Chocolate Chip Crater Cookies

I was trying to use up little bits of goodness left in my pantry this weekend and came up with a creatively cratered chocolate chip cookie! I added some mini marshmallows to the mix and they melted in the cookies while baking. The look reminded my son of the surface of the moon so we are calling them Crater Cookies.

The recipe is a simple, scaled down chocolate chip cookie recipe that can be made quickly so you don’t have to wait too long to indulge in your treats!

Chocolate Chip Crater Cookies

5 tablespoons unsalted butter

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/4 cup granulated sugar

1/4 cup light brown sugar, packed

1 large egg

1 cup unbleached all-purpose flour

3/4 cup rolled oats

1/4 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar

1/2 cup chocolate chips or leftover chocolate candy

1 cup mini marshmallows

Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.

Line baking sheets with parchment or reusable silicone baking liners and set aside.

Melt butter in a small saucepan over low heat until it foams up and begins to brown, you’ve just made browned butter!*

Add the salt and vanilla extract and set aside to cool for just a few minutes.

When cool enough to touch, stir in both of the sugars and the egg.

Mix in the flour, oats, baking soda and cream of tartar and stir until combined well.

Lastly, stir in your little bits of goodness (chocolate and marshmallows).

Use a spoon or small scooper to scoop out cookies onto lined baking sheets, leaving space for spreading. If you make 2 inch cookies, you should get about 16 cookies.

Bake in preheated oven for 8-11 minutes, or until cookies are lightly browned around the edges but just set in the middle.

Remove baking sheets from oven, let cool just a few minutes, then transfer cookies to a cooling rack. When cooled, store cookies in an airtight container.

Due to the moisture from the marshmallows and oats, Crater Cookies will soften after being stored. If you want to crisp them up again before eating, just place them in a toaster oven and toast on medium low for 3 minutes.

*Browned Butter is one of the tricks I use in enhancing the vanilla flavor in baked goods. Pure vanilla extract has gotten so expensive and sometimes hard to find! I find I can use a little less extract when I brown my butter first.