I am a big fan of a chewy gooey cookie. This recipe is a modified version of my most popular cookie among family...the wonder cookie. My wonder cookies usually have two kinds of chocolate chips. For Valentine's Day I switched em out for M&Ms and Sixlets. I also added a hefty dose of pink and red sprinkles. Here's the recipe that you may use. Please note that this is an original recipe by me and should not be reposted without my permission. Feel free to pin it and share it but please do not repost to your own blog. Thank you!
Loaded Valentine Wonder Cookies
by jessica wilson
*2 cups flour
* tsp baking soda
*1/2 tsp salt
*1/2 cup white granualted sugar
*1/2 cup brown sugar
*2 tsp cinnamon
*1 large box vanilla instant pudding (6oz)
*2 eggs
*1/2 cup mostly melted butter*
*1/2 cup mini marshmallows
*1/2-3/4 cup candy covered chocolates
*sprinkles
*parchment paper
In a small bowl combine your dry ingredients save for marshmallows and candies. Set aside.
In a large bowl, cream your butter and sugars together using a hand mixer. You will want your butter to be mostly melted. By that I mean pop it into a microwave or set it in a pan on low heat and melt so that you have some liquid and some solid. If it melts all the way, don't panic, you can still use it but your cookie may spread more than you expected. Add eggs and blend.
Add your marshmallows and mix in with a wooden spoon then add half of the contents of your small bowl and mix until you get a sticky dough, add the remainder and mix until your dough forms. I like to use a wooden spoon for this part so that flour doesn't go flying every-which-way. Your kiddo will really enjoy mixing the dough.
Next add your candies and your sprinkles and mix away. Many of your candies will choose to linger in the bowl and not join in with the dough. Use your hands to mix those in and get ready to scoop. I used a medium sized cookie scoop which perfectly shapes these cookies to fit inside a pint bell jar or cupcake liner for gifting. I like to add a candy or two to the scoop first then scoop in the dough, pressing it down firmly to attract those loose candies inside before releasing it all onto the cookie sheet. You may also roll cookies into the size of a large walnut.
If you wish to have your cookies have a little more oomph on top, pour extra sprinkles into a small bowl or dish and dip each ball of dough into the mix before placing on your parchment lined cookie sheet. As a child, any dipping into sugar or sprinkles was a favortie of mine. Your kiddos may love it as wekk. It is very important to use parchment paper, do not use wax paper! The marshmallows in the cookies will ooze all over the place and without the parchment they will sticky-stick-stick to your cookie sheet. In a pinch you can use tinfoil that has been generously greased.
Bake at 350F for 8-12 minutes. I like mine to be slightly undercooked but a pretty browned butter in color. These cookies will be chewy either way but will burn like any other so keep an eye on them after 10 minutes. My oven is a bit hotter that what I have used in the past so about 9 minutes works for me. The cookies will come put puffy but will soon flatten out and look like a yummy chewy bit of happy. Let them cool, the marshmallow goo will be pretty hot.
When packaging for gifts, you can break off any extra marshmallow goo and sample it for quality control. The rounder your cookie dough the more uniform in size your cookies should be, which is why I love the scoop! Place six cookies into a pint jar and add a happy cupcake liner over the top to act as the lid (or place liner over lid) before adding the ring. Cookies go in easier than they come out but they will come out of the jar with a little encouragment.
Or, stack two cookies and place them on a cupcake liner. They may be a bit large to fit IN the liner but will neatly flatten it with room to spare. Tie a short length of yarn, string, or ribbon around the cookies and liner and add a tag.
Ta-da! Sweets for your sweeties!
