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This Christmas Mint Candy Recipe, with just 5-ingredients, makes delicious melt-in-your mouth creamy candies with a subtle minty flavor. They’re the perfect addition to holiday dessert tables, for gift giving or just for an after dinner sweet treat.

Christmas Mints

These easy vintage cream cheese mints are so sweet and buttery, they’ll taste like mini bites of minty cream cheese frosting in your mouth. You may have heard them called wedding mints or baby shower mints because the flavor, mint color and shape can easily be customized for all kinds of occasions.

Since it’s Christmas time we’re making them classic red and green to celebrate the holiday season. They’re great for satisfying a sweet tooth during the holidays but you could also add these Christmas mints to a holiday cookie tray, along with these Christmas Tree Meringues, White Chocolate Peanut Butter Christmas Cookies and Red Velvet Crinkle Cookies.

They make great gifts for teachers, neighbors and friends too. Just be sure to make a double batch so you can keep some for yourself!

Why We Love this Recipe

Colorful little mints that are a great addition to dessert or cookie trays for holiday parties and gatherings.
This mini festive dessert is made with only a handful of ingredients.
These after dinner mints are easy to customize for other celebrations just by using different colors.

Recommended Tools

Cookie Sheet
Electric Mixer (or hand mixer with large bowl)
Dinner Fork
Measuring Cups

What’s Needed to Make Christmas Homemade Mints

Cream Cheese (softened)
Butter (softened)
Powdered Sugar
Peppermint Extract
Green and Red Gel Food Coloring

📖 How to Make Homemade Holiday Mints

Step 1. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat butter and cream cheese until well combined.

Step 2. Add 1 cup of the powdered sugar and continue mixing on medium low speed, making sure to occasionally scrape down the sides of the bowl. Continue for about 2-3 minutes or until well incorporated.

Step 3. Add the drops of mint extract, then add 6 1/2 cups more of the powdered sugar, gradually mixing well after each addition. Be sure to scrape the bottom of the bowl with your spatula.

Step 4. Separate the dough into 3 sections and place in separate bowls.

Christmas candy mint dough separated into three bowls

Step 5. Add green food coloring to one bowl and red food coloring to another.

Step 6. Knead the stiff dough to combine cream cheese mixture with the food coloring until the color is even throughout. Cover the bowls with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 2 hours.

Different colors for Christmas mint candy

Step 7. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and dust with powdered sugar. Then scoop out dough in 1 tablespoon scoops and roll dough into small balls with the palm of your hand.

Step 8. Place each dough ball in a single layer on the parchment-lined baking sheet. Dip the fork tines into the remaining 1/2 cup of powdered sugar and press into the little balls to flatten.

Step 9. Once all the dough has been rolled into balls and pressed, allow the mints to sit out at room temperature for at least 4 hours or until the outside is hardened.

Serve and enjoy!

Christmas mint candy on clear glass plate

TIP: If the bottoms are still soft, flip the mints over and allow them to sit for a little longer.

Store these delicious cream cheese mints in the fridge in an airtight container.

Variations for Homemade Butter Mints:

Flavors: Classic mint is always hit but you can make different flavors by switching out the extract. Try adding orange extract or lemon extract. Almond extract or butter extract will add a nice subtle flavor that’s great for all occasions.

Sparkly mints: Make your mints sparkle by rolling them in festive colored sanding sugar before pressing them with the fork. You can use red and green sugar or go all out with some silver, blue or gold sanding sugar.

Shapes: Make other cute designs! Little red Santa hat shapes with a white sugar pearl for the pom-pom would be adorable. You can also use a candy stamp to make designs in the tops of the mints. Use the bottom of a glass dipped in powdered sugar to flatten them out into disc. Then use a festive stamp to imprint a design on each one.

Colors: These mints are so additive you’ll want them all year long! Change up the colors based in the occasion. Use pink or blue food coloring for baby showers, pastels for Easter or for bridal showers you could just leave out the food coloring for pretty cream-colored wedding mints. For game day entertaining, make the mints your team’s colors!

Love making your own candy? You might also want to try this delicious homemade caramel recipe.

Christmas candy mints in bowl and on plate

How Long Can Christmas Mint Sit Out?

The base of these mints is cream cheese so the longer they sit out the softer they become. After a couple of hours, you’ll need to put them back in the fridge to help keep them firm.

What’s the Best Way to Store Cream Cheese Mints?

Store these mints in the fridge to keep them fresh for up to a week. Even with the powder sugar coating, they can stick together. For best results, place a piece of parchment paper between the layers of mints in an air-tight container before putting them in the fridge.

Can You Freeze Mint Candy?

Yes, you can freeze these mints for up to three months. You will need to stack the mints in a glass or hard plastic freezer-safe container with parchment paper between each layer help prevent them from getting smashed.

Christmas mint candy with bite taken out

Can I Add Chocolate to These Mints?

These little mints are too delicate to completely coat in chocolate like Christmas peppermint patties, but you can add a decorative chocolate drizzle to the top of them with a little melted chocolate.

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