These chocolate thumbprint turtle cookies are a rich chocolate cookie rolled in chopped pecans, filled with caramel, and drizzled with melted chocolate. They’ve got the perfect flavors of a turtle candy all in a delicious bite sized cookie, perfect for the holidays.

Prep Time 18 mins
Cook Time 12 mins
Servings 24

Ingredients

For the Chocolate Pecan Cookies:

• 1/2 cup unsalted butter
• 2/3 cup granulated sugar
• 1 large egg (separated)
• 2 TBS milk
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 cup all purpose flour
• 1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1 cup pecans (finely chopped)

For the Caramel:

• 1 cup soft caramels
• 1 TBS heavy cream

For the Chocolate Drizzle:

• 1/2 cup chocolate chips
• 1 tsp coconut oil

Equipment

• Hand Whisk
• Large Mixing Bowl

Instructions

For the Chocolate Pecan Cookies:

• Add the butter and sugar to a large bowl and beat them together until light and creamy, about 2 minutes.
• Add in the egg yolk, milk, and vanilla extract and stir until combined. (Save the egg white for later in a small bowl, and put it in the fridge)
• In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, cocoa powder, and salt.
• Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and stir them together to make a really soft cookie dough.
• Cover the dough in plastic wrap and place it in the fridge for 1 hour.
• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
• Whisk the egg white until it’s nice and frothy.
• Chop up the pecans really finely and add them to a small bowl.
• Scoop the cookie dough into small sections, and roll them into 1inch sized balls.
• Dip the cookie dough balls into the egg whites, then roll them into the chopped pecans, making sure to cover them completely.
• Place them on the prepared baking sheet.
• Press the back of a 1 tsp measuring spoon into the cookie ball. Repeat with additional cookie dough, placing them each about 1 inch apart on the cookie sheet.
• Bake the cookies for 9-11 minutes, or until the dough is set.
• Press the cookie again with the back of the measuring spoon.
• Add the caramels and heavy cream to a microwave safe bowl and microwave in 30 second intervals, stirring until smooth between each. (Mine usually takes 1 minute)
• Carefully pour caramel into the indent on each of the cookies.
• Let the cookies cool for about 10-20 minutes.
• Add the semi sweet chocolate chips and coconut oil to a small microwave safe bow land microwave in 20 second increments, stirring well after each until melted. Don’t overheat the chocolate.
• Scoop the chocolate into a zip top bag and snip a small amount off of one corner.
• Drizzle the chocolate over the top of the cookies. Let the chocolate set completely before enjoy the cookies.

Nutrition

Calories: 170kcalCarbohydrates: 21gProtein: 2gFat: 9gSaturated Fat: 4gPolyunsaturated Fat: 1gMonounsaturated Fat: 3gTrans Fat: 1gCholesterol: 20mgSodium: 56mgPotassium: 68mgFiber: 1gSugar: 15gVitamin A: 155IUVitamin C: 1mgCalcium: 27mgIron: 1mg