Cookie Dough Truffles

"What's better than cookie dough?  Cookie dough covered in chocolate!" - a very true statement exclaimed by a friend this weekend.  We had a wonderful weekend with some of our college friends back in our college town.  It was so great to see them and spend time outside in the sun playing lawn games, laughing, talking, sitting around the bonfire, and of course, eating wonderful food all weekend!  We hit up a couple of our favorite restaurants, but mostly enjoyed some home cooked food.  Thank you Hannah for the delicious brunch, and everything else you made all weekend!  I brought these cookie dough truffles and they were a hit - people were asking for more after they were gone!  Next time I might have to make a double batch :)  The best part is, they tasted just like cookie dough - but there are no eggs in them, so they are safe to eat!

Cookie Dough Truffles

Ingredients:
8 tbsp. unsalted butter, at room temperature
¾ cup light brown sugar, packed
2¼ cup all-purpose flour
1 (14 oz.) can sweetened condensed milk
1 tsp. vanilla extract
½ cup mini semisweet chocolate chips
1½ lb. semisweet (or bittersweet) chocolate, coarsely chopped
Mini chocolate chips (for garnish)

Directions: 
Combine the butter and sugar in a mixing bowl and cream on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes.  Beat in the flour, sweetened condensed milk and vanilla until incorporated and smooth.  Stir in the chocolate chips.  Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate until the mixture has firmed up enough to form balls.

Shape the chilled cookie dough mixture into 1-1½ inch balls.  Place on a baking sheet lined with wax paper.  Cover loosely, transfer the pan to the freezer and chill for 1-2 hours.

When ready to dip the truffles, melt the chopped chocolate in a heatproof bowl set over a pot of simmering water.  Dip each chilled truffle, one at a time, coating in chocolate and shaking gently to remove the excess.  (If at any point during dipping, the cookie dough balls become too soft, return to the freezer to chill for 30 minutes.)  Transfer to a wax-paper lined surface.  If using mini chocolate chips for garnish, sprinkle on top quickly after dipping each truffle before the chocolate sets.  Once all the truffles have been dipped, store them in the refrigerator until ready to serve.

Source: Annie's Eats, originally from Taste of Home