Sunday, July 18, 2010

Pretzel Cookies with Chocolate & Peanut Butter Chips


It seems like the culinary world has been slightly obsessed with the salty/sweet combination lately. I keep seeing salted caramel desserts and fleur de sel sprinkled on top of various desserts. I for one, am completely for this. Once I made the infamous NY Times chocolate chip cookie recipe with sea salt sprinkled on top, I was hooked. So when I had a bunch of left over pretzel salt from making soft pretzels, I knew exactly what I would do with it.

These cookies were awesome. I loved what the pretzels added to the cookie. They stayed nice and crispy, which was a great contrast to the chewy cookie. And of course you can't go wrong with milk chocolate chips and peanut butter chips.

I absolutely loved the combination of pretzel, milk chocolate, and peanut butter and I would make these again in a second. The only change I might make next time is to the base cookie recipe. I strayed from my normal recipe because I wanted to find a recipe that made less cookies (strange, I know). This recipe was good, but if you have a favorite cookie recipe feel free to use that instead.

Another note about these cookies is that they did not spread very much for me. The first batch barely spread at all, so I smushed down the second batch a little before putting them in the oven.

Recipe: Chocolate & Peanut Butter Chip Pretzel Cookies
Makes 24 cookies
Ingredients:
  • 1 1/2 cups of all purpose flour
  • 1/2 tsp. of salt
  • 1/4 tsp. of baking soda
  • 1/2 cup of butter at room temperature
  • 1/2 cup of tightly packed light brown sugar
  • 1/3 cup of granulated sugar
  • 1 egg (beaten)
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract
  • 1 cup milk chocolate chips
  • 1/2 cup peanut butter chips
  • 1/2 cup broken up pretzel pieces
  • Preztel Salt or Sea Salt

Directions:

  1. In a medium bowl, sift together the flour, baking soda, and salt. Set aside.
  2. In a larger bowl, beat the butter and sugars together on medium speed until light and fluffy (about 2-3 minutes). On low speed, slowly add the beaten egg and vanilla extract. Beat to combine, scrape down the sides of the bowl.
  3. Add the flour mixture and beat just until there are no more streaks of flour. Stir in the chocolate chips, peanut butter chips, and preztels. Cover and refrigerate for an hour.
  4. Preheat the oven to 350F. Line baking sheets with parchment paper. Scoop out well rounded tablespoonfuls of the dough and sprinkle with pretzel salt. Leave about 2 inches between each ball. Bake for 10 minutes. If you prefer crispier cookies increase the baking time by 1-2 minutes. Allow the cookies to cool on the baking sheet for a few minutes before removing.

83 comments:

  1. What a fantastic idea, and they look really cool too

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  2. Yum, I love the sweet & salty combo!

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  3. Looks and sounds delicious!

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  4. Wow!! Those look great. It seems like the pretz el & cookie combo is becoming very popular. I made a similar version a few weeks ago, but mine had rolo's in them. The sea salt on top of yours sounds really yummy. If your interested in how I made mine you can check them out here: http://www.madewithpink.com/2010/07/chocolate-cookie-pretzel-rolo.html

    Have you tried the cookies with chips in them? I want to try those next :)

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  5. Those sound delicious with the peanut butter chips!! I make them all the time (I keep getting requests for these cookies!!) and found that the pretzels prevent the cookie from flattening and spreading in the oven. Check mine out here: http://cookteen.blogspot.com/2010/05/sweet-and-salty-cookie.html

    I love the sweet and salty combo!!

    With love and cupcakes,
    Cookteen

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  6. awesome idea! all those ingredients in a cookie would make me very happy :)

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  7. I stumbled on your blog and am happy to become your 100th follower! I love your blog and can't wait to go through all your recipes. These cookies look like something I need to bake soon. Perhaps this week even. Great pix too! Thanks for sharing.

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  8. MadeWithPink - Rolos in Cookies?!?!?! What an amazing idea! Your cookies look so good!

    CookTeen - I had never thought that it might be the pretzels keeping the cookies from spreading. I thought it was just the cookie recipe I used. Interesting indeed.

    Tease-spoon of sugar - Yay! I was hoping to get to 100 followers soon. Thanks for stopping by! :)

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  9. these look incredible!!! I am so excited to try them---I cannot get enough of pretzels lately but combining with cookies sounds like an even better idea :)

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  10. I am so glad I "found" your blog....these cookies look awesome! chocolate/pretzels/cookies....I'm drooling! Can't wait to make them!

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  11. The kids and I are making these this week! They look absolutely delicious!

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  12. I made these cookies yesterday, and my sister ate at least nine once i took them out of the oven. They were GREAT!

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  13. These cookies looked so interesting I just had to try them! They were amazing and I will definitely make them again.

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  14. I made something just like these tonight and loved them!
    http://damegoodeats.blogspot.com

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  15. hey!
    this recipe looks awesome!
    sadly i don't think i can find peanut butter chips, is there someway to replace it with normal peanut butter?

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  16. I replaced them with a quarter of a cup of peanut butter after adding the egg and vanilla to the sugar and butter mixture. I don't have anything to compare them to, but I think they're pretty good.

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  17. The cookies are delish, my daughter and I just whipped up a batch. I used a different base cookie recipe and subbed out half of the chocolate chips for toffee bits. Sooo good, thanks for sharing.

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  18. Yum! As a pregnant gal nearing the end of her first trimester, I'm powerless to my cravings. I spotted these when someone posted them on Pinterest and I knew I was a goner!

    I used white chocolate chips in place of the peanut butter chips (as I didn't have any on hand), and I had some dark chocolate discs that I chopped in place of the milk chocolate chips (also didn't have any on hand). I'm waiting for my sainted husband to get home with the pretzels, at which time I'll stir 'em in and give these cookies a whirl.

    Thanks for making me (and my tiny peanut) oh so happy tonight!

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  19. CB - white chocolate chips sound like an amazing addition! I'm pregnant as well and I swear pretzels were all I ate during my first trimester! Those pregnant cravings are not to be messed with. :)

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  20. Must try this! I have done something like this with oreos!

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  21. My husband loves pretzels and these are fabulous!

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  22. Thanks for sharing... these are so good!

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  23. I just made these, but I replaced the peanut butter chips with butterscotch chips - SOOOOOOO good!!

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  24. Holy deliciousness! So glad I found your blog, these cookies are BEAUTIFUL! I just did a quick skim of your recipes and I'm instantly hooked. I am your newest follower :)

    http://steaknpotatoeskindagurl.blogspot.com

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  25. I'm baking them now. I chilled dough for 1 hr as indicated. I pressed down-lightly-on the cookies before baking. My cookies totally spread...at least this first cookie sheet-ful. Why did they spread out so much??????

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  26. I pinned this recipe a week ago and made them today. Dee-lish!!

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  27. Found these on Pinterest and made them today. So wonderful, thanks for sharing!

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  28. Woah. My stomach just growled as a request for me to make this.
    I think I could eat that whole entire plate. No joke.

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  29. My friend made these last week and brought them to bible study. YUM! I'm waiting on my batch to cool before passing out to my inlaws this weekend. Thanks so much for sharing the recipe!

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  30. I made these last weekend, they were fantastic! Everyone loved them. I already have my infamous snickerdoodle cookies but I can see these quickly climbing toward the top of my familes favorite list and becoming a real competitor for the new favorite! Thank you for sharing this recipe!

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  31. Whoaaa yes please! Also, major props on your photography. :)

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  32. I made these for a retirement/block/football party. My aunt grabbed one and before she finished it, she grabbed another. I feel as they were a success. My great aunt had four. My coworkers were jealous of the pic I posted on FB so I have dough in the fridge waiting to be baked. Thanks so very much!

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  33. I made these cookies just to try something new....I now bake them for everything and there is never any of them left....thanks they are awesome!

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  34. I made these tonight - they were a hit! Delicious!

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  35. These are delicious! Thank you for sharing. =)

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  36. THIS may be my new Christmas cookie! :)
    Can't wait to try it!

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  37. These are delicious! Don't forget the salt on top that makes the cookie.

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  38. Super tasty flavor combo! I think next time I make these, I'll either add less of the chocolate/peanut butter chips and pretzels or make more of the cookie dough.

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  39. I just made these last night and they came out pretty good. They look exactly like the picture. I would recommend NOT adding the pretzel salt to the top of the dough before putting them in the oven. They come out wayyyyyyy too salty. The salt for the pretzels is plenty. After throwing out a batch I liked the rest. Yummy!

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  40. Just made these amazing cookies for a swap and they were a hit. Absolutely my new favorite cookie ever!!!!!

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  41. Just made these and they are so yummy! I didn't have pb chips on hand so i used Reese's pieces and they turned out great. (i could have just eaten the dough!). Thanks for the recipe!

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  42. I made these today and they are wonderful. They have become one of my new "Favorites" :-)

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  43. Found these on pinterest and just made and they were SO delicious!

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  44. We are having these for Super Bowl party, they sounds incredible! I love the salty/sweet combo, & chocolate & peanut butter....Wow!

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  45. Super Bowl Cookies 2012! My first pinterest recipe shared with friends, big hit! Easy to get hooked on both pinterest and these cookies.

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  46. Super popular Super Bowl cookie. Love pinterest sharing and this sweet/salty combo cookie.

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  47. We made these for the Super Bowl last night. They are the best mouthful of joy you can bake! Salty, sweet & chocolate/peanut butter...what could not be good about that. The pretzels add so much to the cookie, we made them small and ate them all!

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  48. these cookies are delish! so easy, too!

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  49. Sarah, YUM! I just started a blog reviewing recipes found on Pinterest. Here's this one: http://pineatreview.wordpress.com/2012/02/10/pretzel-cookies-with-peanut-butter-and-chocolate-chips/. (I was sure to give you credit throughout.) Thanks for posting! --Denise

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  50. Mmmmmm! Made these for v-day, substituting red, pink, and white m&ms for the PB chips. Also used semi-sweet instead of milk choc chips, bought by mistake. I used Splenda instead of the white sugar, too, and my hubby couldn't even tell. Best part is the salt on top! Deeeee-lish! Thanks so much!

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  51. These were really good! Made them over the weekend and my husband and I nearly demolished them all :-/ I didn't have peanut butter chips, so I used a combo of white chocolate and dark chocolate chips in their place. I was happy to have all the ingredients for these cookies on hand. Thanks for the recipe...I'll definitely be making them again!

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  52. My daughter made these cookies and they are my new favorites! I just wrote about them on my blog:
    http://wearpunctuation.blogspot.com/

    I just started following your blog and can't wait to try out some more recipes!

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  53. I think I gained like 5 pounds just looking at these luscious cookies!

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  54. are you okay if I pin this to my Pinterest board?

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  55. I made these and they did not turn out anything like the photo. I followed all the directions correctly.

    I try new recipes all the time off Pinterest and this is the first one that didn't turn out despite all the positive comments.

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  56. They look awesome! And as a fellow lover of salty & sweet, I'm going to have to give these a try one day. Thanks!

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  57. My mouth is salivating just looking at these photos! I can't wait to give these a try!

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  58. These things are AMAZING. I made a batch yesterday and my roommate called them "crack cookies" haha. However I didn't have peanut butter chips & instead used butterscotch chips, and they were still so good. I'm going to be making this recipe for many years to come!

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  59. Also, I just wrote about you in my blog and gave this cookie recipe out (and of course linked it back here)! :)

    http://hope-like-an-anchor.blogspot.com/2012/03/sweet-and-salty-yes-please.html

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  60. These were excellent! I used choc. and white chips as that's what I had on hand. I used a 1/4 scoop and pressed flat and they made a tasty chewy cookies. Of course they were best directly from the oven but still pretty addicting after they cooled off. Thanks for sharing!

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  61. I am making these cookies again today to take to a new Mommy! (And a few to keep around here) They have become the go to cookie in my house.

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  62. The salt on top sounded weird but I loved it, I forgot on the first batch and the second batch was so much better! I personally will do 3/4 cup each of the chocolate chips & peanut butter chips next time because I love peanut butter! Thanks for the recipe

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  63. I tried your recipe and I loved the cookies. They are the perfect combination of sweet and salty. Thanks for sharing.

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  64. I made these last night with one twist.... I used my 4-flour blend (bran, rye, whole wheat, & all purpose) that I am now replacing almost all of my baking & cooking with. I was a little worried when I started mixing that it would be a huge flop. The dough was sooooo stiff! I couldn't begin to mix the chips in with the mixer and re-read the recipe a couple times, making sure there wasn't a liquid item that I had overlooked. I hand mixed in the chips, but there was no way I could mix in the pretzel bits. The batter was so crumbly that we ended up using our hands to pick out dough, making sure we had a blend of pb & choc chips and then adding pretzel chips right to our hands and making a ball. It was time consuming! All that being said, the cookies are Deeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeelicious! And the whole grain bang that I snuck in doesn't take anything away from them at all. There is a bit of a nuttier undertone (more due to the rye flour than anything else, I am sure). But the guilt factor I had after eating my 3rd one was SO much less than it would have been otherwise! Totally worth making again! A delicious sweet, yet salty treat! (I won't declare my version as "healthy" but "less-guilt" yes!) :)

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  65. Thank you for the recipe! Seriously the best cookies EVER! Salty and sweet are the best combo... New family favorite!

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  66. My batch is in the frig right now. I'm trying a slightly different version and I hope it turns out. I didn't have the peanut butter chips so I added 1 Tblsp of real peanut butter. The batter was delicious. Hopefully the cookies will keep their shape and consistency. And I was thinking that the 100% peanut butter does make it a bit "healthier" ... If there is such a thing : )

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  67. Can't wait to try these!!!

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  68. I will be making these and sending them to my hubby in Afghanistan! Thank you :)

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  69. I saw this on Pinterest and I have to say you have the best cookie dough recipe. It's the perfect mixture of sweet & salty!

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  70. These cookies look like a little piece of heaven! Thank you for sharing!

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  71. just made these and they turned out great! wonderful combo of flavors! yumm

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  72. These look amazing! Found you on Pinterest :)

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  73. This is my fourth time making them this month because everyone LOVES them. Thanks for the recipe!

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  74. i made them :) yummy! i used butterscotch chips instead, but they turned out great and super easy to make too!

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  75. would u use salted butter or unsalted? making theae tonite!

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  76. is the sea/pretzel salt really necessary or could you go without it?

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  77. Tried them tonight used dark chocolate chips instead of milk choc. YUM!

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  78. These are some of the best cookies I've had!!! We made them yesterday, and they were an instant classic.

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  79. Made these last night and they were AWESOME!!!!! Thanks for sharing!!

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  80. I love sweet/salty combos! These sound SO good!

    I'm on the quest for the best chocolate chip cookie recipes and I hope you'll consider adding this post to the Chocolate Chip Cookie Challenge link-up on Aug 15th. Learn more here: http://bit.ly/NOm7mT

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