Chocolate Chip Pretzel Cookies

   These are a new favorite at our house! I decided that chocolate covered pretzels are yummy, so I used my regular Chocolate Chip Cookie dough recipe and just replaced the nuts with pieces of crushed pretzels. I used miniature pretzels, but any small or thin pretzel would work. Try to get your pretzel pieces no larger than ¼”. I just placed all my pretzels in a plastic bag and began crushing! This would be a fun part for the kids to do.
   Follow the Chocolate Chip Cookie recipe's baking instructions, but I did find that they bake better when the dough balls are slightly flattened before being baked. Let them cool about a minute before removing from baking sheets to cooling rake. These come out a beautiful golden brown, and have a fun crunchy texture!

Pizza Cookie

   I love to give these as birthday gifts!! They can be pretty expensive to buy at the store, but very inexpensive to make. And who doesn't love a personalized giant cookie?

Things you will need:

• 1 recipe of Chocolate Chip Cookies dough
  
• 15 inch baking stone
  
• Parchment paper
  
• Scissors
  
• 15 inch pizza box
  
• Milk chocolate frosting, canned
  
• Star decorating tip (#14)
  
• Mini M&M's, milk chocolate ones

Begin with your 15 inch baking stone.

Cover it with parchment paper.

Place cookie dough in center of parchment covered stone.

Using your fingers, spread dough in a circular shape until dough is about ⅜ inch thick.

Bake cookie at 375 degrees F for about 15 minutes.

Trim parchment paper to fit into pizza box.

Lifting parchment paper, lift cookie and place on cooling rack. Once cooled, place parchment and cookie in pizza box.

Using the #14 star tip and chocolate frosting, write your desired message on your cookie. Add star dots around the edge of the cookie.

Place one mini M&M on each chocolate dot around the edge of the cookie to add more color and fun to your message!

Your Pizza Cookie is complete!! These really are as much fun to make, as they are to give away as gifts!

Chocolate Chip Cookies

   I have discovered the perfect after school treat... hot from the oven homemade cookies! No, I haven't been baking a batch of cookies every day, but I did bake several batches, and freeze the unbaked cookie dough balls. Now when it is almost time for my children to be home from school, I bake one pan of cookies. Easy as pie, I have hot fresh cookies.
   So instead of dragging up the hill after school, my children race up the hill to get to the cookies first!
   We have found that we like the cookies better when made from the frozen dough balls. The centers are a little softer and gooey! Check out the instructions under the "Notes" at the end of the recipe to learn how to freeze your cookie dough balls.

Chocolate Chip Cookies
Ingredients:
   ½ cup butter
   ¼ cup sugar
   ½ cup brown sugar
   1 teaspoon vanilla
   1 egg
   1 teaspoon soda
   1¼ cups flour
   1 cup milk chocolate chips
   1 cup chopped nuts
Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Cream together butter and sugars. Add vanilla, eggs, & soda and mix well. (If using unsalted butter, add ¼ teaspoon salt.) Add flour and mix well. Stir in chocolate chips and nuts. Drop dough by tablespoon (small cookie scoop) on ungreased cookie sheet. Bake at 375 degrees for 9 to 10 minutes, or until golden brown. Makes about 30 cookies.

Notes:
   You can make a "pizza" (or cake) cookie by placing all the dough on a parchment covered 15 inch baking stone. Spread dough out until it is about ⅜ inch thick. Bake at 375 degrees F for 15 minutes. Makes one cookie. To give as a gift, cut the parchment paper that the cookie is on to fit inside a large pizza box. Remove parchment and cookie and place them in a pizza box. Decorate with frosting and mini M&M's.
   You can also make giant cookies with the large (3 Tbsp) cookie scoop. Spread dough out until about ⅜ inch thick. Bake at 375 degrees for 15 minutes. Makes about 10 cookies. These make great gifts! Just wrap each cookie individually with plastic wrap. If you are giving a single cookie as a gift, place a fun circular label with your message in the center of each cookie. If you are giving several cookies, place them in a cute basket and add a bow!
   You can freeze cookie dough balls prior to baking. Place balls on a tray lined with parchment paper. Place tray in freezer until balls are frozen solid. (A deep freezer works much faster than the regular freezer.) Place frozen balls in a gallon freezer Ziplock bag removing as much air as possible and label it.

These will be good for about 6 weeks in the freezer. When ready to bake, place frozen balls on cookie sheet.
Bake at 375 degrees for 13-15 minutes, or until golden brown.