This is a fabulously rich, chocolate brownie cookie, rolled in pecans, filled with caramel and drizzled with chocolate.  Now if that doesn’t peak your interest, I don’t know what will.  Chewy, gooey, crunchy and oh my goodness,  so delicious.

Turtle Thumbprints

(adapted from Tastes Better from Scratch, The Kitchen is my Playground, America’s Test Kitchen)

Cookie ingredients:

2 cups all purpose flour

2/3 cup cocoa powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 cup (two sticks) butter

1 and 1/3 cup sugar

2 large eggs, separated

4 tablespoons milk

2 teaspoons vanilla

2 cups pecans, finely chopped

Caramel Filling:

1 bag Kraft Caramel bits

1 teaspoon water

Drizzle:

3/4 cup chocolate chips plus 1 teaspoon shortening

Directions:

Sift flour, cocoa and salt into a large bowl; set aside. Using a heavy duty mixer, cream butter and sugar. Add egg yolks one at a time; mix in milk and vanilla.  Slowly add flour/cocoa in four parts, mixing just until combined. Chill at least one hour in an airtight container. Dough can be made in advance and chilled for several days. You will need to bring it back to room temperature so that it is soft enough to work with.

Prepare baking pans. Line with silpat or parchment paper. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Roll the dough into small balls, whatever size you prefer. I used a cookie scoop 1 and 1/2 inch wide and 1 inch deep, which made 38 cookies.

In a small bowl, whisk egg whites until frothy. Add chopped pecans to a shallow bowl. Roll dough balls in egg whites, then roll in chopped pecans, pressing nuts into dough. Use your thumb or a small spoon (a 1/2 teaspoon measuring spoon works well) to make a small well in the center of each cookie ball. Refrigerate cookies on cookie sheet for 10 minutes then bake for 12 minutes, just until set. Remove from oven and re-press center. Cookies will appear under cooked, but will firm up when cooled. Do not over bake. Cool on cookie sheet for 5 minutes, then move to wire rack to finish cooling.

In microwave safe bowl or measuring cup, microwave caramel bits and water in 30 second intervals until melted and smooth. (I separated into 2 batches) Carefully fill center of cookie with caramel. When caramel has set, drizzle with chocolate.

For chocolate drizzle, microwave chips and shortening in thirty second intervals until melted. Stir until smooth. Use a decorating squeeze bottle or fill a plastic sandwich bag and snip the corner, squeezing to drizzle chocolate over cookies.  Let chocolate set before storing in an airtight container.