Oatmeal Fudge Cookie Cups

          

               With my boyfriend out of town and very little schoolwork to complete, I knew that I was able to put my books, razor, and shaving cream away this weekend and bake.What a change of pace! From the schoolwork side of things that is; I rarely shave my legs. So I grabbed a glass (bowl) of wine and decided to browse my good ol' Pinterest page, which since my last blog post has been "hacked". Who hacks a Pinterest profile? Unless they are dying to see what type of wedding I will eventually never have, or learn the secret to keeping rust, stains, and pesky husbands out of the kitchen- I really see no point. Anyways, amongst the newly pinned "Weight-Loss Miracles" by my oddly motivating hacker, I found this wonderful cookie cup recipe. It was perfect timing because just the other day I rediscovered my tiny muffin tins along with my hatred for cleaning out old cabinets. However, after eating a few of these chocolate filled treats, I wouldn't even mind sorting through the worst hoarder's house. Besides the lie I told last weekend as to why I couldn't join my parents at church, these cookies are the best thing I've made in a long time. If you like oatmeal chocolate chip cookies, fudge, and being a hermit in your kitchen, these cookies are for you! But don't just take my word for it, get your cats off your lap and eyes off the computer and go bake these right now.

"Oatmeal Fudge Cookie Cups" 

Ingredients:
      Cookie layer:

• 1 cup butter, softened
• 2 cups brown sugar
• 2 eggs
• 2 1/2 cups flour
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp salt
• 3 cups quick cooking oats (you can use normal and just crush them a bit)
• 1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips (mini or normal)
• 1 Tbsp vanilla extract

      Fudge layer:

• 14 oz. can sweetened condense milk
• 2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips
• 3 Tbs. butter
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 Tbsp vanilla extract

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly spray mini muffin tins with oil or cooking spray. 
2. In large bowl, beat butter and brown sugar till fluffy. 
3. Mix in eggs and vanilla extract. 
4. In separate bowl, combine flour, oats, salt, and baking soda. Stir this into butter mixture until fully mixed. Stir in chocolate chips and set aside. 
5. For fudge, in medium sauce pan heat sweetened condense milk, butter, chocolate chips, and salt over low heat stirring occasionally.
6. Remove pan from heat and stir in the 1 Tbsp. vanilla extract
7. Scoop a small amount of cookie dough into muffin tin (about 1/2 filled) and place a dollop of fudge into pan.
8. Dot each remaining cup with a little extra cookie dough as to create a marbled appearance. 
9. Bake for 10-13 minutes. Let cool completely. If you have a hard time removing from pan, use a knife to loosen edges. 
10. Makes about 48 cookies

    

             Honestly, you cannot go wrong with this recipe. Even though it made enough cookies to feed an all male college dorm, these babies were gone in two days. With the holidays fast approaching, I know many of you will be looking for something delicious to impress your future mother-in-law. Well, this is it! Although I cannot guarantee that you will be able to pry yourself away from them in order to actually package these treats up for others. As always, a huge thanks to Baking with Melissa for showing me the light. Enjoy the holiday spirit and spirits this festive season! Lord knows I will.

                        Number of Pinterest recipes completed: 20
                        I declare this recipe: something that will last as long as the "Harlem Shake" obsession