Cookie Dough Easter Eggs

Holy cow, where has April gone? It seems like just last week B and I were going to Ash Wednesday Mass and I was preparing to give up meat yet again for Lent.

Anyway, the 40ish days have pretty much concluded – meaning, not only am I going to be eating meat again soon, but we also get to prepare Easter desserts!

This year, I’ll be making a few of my favorite cookie dough truffles or cookie balls – and shaping them like eggs so that they become … voila! Easter Egg Cookie Dough Balls. You can really make these with any of your favorite truffle recipes, so I choose the chocolate chip cookie recipe but dipped in white chocolate (you can do regular chocolate if you like too, they may be harder to decorate though):

cookie dough easter eggs - i crashed the webi

Cookie Dough Easter Eggs

Here’s what you need:

  • 2 1/2 cups all purpose flour
  • 1 cup (2 sticks) butter, softened
  • 1 cup brown sugar
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla
  • 1/3 cup milk
  • 1 cup mini semi-sweet chocolate chips
  • 14 oz bag of candy coating

Here’s what you do:

  1. Cream butter and sugar. Add milk and vanilla and mix on high speed with an electric mixer.
  2. Stir in flour on low speed (or by hand) until incorporated. Stir in mini chocolate chips.
  3. Cover and chill dough for 1 hour or overnight.
  4. When dough is firm enough to handle, form dough into 1″ round balls. Then shape into somewhat flattened egg shapes and arrange on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper or foil.
  5. Place dough ball-filled sheet in freezer and let chill for  at least 30 minutes.
  6. After cookie dough balls have hardened in the freezer, it’s time to dip them in the melted chocolate! Melt chocolate candy coating in the microwave or according to package directions. Using a fork, dip eggs into melted milk chocolate and coat completely.
  7. Return chocolate-covered balls to parchment paper-lined baking sheet. Chill until set.
  8. Enjoy! They’re pretty awesome.

To decorate:

  • Sprinkles: while melting chocolate is wet on the egg, sprinkle colored sugars or sprinkles over egg.
  • Drizzled chocolate: melt different colored melting chocolate according to package directions – or add food coloring to white chocolate – and use a fork to drizzle colored chocolate over the white chocolate base. If chocolate is too thick to drizzle, add some shortening to thin out chocolate a little. Do not add too much – and do not add water to chocolate! I just drizzled with my fork, but here is some more info on drizzling technique.

There are so many variations on this recipe – you could make them in so many different flavors including Birthday Cake Truffles, Cookies and Cream Truffles, Chocolate Peanut Butter Truffles, Baileys Truffles and more! Just choose you favorite, shape them into eggs and you’re done.

 

raw cookie dough balls easter eggs - i crashed the web

Cookie dough is shaped and ready to chill

raw cookie dough balls easter eggs - i crashed the web

be careful – they’re addicting!

raw cookie dough balls easter eggs - i crashed the web

decorate with sprinkles or drizzle with chocolate

Enjoy! What are you baking for Easter? Do you have a favorite truffle recipe?

Home Opener Baseball Dessert: Cookies and Cream Truffles

Today is the Tribe Home Opener! I’m super excited that baseball season is back and am looking forward to walking to many games this spring and summer. Last summer, my friend Devin and I had a friendly competition going  to see who could see the most games, and though we both lost count, I’m proud to say that B and I probably hit up at least 15 games.

In honor of Opening Day, last year I shared a list of some of my favorite baseball desserts – so this year I decided to share a new one: Cookies and Cream Truffles! Just buy a red edible color marker and these can easily become baseballs for any Opening Day or Home Opener celebrations.

Indians baseball cookies and cream truffles_labeled

Baseball Home Opener Dessert: Cookies and Cream Truffles

Here’s what you need:

  • 1 (16 0z) package of regular Oreos (don’t be tempted by the double stuff ones – I hear they don’t work as well)
  • 1 (8 oz.) pkg cream cheese, room temperature (aka nice and soft)
  • Chocolate for melting – I used vanilla candy melts but you can probably use chocolate chips as well. These would be good with vanilla or regular/dark chocolate.
Here’s what you do:
    1. Put all the Oreos in your food processor. I may have eaten a few (quality control) so all 16 oz didn’t actually go into the food processor … but you get it. Blend them well until they are very fine crumbs.
    2. Add the cream cheese, one quarter at a time, into the food processor with the crumbs. Mix well until you have a dark mushy (but delicious) blog in the food processor.   When that happens, roll the mixture into small one-inch balls.  Place the balls on parchment paper and freeze for approximately 1 hour or so, or until hardened.
    3. After the balls are hard, melt your chocolate and then dip the little balls.  I like to use a fork and tap it against the side of the bowl to remove the excess chocolate.
    4. Place the dipped balls back on the parchment paper and let cool/dry.
    5. Enjoy!

Feel free to decorate (while wet) with sprinkles or Oreo cookie crumbs. I waited until mine were dry and then drew baseball stitching in honor of the Indians Home Opener. Go Tribe!

baseball cookies and cream truffles

Decorate them as you wish – I put red baseball laces

cookies and cream truffles

 

And I dare you not to sing this while making them:

Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Balls

Today, in addition to watching the Browns game, doing laundry, going for a run and doing some work, I was a baking and cooking machine. I roasted tomatoes, made fresh pesto, baked banana bread and even made some cookie dough balls. That’s right – cookie dough balls. Who needs cake balls when you have these tasty treats? And of course, they’re egg free – so not only delicious but a safe way (and perfect excuse) to indulge in the best part of baking – cookie dough!

chocolate covered cookie dough bites

Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Balls

(borrowed from this recipe)

Here’s what you need:

  • 2 1/2 cups all purpose flour
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1 cup (2 sticks) butter, softened
  • 3/4 cup sugar
  • 3/4 cup brown sugar
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla
  • 1/3 cup milk (I used 1% but may try almond milk next time)
  • 1 cup mini semi-sweet chocolate chips
  • 14 oz bag of milk chocolate candy coating

Here’s what you do:

  1. Cream butter, brown sugar and white sugar. Add milk and vanilla and mix on high speed with an electric mixer (or your beloved KitchenAid).
  2. Stir in flour, baking soda and salt and mix on low speed (or by hand) until incorporated. Stir in mini chocolate chips.
  3. Cover and chill dough for 1 hour.
  4. When dough is firm enough to handle, form dough into 1″ round balls and arrange on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.
  5. Place dough ball-filled sheet in freezer and let chill for  at least 30 minutes (I went for a run and let mine chill for about an hour).
  6. After cookie dough balls have hardened in the freezer, it’s time to dip them in the melted chocolate! Melt chocolate candy coating in the microwave or according to package directions. Using a toothpick, dip cookie balls into melted milk chocolate and coat completely.
  7. Return chocolate-covered balls to parchment paper-lined baking sheet. Chill until set.
  8. Enjoy! They’re pretty awesome.

chocolate chip cookie dough balls