Extra-soft, brownie-like cookies wrapped around a cool peppermint cheesecake center, these Chocolate Peppermint Cheesecake Cookies are the ultimate winter cookie. They’re big, bakery-style, and absolutely made for cookie trays, holiday parties, and December movie nights.

Earlier this week, I shared these Chocolate Chip Cheesecake Cookies and they disappeared so fast at a holiday party a few years ago, I didn’t even have a chance to try them. These peppermint cheesecake-stuffed chocolate cookies are the cozy, wintery sequel: same cheesecake-style center, but wrapped in a rich chocolate cookie dough with a peppermint twist.

I like to think of these as “hot cocoa meets cheesecake” in cookie form. The base is a thick, soft chocolate cookie, somewhere between a brownie and a classic chocolate cookie. Then there’s the middle: a creamy peppermint cream cheese filling that stays smooth and soft, even after baking.

Texture-wise, these cookies check all the boxes. The edges bake up just set with a slight crisp, while the centers stay soft and almost fudge-like. Because the cream cheese is frozen before baking, it doesn’t disappear into the dough. Instead, you bite through the chocolate cookie and hit a pocket of cool, creamy peppermint filling. It’s like a filled truffle… but in a cookie.

These are BIG cookies: about 4 inches across. One batch makes roughly 18 large cookies, perfect for a cookie exchange or to stack on a holiday dessert board. If you’d rather make them smaller, just adjust the bake time down. Either way, they look impressive on a plate and taste even better than they look.

This recipe is part of The Sweetest Season, an annual virtual cookie swap. Every year, food bloggers get together to share new holiday cookie recipes and help raise money for Cookies 4 Kids’ Cancer, a recognized 501(c)3 non-profit organization dedicated to funding research for new treatments for childhood cancer. Help us raise money for this important cause! Donate through our fundraising page and OXO will be matching every dollar raised through the end of 2025, up to $100,000.

Ingredients and Substitutions

Pictured below is what you’ll need to make these Chocolate Peppermint Cheesecake Cookies, along with some key ingredient notes and substitutions.

• Cream Cheese: Use full-fat brick-style cream cheese for the thickest, creamiest filling that holds its shape when baked.
• Peppermint Extract: Use mint extract (which also includes spearmint) for a slightly softer mint flavor. You can also swap in vanilla, almond, coconut, or another baking extract to change the filling flavor.
• All-Purpose Flour: For gluten-free cookies, use a 1:1 gluten-free all-purpose flour blend that includes xanthan gum. For the best results, let the dough rest for 10 to 15 minutes before baking to fully hydrate the flour. If the dough seems dry, add a teaspoon or two of milk to help it come together.
• Cornstarch: Cornstarch softens the texture of these cookies and helps them bake up thicker. If you don’t have cornstarch, you can omit it, but the cookies will spread a bit more and be less soft in the center. Arrowroot or potato starch can work as a substitute in a pinch.
• Eggs: For an egg-free version of these cookies, use two flax eggs (1 tablespoon ground flaxseed + 3 tablespoons water per egg, rested until gelled) or a commercial egg replacer. Expect a slightly cakier texture and a bit less spread.
• Chocolate Chips: Use semisweet, dark, or white chocolate chips, or mini chips for more chocolate in every bite.

How to Make Chocolate Peppermint Cheesecake Cookies

1. Make the Filling: Stir together the softened cream cheese, powdered sugar, and peppermint extract until smooth and thick. Drop heaping teaspoons of the filling onto a parchment-lined baking sheet and freeze until firm.

2. Cream Butter and Sugar: Beat the butter, brown sugar, and granulated sugar using an electric mixer until well combined and slightly fluffy. Mix in the eggs, one at a time.

3. Add Dry Ingredients: Gradually add the dry ingredients to the wet mixture, starting on low speed, and mix just until a thick dough forms. Fold in the chocolate chips, reserving a small handful for topping. Refrigerate the dough until it is no longer sticky.

4. Shape the Cookies: Scoop a generous portion of dough, press a cavity into the center, tuck a frozen peppermint cheesecake dollop inside, and carefully wrap the dough around it, sealing the filling completely. Press extra chocolate chips on top of the dough ball.

5. Bake the Cookies: Place the dough balls on baking sheets, spaced about 2 inches apart. Bake until the edges look just set and the tops appear slightly puffed and dry, but the cookies are still set in the center. Let the cookies cool on the baking sheet for several minutes before moving to a wire rack to cool completely.

Cornstarch to Keep Cookies Soft

Stuffed cookies ask a lot from one dough. It needs to be sturdy enough to hold a soft filling, thick enough to surround the filling without turning into a puddle, and still bake up soft and tender instead of dry. Chocolate dough makes this even more challenging, since cooca powder is particularly drying. So how do we coax our chocolate cookies to stay thick and soft while baking around a cheesecake center?

Kitchen Chemistry

Cornstarch is almost pure starch, with no gluten-forming proteins. Adding a small amount of cornstarch to cookie dough dilutes the gluten in the all-purpose flour and absorbs some of the water in the dough. This slows gluten development and encourages a tender, thick cookie that spreads less in the oven while baking.

In practice, this means you can bake big, bakery-style stuffed cookies without a long chill time or an ultra-dry dough. A small amount of cornstarch, paired with the right flour and sugar ratios, is enough to keep the dough sturdy, the edges lightly crisp, and the center soft and thick around the peppermint cheesecake surprise.

Tips and Tricks for the Best Chocolate Peppermint Cheesecake Cookies

1. Freeze the Cheesecake: Freeze the cream cheese peppermint dollops until they are firm so they stay in the center of the cookie instead of melting into the dough.
2. Seal the Dough: Make sure there are no cracks or gaps when you wrap the dough around the filling, or else the cheesecake center will leak out while baking.
3. Chill for Easier Handling: The dough is chilled to make shaping easier; if you skip the chill, lightly grease your hands to keep the dough from sticking.
4. Don’t Overbake: Pull the cookies from the oven when the edges look set and the tops are just dry; they will continue to firm up on the hot baking sheet as they cool.
5. Flavor Variations: Swap peppermint extract for vanilla, almond, coconut, or a fruity extract in the filling to create new cheesecake-stuffed cookie flavors throughout the year.
6. Make-Ahead: Assemble the stuffed dough balls, freeze on a lined baking sheet until solid, and then transfer to a freezer bag for up to 3 months. Bake the cookies directly from frozen, adding an extra minute or two to the baking time.
7. Storage: Store the cookies in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to a week; bring to room temperature before enjoying. Cookies can also be frozen in a single layer, then transferred to an airtight container with parchment between layers and frozen for up to 3 months.
8. Recommended Tools: Recommended Tools: Stand Mixer | Baking Sheets | Parchment Paper | Cookie Scoop | Cooling Rack | High-Quality Cocoa Powder

More Peppermint Desserts:

• Peppermint Brownies
• Chocolate Peppermint Cookies
• Baked Peppermint Mocha Donuts
• Peppermint Mocha Bundt Cake
• Mint Chocolate Cheesecake