cheap treat

Most of us have a sweet tooth. I sure can't speak for anybody else, but when I get a hankerin' for somethin' I just gotta have it A-SAP. And I sure as hell don't want to spend an arm and a leg for the sweets I'm craving. I came across this recipe from something my Mom collected from a friend. I was struck by the title, but was intrigued to find out more. As I read on, I decided to make this dessert and was pleased to find that all the ingredients I needed wouldn't leave me broke :)

Oreo Cookie Balls

Ingredients

• 8 oz softened cream cheese
• 18 oz package of Oreo cookies, crushed- don't remove the filling!
• 2 cups semi-sweet or milk chocolate chips
• 1 Tbsp shortening or oil

Instructions

Crush Oreos in a food processor or blender until extremely fine. (If being done in a blender, it's easier to do in batches)

NOTE: Difficult as it may be, DO NOT EAT THE OREOS! If you do not have enough cookies to mix with the cream cheese, the consistency of the candy will not be right! To keep this from happening, buy yourself an extra packages of cookies :)

Mix cream cheese with an electric mixer until fluffy. Add the crushed Oreos and beat on high until well mixed. Chill mixture for at least an hour in the freezer.

Once chilled, roll Oreo cookie mix into one inch balls. (I used a small ice cream scoop to make them uniform).

Melt the chocolate chips and shortening or oil with a double bolier. (You can use the mircowave instead, but I've found it's more difficult to regulate the temperature of the chocolate and can cause it to seize! Using the double boiler on a low temp prevents that from happening.)

Dip the Oreo balls completely into the melted chocolate using forks, spoons, toothpicks, whatever you find works for you!

Place coated candies on a wax paper lined cookie sheet and leave them to harden in the refrigerator for about an hour.

I'm not crazy about the name. When I go to serve them to a crowd or make them for some sort of event I need to think of a better name. Ideas? I'm not a fan of the name "Oreo" in the title, to me it sounds very packaged, and I'm also not a fan of a recipe that includes "balls", regardless of them being shaped as such.

Give the recipe a try! You'll be suprised how chocolately these yummy treats are, and happy you'll have money over to make another batch :)

Chels