Easy Cream Cheese Mints (Old-Fashioned Party Mints Recipe)

There are a few recipes that instantly take me back to childhood, and these easy cream cheese mints are one of them. They’re sweet, creamy, and just a little minty—the kind of treat that melts in your mouth and feels so nostalgic.

The best part? You only need five ingredients and a few minutes to make them!

I remember my grandma making these (we called them “party mints” back then) and man, I loved when the ladies at church brought them to potlucks!! They are perfect for weddings, baby showers, and Christmas, and I can still remember sneaking one (or five!) off the tray when grandma wasn’t looking.

I tried making old fashioned cream cheese mints on my own for the first time in college and then totally forgot about them. They need to be posted here! They are the perfect holiday treat! The best no bake mint candy recipe!

Ingredients You’ll Need

• Cream Cheese: The base of the recipe. It provides creaminess, a slight tang, and moisture to bind the powdered sugar into a smooth dough. It also keeps the mints tender instead of dry or crumbly.
• Butter: Adds richness and a silky texture, helping the mints melt in your mouth. It also balances the tang of the cream cheese and makes the mixture easier to work with.
• Peppermint Extract: Gives the mints their classic cool, refreshing flavor. Just a little goes a long way in creating that signature taste.
• Vanilla Extract: Softens and rounds out the peppermint flavor so it isn’t too sharp, adding warmth and depth to the overall sweetness.
• Powdered Sugar: The bulk of the recipe. It sweetens the mints, thickens the mixture into a pliable dough, and creates that melt-in-your-mouth texture because of its fine consistency.
• Gel Food Coloring: Optional, but perfect for making pastel or seasonal shades. Gel is preferred over liquid so the color is vibrant without thinning the dough.

How to Make Cream Cheese Mints

1. Beat: Add the cream cheese and butter to the bowl of a stand mixer and beat until creamy with the paddle attachment.
2. Combine: Add the peppermint and vanilla extracts to the cream cheese mixture and mix until combined and then lower the speed of the mixer and gradually add the powdered sugar and mix until combined.
3. Add Coloring: If you want to add multiple colors to the mints, separate the dough into different bowls and add gel coloring for your desired colors. Mix thoroughly until the gel coloring is fully incorporated.
4. Form: Use a small scoop, scoop the dough into small balls and roll between your palms. Place the balls on a baking sheet lined with wax paper. Dip a fork into powdered sugar and gently press down on each mint.
5. Dry: Let the mints dry at room temperature for several hours. Once they are completely dry, store them in the refrigerator in an airtight container until ready to serve.

FAQs

Storage and Making Ahead

Once the mints have dried completely, they should be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator with each layer of mints separated with a sheet of wax paper between them.

Peppermint cream cheese mints freeze beautifully which makes them a great make ahead treat, especially for the holidays. You could start making them in September or October and that’s one thing off your to-do list once the craziness of the holidays comes.

These little cream cheese mints have been around for generations, and it’s easy to see why. They’re beautiful on a wedding or shower table, they freeze like a dream for make-ahead holiday trays, and they’re simple enough for the kids to help with.

Sometimes the best recipes are the ones that bring back memories while creating new ones at the same time. I hope these melt-in-your-mouth mints become just as much a tradition in your home as they have in ours.

Watch How These Cream Cheese Mints are Made…

More Homemade Candy Recipes:

• Chocolate Covered Coconut Balls
• Chocolate Peanut Butter Balls
• Homemade Fudge Recipe
• Rolo Pretzel Bites
• Homemade Caramels