about 14 inches long and 1 3/4 inches in diameter. Wrap in wax paper and refrigerate until firm, at least one hour.
3. Preheat the oven to 350°. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper. Cut the log of dough into 1/4-inch thick slices and place them one inch apart on the lined sheets (cookies will spread).
4. Bake 12 to 15 minutes, then remove from oven and cool cookies completely, first on baking sheets and then on cooling racks.
5. Melt the chocolate and shortening in a double boiler or heatproof glass bowl set over a heavy saucepan filled with simmering water, taking care not to let the bowl touch the water. Stir occasionally with a spatula and remove from heat as soon as chocolate has reaches a smooth consistency. Stir in peppermint extract.
6. Dip each cooled cookie into the melted chocolate, coating completely. Set on a sheet of parchment paper and immediately sprinkle with crushed candy canes. Allow chocolate to harden at room temperature for at least 30 minutes.