Baked Sunday Mornings: Chocolate Mint Thumbprints

CHOCOLATE HEAVEN

HAPPY HALLOWEEN EVERYONE!!!  Before I post with this group again, that fun holiday will be history, so I'll wish you all a fun and safe treat day.

THE ROLLING SUGAR

I'm baking for Fall holidays with the wonderful pumpkin, caramel, apple, cinnamon kinds of ingredients.  Mint with chocolate is a year round favorite, however, I'm into other things right now. ..especially since Halloween is in just over a week.  There are so many terrific seasonal favorites and other things to try this week.

DARK CHOCOLATE TRUFFLES (DUSTED WITH UNSWEETENED COCOA POWDER)

I did make the cookie base for these chocolate thumbprints, however, without the minty flavors.  Instead of a minty filling I chose to use a dark chocolate truffle filling mostly because today was very stressful...computer problems, a friend needing help at 6 am, another friend who lost her keys and asked me to help look for them...I actually found them in the middle of a busy intersection 3 miles from her home...miracle.  She had set them  on the hood of her car and had forgotten them when she went out to run her Saturday errands.  And on and on...things never stopped and lots of panic type things to deal with.  So...I needed chocolate.  Dark, rich, comforting, delicious chocolate.

DOUGH BALLS ROLLED IN SUGAR CRYSTALS BEFORE BAKING

Before baking I rolled the balls of chocolate cookie dough in sparkling sugar crystals which made my unbaked cookies look so pretty I had a hard time putting holes into their middles.  (I had previously purchased this sugar from King Arthur Flour to use on wedding cupcakes...it worked really well on these cookies too.)

GANACHE MELTING IN THE HOT COOKIE THUMBPRINT CENTERS

Alice Medrich, the chocolate queen,  has a lovely truffle recipe that is like a ganache which has set up, is rolled into balls, and finished with a dusting of cocoa powder.  I'll tell you what, these little yummies cure whatever ails me.  I made them and then, deciding they were a bit large, cut them in half, laid them in the thumbprints of the hot just-out-of-the-oven cookies where they melted to cover the holes and....heaven.  Dark chocolate heaven.  I think I'm fixed.  Hubby and I enjoyed this plate of cookies, but never fear, I have lots more dough for Frolicking Night Owl's kids to bake tomorrow.  When they bake their cookies with  the ganache cookie centers I'll let the kiddies use Halloween sprinkles to decorate theirs before the centers set up.

HUBBY AND I DEVOURED THIS PLATE OF GOODNESS

Love these cookies.  I promise to make them again in a month or so using the minty filling.  These will be a great Christmas treat especially with the mint flavors.