Sometimes, the candy cane is the kid in the pageant who sings a little too loudly, does a body roll, followed by some serious arm-windmill action that knocks the wind out of the piano accompanist, who is clearly not getting paid enough to work the show. Then, that candy cane falls off the stage, landing in some kind of mess that well-meaning pageant organizers have somehow overlooked.
That’s kind of what happened when I decided I’d swap out crushed candy canes for chocolate chip cookie dough batter. What could go wrong? Just ask Minty, the Candy Cane, Who Briefly Fell on the Ground. He’s the star of a Conan O’ Brien skit that I love, and that sadly, ended several years ago. No, the candy cane in my recipe did not have the disgusting, but lovable adventures that Minty had, but it did kind of stick to the baking sheet.
The resulting cookie was somewhat chewy, buttery, crunchy, and kind of awkward, but in a way that brightens up a third-grade Christmas pageant that has just finished all twelve days of the “Twelve Days of Christmas” in 52 different languages—all of them off key and offensively pronounced.
So, how do you make candy cane cookies? Just follow your favorite chocolate chip cookie recipe, such as the one detailed in one of my past blog posts, here. Then, whack the sense out of a box of regular-sized Spangler candy canes. I like to use a rolling pin. Sometimes, to be festive, I use a stocking stuffed with holiday-shaped rocks, which I later paint and hide in the neighborhood for the children to find.
In terms of peppermint taste: I would use peppermint schnapps instead of vanilla for the flavoring, but Nate wanted me to reserve some of the batter for chocolate chip cookies later on, so I refrained from saucing up the dough.
Results: I have no regrets. I’d do it again. The candy cane in the pageant is a likable disaster. Very entertaining.
Your Turn: Did you ever have to perform in an all-school performance as a child for special occasions? Did anything funny happen? Did you, or another classmate, do anything unexpected? Discuss!
Fixin' Leaks and Leeks 
Thank you! 🤶Have a good weekend.
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You’re welcome! Have a great weekend, too!
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I remember being the back end of a cow one year. In another year I had to cross dress.
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When I was first learning to teach, one of the professors told our class that we shouldn’t make our students do anything we wouldn’t want to do ourselves, when it came to class activities. Apparently, more teachers/school performance directors need to be asking these kinds of questions. 🙂
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I don’t remember any Christmas pagents. Either I was never in one or I’ve blocked it out of my memory. Somehow, I missed Conan’s Minty. the Candycane, Who Briefly Fell on the Ground. I just found in on YouTube. Laugh-out-loud funny!! (I pass on the sticky Christmas. I’m a chocolate chip cookie purist.)
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*pageants
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Minty is hilarious! I do miss him greatly.
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I’ve been singing the song for two days and annoying my husband greatly.
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In second grade we did How The Grinch Stole Christmas and I had to sit in a “bed” the whole performance because I was supposed to be the kid the parents told the story to. And no. Everything went off as planned…I think anyway…
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That sounds like a calm, yet entertaining show. And, the director of the performance was taking quite the risk by putting a bed on stage, knowing that children would probably bounce on it–possibly some parents, too. So the fact that no one bounced on that bed is a win for sure 🙂
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I was probably given the role because I was the essential good girl who followed every rule
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You brought back memories of a play I was in at summer camp. I guess I was about 11. It was The Pajama Game, which has a lot of good songs. I can’t recall ever being on stage again.
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The Pajama Game sounds like fun!
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I was an elf in a grade school play, I think it was “The Reindeer that Ate All the Peppermint Schnapps Cookies and Wrapped Santa’s Sleigh Around a Chimney,” or something like that. I was pretty shy at that age and hadn’t been given any lines, but a friend and I decided we’d improv a few lines. We got a laugh but totally threw off the lead actor, who lost his place and not sure he ever got back on track.
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Oh, my goodness! I can just picture what you and your friend must have said. So funny!
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your humor is so good and you are so right – the candy cane is like the kid singing too loud – and all that follows had me engaged
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The chocolate chip batter with mint sounds really good – (love mint and chocolate at Xmas) and when I used to make peppermint bark – we used the soft peppermints – they made the batch come out better – and imaging you whacking the canes was funny
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Oh, thank you so much!! I love peppermint bark:)
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😊
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PS – just wanted t share this candy cane wreath from a retirement center
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I love this!!!
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