Chocolate Chip Cheesecake Cookies

November is a busy month for our family – and not just because of thanksgiving. We transition our gardens over for the winter, reinforce our chicken coop for cold weather and begin decorating our home for the holidays. My birthday and opening day of firearm season for whitetail deer falls around the same time and I find myself spending more time in the kitchen cooking and baking. I love being able to fill my family’s bellies with warm and delicious food while we work hard in the transition of seasons.

I love the way the mini chocolate chips add a fun cocoa surprise to each bite. You can absolutely substitute full sized baking chips, toffee pieces, nonpareils or even mini M&Ms. I wouldn’t substitute with fruit pieces or anything too moist – this dough is incredibly sticky to begin with; adding more moisture would likely make these cookies spread too much or collapse. I use a manual releasing cookie scoop to divide out this dough to prevent a huge mess. If you’re okay with sticky fingers you can absolutely pinch off balls of dough and drop them onto the baking pan.

Fresh out of the oven the cookies have a slightly crunchy exterior with a creamy soft interior. I prefer my cookies to have a snap to them; however, these are an exception. Storing the cookies overnight in an airtight container really makes the magic happen for these cookies. They become moist and soft – more like the consistency of cheesecake. These will last four to five days in an airtight container at room temperature. They will also last for about three months in the freezer.

Ingredients:

8 ounces of cream cheese – softened
1/2 cup butter – softened
2 eggs – room temperature
1 teaspoon of vanilla extract
2 1/2 cups of powdered sugar
3 1/2 cups of flour
2 tablespoons of cornstarch
1 teaspoon of baking soda
1 teaspoon of baking powder
1 cup of mini chocolate chips

Method:

Preheat oven to 350°F.
Line a baking sheet with a silicone baking mat or parchment paper and set aside.
Cream together cream cheese, butter, eggs and vanilla until smooth.
Slowly add powdered sugar until mixed through.
In a separate bowl sift together flour, cornstarch, baking soda and baking powder.
Slowly add dry mixture to the wet mixture scraping down the sides often.
Gently fold in chocolate chips; do not over mix.
Drop cookies onto baking sheet in two tablespoon sized balls.
Bake for 15-16 minutes or until cookies turn light brown and start to crack on the top.
Allow to cool for 5 minutes on the baking pan before transferring to cooling racks.

This recipe yields approximately three dozen cookies.