Pillsbury Gluten Free Chocolate Chip Cookies

Are you guys getting hit hard by this incredible January snowpocalypse, too?  We've got 12 inches of snow and the high yesterday was -5 degrees!  Holy COLDNESS, Batman.  I've spent the last three days trapped indoors with a restless husband and a wild-animal of a toddler.  There are only so many times a day I can play trains around the same tiny track or watch the first 20 seconds of Chuggington (and only the first 20 seconds on repeat) before I want to rip my hair out.  I think Ryan shoveled the driveway six times yesterday, just to get out of the house for a few minutes and I was insanely jealous.  I tell you, I've never been so excited to go back to work.  

However, the Arctic polar vortex outside did give me plenty of opportunity to do one thing...eat!  We had a pretty glutinous weekend, which was both disgusting and marvelous at the same time.  If you're going to be stuck inside for three days, I highly recommend stocking up on milk, cookies and vodka.  Must haves.  

I am so excited to be working with Pillsbury again this month to introduce their new gluten free dough products: chocolate chip cookie dough, pizza dough and pie/pastry crust.  I have a couple friends with a gluten intolerance and I'm always worried about having food on hand that they can enjoy.  I feel like a bad friend because I know little to nothing about gluten or what products it's in and how to avoid it.  But after sampling the goods this weekend, I will make sure to have a tub of this cookie dough on hand at all times.  So come over and have cookies with me, please!!     

Mac and I started off by making the cookies plain...just to make sure they were good.  And the verdict was an astounding YES.  They are good.  Very very good, actually.  And simple as can be.  

So then we started experimenting with some leftover holiday candies, which we incorporated into the recipe.  I wanted to use caramels and Mac wanted to use candy canes, so we whipped up two different recipes using those ingredients.  I figured everyone probably has a ton of candy canes laying around the house after the holidays and caramels are something we always have on hand (and both are gluten free!). 

Gluten-Free Caramel-Centered Chocolate Chip Cookies

Directions: wrap Pillsbury Gluten Free Cookie Dough around a piece of caramel and bake.  

I'm not sure if it can possibly get simpler than that, people.  If you mess that up, you probably shouldn't be in a kitchen using large appliances.  

2 ingredients, 14 minutes to bake and you have warm ooey gooey chocolatey caramel deliciousness.  I highly recommend you eat these right away while they're still melty.  

Preferably over some caramel-swirl ice cream with gluten free caramel sauce.  

I did.  

This was gone in 22 seconds flat.

I don't regret a thing.

Is your mouth watering yet?

Gluten Free Peppermint Bark Chocolate Chip Cookies

Ok, now this one gets a little more complicated with THREE whole ingredients, instead of two.  I think you can handle it though.  I have faith in you, reader.  Don't let me down.

So, we took the plain baked chocolate chip cookies...

...and added a dollop of melted white chocolate to to the top and then sprinkled on some smashed candy cane bits for a peppermint bark flavor.  

That's it!  

How easy was that?

Now please go try these!  

You can thank me later.  

And make sure you check out the rest of Pillsbury's gluten free dough, which is now widely available. Check a major grocery retailer near you in the refrigerated aisle.

*This post was sponsored by Pillsbury.