Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Pretzel Cookies

Sure the title is a mouthful to say but trust me when I tell you that when you bite into these, the heavens literally open up and start singing.  Yes they're that good.

I love love love anything sweet & Salty and these cookies are the perfect juxtaposition of this flavor profile.  Sweet from the soft cookie and chips, and salty from the crunchy pretzel bits (which , may I add, stay crispy after baking which absolutely amazed me).

These will absolutely making an appearance on my holiday cookie trays this year!

Enjoy!

Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Pretzel Cookies
(adapted from Sugar Cooking)

1 1/2 cups of all purpose flour
1/2 tsp. of table salt
1/4 tsp. of baking soda
1/2 cup of softened butter
1/2 cup of tightly packed light brown sugar
1/3 cup of granulated sugar
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 cup milk chocolate chips
1/2 cup peanut butter chips
1/2 cup broken up pretzel pieces
sea salt for topping

In a medium bowl, sift together the flour, baking soda, and table salt. Set aside.

In a larger bowl, beat the butter and sugars together on medium speed until light and fluffy (about 2-3 minutes). On low speed add the egg and vanilla extract. Beat to combine, scrape down the sides of the bowl.

Add the flour mixture and beat just until there are no more streaks of flour. Stir in the chocolate chips, peanut butter chips, and preztels. Cover and refrigerate for an hour.

Preheat the oven to 350F. Line baking sheets with parchment paper. Scoop out well rounded tablespoonfuls of the dough and smoosh them down a little.  Place the cookies on the parchment, leaving approximately 2 inches between and sprinkle with salt.

Bake for 10-12 minutes (mine were perfect at 11 minutes). Allow the cookies to cool on the baking sheet for a few minutes before removing.

One of my favorite snack foods...

... is a big soft pretzel. Preferably with a side of honey mustard to dunk it in. Clearly, this isn't exactly a healthy snack but thanks to my friend Katy and her find in the Hungry Girl 1-2-3 Cookbook, I was able to include my love of pretzels + honey mustard into this evenings dinner!

I adapted the recipe slightly and have included the adaptations below. The result was a very tasty chicken finger that didn't even need a dunking sauce and is moderatley good for you!

Enjoy :)

Pretzel Coated Honey Mustard Chicken Fingers

(adapted from Hungry Girl 1-2-3 cookbook)

3 tbsp clover honey

3 tbsp grainy mustard

2 egg whites

1 pound boneless chicken tenderloins

2 dashes salt

2 dashes black pepper

8 ounces hard salted pretzels,finely crushed

2 packets of Splenda (any sugar substitute will do)

Preheat oven to 350 F

Mix honey, mustard and egg whites together in a small bowl.

Season chicken strips with salt and pepper and then submerge in the mustard-egg mixture. Set aside to marinate for at least 5 minutes (I let mine marinate for 8 hours).

Mix crushed pretzels with Splenda and spread mixture out on a plate. Spray a baking rack with nonstick spray.

Thoroughly coat chicken strips with the pretzel mixture, and then transfer to the baking rack sheet. (Discard excess mustard-egg mixture.) Mist the tops of the strips with nonstick spray.

Bake in the oven for 30 minutes.