This week I am making my favorite mints of all time for Beth's (my best friend) wedding.
The recipe is very simple.
Cream Chesse Mints
8 oz of room temperature cream cheese
1 bag of powdered sugar
peppermint flavoring (I despise butter or almond flavor in mints...because they aren't minty!)
food coloring desired
UPDATE: My mom said it would be best to put the food coloring in with the cream cheese, before you add the powdered sugar, if you plan on making an entire batch colored, like what I did. Then the color will get distributed a lot better at the beginning, instead of struggling with it at the end like I did.
Begin mixing (with a stand or hand mixer) the cream cheese, while adding the powdered sugar a little at a time. Once it is all mixed together, add the peppermint flavoring. Then add the food coloring until you get the desired color you want. But begin by adding a little at a time.
I made a batch of red mints, and struggled with getting the right color. So in the end, I had to add a little more powdered sugar to get the right texture. (Texture shouldn't be too sticky, since you will want to roll them in to little balls. But soft enough that they can take on the shape of the mold.) After I got everything mixed together, I let it sit in the refrigerator for awhile to chill. It is much easier to work with. (And any time while you are forming balls for the molds and it begins to get sticky, put it in the refrigerator for awhile again.)
Last night I struggled with getting the mints just right. I have a little hand Kitchen Aid mixer...but there came a point where it just wasn't working anymore. Then I had to resort to using my hands and trying not to get red food coloring all over me or stain the counter too much. I know the Kitchen Aid stand mixers work just great for this (but I don't have one of my own yet.) Just keep the beater going on a constant speed to get it mixed up well.
But here is what I ended up with. I'll start forming them tonight.
Once I get the red ones done, I'll make the next batch or 2 white. (Since the red I wanted was so hard to make.)
On a side note...either my mom or grandma found a daisy mold back when I was graduating from high school. I love Skittles, so had them at my grad party. I also love mints...so made little white daisies with the centers colored to match the Skittles. From this same daisy mold, I have also made sunflowers, poinsettias, and daisies with fuscia and orange centers for my little sisters wedding. With the rose mold, I know I have add color sprinkles to the molds, and the mints come out with the sprinkles on the tips of the flowers. So even though the molds are pretty simple, you can make some great looking mints in them if you use a little creativity.
