Cookie Dough Crumblers and Giveaway

* * * Giveaway Now Closed * * *

Congrats to Jen (California Meets New Jersey) who writes: "Well if I made it past putting it together and not eating the whole bowl...I like to make my own ice cream sandwiches with homemade cookies!"


You all know about my struggles with sugar. Things are looking up, which I'll write about another day, but I must say that Lindsay (Love and Olive Oil) is responsible for a sort of relapse.

A brand new collection of her recipes came out on June 5th in a book called The Cookie Dough Lover’s Cookbook (Quirk Books). It's absolutely teeming with dessert ideas that feature -- you guessed it -- cookie dough.


To celebrate, Quirk Books has asked several food bloggers across the web to go crazy with her concept and create their own masterpieces. With cookie dough. Please. You had me at hello.

Thing is, I eat cookie dough so frequently, I could really only think to share my extremely basic (and quite embarrassing) guilty pleasure. This is my favorite way to eat it.


Obviously that wouldn't earn me any points. So, I went back to the drawing board. Cookie dough cheesecake? It's been done. Cookie dough tirimisu -- also done! Surely there's got to be SOMEthing unique and new!

What about COOKIE DOUGH BABY FOOD?!


OK. No babies were harmed in the execution of that joke. It was purely photographic. The babe ate carrots last night.


Anyway, I decided to keep it basic . . . with a twist. These cookie dough crumblers are bite-sized, salty, crunchy, chewy, and topped with chocolate-peanut butter.


COOKIE DOUGH CRUMBLERS

What you'll need for the cookie dough:

• 1/2 cup Earth Balance or butter
• 1/2 cup light brown sugar
• 1/4 cup cane sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2 tablespoons light coconut milk (or other milk/substitute)
• 1-1/2 cups whole wheat flour
• Pinch salt
• 1/2 cup chocolate chips

For the pretzel base:

• Pretzels, enough to make at least 3/4 to 1 cup when processed
• 2 to 4 tablespoons melted Earth Balance or butter

For the chocolate:

• 1/3 to 1/2 cup chocolate chips
• 2 tablespoons peanut butter
• 1 tablespoon Earth Balance

Method . . .

1. Cream together the Earth Balance, brown sugar, cane sugar, vanilla extract, and coconut milk. Beat until light and fluffy. Then add in the flour, salt, and chocolate chips. Mix until combined. Set aside.
2. Lightly butter the cups of a mini muffin tin and set aside.
3. In a food processor, pulse your pretzels until they are into little bits. Then add in the melted Earth Balance. More EB means less crumble. Though, I used 2 tablespoons and think mine are almost too crumbly. It's up to you!
4. Press equal amounts of pretzel mixture into the cups of your tin. Make sure you have a little left over for sprinkling at the end, though you will have a bit that comes off when you pop them out of the tins.
5. Then press equal amounts of cookie dough into each tin. You may have some left over. Eat it promptly. (Well, that's what I did. You can also store it in the fridge for the week.)
6. I covered my tin and placed it in the freezer for an hour to chill. Then I gently popped each bite out using my fingers and placed on some tin foil. I would have used wax paper, but I was out.
7. Then melt the chocolate, peanut butter, and Earth Balance together. I did it in the microwave, but stove works, too. Spoon this mixture over each bite and then sprinkle with excess pretzel. Let chill in the refrigerator for several hours. Or eat right away for a gooey experience.

Don't mind if I do!


And the book again is The Cookie Dough Lover's Cookbook by Lindsay Landis. I've had my copy for maybe a month and it's already well worn.


GIVEAWAY: If you'd like to win a copy of the book, just leave a comment below -- by midnight EST by Thursday, June 21, with some way to contact you -- with how you'd use the cookie dough. Winner will be announced Friday morning.

And to check out scenes from Stephen's first father's day, visit Writing Chapter Three. We'll be back with more weekend happenings later in the day.

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