Cream Cheese Surprise CCCs

CCCs = Chocolate Chip Cookies.  Just throwing that out there to ya.

Ever since my tour of the Blood Family Dairy in State Center, I’ve had milk-on-my-mind.  Cookies and milk are one of my favorite comfort foods.  I love experimenting with new recipes and cookies are so easy to adapt. These cookies are the best cookies I’ve made in quite some time.  The addition of cream cheese in the actual dough lends such a nice richness and glorious texture to these cookies.  I’ll be hard-pressed to leave cream cheese out of any of the cookie doughs I make in the future! Cream Cheese Stuffed cookies? Yes! You can also follow the instructions on how to ‘stuff’ your cookies with cream cheese as well, which makes them extra decadent.

Looks like this… one disk of dough down a dollop (I needed to add MORE) of cream cheese.

Add the top disk of dough and pinch around the edges to seal the seam.

These cookies are wonderful when they’re fresh and warm but I’ll tell you, they’re even better the next day!  Don’t skimp on the sparkling/turbinado sugar, it contributes to the ‘crunch’ factor on the outside of the otherwise soft and wonderfully textured cookie

Did I mention that I’m judging an upcoming Chocolate Chip Cookie Contest at the “Prairie Days” festival in Prairie City, Iowa next weekend? All of these cookies are consumed in the name of research!  See the Prairie Days schedule here.

For the full Blood Family Dairy Story that I wrote as a guest blogger for the “Iowa Food and Family Project”, click here.

Enjoy many, many cookies with a tall glass of milk.  Yum!

Cream Cheese SURPRISE Chocolate Chip Crunch Cookies

By: Cristen     www.foodandswine.com

Makes 20-24 large cookies:

Ingredients:

2 sticks unsalted butter, room temperature

4 oz (half a block) cream cheese, room temperature

1 1/2 C brown sugar, packed

3/4 C granulated sugar

2 whole eggs

1 1/2 tsp vanilla bean paste or vanilla extract

2 C all-purpose flour

1 tsp baking soda

1 tsp cream of tartar

1 1/4 tsp salt

2 1/2 C oatmeal (regular, not instant)

1 C miniature semi sweet chocolate chips

3/4 C toasted chopped walnuts, if desired

Sparkling Sugar, Turbinado Sugar or Regular Granulated Sugar *For Rolling

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Cream butter for 30 seconds, until smooth.  Add sugars.  Beat 2 minutes until fluffy and smooth.  Add eggs and vanilla, beat until well combined.  Sift flour, baking soda and salt together.  Slowly add dry mixture to wet ingredients, mixing only until combined.  Add oatmeal, chocolate chips and walnuts.  Mix until combined.

Scoop mixture with 1/4 C (2 oz.) cookie scoop.  Roll in sparkling sugar for great crunch.  (Regular sugar may be used for rolling too.  Press dough balls slightly to flatten tops.  Bake for 15-17 minutes, oven temperatures will vary so watch your cookies starting at the 14 minute mark.  Cookies should be golden around the edges and just-set in the middle.   Remove from oven and let cool for 5 minutes on the cookie sheet, then transfer to a cooling rack.  Store leftover cookies in an airtight container or zip top bag.  These retain an amazing texture and are fabulous with a tall glass of milk!

Variations: Add raisins, different nuts, cinnamon, orange zest etc.

IF you want to be crazy and fabulous: Roll up balls of cream cheese and nestle INSIDE the cookies.

Cream Cheese STUFFED Cookies (Variation)

To stuff your cookies you’ll need:

Remaining 4 oz. cream cheese from recipe above (1/2 block), or much (8 oz.) more if you desire a heavier filling

1/4 C sugar

1 tsp vanilla bean paste, or seeds from 1/2 a vanilla bean. (if using extract, only 1/4 tsp)

Reserve the additional 4 oz, mix with 1/4 C cheese and vanilla. Refrigerate for 1 hour.  Scoop large cookie dough balls out, divide dough in 2, pat into 1/2″ disks that are 3-4″ in diameter.  Scoop 1/2 TBSP sized balls of cream cheese on one disk of cookie dough.  Cover with another disk, seal the edges of the dough around the cream cheese ball, encasing the cream cheese.  Roll in sugar and press gently to flatten slightly.  Bake as usual. You’ll have delicious cream cheese in the middle of your cookie!!!  (Use as little or as much filling as you want, you may have to add more cream cheese to the recipe above.)