Description

Chocolate Covered Pretzel Cookies are a delightful blend of sweet and salty flavors, combining buttery cookie dough with crunchy chocolate covered pretzels and rich chocolate chips. These cookies have a tender texture with a crispy pretzel topping, perfect for snack time or dessert.

Ingredients

Scale

Wet Ingredients

1 cup butter (softened)
3/4 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup white sugar
3.4 ounces instant vanilla pudding mix (1 box)
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 large eggs

Dry Ingredients

2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/8 teaspoon salt

Add-ins

1 1/2 cups chopped chocolate covered pretzels
1 cup chocolate chips
36 whole chocolate covered pretzels (for topping, optional)

Instructions

Preheat Oven: Preheat your oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit (190 degrees Celsius) to ensure it’s ready for baking the cookies.
Cream Butter and Sugars: In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, add the softened butter, brown sugar, and white sugar. Beat them together until the mixture is creamy and smooth.
Add Pudding Mix, Vanilla, and Eggs: Beat in the instant vanilla pudding mix, vanilla extract, and eggs until the mixture is well combined and smooth, which helps make the cookies moist and tender.
Incorporate Dry Ingredients: Gradually add the flour, baking soda, and salt to the wet mixture. Mix just until combined to avoid overworking the dough.
Fold in Pretzels and Chocolate Chips: Using a spatula, gently stir in the chopped chocolate covered pretzels and chocolate chips to distribute them evenly throughout the dough.
Scoop Dough and Bake: Use a medium cookie scoop to drop balls of dough onto a parchment-lined baking sheet, spacing them about 2 inches apart. Bake for 8 to 10 minutes until the edges are lightly golden.
Add Pretzel Topping: Remove the baking sheet from the oven and gently press one whole chocolate covered pretzel on top of each cookie while still warm.
Cool Cookies: Let the cookies cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes before transferring them to a wire rack to cool completely, allowing them to set properly and develop texture.

Notes

Be careful not to overmix the dough once the flour is added to keep the cookies tender.
You can substitute regular pretzels if chocolate covered ones are not available for a different flavor.
Pressing the pretzels on top after baking helps preserve their crunchiness.
Store cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 5 days.
For a softer cookie, slightly underbake and let them finish cooking on the baking sheet.

Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 10 minutes
Category: Dessert
Method: Baking
Cuisine: American

Keywords: chocolate pretzel cookies, easy cookie recipe, chocolate chip cookies, sweet and salty cookies, vanilla pudding cookies