Probably My New Favorite Cookies...

These cookies are AWESOME (and beautiful!) I saw the picture in the cookbook and absolutely had to make them!
Ingredients:

1 Egg

1 stick butter

2/3 cup sugar

2 Tablespoons milk

1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla

1 cup flour

1/3 cup cocoa powder

1/4 teaspoon salt

16 caramels

3 tablespoons cream

1 1/4 cup finely chopped pecans

1/4 cup chocolate chips*

1/2 teaspoon shortening*

*NOTE* the original recipe called for twice the amount of chocolate chips and shortening, but I had SO much left over, that I reduced it.

Directions:

Separate Egg. 

Place yolk in one small bowl and white in another. Refrigerate white for later use. 

In a large bowl, beat butter for 30 seconds with an electric mixer. 

Add sugar, beat. 

Then add egg yolk, milk and vanilla.

Beat again.

In another bowl, add flour, cocoa and salt. 

Stir together until it looks like cake mix. 

Then add it to your other bowl. 

Then, beat it. Just beat it....

Wrap in plastic and refrigerate until firm (2 hours, give or take) While the dough is chilling, unwrap your caramels and chop your pecans. 

Then, heat your oven to 350 degrees. 

Lightly grease your cookie sheets you plan to use. (My favorite way is to put shortening on a paper towel, and rub it in.)

Remove cookie dough and the egg white from the refrigerator.  

Roll into balls about one inch. Dip them in egg white and roll them in pecans.

Make a small indent in the center of the cookies, using your thumb or the back of a spoon.

Bake for 10 minutes. 

Meanwhile, add your caramels and whipping cream to a small saucepan.

Heat over medium-low heat until smooth, stirring often. 

When you remove the cookies from the oven, your thumbprint indents may have disappeared a bit. Don't fret! Just use the back of a small spoon to re-dent while the cookies are still hot.

Then, transfer them to a cooking rack, and fill them with caramel. mmm....

And just when you thought they couldn't get any better....

Add your chocolate chips and your shortening to a small microwave-safe dish (Pyrex measuring cup works awesome!) 

Heat until melted, stirring often.

Then put into a freezer-weight plastic bag. 

Cut the tip off, just barely, so you have a teeny tiny hole that the chocolate can squirt out. 

Drizzle over the top of the cookies to make chocolate stripes. mmmm....

This may be the perfect cookie.

Are you hungry? Cause you should be...