Chocolate Chip Cookie Truffles...

We still have another week to go before Jeff heads back to work (and you would hear plenty of groaning about that if you were here!), so there won't be a Wednesday Treat Day until then. But, I do have something special to share with you that I made for us instead!

Playing off the idea of those Oreo truffles that Jeff is so keen on, I made and baked a batch of dough from one of his favorite crispy and thin chocolate chip cookies to make these Chocolate Chip Cookie Truffles! This was the recipe we used for the cookie dough, but I think you'd be fine using whatever recipe you like - just bake the cookies until they reach a rich golden brown color, but have not burned. Do note, that recipe will make more dough than you need - we reserved the raw pounds' worth needed for these truffles, then scooped out the remaining dough into balls and froze them to bake off as needed for warm cookies!

Once I had baked the cookies and they had cooled completely, I broke them up and put them in the food processor. Jeff didn't know my plans, so I wish you could have seen the horror on his face as he watched his precious cookies slamming against the processor bowl, turning into tiny crumbles. I assured him it would be worth it in the end, but I don't think he was convinced - he then left the kitchen, with a single cookie I left behind for him in hand, shaking his head like I went completely bonkers! Hee hee!

To the bowl full of tasty, but now pureed cookies, we added just enough softened cream cheese to hold those tiny pieces together. The mixture should be slightly moist, but not sticky or wet - I was able to shape it right away into balls, but if it seems too messy for you, cover and toss it into the refrigerator to firm up for a bit. While I could have been content popping these little spheres into my mouth as is, dunking them in a pool of melted bittersweet chocolate was just the ticket for taking them over the top.

We used a hunk from a solid bar of good-quality chocolate for dipping, but you could use those chocolate disks or candy coating if you have trouble melting chocolate. If you use chips, you might want to add a little shortening to help thin it out. Since our block of chocolate was already in temper and we would be storing these in the refrigerator anyway, we did a quick, but not necessarily "proper" tempering process. This was done simply by heating three-quarters of the chocolate needed until it was almost completely melted, then stirring in the remaining chopped pieces to cool it back down before dipping.

With its snappy chocolate shell, the firm center was like an amplified chocolate chip cookie, except wrapped up in a pretty little bite-sized package. While the center didn't have that melt-in-your-mouth quality like you would find in a true truffle, it wasn't grainy or coarse as you might expect a bunch of ground up cookies to be like. Fun, a little unique and definitely addicting, Jeff has already proclaimed these a "must make" for next year's Christmas baking spree!

Recipes
Chocolate Chip Cookie Truffles