If Milk Could Dream...

Still the first week of the month and I already feel like I'm slacking. I have quite a few holiday goodies to throw your way so I really should get on the ball here. I mean, here I am, a cookie fanatic missing out on the cookie making season. If this blog has done anything consistently well, it's making me ashamed of myself. 

What? I said cookie and you stopped caring about everything else I was saying? Yeah, I get like that too. I don't know if that has anything to do with my love for the holidays, but I'm not one to question such things. Cookies are life's way of saying, "hey... I like you." But that's only on good days. On bad days, life gives you lemons. It's almost always a cookie when it's a good day.

So I guess this is my semi-official introduction to my Holiday Cookie Posting Extravaganza! (working title). Semi-official because maybe one day I'll feel like something other than a cookie and I don't want to be held accountable for lying to you. If you want all the legal information, it's in the fine print at the bottom of the page under the copyright information that's there for decoration since no one really looks at this blog.

Anyway, cooki..er, Holiday Cookie Posting Extravaganza! (working title)!

This cookie is a showstopper. It's made its rounds through the blogging world and Pinterest and has found its way into my belly on more than one occasion. I have to thank CanadianDana for introducing me to this behemoth for the first time a few years ago. I have to say, it's fairly breathtaking if you've never seen one. I'm willing to bet that if this is your first time seeing a cookie of this stature, you're probably still looking at the picture and you're not even reading this. It's forgivable and understandable. Imagine how the milk feels! I'd bet this is as close to a ménage à trois that milk is ever going to get...

Oreo Stuffed Chocolate Chip Cookies: (adapted from here)

                                 2 sticks ~ Butter
                                    1 cup ~ Brown Sugar
                                    1 cup ~ Sugar
                                  2 each ~ Eggs
                       1 tablespoon ~ Vanilla Extract
                                  4 cups ~ Flour
                           1 teaspoon ~ Salt
                           1 teaspoon ~ Baking Soda
                        3/4 teaspoon ~ Cinnamon
                        1/8 teaspoon ~ Nutmeg, freshly grated (optional)
                                     1 bag ~ Chocolate Chips
                                 At least ~ 12 Oreo Cookies

Notes:

• I used the Candy Cane stuffed Oreo's. Because, you know, it's Christmas time. I admit, they're a little weird at first. But after a few bites you're used to it. 
• You can use this recipe any time of year with regular Oreo cookies. 
• Heck, you can use this recipe with anything really. Doesn't have to be Oreo's. You can use Reese's Peanut Butter Cups... Like I also did. 
• If the dough does not feel workable, add a little more flour. You want to be able to shape it without it sticking to your hands.
• If it is sticking to your hands, try washing your hands and drying them. Dry them good because the moisture in your hands could cause the dough to stick to them.
• If you're still having problems, refrigerate the dough for about an hour and give it another go.
• The recipe can make about a dozen cookies. But trust me, you don't need any more than that. 

I hope you have room in your kitchen for the biggest cookies you've ever made:

• Preheat the hotbox to 350.

The first step to making these is probably the most important step in all of cookie making. Don't get scared, come on, get out from under the table. I'll break it down for you:

It's called the Creaming Method. It's a method with a specific order of putting your ingredients together and for good reason. It gets its name from the first step, which is creaming together the fat (butter or lard) and the sugar. It's named after this step because it is the most important step. Make sure you cream it right because you're setting the stage for the rest of the show. When creaming the sugar and fat, you're incorporating air into the fat, which will essentially be the base for your cookie. So when you bake the cookies, the air you created will act as a leavening agent of sorts, expanding with the heat, and creating a lighter, fluffier cookie.  

I might create a separate post just for discussing the Creaming Method soon. It's that important.  

But that's later. Now we continue this..

• Take the butter and sugars and cream in the mixer until it's light and fluffy. Don't forget to scrape the edges and the bottom. Once it's fluffy, add the eggs one at a time as well as the vanilla, while mixing slowly.

• The easiest way to do the next part is to take all of the dry ingredients and put them into one bowl. Then add a third of the dry ingredients and slowly turn on the mixer until it is just combined. Turn it off and repeat 2 more times until the dry ingredients are gone. Finally, add the chocolate chips and mix them in until they're well incorporated.

Now the fun part!

• Spray a parchment lined cookie sheet. Then take an Oreo cookie and place a spoonful of the cookie dough on the bottom and another spoonful on the top.

• Now with your hands, mold and press the dough around the Oreo till you form a general cookie shape. You want it completely covered so if you feel like you need a little more dough then add some on the spots where needed.

In case you're wondering.. Yes, it is a lot of dough.

• Once they're made, put them on the cookie sheet at least 1 inch apart, 1 1/2 to be safe. Put them in the oven for about 10 minutes. I say "about" because everyone's oven is different. My batch actually stayed in for around 15 minutes. They're done when the edges and bottom are a nice golden brown. So keep an eye on them.

And that's about it.

I'd like to take this time to state once again that these cookies are freaking huge. I have fairly big hands and i can't wrap my fingers around one. So please, be very careful if you have small children in your home and these are on the counter. If a cookie falls on a child's head, it could knock the kid out cold.

Oh! I forgot. I did mention that I also made some with Peanut Butter Cups, didn't I? Well yeah... Just do everything I said, but instead of Oreo's, use Reese's Peanut Butter Cups and boom! 

Yes, they're amazing.

And you can stop drooling now...