Cream Cheese Mints are soft, buttery, melt-in-your-mouth treats that look absolutely stunning on any dessert table! These elegant little pastel candies are easier to make than you’d think, and they’re perfect for weddings, baby showers, holidays, or any celebration that needs a touch of homemade sweetness.
Love More Desserts Recipes? Try My Raspberry Cheesecake Cookies or this Espresso Chocolate Chip Cookies next.
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
These cream cheese mints are an absolute dream! They’re incredibly easy to make with just a handful of ingredients you probably already have in your kitchen. The texture is what really sets them apart—soft and buttery with that perfect melt-in-your-mouth quality that makes them feel extra special. They look gorgeous in pastel colors, making them ideal for weddings, showers, and holidays.
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Cream Cheese Mints Recipe
- Total Time: 4 hours 20 minutes – 6 hours 20 minutes
- Yield: 5 dozen small mints
Description
Learn how to make classic cream cheese mints with this easy recipe! These soft, buttery, melt-in-your-mouth mints are perfect for weddings, baby showers, bridal showers, and holiday parties. Made with just cream cheese, butter, powdered sugar, and peppermint extract, these elegant homemade candies can be customized in any color to match your party theme. Includes step-by-step instructions, pro tips, flavor variations, and make-ahead storage tips.
Ingredients
For the Mints:
- 4 oz (113 g) cream cheese, softened (brick style, not tub)
- 1 tablespoon salted butter, softened
- 4 cups (approximately 500 g) powdered sugar, plus extra as needed
- ½ teaspoon peppermint extract
- ⅛ teaspoon vanilla extract
- Food coloring (optional – gel colors work best)
You’ll Also Need:
- Extra powdered sugar for dusting
- Wax paper for drying
Substitution Notes:
- Cream cheese: Must be brick-style! The spreadable tub kind has too much moisture and won’t work.
- Butter: You can use unsalted if you prefer, though the tiny bit of salt adds nice balance.
- Peppermint extract: Try spearmint, orange, lemon, or almond extract for different flavors.
- Food coloring: Gel or paste colors give the most vibrant results without adding extra moisture.
Instructions
Let them sit out until they’re soft. Took mine about 45 minutes yesterday because my kitchen was cold. Beat them together. Should take maybe a minute. No lumps.
Turn mixer to low. Add sugar slowly. First time I just dumped it all in and my entire counter was white. Learned that lesson.
Pour in peppermint and vanilla. Mix. Kitchen smells good now.
Rest of the sugar goes in. Mix until your arm hurts if you’re using a hand mixer. It gets thick. Really thick. Sometimes I end up using closer to 5 cups because it depends on humidity or something.
Split it into bowls if you’re doing colors. Add gel coloring. Mash it around with your hands until it’s mixed. Start with a tiny amount. You can add more but you can’t take it back.
Roll balls. Teaspoon-ish size. Put them on wax paper. I did this during a Zoom meeting once. Nobody knew.
Dip fork in powdered sugar. Smash each mint. Makes lines. Looks fancy. Re-dip fork every time or your third mint will have dough stuck all over the fork.
Walk away. Go do something else for 4-6 hours. They have to firm up. Can’t rush it. Tried once. They stuck to everything.
Put them in a container with wax paper between the layers. Fridge. They’ll keep for two weeks but mine never last that long.
Notes
Prevent sticky situations: If your hands get sticky while rolling, dust them lightly with powdered sugar. Keep a small bowl nearby for easy access.
Batch coloring is smarter: If you’re making multiple colors, work with one color at a time and keep the remaining dough covered with plastic wrap so it doesn’t dry out.
Common mistake to avoid: Don’t skip the drying time! I know it’s tempting to package them up right away, but they need those hours to firm up properly. Rushing this step results in mints that stick together.
Smart shortcut: Use a small cookie scoop to portion out perfectly uniform mints every time. A level teaspoon-sized scoop works beautifully!
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: Chill/Dry Time: 4-6 hours
- Category: Dessert
- Method: No-bake
- Cuisine: American
Ingredient List
For the Mints:
- 4 oz (113 g) cream cheese, softened (brick style, not tub)
- 1 tablespoon salted butter, softened
- 4 cups (approximately 500 g) powdered sugar, plus extra as needed
- ½ teaspoon peppermint extract
- ⅛ teaspoon vanilla extract
- Food coloring (optional – gel colors work best)
You’ll Also Need:
- Extra powdered sugar for dusting
- Wax paper for drying
Substitution Notes:
- Cream cheese: Brick. Period. Tub kind is watery garbage for this.
- Butter: I use salted because that’s what I buy.
- Peppermint extract: Tried lemon once. Pretty good actually.
- Food coloring: Gel doesn’t mess up the consistency.
Why These Ingredients Work
Cream cheese = soft mints instead of hard ones. Regular butter mints are basically compressed sugar rocks. These have fat in them so they’re creamy.
Butter adds flavor. Could you skip it? Maybe. Haven’t tried. Don’t really want to mess with what works.
Powdered sugar does everything. Makes it sweet, makes it thick, makes it hold together. The cornstarch is why they firm up instead of staying goopy.
Peppermint because mint. Vanilla because otherwise it tastes like you’re eating Crest. Food coloring makes them pretty for Instagram.
Essential Tools and Equipment
Hand mixer or stand mixer. Doesn’t matter which.
Bowl. Spoons. Measuring cups. Wax paper. A fork. Container for storing them.
That’s the list. Don’t overcomplicate it.
How To Make Cream Cheese Mints
Step 1: Beat the Cream Cheese and Butter
Let them sit out until they’re soft. Took mine about 45 minutes yesterday because my kitchen was cold. Beat them together. Should take maybe a minute. No lumps.
Step 2: Add the First Half of the Sugar
Turn mixer to low. Add sugar slowly. First time I just dumped it all in and my entire counter was white. Learned that lesson.
Step 3: Mix in the Extracts
Pour in peppermint and vanilla. Mix. Kitchen smells good now.
Step 4: Add Remaining Sugar
Rest of the sugar goes in. Mix until your arm hurts if you’re using a hand mixer. It gets thick. Really thick. Sometimes I end up using closer to 5 cups because it depends on humidity or something.
Step 5: Divide and Color (Optional)
Split it into bowls if you’re doing colors. Add gel coloring. Mash it around with your hands until it’s mixed. Start with a tiny amount. You can add more but you can’t take it back.
Step 6: Shape the Mints
Roll balls. Teaspoon-ish size. Put them on wax paper. I did this during a Zoom meeting once. Nobody knew.
Step 7: Create the Textured Top
Dip fork in powdered sugar. Smash each mint. Makes lines. Looks fancy. Re-dip fork every time or your third mint will have dough stuck all over the fork.
Step 8: Let Them Dry
Walk away. Go do something else for 4-6 hours. They have to firm up. Can’t rush it. Tried once. They stuck to everything.
Step 9: Store Properly
Put them in a container with wax paper between the layers. Fridge. They’ll keep for two weeks but mine never last that long.
You Must Know
Brick cream cheese. Tried the tub kind once because that’s what I had. They never got hard. Just stayed mushy. Had to throw the whole batch out.
Thick dough. If you’re worried it’s too thick, it’s probably perfect. Should feel like Play-Doh that’s been sitting out for a day.
Everything room temp. Cold butter won’t mix. You’ll have chunks everywhere.
Personal Secret: Make one test mint. Wait 30 minutes. If it’s firm, great. If it’s still squishy, add more sugar to the batch before you shape everything.
Pro Tips & Cooking Hacks
Gel coloring only. Liquid makes them wet.
Dust your hands with powdered sugar when rolling. Keeps them from sticking to you.
Do one color at a time. Cover the rest with plastic.
Don’t skip drying time. Made that mistake at 11pm the night before a party. Woke up to a blob of stuck-together mints. Had to remake them.
Cookie scoop if you want them all the same size. I don’t care that much usually.
Flavor Variations & Suggestions
Orange: Orange extract. Orange color. Tastes like those chocolate oranges you get at Christmas.
Almond: Almond extract. Keep them white. Fancy without trying.
Chocolate covered: Freeze them solid. Dip in melted chocolate. My sister requests these every year for her birthday.
Cinnamon: Add cinnamon. Make them red. Christmas mints.
Marbled: Two colors smooshed together. Looks cool, same amount of work.
Spearmint: Less aggressive than peppermint. Good if you don’t like strong mint.
Make-Ahead Options
Make them 3-4 days before. Keep cold. Wax paper between layers so they don’t stick.
Freeze for up to three months. I made a batch in October, forgot about them, found them in January. Still good.
Always make them ahead. Day-of cooking is stressful.
Recipe Notes & Baker’s Tips
Should be firm but not rock hard. Too hard means too much sugar or over-dried.
Candy molds work. Dust with sugar, press dough in, pop out. Haven’t tried this myself but my friend does it.
More sugar on humid days. Less on dry days. Dough acts different depending on weather.
Teaspoon size is standard. Tablespoon if you want bigger ones for some reason.
Put them in cupcake liners if you’re trying to look professional.
Serving Suggestions
Made these for Kyle and Sarah’s wedding. Made them for mom’s retirement party. Made them for my neighbor’s baby shower. They work for literally everything.
Match your party colors. Pink for girl showers. Blue for boy showers. Red and green for Christmas. Whatever.
Put them in a bowl. Or on a plate. Or in a fancy crystal dish if you have one. Doesn’t really matter.
Package them in bags for favors. Tie with ribbon. People act like you spent hours even though you didn’t.
How to Store Your Cream Cheese Mints
Fridge: Container. Wax paper. Two weeks.
Counter: Fine during a party. Don’t leave out overnight.
Freezer: Bag or container. Three months. Thaw in fridge.
Stuck together: Twist them apart. Usually works.
Serving: Take out 15 minutes early. Too cold = hard. Room temp = better.
Allergy Information
Contains:
- Dairy
Substitutions:
- Dairy-free: Vegan cream cheese works. Tried it for my lactose-intolerant aunt. Little different but she ate like 15 of them so.
- Gluten-free: Already gluten-free.
Other: No eggs, nuts, soy, wheat. Check your labels if allergies are serious.
Questions I Get Asked A Lot
Can I use spreadable cream cheese from a tub?
No. They won’t firm up. Waste of time and ingredients. Don’t do it.
Why are my mints too soft and not holding their shape?
Need more sugar. Add more until it’s really stiff. Also wait the full time for drying. Impatience kills this recipe.
Can I make these without food coloring?
Yeah. White mints are normal. Nobody cares. Roll in colored sugar if you want sparkle.
How far in advance can I make these?
Two weeks fridge. Three months freezer. Actually taste better after sitting a day.
My mints taste too sweet—what can I do?
More peppermint. Up to ¾ teaspoon. Or add salt. Tiny pinch. Sounds weird, works though.
💬 Tried this recipe? Leave a comment and rating below! What colors did you make?
