Introduction: Tootsie Roll Cookies

About: I enjoy making random things off instructables and making my own things. I play the violin and have played for 9 years. I occasionally bake and cook, but I'm usually reading or listening to music.

After Halloween was over all I had left were Tootsie Rolls. I don't understand why kids don't like them because I think they're awesome, but that doesn't matter. So, one day I thought of putting Tootsie Rolls in my sugar cookie dough and they ended up tasting just like a chocolate chip cookie! 

This recipe yields about 3 dozen cookies.

Step 1: Crush the Tootsie Rolls

Take your Tootsie Rolls and fill resealable bags with them. (Make sure the wrapper is still on, because they will come off when you crush them.) Keep them in the freezer over night so that the Tootsie Rolls are rock hard. The next day, take the Tootsie Rolls out of the bag and crush them with a hammer, a frying pan, or whatever else you have laying around that could shatter the Tootsie Rolls. The pieces should be no bigger than the size of a chocolate chunk. Gather the shattered pieces and put them in a bowl. Repeat this until you have approximately 2 cups of Tootsie Roll pieces. Make sure all of the wrapper comes off the Tootsie Roll. If there is still a wrapper on it, obviously, you should take it off and through it away. Keep the shattered Tootsie Roll pieces in the freezer while you make the cookie dough, otherwise they will get really sticky.

Step 2: Alternative Crushing Methods

If you don't like hitting the Tootsie Rolls with a hard object, or you still have really large Tootsie Roll pieces, try cutting them with a sharp knife. It is a little trickier and you have to apply a lot of force to cut them, but they turn out exactly the same way as the crushing method.

Step 3: Preheat the Oven

After crushing the Tootsie Rolls and putting them in the freezer, preheat your oven to 350 F and line a cookie sheet with parchment paper. Set aside.

Step 4: What You Will Need

For this recipe you will need:

2 1/2 cups of flour
1 cup of softened butter
1 1/2 cups of sugar
2 teaspoons of vanilla
1 teaspoon of baking soda
1 egg
2 cups of crushed Tootsie Rolls

Step 5: Making the Dough

Cream together 1 cup of butter and 1 1/2 cups of sugar in a large bowl. Beat until light and fluffy. Add in 2 teaspoons of vanilla and 1 egg and mix until everything is blended. In a smaller bowl mix 2 1/2 cups of flour and 1 teaspoon of baking powder. Gradually mix in the flour mixture to the butter mixture. Continue this until dough is well mixed and doughy.

Step 6: Adding the Tootsie Rolls

Gradually fold in your Tootsie Roll pieces. Continue mixing until all 2 cups are in the dough and none are falling out of the dough.

Step 7: Rolling the Dough

Take the dough and roll it into half-dollar size balls. Put the dough on the parchment paper 1-2 inches apart  from each other.

Step 8: Bake and Enjoy

Bake the cookies at 350 F for 10-12 minutes. The outside edges of the cookies should be golden brown. Take the cookies out of the oven and let them rest 3-5 minutes on the cookie sheet before taking them off the pan to rest.

Once they are cool, eat your cookies and enjoy!