For my recent birthday, I received five (yes, five) new cookbooks. One of these five, from Quinn, was The Ultimate Chocolate Cookie Book. Of course, I’m sure this was a completely unselfish gift. Surely he’s not trying to encourage me to make more cookies. Anyway, I thought my first recipe to try should be something Quinn would really like. He’s a big caramel fan, so I knew he would like these.
These cookies have a caramel center. To make the center, store-bought chewy caramels do the trick. You’ll need about 36 of these, with each one cut in half. I recruited Quinn for caramel duty. Baking was delayed as he stacked them for their photo shoot. Baking was further delayed when I foolishly remarked that he could make a little “Caramelhenge” out of them. Ah, such is life with Quinn.
Mix together 2 & 1/4 cups of AP flour, 1/2 cup of cocoa powder (sifted), 1/2 teaspoon of baking powder, and 1/4 teaspoon of salt. Use whatever kind of cocoa you like. I used Dutch processed cocoa because I like its smooth flavor and rich color.
In a separate bowl, beat 1/2 pound of butter until softened. To this, add 1/2 cup each of sugar and dark brown sugar. Next, add 1 egg and 1 egg yolk. Then, mix in 2 teaspoons of vanilla extract. Once this is mixed, add the flour mixture to the butter mixture and mix well.
Take about a tablespoon of dough and form it into a circle. Place 2 caramel halves in the center of the dough, and fold the dough around the caramels. Make sure to seal the dough well so there won’t be any caramel leaks during baking. Place each formed cookie on an ungreased cookie sheet. Bake in a 350 degree oven for 10 to 12 minutes.
Cool the cookies on wire racks, but be sure to try one while it’s still warm and the caramel is gooey. The caramel sets up after they’ve cooled. I think they could be warmed a bit in the microwave later to restore their original gooeyness.
These were, as predicted, a big hit with Quinn. Not the prettiest cookies I’ve ever seen. A bit lumpy. Some looked like standard cookies, while some looked like cookies wrapped around caramels. I’m not really a big caramel fan, so I think I would have preferred a different filling. The recipe suggested some variations – chocolate-covered almonds, Hershey’s kisses, hazelnuts… you get the idea. In hindsight, I would have made part of these with different fillings. It would be kinda like the Whitman’s Sampler of chocolate cookies. Hmmm… perhaps I’ll give it a try some day.
August 30th, 2006 at 12:58 am
I love caramel so much!! I can’t bake these because I would probably eat them all in one sitting!
August 30th, 2006 at 12:59 am
Oh and HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!!!!!
August 30th, 2006 at 2:31 am
Hi Jennifer,
your blog looks great!
Wow, FIVE cookbooks…I’m really jealous now =)
Are they all so nice?
These cookies look by the way pretty good to me, can’t wait for your variations! =)
August 30th, 2006 at 5:44 am
Wow, these sound terrific! Caramel and chocolate are such a yummy pairing!
August 30th, 2006 at 6:39 am
Nicole, thanks for the birthday wishes!
Julia, I think the cookbooks will all be great. I already have quite a “to try” list. I’m trying to think of some good variations on these cookies.
Gilly, they are good and, best of all, easy!
August 30th, 2006 at 8:09 am
Happy belated birthday! You should consider submitting these amazing cookies for SHF #23. It’s being hosted by Alanna of A Veggie Venture.
August 30th, 2006 at 10:38 am
whoa. a caramel center?
August 30th, 2006 at 12:36 pm
These had to be gooey and delicious! You have a lovely website, Jennifer. (thank you for your kind words about my baby site)
August 30th, 2006 at 4:17 pm
i love the idea of a fun center. maybe a reese’s cup?
August 30th, 2006 at 6:47 pm
Ivonne – Thanks for the birthday wishes. I’ll be sure to get these sent in to SHF.
Jen – Thanks for stopping by!
Connie – Oh, yeah. A lovely, gooey caramel center.
Rachel – Quinn and I were actually saying today that we think these would be a great use of leftover Halloween candy. Hopefully, we won’t forget and we’ll see these again post-Halloween.
August 31st, 2006 at 6:09 pm
I would have loved to have made these the week I was obsessed with caramel.
Looks great.
August 31st, 2006 at 7:39 pm
Ooo, thanks for the recipe. I am so going to make these!
August 31st, 2006 at 9:12 pm
Hi Jennifer, I found your site via a comment you posted on sweetnicks. I wish I had seen it earlier, it’s just so delightful! You’ve done such a wonderful job with it, I’m really excited about exploring it some more. And these cookies look excellent!
September 1st, 2006 at 7:59 am
Oh my god, what a brilliant idea for a cookie – I’d never thought of surrounding cookie dough with a treat!
September 1st, 2006 at 9:53 pm
That oozing caramel looks so delicious! I love caramel, especially with chocolate so this is my kind of cookie. I bet some kind of peanutbutter filling would be good too. Make it like a Reese’s, in cookie form.
September 18th, 2006 at 6:55 pm
holy cow…those look incredible…
September 24th, 2006 at 7:47 pm
These look incredible, but like Nicole said, I’d worry I’d eat ‘em all in one sitting.
It’s got me thinking about other candy stuffed inside cookies… maybe Junior Mints?!
September 25th, 2006 at 8:04 pm
Great idea for a lovely surprise!
September 26th, 2006 at 9:14 am
Great SHF entry! The line about the Whitman Sampler was great–I had been thinking along those lines when I read Karen’s (from A Couple of Tarts) entry: Rolo Cookies. Candy and cookies together. Just as it should be! *smile*
September 26th, 2006 at 7:39 pm
I love the Caramelhenge. It actually makes a really pretty picture with the way the light is hitting it!