Add the powdered sugar and mix until well blended.
Mix in the flour until the dough is crumbly.
Shape into a disk, wrap in wax paper or plastic wrap, and refrigerate for 30 minutes.
Preheat oven to 350°F.
Once chilled, roll out the dough and use cookie cutters to cut into festive shapes. Or, simply cut into squares or rectangles using a pastry cutter.
Bake at 350°F for 18-22 minutes. Edges will be just slightly golden brown when ready.
While the cookies are baking, melt the chocolate in the microwave in 30 second increments until fully melted. Dip each cookie into the chocolate. Sprinkle peppermint candy bits over the chocolate.
Let set at room temperature or in the refrigerator until the chocolate has slightly hardened.
Notes
Makes approximately 60-80 cookies, depending on the size of your cookie cutters. The snowflake cookie cutters I used for the cookies pictured here are about 2.5 inches in diameter, and combined with cutting half of the dough into regular squares, the recipe makes exactly 80 cookies for me. If you use larger cookie cutters, the recipe will yield fewer cookies. MAKE AHEAD & FREEZE: You can make the shortbread cookies and freeze them before adding the chocolate and peppermint. Place baked and cooled shortbread cookies in a freezer safe, airtight container in single layers, with parchment paper or wax paper between each layer. When you are ready to serve, thaw the cookies at room temperature. Then melt the chocolate, dip cookies in the chocolate and sprinkle with peppermint candy bits.