I craved chocolate chip cookie dough when I was pregnant, but you can't eat it raw due to the raw eggs in the batter. So, I decided to make chocolate chip cookie bars twice within 3 days (and I ate plenty of the batter too). We got bored with the cookies though, so I put them in the freezer. I was trying to decide what to do with them since they can't be in the freezer forever and frozen cookies aren't good. Finally, I created a new recipe: chocolate chip cookie balls.
I have made cake balls in the past which consist of crumbling cake into frosting, making balls, and covering them in chocolate. However, I prefer cookies over cake, so why not try it this way? I crumbled up the cookies into homemade white icing, rolled them into balls, froze them, and dipped them into melted semi sweet chocolate. The results were wonderful. While it is a very sweet treat, they are perfect little mouthfuls that leave you satisfied with only 1 or 2.
I also noticed something as I've been cooking and baking. I feel a little bit better. I daydream while I'm cooking and pretend that I'm making these recipes for my twins. I imagine what it would be like to have my children around me while stirring, sifting, or dipping. For a moment, I feel happy and my dreams are a reality with me being a mother and teaching my children how to cook. Reality always come back though and I'm back in the real world again. However, even if I only feel these joyful moments for a short time, cooking has a healing power that I never knew existed. I guess it's my own private therapy.
So, from here on out, my recipes and love of cooking and baking is dedicated to my beautiful twins, Caroline and Ryan, who I know are watching me and maybe even tasting what I'm creating. I love and miss you both.
Chocolate Chip Cookie Balls
For the cookies- (you can use your favorite cookie recipe or follow this one)
2 1/4 cups flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 sticks of unsalted butter at room temperature (to make this lighter, you can use 1 stick of butter with 1/2 cup unsweetened plain applesauce. The cookies are a little cakey, but still good)
3/4 cup brown sugar
3/4 cup white sugar
2 eggs at room temperature
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla
1 1/2 bags semi sweet chocolate chips
Preheat oven to 375 and grease 9x13 glass pan
Sift the flour, baking soda, and salt together in a bowl and set aside
Beat the butter and both sugars at medium high speed until light and fluffy
Add the eggs one at a time until incorporated
Add the vanilla
Slowly add the dry ingredients and mix only until incorporated- do not overmix!
Stir in chocolate chips
Spread the batter evenly into the pan and cook until cookies have set- about 25-35 min.- check often
Let cookies cool completely
Frosting- (you can use homemade or canned- homemade is always better. This one is my grandma's recipe that my mom also uses. It's easy, light, and flavorful)
4 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla
2-3 tablespoons of milk (add more if needed)
2-3 cups powdered sugar (add more if needed)
pinch of salt
Mix above ingredients and add more milk and/or powdered sugar until a good spreading consistency is reached (taste for vanilla flavor too)
Once the cookies have cooled, crumble cookies into the bowl with the frosting and mix until everything has frosting on it
Using a tablespoon (or I use an ice cream scoop) scoop out balls of cookie and frosting and place on parchment lined baking sheets
Freeze balls until hardened (about an hour or more)
Once frozen, melt semi sweet chocolate- I'm not sure how much exactly, but it takes a lot of chocolate to cover all of the balls
Dip cookie balls into the chocolate, making sure every surface is covered by chocolate
Place them back on the parchment paper- you can also add sprinkles or colored sugar on them if you want
Once all of them dipped in the chocolate, place in refrigerator until hardened
Enjoy and as my old boss says, "Food and cooking make everything better." I couldn't agree more.
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