Cookbook Review: The Cookie Dough Lover's Cookbook and Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Truffles

Divine.  Simply Divine.  That is how I would describe these Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Truffles made following a recipe from the new cookbook:  The Cookie Dough Lover's Cookbook:  Cookies, Cakes, Candies and More!  by Lindsay Landis.  A few weeks back, this glorious cookbook arrived at my door from the publisher for free to review.   I was thrilled.

Who among us hasn't tempted the threat of salmonella to eat raw cookie dough?  Fear no more, because each one of the recipes contained in this book uses a form of Lindsay's egg-less dough mixture in over 50 different recipes! .... White Chocolate-Macadamia Nut Cookie Dough Blondies, Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Bread Pudding, Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Ice Cream, Cookie Dough Stuffed French Toast, and Cookie Dough Crispy Treats just to name a few.   If I didn't have your attention before, after that mouth-watering list I am sure I do now!

The author, Lidnsay Landis, is a graphic designer/small- business owner by day and a food blogger/cookie dough addict by night.  Her food blog is Love and Olive Oil, where she not only blogs about cookie dough, but many other fabulous foods!  Her photography is outstanding...and in fact, in addition to recipe development and and writing, she also did all the photography in the book.  Lindsay states:  "I'm a very visual person;  I may overlook a truly incredible recipe just because it does not have a photo.  This is why it is important to me that each recipe in the book have a photo.  Still, I tried to portray every recipe as true to life as possible; there's not food-styling trickery to be found.  In fact, I personally ate nearly every single "hero" that was photographed mere seconds after taking the final shot."  Um....YES!  I love this fact and I can totally relate!

Besides the wonderful photography, each recipe is written out clearly and are very easy to follow. There are not a ton of complicated steps or fancy ingredients. It has a hard cover, lay-flat spiral binding, which is always a plus.  I enjoyed this cookbook very much and see myself making several more recipes from it's pages.  The recipes aren't low calories treats, but all things in moderation, right?

The Cookie Dough Lover's Cookbook is due to hit shelves on June 5, 2012.  The publisher's price is $18.95.  It will be available from Amazon and Barnes and Noble.  What a great gift this would make for your favorite cookie dough enthusiast!  ( or yourself!)

And just so you don't have to wait until the book hits the shelves to try out a recipe from this book...I am going to post the recipe for the Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Truffles, so you can give it a try for yourself! ( and yes, the truffle pictures are my own, taken with my little point and shoot camera!)

Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Truffles

from The Cookie Dough Lover's Cookbook

Printable Recipe

Servings - 24*   Servings Size - 1 truffle   Points Plus per Serving -  5 Points+

Calories - 148.2,   Total Fat - 8g,   Carb. - 22g,   Protein - 1.3g,   Fiber - 0.8g

*Note the original recipe calls for a yield of 30 to 40 truffles.  I chose to use a small scoop to make my truffles, which made them a bit larger, and I got about 2 dozen truffles from the batter. 

1/2 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature

1/4 cup granulated sugar

1/2 cup light brown sugar, packed

2 TBS. milk ( I used skim and was loose with my measuring) 

1/2 tsp. pure vanilla extract

1 1/4 cups all purpose flour

1/2 tsp. salt

1/2 cup mini semi-sweet chocolate chips

8 ounces of dark-chocolate candy coating ( I used Merckens)

1.  In a large bowl, beat the butter and the sugars together with an electric mixer on med speed until light and fluffy, 2 - 3 minutes.  Mix in milk and vanilla.  Stir in flour and salt and mix on low speed ( or by hand) until incorporated.  Stir in chocolate chips.  Cover and chill dough for 30 minutes or until firm enough to handle. 

2.  Form dough into 1-inch balls  ( I used a small scoop to make the balls ) and arrange them on baking sheets line with parchment paper.  ( I used waxed paper)  Place sheets in freezer for at least 15 minutes.  ( I didn't use the freezer, I kept the balls in the fridge overnight)  Meanwhile, melt the chocolate in a double boiler or microwave according to manufacturer's directions, being careful not to overheat it.  Coat truffles and store in refrigerator.  They will keep for up to 1 week. 

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This was seriously a extremely easy recipe which gave extraordinary results.  The truffles were loved by everyone who tried them. The cookie dough was perfect and tasted as if you scooped out a spoonful from a fresh made batch sitting in a bowl ready to bake!   If you wanted to keep the calories lower, you could make the balls smaller than I did. 

If you like chocolate chip cookie dough, than The Cookie Dough Lover's Cookbook is a must for you!

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