COOKIE BOWLS

Looking for a fun and inexpensive way to jazz up your next family gathering? Try these cookie bowls. Not only are they easy to do, but you can fill them with anything from pudding, to ice cream, to cheesecake. You can make the cookie bowls ahead of time and freeze them (unfilled); there are tons of possibilities.

The instructions for these cookie bowls called for forming them over an inverted cupcake pan, however, I wanted bigger (and thicker) ones because they were for a specific purpose and had to be strong enough to travel well, so I formed them over an inverted Texas size  muffin pan.

1/4 cup butter flavored shortening
1/4 cup butter (room temperature)
1/3 cup white sugar
1/3 cup brown sugar
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
1½ cups all purpose flour
1/4 cup miniature semisweet chocolate chips

Beat together shortening, butter and sugars in a large bowl; add the egg and vanilla; beat until well mixed. NOTE: Do not use ALL butter in this recipe, it will not hold it's shape and it WILL sag.

Mix the flour and baking powder and gradually stir them into the batter; stir in the chocolate chips.

Put batter into a large plastic bag and flatten into a disk; chill for at least an hour. Preheat your oven to 375. Turn your cupcake (or muffin) pan upside down and cover every other one with foil.

NOTE: standard size cupcake pan requires a 4" circle of foil and the Texas size muffin pan requires a 6" circle of foil. Spray the foil with vegetable spray.

NOTE: I used the new no stick foil and didn't have to spray it at all.

Roll the chilled cookie dough  (between two pieces of waxed paper) out to about 1/8th inch or about the same as pie dough. Cut circles and drape over foil, smoothing cracks together and trimming to fit.

Bake 10-12 minutes or until light brown. Remove from oven and let them cool on the pan for about 10 minutes. After 10 minutes, gently lift them off of the pan (use the tip of a butter knife to lift one corner first) but don't remove the foil  until the cookie bowl is completely cool.   Fill just before serving.