Soft mincemeat cookies, made with store-bought or homemade mincemeat, are a special holiday treat! With a fabulous citrus and brandy flavour, they taste like Christmas at Granny’s.
Photography by Sophie MacKenzie.
Mincemeat is one of our favourite holiday treats, and these mincemeat cookies are a bit of a twist on how to use it! As much as we love a classic mincemeat pie, something it’s good to change things up – and these are a great addition to any cookie box.
Drop cookies are super easy to make, with a one-bowl method and tablespoon scoop and drop. No chilling or lots of dishes to wash. These are great for kids to help with!
With dark chocolate chunks and extra cinnamon added to the cookie dough, these aren’t overwhelmingly flavoured with mincemeat, but just enough for that classic Christmas taste. They’re also on the smaller side, just right for packing up in tins.
Ingredients
Method
Add the butter and sugars to a mixing bowl. Mix on high speed. Keep mixing until light and fluffy. Add the egg. Beat until combined. Add the flour and cinnamon. 
Mix, then add the milk. Mix until combined. Add the chocolate and mincemeat. Gently fold to incorporate. Scoop onto a lined tray. Bake, then cool on a wire rack.
Tips and Notes
Drop cookies like these mincemeat cookies are more soft and cakey than chewy by design. They’re a delicious old-fashioned type of cookie, very popular with our mothers and grandmothers for good reason!
Drizzle the finished cookies with white chocolate for a fancier look. To keep things simple, sprinkle with icing sugar as pictured.
Be sure to cool fully before topping with the icing sugar. If the cookies are still warm, the sugar will melt and form a kind of shell (sometimes great, but not what you want here).
As always, room temperature ingredients are best. Make sure the butter and egg are at room temp for best results, and the cream if at all possible – just take it out of the fridge about an hour before starting.
This recipe is adapted from these basic drop cookies.
Substitutions
Add an equal amount of nuts (another half cup) to the cookies in addition to the chocolate, or sub nuts for chocolate. Walnuts are especially good.
For a deluxe mincemeat cookie, sandwich two with cream cheese frosting or buttercream.
We really recommend making homemade mincemeat if you can. You’ll have enough for these cookies, and for mincemeat tarts! It’s so much better than store-bought, and what better time than the holidays?
For a dairy-free option, use a good vegan butter and non-dairy milk. We haven’t tried making these without eggs.
Chocolate chips, drops, and chunks are all good here, so use what you have. We like dark chocolate but milk can be used if you prefer something sweeter.
More Holiday Cookie Recipes
Chocolate Peppermint Crinkle Cookies
Ginger Molasses Spice Cookies
Sour Cherry Chocolate Chunk Biscotti
Pecan Shortbread Cookies
Chocolate Chip Sugar Cookies
Recipe
Mincemeat Cookies
Description
Equipment
- baking sheet
- Parchment paper
- Mixing bowl
- Stand mixer or hand mixer
- Spatula
- Measuring cups and spoons or a digital kitchen scale
- Wire rack
Ingredients
- ½ cup butter, room temperature
- ⅓ cup sugar
- ⅓ cup packed brown sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ½ teaspoon sea salt
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon baking soda
- 1 large egg
- 1 cup plus 3 tablespoons white all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- 2 tablespoons whole milk
- ½ cup chocolate chips
- 4 tablespoons mincemeat
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 375°F (190°C) and line a large baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Add the butter, sugar, brown sugar, vanilla, salt, baking powder, and baking soda to a large mixing bowl. Using a standing or hand mixer, mix on high speed until light and fluffy.
- Add the egg and mix again until fully incorporated.
- Add the flour and cinnamon, then mix on low speed until just combined.
- Mix in the milk on low speed.
- Fold in the chocolate and mincemeat with a spatula, mixing gently until evenly incorporated.
- Use a tablespoon to measure the cookie dough and drop spoonfuls onto the prepared baking sheet. Leave about 3cm (1 in.) space between to allow for spread.
- Bake for 10 minutes, turning the tray at the halfway mark to ensure even baking.
- Cool the cookies on the tray for 5 minutes before moving to a wire rack to cool fully.
- Once cool, top with icing sugar and store in an airtight container for up to 2 weeks. These freeze well.
Notes
Tips and Notes
Drizzle the finished cookies with white chocolate for a fancier look. To keep things simple, sprinkle with icing sugar as pictured. Be sure to cool fully before topping with the icing sugar. If the cookies are still warm, the sugar will melt and form a kind of shell. As always, room temperature ingredients are best. Make sure the butter and egg are at room temp for best results, and the cream if at all possible – just take it out of the fridge about an hour before starting. This recipe is adapted from these basic drop cookies.Substitutions
Add an equal amount of nuts (another half cup) to the cookies inaddition to the chocolate, or sub nuts for chocolate. Walnuts are
especially good. For a deluxe mincemeat cookie, sandwich two with cream cheese frosting or buttercream. We really recommend making homemade mincemeat if you can. You’ll have enough for these cookies, and for mincemeat tarts! It’s so much better than store-bought, and what better time than the holidays? For a dairy-free option, use a good vegan butter and non-dairy milk. We haven’t tried making these without eggs. Chocolate chips, drops, and chunks are all good here, so use what you have. We like dark chocolate but milk can be used if you prefer something sweeter.
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