Chocolate Dipped Refrigerator Cookies

Dipped cookies waiting to set up.

Here's another crisp cookie recipe that I think comes from my Aunt Tee.  These have a simple, rich butter-brown sugar flavor that will satisfy a sweet tooth easily, but they taste even better when they're dipped in Dove Milk Chocolate (of course).  These are cookies you want to be sure not to UNDERbake, because they taste much better crispy than chewy.  They keep well, so the cookie snob in me does not have to throw them away for at least a week.  (If they make it that long.)  Since the dough is refrigerated anyway, you can bake up some of them one day and then keep the rest in the fridge until later.  I would probably try to use it within the week, though.  Any longer than that and I would freeze the dough.

I pretty much temper my chocolate these days if I'm going to dip anything in it.  It looks nicer, and it makes these cookies easier to store.  When you don't temper the chocolate, sometimes it doesn't really set up right and it's tacky to the touch.  Tempering gives the chocolate a better "shell" so the cookies won't stick to each other or other things.  See Tempering Chocolate page for instructions on tempering chocolate.

Oh, and these cookies won second place in the Midwest Living Cookies Refrigerator Cookie class in 2008.  Just so you know.

Chocolate Dipped Refrigerator Cookies

Ingredients

½  cup butter 1 cup light brown sugar, packed 1 egg ½ tsp vanilla extract 1 ¾ cup King Arthur Unbleached All-Purpose Flour

½ tsp baking soda ¼ tsp salt 1 cup finely chopped macadamia nuts (or other nut) 2 cups milk chocolate chips or chunks, melted & tempered

Instructions

Mix butter, sugar, egg, and vanilla thoroughly.  Sift together flour, soda, and salt.  Stir into wet mixture.  Stir in nuts.  Form into a 2 ½-inch roll (or line an empty Fruit By The Foot box with plastic wrap and fill with dough).  

Wrap in waxed paper or plastic wrap.  Chill until firm. 

Heat oven to 400°F.  With a thin, sharp knife, cut thin slices 1/8-inch thick.  Place slices ½-inch apart on a parchment lined baking sheet.  Bake 8-10 minutes, or until lightly browned.  Remove from baking sheet and let cool on a wire rack.

Once cookies are cool, dip one tip in the melted chocolate (preferably tempered) until half is covered in chocolate.  Shake excess chocolate from cookie and place on waxed paper to set.

Any simple box will do to shape your dough.

The thinner the slice, the more crisp the cookie.

These refrigerator cookies taste great even without the chocolate.