Scrumptious Turtle Cookies
Please note: No turtles will be harmed in the making of these cookies!
This recipe for Scrumptious Turtle Cookies is actually inspired by the delicious candy that people often make during the holiday season: a stellar combination of creamy caramel, crunchy pecans, and smooth chocolate.
The candy was originally named “Turtle Candy” because (when it was first marketed) a salesman noted that the shape of the pecans under the chocolate looked like a turtle shell. While these Turtle Cookies don’t look like turtles (and thankfully, don’t taste like them) they are extremely reminiscent of the famous Turtle Candy that we all know and love. If you like chocolate, caramel, and pecans, you will adore these scrumptious Turtle Cookies!
NOTE: If you homeschool or have children or grandchildren who enjoy doing fun educational activites, click over to Only Passionate Curiosity and download an All About Sea Turtles unit study! You’ll find links to other sea life unit study ideas and a fun DIY Turtle Plushie Craft too!
To start off, you’re going to cream together the sugar and butter in a large mixing bowl. I like to use both white and brown sugar for this recipe. I think that the brown sugar enhances the caramel flavor and texture!
After your butter and sugar are thoroughly whipped together (about 2 minutes), you can add the egg and vanilla extract and beat together for one more minute.
In a separate, medium-sized bowl, whisk together the: flour, baking soda, and salt. Add this dry mixture in gradually to the butter and sugar mixture, while continuing to beat it together.
Now you get to add the three ingredients that really make this cookie special: caramel, chocolate, and pecans! You can use the amounts listed in the recipe below, or adjust it according to your own personal preferences. You really can’t go wrong. It just depends on how you like your chocolate/caramel/nut ratio.
One thing I’ve found that makes these cookies so much easier is using these pre-packaged caramel bits! You can just throw them into whatever you’re baking, and they melt into gooey, delicious caramel. It’s way quicker and easier than making your own or having to mess around with tons of individually-wrapped caramel candies.
After you’ve added in the chocolate, caramel, and pecans, fold them gently into the cookie dough.
Refrigerate the dough for 2 hours or overnight. Refrigerating your cookie dough is a great trick to use for any cookie. It helps the flavors have time to merge together and also helps the cookies hold their shape better as they bake in the oven. This last part is especially important for this cookie because of its gooey components!
After your cookie dough has set up in the fridge for at least a couple of hours, preheat your oven to 350F and line a cookie sheet with parchment paper. Scoop approximately 1 Tbs of cookie dough (per cookie) onto the sheet. (This will make about 36 cookies!)
Bake for 13-15 minutes until lightly golden.
When you pull your cookies out of the oven, allow them to cool for about a minute on the sheet before gently transferring them to a cooling rack.
We hope you enjoy these Scrumptious Turtle Cookies! (I think they also make a great gift, packaged in little cellophane bags.)
Let us know if you make them and love them! And don’t forget to click this link to find out how to download your All About Sea Turtles unit study and your DIY Plushie Turtle Craft!
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Scrumptious Turtle Cookies
- Yield: 36 1x
Description
These scrumptious Turtle cookies transform delicious Turtle Candy into cookie form. They are loaded with creamy caramel, crunchy pecans and smooth chocolate!
Ingredients
1/2 cup butter
2 Tablespoons white sugar
1 cup brown sugar
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup chocolate chips
1 cup caramel chips
1/2 cup pecan pieces
Instructions
In a large bowl, beat together the butter, white sugar and brown sugar for 2 minutes until light and fluffy.
Add the egg and vanilla extract and combine for one minute.
In a separate medium-sized bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda and salt.
Add half of the dry mixture to the butter mixture, beat thoroughly, then add remaining half.
Add chocolate chips, caramel chips, and pecan pieces, to taste.
Refrigerate the dough for 2 hours or overnight.
Preheat oven to 350F
Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat.
Use a 1 Tablespoon cookie scoop to portion out cookie dough onto the prepared cookie sheet.
Bake for 13-15 minutes until lightly golden.
Cool for one minute on the sheet before removing to a cooling rack.
