Butter Mixture
1 cup unsalted butter, soft
1 cup white sugar
1 large egg
3 tbsp. corn syrup
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/8 tsp. salt
flour for dusting
Mint Dough
1/2 cup plus 1/3 cup butter mixture
1 tsp. peppermint extract
about 8 drops of green food colouring
1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour (spoon in, level)
Chocolate Dough
rest of butter mixture
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder (spoon in, level)
1 2/3 cups all-purpose flour (spoon in, level)
Supplies: 8×8-inch pan, plastic wrap, baking sheet, parchment paper, bowls, measuring cups and spoons, baking spatula or wooden spoon, dinner knife, about 18 wooden Popsicle sticks
Line the square pan with plastic wrap and lots of overhang. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
To make the butter mixture, in a large bowl, use a baking spatula or wooden spoon to cream the butter and sugar. Add the egg, corn syrup, baking soda and salt. Mix well.
To make the mint dough, measure out 1/2 cup plus 1/3 cup of butter mixture into another large bowl and add a drop of green food colouring to it so you won’t have a mix-up. (Don’t mix up the two bowls of butter mixture because they are different amounts.) Set aside.
To make the chocolate dough, use the butter mixture in the bowl that does not have the food colouring. Add the vanilla and cocoa powder. Mix well. Gradually stir in 1 2/3 cups flour. When the dough gets too stiff, use your hands to knead it into a smooth ball, working inside the bowl.
If the dough is too sticky, knead in 1 tsp. of flour. Pinch off and drop big blobs of the Chocolate Dough into the lined pan. Press them down to cover the bottom of the pan in a thin layer. Dust pans with flour, if needed.
Chill the pan for about 10 minutes. (Don’t leave it for much longer or it will get too stiff to roll.) Wash your hands.
While the Chocolate Dough chills, finish making the Mint Dough. Stir the peppermint extract and another 7 drops of green food colouring into the butter mixture in the second bowl for a bright colour. Mix well.
Gradually stir in 1¼ cups flour. When the dough gets too stiff, use your hands to knead it into a smooth ball, working inside the bowl.
The dough might seem crumbly at first, but keep squeezing and it will soften. After chilling the chocolate dough, drop blobs of mint dough on top and press to cover the chocolate dough.
Dust hands with flour, if needed. Use the plastic to lift the square of dough out of the pan and onto your work table. Keep the plastic under the dough.
To make it easy to roll, use the heels of your hands to flatten one side of the dough to 1/4 in. thick. (Flatten 2 inches into the slab.) Place this flattened strip in front of you to begin rolling. Lift the plastic to help you roll the dough into a tight cylinder. Pat the ends in. Wrap the dough in the plastic. If the cylinder is fatter in some parts than others, roll the fatter parts a few times to even it out.
You should have a cylinder that is 2½ inches in diameter. Chill 30 minutes.
Preheat oven to 350°F.
After chilling, remove the plastic, then use a dinner knife to cut the cylinder into 1-inch thick rounds. Or a grown-up can cut it with a sharp knife. If the dough is too stiff to cut, let it warm up a little first.
Place the rounds on the lined baking sheet at least 3 inches apart. Insert wooden sticks into the rounds so they look like lollipops. Pat the rounds back into circles if they get squished.
Bake the cookies about 16 minutes, or until the edges are firm, the tops are no longer shiny and the green dough is still green. (If baked too long, the green dough will turn golden.)
They might be slightly soft in the middle, but will firm up once cooled. Cool completely on the sheet.