Chocolate Buttersweets

This was a Pillsbury Bake Off recipe* but it is in many other places on the Internet like Cooks.com. The cookie is just a basic shortbread so the filling and icing really make them.

I leave out the nuts, of course. Since I always like cookies better without the nuts, I usually make them first without nuts and only try them with nuts later if it seems like they are missing something. These are not missing anything.

Recipe By:

Pillsbury Cookoff

Yield:

24

Ingredients:

1 ½ cups butter, softened

1 ½ cups powdered sugar

½ teaspoon salt

2 teaspoons vanilla

2 ½ cups flour, 11.25 ounces

6 ounces cream cheese

2 cups powdered sugar

1 ¼  cups  flour

1 cup walnuts, chopped

1 cup coconut

1 teaspoon vanilla

1 cup chocolate chips

¼  cup  water

¼  cup  butter

1 cup powdered sugar

Directions:

1. Heat oven to 350 degrees.

2. Cream 1 1/2 cups butter, 1 1/2 cup powdered sugar, salt, and 2 teaspoons vanilla.

3. Add 2 1/2 cups flour gradually. Mix well.

4. Shape into balls of 1 tablespoon each. Press onto ungreased cookie sheet. (I use parchment.) Make thumb print in center of each cookie. Bake 12-15 minutes until just browned around the edges. Top with filling while still warm.

5. Mix cream cheese, 2 cups powdered sugar, 1/4 cup flour, and 1 teaspoon vanilla. Stir in walnuts and coconut. Put about 2 teaspoons on each cookie while still warm.

6. Melt chocolate, water and 1/4 cup butter. (I use double boiler.)  Remove from heat.

7. Add 1 cup powdered sugar. Beat until smooth. (It will look curdled at first but will smooth out if you beat it will with a hand mixer.) Frost cooled cookies with about 1 teaspoon frosting on each cookie over filling. I put it in a quart-sized Zip-Lock bag, cut off the corner and gently squeezed the icing out over each cookie.

Notes:

* http://www.pillsbury.com/recipes/chocolate-buttersweets/08cb366f-709b-4cb3-ae56-722ea919722a