Christmas Party Cookies

This might be the third time I’m posting on these cookies. These 4-ingredient wonders are worth it. They’re not the kind of thing you make just to “have around” unless you’re asking for 10 pounds and a muffin top for Christmas. But bring them to a holiday party, and you’ll leave with some new bffs.

Oreo Truffles

1 package Oreos
1 package cream cheese, softened
1 package semi-sweet chocolate chips
2-3 candy canes, shattered (a hammer works nicely)

In a food processor, blend Oreos until the consistency of sand. Dump mixture into a large bowl and add cream cheese. With your hands, blend Oreo mixture with cream cheese until a cohesive ball of dough is formed. Roll mixture into 1” balls and lay on cookie sheet. Stick balls into the freezer while you melt the chocolate in large bowl set over a pot of boiling water. When balls are chilled, remove from the freezer and one by one dip balls into the melted chocolate and place back on cookie sheet covered in wax paper, and sprinkle with crumbled candy cane. Repeat with remaining balls and store in the refrigerator.

I’m not going to lie to you - because that would be wrong - so I will tell you: these cookies are made from a boxed mix… which is also wrong. I frown upon that behavior (unless they’re Ghiradelli brownies!) but I was only trying to spend half of my Saturday in the kitchen, not all of it. The Trader Joe’s boxed sugar cookie mix is great in a pinch, and it comes with colored sanding sugar. I opted out of the reindeer and awkward Santa-shaped cookie cutters, and rolled my dough into a log. I rolled this Americanized Buche de Noel in the sanding sugar and sliced into cookies.

TJ also provides icing, however it is a runny mess. I mixed in a few tablespoons of powdered sugar and a drop of lemon juice (for flavor) to thicken the glaze. Once all of the cookies were glazed, I dropped food coloring onto the glaze and used a tooth pick to make Christmassy designs.

These cookies were very Sandra Lee of me, but the holidays are busy times! And people will like them – I swear.