Mint Chocolate Chip Cookies are made with a rich blend of butter, sugar, and sour cream, with instant vanilla pudding mix for extra softness and flavor. Fluffy cookies that taste like mint chip ice cream!
In our family, these Mint Chocolate Chip Cookies are always a favorite, especially because they’re made with simple ingredients like butter, sugar, sour cream, and instant vanilla pudding mix that give them such a soft, fluffy texture. The mix of mint extract and chocolate chips (sometimes with a few Andes mint pieces tossed in) makes them taste just like mint chip ice cream, which we all love.
We look forward to making these around St. Patrick’s Day and Christmas, but they honestly don’t last long any time of year. They’re one of those recipes everyone gets excited about, and they disappear almost as fast as we can bake them!
Recipe Highlights
- Soft, Bakery-Style Texture – Thanks to the instant vanilla pudding mix and sour cream, these cookies turn out incredibly soft, fluffy, and stay moist longer than your average cookie.
- Mint Chip Ice Cream Flavor – The combination of mint extract, chocolate chips, and optional Andes mint pieces gives these cookies that nostalgic, creamy mint chocolate chip taste in every bite.
- Fun & Festive Look – The light green color makes these cookies perfect for holidays like St. Patrick’s Day or Christmas, adding a playful and eye-catching touch to any dessert spread.
Ingredients for Chocolate Chip and Mint Cookies
Sugar: Adds sweetness and helps create a soft, tender texture.
Butter: Provides rich flavor and contributes to the cookies’ soft, melt-in-your-mouth consistency.
Egg: Binds the ingredients together and helps give the cookies structure.
Sour cream: Adds moisture and a slight tang, keeping the cookies soft and fluffy.
Vanilla pudding mix: Enhances flavor while creating an extra soft, thick, and tender texture.
Salt: Balances the sweetness and brings out the flavors.
Baking soda: Helps the cookies rise and achieve a light, airy texture.
Flour: Forms the base of the dough and gives the cookies structure.
Mint extract: Infuses the cookies with that classic, refreshing mint flavor.
Food coloring: Gives the cookies their fun, signature green color.
Chocolate chips: Add bursts of rich chocolate flavor that perfectly complement the mint.
Tips for making Mint Chocolate Chip Cookie
- Don’t overdo the mint extract – Mint can quickly become overpowering, so stick to the measured amount; a little goes a long way and keeps the flavor balanced with the chocolate.
- Mix the pudding in dry, not prepared – Be sure to add the instant pudding mix as a dry ingredient, which is what gives these cookies their signature thick, soft texture.
- Watch the bake time closely – These cookies are best when slightly underbaked; pull them out when the edges are set but the centers still look soft so they stay fluffy and don’t dry out.
- Customize your chocolate mix-ins strategically – Andes mint pieces add amazing flavor but tend to melt into the dough, so pair them with regular chocolate chips or chunks to keep that classic chip texture.
How long are these Mint Chip Cookies good for?
These cookies stay soft and fresh for about 3–4 days at room temperature when stored in an airtight container, or up to a week in the fridge (just let them come to room temp before serving for the best texture).
Yes, you can absolutely freeze them! Store baked cookies in an airtight container for up to 1 month, or freeze the dough by scooping it into balls and placing them on a baking sheet until solid—then transfer to a zip-top bag and freeze for up to 1 month. This way, you can bake a few at a time whenever you’re craving warm, fresh cookies!
Mint Chocolate Chip Cookies
Ingredients
- 1 cup sugar
- ½ cup butter softened (1 stick)
- 1 egg
- ½ cup sour cream
- 3.4 oz box instant vanilla pudding mix
- ½ tsp salt
- ½ tsp baking soda
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 2 tsp mint extract
- drop blue coloring + 7-10 drops green coloring
- 1 ½ cups chocolate chips
Instructions
- Start by preheating the oven to 375 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or spray with non-stick cooking spray, set aside.
- Begin by creaming together the sugar and butter, in a large bowl, until nice and fluffy. Add in the egg, sour cream and dry pudding mix, stir well to combine.
- In a separate small bowl, combine the flour, salt, and baking soda. Incorporate the flour mixture into the butter and pudding mixture and stir until well combined.
- Now add the mint extract and food coloring until desired color is achieved.
- Lastly, add in the chocolate chips. I used ¾ cup chocolate chunks, ¾ cup regular chocolate chips and ½ cup Andes baking bits. Any combination is wonderful, but note that while the Andes mint baking pieces add an incredible flavor, they kind of disappear in the cookies. So add them in addition to the 1 ½ cups chocolate chips, if you opt to put them in!
- Start dropping the cookie dough by the rounded tablespoonfuls onto the prepared baking sheet. Bake for 10 minutes. When done baking, transfer to a cooling rack. Serve fresh and warm, enjoy!
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Notes
Nutrition
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Can I use yogurt instead of sour cream?
Yes! Plain yogurt works just as well and will still give you that soft, moist texture.
Why add pudding mix to the dough?
The dry pudding mix is the secret to these cookies staying extra soft, thick, and flavorful.
Do I have to use food coloring?
No, it’s completely optional—it just gives the cookies that fun minty green look.
Can I make the dough ahead of time?
Yes! You can refrigerate the dough for a day or freeze dough balls for up to a month and bake when ready.
Check out some of our other favorite cookie recipes to try:
- Mini Chocolate Chip Cookies are tiny, bite-sized treats packed with big flavor! Perfect for snacking, sharing, or sneaking straight from the cookie sheet!
- These Chocolate Mint Cookies are buttery, melt-in-your-mouth treats dipped in rich chocolate with a cool minty twist—basically holiday magic in every bite.
- Double Chocolate Mint Cookies are rich, chewy, and loaded with deep chocolate flavor, then topped with melty Junior Mints for that perfect cool-mint finish. If you’re a mint chocolate lover, these fudgy cookies are about to be your new obsession.
- Our Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies are made completely from scratch with simple ingredients. Adding chocolate chips to peanut butter cookies elevates them to a new level!
- Cherry Chocolate Chip Cookies mix buttery dough with sweet maraschino cherries and rich chocolate chips—a colorful, fun twist on a classic favorite!
- Bursting with sweet, juicy raspberries and melty chocolate chips, these Raspberry Chocolate Chip Cookies are a fresh twist on a classic favorite! Perfectly irresistible—one bite and you’ll be hooked!
Mint Chocolate Chip Cookies are soft, fluffy, and packed with flavor, thanks to butter, sugar, sour cream, and a bit of instant vanilla pudding. Every bite tastes just like your favorite mint chip ice cream!
Arielle Beauduy says
I am a little disappointed I got all the ingredients that were listed on the ingredient list- it listed chocolate chip on the ingredients but on the baking instructions it said Andes baking chips…..I wish it had made that clear prior 🙁
Jessica says
they’re optional!
Sue says
I made these and they came out beautifully! They look like minty chocolate chip ice cream scoops. They didn’t flatten at all. I didn’t have vanilla pudding but had pistachio instead! It didn’t change the taste but added to the color lol
Very simple and easy to make with all the tips that you gave and I just happen to have to make life easier!
Annette says
Jessica and Nellie, I discovered this recipe two years ago and these cookies have become a Christmas time family & friends favorite treat!
I follow your recipe exactly (minus the Andes mints) and they turn out perfectly every time.
Thank you so much for sharing this mint-chocolate delight! Merry Christmas!🎄
Nellie says
I’m so glad you love them as much as we do! Have a wonderful holiday season!
Michael Kashuba says
How minty are these because I’m a huge fan and I’m going to attempt to make them. If the 2 drops is only semi minty I may add a 3tsp or even 4 idk loll
Jessica says
If you use mint essential oil, just add the 2 drops because it’s STRONG! I’m a big fan of tasting the cookie dough. Add more if you want, knowing that some of the mintiness calms down after baking.
Robin Cross says
These are my family’s favorite cookie!!!
Angelina says
I just made these and I love them!! Instead of using the mint extract, I just used mint chocolate chips and they turned out wonderful!!
Amber says
Can I use a 5.1 oz box of pudding instead of the 3.4 oz? Would I need to change anything else in the recipe. I’m trying to avoid having to go to the store. 🙂
Nellie says
You can definitely use the larger box….just don’t use the entire thing (use about 75% of it), and it should work perfectly!
Melanie says
I omitted the food coloring. My friends and I enjoyed these!
Brittany Wetzel says
This is my ultimate favorite cookie! So soft! I do add a little more mint extract because I like mint to the extreme. Amazing recipe!
Darth Vin-Ushka says
I do Star Wars volunteering, and I always bake a bunch of cookies to bring to events. (If we’re gonna tell people to come to the Dark Side because we have cookies, we’d better make sure that we have cookies, and that they’re good!) These are by far the most requested and have been dubbed “The Diet-Breaker.” (Or “The Jedi-turner.”) If I ask for flavor suggestions from the other volunteers, it’s usually “Make those mint ones!!!” And it’s hot over here, so they’re great for summer as well as for Christmas. I’ve been making these for several years now–finally realized that I should go find the place I got ’em from again and leave a review! There are never leftovers. NEVER.
Someone mentioned that theirs don’t really spread much–mine don’t either, but that’s one of the things I like about them. I just use a cookie scoop and flatten them out a bit with the palm of my hand, and the minimal spreading makes it easy to crank out a quadruple batch in one sitting. Sometimes I need to adjust the rack height in my oven to keep the tops or bottoms from burning, but that’s my bad, not the recipe.
Alison says
This is fantastic, thank you so much for sharing! I hope you continue to enjoy these!
Lindsay says
These are VERY minty – I used 1.5tsp mint extract, 1/2 bag of dark chocolate chunks and 1/2 bag of Andes mint chips and they’re good. Melty chocolate, chewy and soft with a little crunch on the edges – but I would definitely only use 1tsp mint when I make them again. It might be a taste preference though!
Nicole says
We love the minty flavor in these cookies and find it really refreshing, but taste preferences do vary from one person to another so I’m glad you’re willing to give these cookies another shot with a little less mint extract next time.
Brady Berryhill says
Do I make the pudding like normal and add it to the cookies? Or do I just pour the mix packet in with everything else?
Alison says
Just pour the mix packet in!
Laura Elisabeth White says
The first time I made;these cookies they were gone in minutes everyone loved them I’m so glad I have found this recipe t&and you for sharing
Alison says
Thanks so much Laura!
Jenn says
This cookie base is now my go to!! I used butterscotch pudding and chips and extract and omg so amazing. BTW if anyone has an egg allergy you can sub an egg for 2 tbsp oil 1 tbsp water. That is how I make these now!
Nicole says
YAY! So Glad you liked this recipe! Those sound like wonderful sugestions.
Jordan says
Not the worst, definitely not the best. I’ve made other chocolate chip cookies with pudding in them before. They tasted a lot better than these cookies and they spread, which these didn’t. I had to flatten them down before baking. The flavor is just OK and there’s a strong sour cream taste versus the usual butter taste. Next time I’ll just use a different recipe and add mint.
Nicole says
I’m sorry to hear that this recipe didn’t meet your expectations. I’m not sure what might have happened :/
Christina says
These cookies went into the oven green, but did not come out green at all.. They looked just like regular chocolate chip cookie color. What did i do wrong? I did use the whole foods brand of plant-based food coloring, but it seemed to be fine during the mixing. I even used more than 7-10 drops.
Jessica says
Plant based food coloring is notoriously mild, so it sounds like it literally baked out.
Cindy says
How much is 3.4 of vanilla pudding
Nellie says
Vanilla pudding comes in a small box that is 3.4 ounces. There is a larger box too, but you’ll want to use the smaller one.
Sarah says
The consistency of these is so strange. I baked them 5 minutes longer than called for and they still seem underdone. There is WAY too much mint extract in these cookies. I’m a mint chocolate fan, but the amount of mint is completely overwhelming.
Nicole says
I’m sorry to hear that things didn’t go as planned. I’m not sure why they took an extra few minutes in the oven but please remember that cookies are ready to be pulled from the oven when the edges are golden and the tops are no longer glossy. They may appear puffy and unbaked but they will finish cooking on the baking sheet as they rest and cool down. If you make these cookies again you can reduce or omit the mint flavor to reflect your own tastes.
Jeannie says
These cookies are a crowd pleaser. My friends and family love them. I do a mixture with the chocolate chips and the Andes chips
Nicole says
Sounds delicious!
Liz says
Made these for a st pattys day party & they were a huge hit! I did use more food coloring but I just eyed that based on how I wanted them to look. Will def make them again, Best cookies I’ve made in a very long time.
Nicole says
That’s awesome thanks so much for sharing! 🙂
Pandora says
These cookies are delicious! I didn’t add mint flavoring. The Andes mints and semi chocolate chips was enough for me.
Jessica says
Glad to hear you enjoyed them Pandora!
Sam says
Hi Nicole! My boyfriend loves these cookies. However, every time I’ve made them, they don’t flatten out. I follow the recipe exactly. I was wondering if I should cut some flour, or if you would know why they would stay pretty thick? I use a cookie scoop to scoop them too. I love these though, and they are always requested!
Nicole says
That’s actually a good thing! If you want your cookies flatter though you can take the bottom of a greased drinking glass or flat surface and press down on the dough balls while they’re on the cookie sheet. Make them no less than 1/4 inch thick, but really just press them into a flat surfaced disc. then as they cook they should remain pretty flat without getting too thin.
Tammy says
I’m curious,when you say chocolate chips. Do you mean milk chocolate or semi sweet chocolate chips?
Nicole says
Either one is fine 🙂
Evelyn H Overman says
My ravorite mint chco chip
Nicole says
These are one of our favorite cookies too 🙂