Cookies are something I always enjoy baking and sharing with others.  They tend to make enough to bring to work, have throughout the week at home, or freeze for later (although I don’t know why you would have any to freeze and not eat them right away).  And the recipes are often simple or less complicated that you can quickly whip up a batch.  Today I have 4 different cookie varieties to share.  All are incredibly soft and chewy (hence the blog name), large (like large enough to share), and contain great flavor combinations.  Here’s what I have for you:

• Soft & Chewy Carrot Cake Cookies
• Soft & Chewy Dulce de Leche Cookies
• Soft & Chewy Cookies & Cream Cookies
• Soft & Chewy Peanut Butter Cup Cookies

 

Now let’s walk through how to make them.  Each recipe makes 7-8 cookies (one actually makes 12 but who’s counting), but they are decent sized cookies and can be shared based on how rich they are.

First up are Soft & Chewy Carrot Cake Cookies.  These cookies are lightly spiced, have great carrot flavor, and are topped with a rich cream cheese frosting.  Don’t worry – these cookies don’t taste like carrots!  They are sweet and sugary, but you can taste the shredded carrots in each bite.  I think it cuts down on the sweetness.  If you’ve ever had carrot cake you understand what I’m saying.  Very rich and decadent.

The recipe can be found here.

Start by preheating the oven to 350 degrees F.  Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside.

Add the butter, brown sugar, and sugar to the bowl of a stand mixer and cream together.  Add the shredded carrots, vanilla extract, egg yolk, and heavy cream and mix until well combined.  Add the flour, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon, allspice, ginger, clove, and salt, and mix until JUST combined.  Do not overmix.

Use a ¼ cup measuring cup to scoop out the batter into 8 equally sized cookies.  Use your hands to roll into balls.  Place on the baking sheet, evenly spaced.  Press down slightly with the palm of your hand to flatten to about 3/4-inch thick.  Bake for 10-12 minutes.

Let the cookies cool for about 5 minutes then transfer to a cooling rack to cool completely.  I like to slide the parchment paper off the baking sheet and pull it directly onto the cooling rack.  Then I don’t disturb the cookies with a spatula and the cookies don’t get lines on the bottom from the cooling rack.

Once cool, make the cream cheese frosting.  Add the cream cheese and butter to the bowl of a stand mixer and beat until well combined.  Add the powdered sugar and vanilla extract and beat until well combined.

Add the frosting to a piping bag and snip the corner (or use a Ziploc bag).  Pipe the frosting in a circular motion on top of each cookie.  Alternately, you can use an offset spatula to spread the frosting on the cookies, it just won’t be as decorative.

Top with chopped pecans and enjoy!  Store any leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge.

The recipe can be found here.

Next up are Soft & Chewy Dulce de Leche Cookies.  The cookie base is like a snickerdoodle that’s topped with a thick caramel sauce and dollop of cream cheese frosting.  These cookies are super rich but oh so good!  What makes these cookies simple to make is you can use store bought dulce de leche vs making homemade.  You can’t go wrong!

The recipe can be found here.

Start by preheating the oven to 350 degrees F.  Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper and set aside.

Add the butter and 1 ½ cups sugar to the bowl of a stand mixer and cream together.  Add the eggs and vanilla extract and mix until well combined.  Add the flour, baking soda, and 1 tsp cinnamon and mix until well combined.

Use a 1/3 cup measuring cup to scoop out the batter into 12 equally sized cookies.  Use your hands to roll into balls.  Combine the remaining sugar with ½ tsp cinnamon and roll each cookie in the mixture before placing on a baking sheet.  You should be able to fit 6 cookies per sheet, leaving a little space in between.  Press down slightly with the palm of your hand to flatten to about 3/4-inch thick.  Bake for 12-15 minutes.

Let the cookies cool for about 5 minutes then transfer to a cooling rack to cool completely.  I like to slide the parchment paper off the baking sheet and pull it directly onto the cooling rack.  Then I don’t disturb the cookies with a spatula and the cookies don’t get lines on the bottom from the cooling rack.

Once cool, make the cream cheese frosting.  Add the cream cheese, butter, heaping spoonful of dulce de leche, and vanilla extract to the bowl of a stand mixer and beat until well combined.  Add the powdered sugar and salt and beat until well combined.  Add the frosting to a piping bag and snip the corner (or use a Ziploc bag).  Set aside.

Add a spoonful of dulce de leche to the top of each cookie (about 1 – 1 ½ Tbsp) and use the back of the spoon to spread around.  Use a 2D star tip to pipe a large dollop of frosting in the center of each cookie.  Enjoy!

Store any leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge.

The recipe can be found here.

Next up are Soft & Chewy Cookies & Cream Cookies.  These cookies are packed with Oreo pieces, taste like a milkshake, and have a delightful buttercream frosting on top.  They are incredibly sweet and rich but will be a hit to anyone that tries on.  My favorite part is the little bonus cooked garnish on top.

The recipe can be found here.

Start by preheating the oven to 350 degrees F.  Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside.

Add the butter, sugar, and powdered sugar to the bowl of a stand mixer and cream together.  Add the egg and vanilla extract and mix until well combined.  Add the flour, cornstarch, baking soda, and salt and mix until combined.

Add the Oreos to a Ziploc bag and use a rolling pin or meat mallet to crush into small pieces.  Add to the stand mixer and mix until combined – you can also mix by hand to prevent the pieces from becoming smaller.

Scoop the batter into 8 equally sized cookies.  Use your hands to roll into balls.  Place on the baking sheet, evenly spaced.  Press down slightly with the palm of your hand to flatten to about 3/4-inch thick.  Bake for 10-12 minutes.

Let the cookies cool for about 5 minutes then transfer to a cooling rack to cool completely.  I like to slide the parchment paper off the baking sheet and pull it directly onto the cooling rack.  Then I don’t disturb the cookies with a spatula and the cookies don’t get lines on the bottom from the cooling rack.

Once cool, make the cookies & cream frosting.  Add the butter to the bowl of a stand mixer and beat until smooth.  Add the powdered sugar, vanilla extract, and heavy cream and beat until well combined.  Add the Oreos to a Ziploc bag and use a rolling pin or meat mallet to crush into small pieces.  Add to the stand mixer and mix until combined.  Add a large dollop of the frosting to each cookie and use the back of the spoon to spread around.  Garnish with a piece of Oreo or a mini-Oreo and enjoy!

Store any leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge.

The recipe can be found here.

Last up is Soft & Chewy Peanut Butter Cup Cookies.  These might be my favorite of the 4 kinds but I’m a sucker for anything chocolate and peanut butter.  The cookies are PACKED with peanut butter, have peanut butter cups IN the batter, have more peanut butter cups on top, and are coated in a super sweet and melty peanut butter frosting.  What more could you want?

The recipe can be found here.

Start by preheating the oven to 350 degrees F.  Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper and set aside.

Add the butter, peanut butter, brown sugar, and sugar to the bowl of a stand mixer and cream together.  Add the eggs and vanilla extract and mix until well combined.  Add the flour, baking soda, baking powder, cornstarch, and salt and mix until just combined.

Chop the entire bag of Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups.  Add about 1 cup to the dough and mix to combine.  Reserve the rest for later.

Scoop the batter into 8 equally sized cookies.  Use your hands to roll into balls.  Place on the baking sheet, evenly spaced.  Press down slightly with the palm of your hand to flatten to about 3/4-inch thick.  Bake for 12-15 minutes.

Let the cookies cool for about 5 minutes then transfer to a cooling rack to cool completely.  I like to slide the parchment paper off the baking sheet and pull it directly onto the cooling rack.  Then I don’t disturb the cookies with a spatula and the cookies don’t get lines on the bottom from the cooling rack.

Once cool, make the peanut butter topping.  Add the Reese’s peanut butter CHIPS (not the cups) and the coconut oil to a microwave safe bowl.  Heat in 30 second increments until melted and smooth, stirring in between.  Add a spoonful of the mixture to the top of each cookie and use the back of a spoon to spread around.

Top with the remaining chopped Reese’s peanut butter CUPS.  Serve warm and enjoy!

Store any leftovers in an airtight container on the counter.  Heat in the microwave for about 10 seconds to soften the peanut butter topping before enjoying leftovers.

The recipe can be found here.

Do any of these catch your eye or make your mouth water?  I recommend trying them all, but I would also skip a meal to simply have more dessert 😊

Happy Baking!