Chocolate Thumbprint Cream Cheese Mints, a sweet cream cheese mint paired with chocolate ganache, is a yummy twist on a nostalgic favorite!
We’ve all enjoyed cream cheese mints at holidays and baby/wedding showers. Adding a silky chocolate ganache takes these Chocolate Thumbprint Cream Cheese Mints from traditional to way over the delicious top! Pick up simple ingredients like cream cheese, powdered sugar, peppermint extract, heavy cream, and chocolate to make a treat people can’t help but munch on until they’re gone!
Melting for Chocolate Mint
I love seeing little cream cheese mints at showers or holiday get-togethers- they’re so small, and the delicious way they melt in my mouth makes me want more and more! Chocolate Thumbprint Cream Cheese Mints have a cream cheese mint base, just like Grandma used to create, plus a dollop of rich, yummy chocolate. Just like PB&J, there’s few combinations out there better than chocolate and mint so making a few batches of these mints with a chocolate ganache in the middle is a great idea and they always get snatched up in a heartbeat!
Grasshopper Pie is a wonderful mint chocolate dessert that’s easy to make for holidays or get-togethers, along with poppable and snackable Mint Balls!
Other Recipes to Serve with Chocolate Thumbprint Cream Cheese Mints
- Give the crowd more reasons to “ooo” and “ahh” when you set out a platter of delicious Cool Mint Oreo Stuffed Fudgy Brownies!
- Treat your friends and family to more than just sweets and mix up a few refreshing Irish Juleps for them to love!
Ingredients
Cream Cheese: For this recipe, you will need softened cream cheese. Full fat provides the best taste, but reduced fat or Neufchatel will also work.
Sugar: Bring the sweetness to the party with powdered sugar!
Extract/Dye: Peppermint extract is a must for this recipe, so be sure not to use mint extract. Green food dye is also needed to color the dough, so use the regular food dye you have on hand or pick up green gel food dye for a more vibrant color.
Heavy Cream: You will need some heavy cream to make the ganache.
Chocolate: Pick up your favorite semi-sweet chocolate chips to make the ganache for these treats.
How to Make Chocolate Thumbprint Cream Cheese Mints
STEP ONE: In a stand mixer, or large bowl with beaters, or even by hand, combine the cream cheese and half of the powdered sugar and mix well.
STEP TWO: Add the rest of the powdered sugar, peppermint extract, and green food coloring to the bowl and mix again.
STEP THREE: Use a 1-tablespoon cookie scoop or measuring spoon to scoop out the dough. Roll the dough into small balls and place them on a parchment paper-lined baking sheet. Make a small well in each cookie using the bottom of 1/2 teaspoon. Refrigerate the mints for 1 hour.
STEP FOUR: Heat the heavy cream over medium heat in a small saucepot until it’s just starting to boil. Add the chocolate chips to a heat-safe bowl and pour the hot, heavy cream over the chocolate. Allow that to sit for 1 minute untouched, and then whisk the ganache until smooth.
STEP FIVE: Pipe or carefully spoon the ganache into the middle of each mint and then chill them for 2 hours to let the ganache harden some before serving.
Tips for Success
- When picking out peppermint extract, avoid purchasing mint extract instead. Mint extract is not the same and will give the cookies a spearmint flavor, similar to gum or toothpaste!
- If you hand mix the dough after adding more powdered sugar, extract, and food coloring, you may want to wear gloves to avoid turning your hands green.
- If you can, purchase quality semi-sweet chocolate chips, such as Ghirardelli, since the chocolate ganache is the center stage of this treat.
- Store these cream cheese mints in the fridge for up to two weeks or freeze them in an airtight container for up to eight months.
How do I decorate these for a holiday or special occasion?
The color of the cream cheese mints and even the ganache can reflect the vibe you are going for, from St. Patrick’s Day to a special bridal shower. Add any color of food dye to the dough you like, such as red and green for Christmas or pastel colors like pink and yellow for showers. Leave the dye out to create a white dough as well. Check out the info below about making ganache using different chocolate to match your color scheme even more.
What are the three types of ganache?
Chocolate ganache is always made using two ingredients- heavy cream and chocolate. The mixture of cream and chocolate makes ganache pretty versatile because it can firm up, like the filling in this recipe, or be dripped or whipped. Chocolate ganache can be made with semi-sweet, dark, or white chocolate. The process for making each is the same, using a one-to-one ratio, but obviously, the flavors will be different. Simple and decadent, any chocolate ganache makes desserts better!
More Delicious Mint Recipes to Love!
- Cream Cheese Mints
- Irish Cream & Mint Iced Mocha
- Andes Mint Martini
- Mint Chocolate Chip Cookies
- Andes Mint Pie
Equipment
- Stand Mixer or Hand Mixer
Ingredients
- 9 ounces cream cheese softened
- 8 cups powdered sugar plus more for dusting
- 1 teaspoon peppermint extract
- 10 drops green food coloring
- ½ cup heavy cream
- 7.5 ounces semi-sweet chocolate chips
Instructions
- Line two baking sheets with parchment paper and set aside.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer, beat together the cream cheese and 2 cups of powdered sugar with the paddle attachment until evenly combined.
- Add the peppermint extract, food coloring, and remaining 2 cups of powdered sugar to the bowl. Mix until combined and evenly colored. (You can add more green food coloring for a darker shade of green if desired.)
- Use a 1-tablespoon cookie scoop to form balls of the mint mixture. Place the balls onto the prepared baking sheet.
- Dip the back of a 1/2 teaspoon measuring spoon into some powdered sugar (to keep it from sticking) and press it into the mint balls to make a cavity (like a thumbprint cookie).
- Chill the mints in the fridge for 1 hour.
- Pour the chocolate chips into a heat-safe bowl. Heat the heavy cream in a small saucepan over medium heat until just beginning to boil. Pour the cream over the chocolate chips and let sit for 60 to 90 seconds. Whisk until the ganache comes together and is smooth.
- Use a piping bag or a small spoon to fill the cavity in each cream cheese mint with ganache.
- Chill the mints in the fridge for 2 hours so that the ganache can harden slightly.
Notes
- Store the mints in an airtight container in the fridge. Let rest on the counter to soften the ganache a bit before enjoying them.
- The yield for this recipe varies by how much ganache you put onto each mint. If you run low on ganache, you can reroll any remaining mints and use a fork to press them flat (like classic cream cheese mints). If you have extra ganache, you can spoon a little more onto each mint, if desired.
Daun says
Confused on the amount of powdered sugar. You show 8 cups in ingredients, but the instructions you say 4 cups.
So is 8 cups the correct amount?