These potato chip cookies are the perfect combination of salty and sweet. The shortbread base is packed with pecans and crushed potato chips, then topped with chocolate and sea salt.
I’ve been a cookie-making machine this weekend! We hosted our annual beer and cookie exchange Saturday, then I went to a cookie exchange at Two Sticks Bakery last night. Needless to say, I’m still riding a bit of a sugar high.
The great thing about having a weekend revolving around cookies is my holiday baking is already done! I made eight different types of cookies, and stuck most of them in the freezer. Now all I have to do to get ready for celebrating with family next week is pull them out and put them on a plate. It couldn’t get easier!
I like trying a couple new recipes every year, but I’m big on tradition. I always make almond cut-out cookies with buttercream, pretzel cookies, bourbon balls, and lemon pistachio biscotti.
And, an old favorite returned to my baking list this year. I started making potato chip cookies in college, when my infatuation with baking started. I brought some home for Christmas break one year, and my brother and his friends went crazy for them. So, I started making them every year.
But I swapped these out for other cookies the past two years — and my family never let me hear the end of it! My brother was especially bummed not to have any potato chip cookies during the holidays. So, I brought them back this year. After having one this weekend, I don’t know why I stopped making them! I’m a sucker for the salty-sweet combination, and these cookies are addicting.
I’ve tested a few different brands of potato chips in this recipe, but I find Ruffles have the best texture and perfect amount of salt. I’ve had problems with some other chips not staying crunchy once mixed into the batter.
I highly recommend only baking one sheet of these cookies at a time. It’s good to do with all cookies to ensure they cook evenly. I still use two cookie sheets, prepping one with dough while the other bakes in the oven. This makes things go more quickly. If you do put two cookie sheets in the oven at the same time, switch which oven rack they’re on halfway through baking.
I want to know what’s on your holiday baking list every year. Tell me in the comments!
Potato Chip Cookies
modified from My Baking Addiction
[ingredients title=”Ingredients”]
- 1 cup unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
- 3/4 cup granulated sugar
- 1 cup Ruffles, crushed
- 1/2 cup pecans, finely chopped
- 1 tsp. pure vanilla extract
- 2 cups flour
- 1/4 powdered sugar
- 1/4 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
- sea salt, for sprinkling
[/ingredients]
[directions title=”Directions”]
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a cookie sheet (or two) with parchment paper.
- In an electric mixer on medium speed, cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed.
- Add potato chips and pecans to butter mixture and beat on low until combined. Add vanilla, then flour, and mix on low just until the dough comes together.
- Use a cookie scoop or spoon to portion out heaping Tablespoons of dough. Roll them into balls, and place them about two inches apart on the cookie sheet.
- Dip the end of a flat-bottomed glass in the powdered sugar, then lightly press down on each a ball of dough until flat. Repeat with remaining dough.
- Bake cookies for 12 to 15 minutes, until edges are just starting to turn golden brown. Remove cookies from oven and let sit at least one minute before transferring to a wire cooling rack. Cool completely.
- While cookies are cooling, place chocolate chips in a small, microwave safe bowl. Heat in the microwave for 30 seconds, then stir. Continue heating chocolate in 15-second increments and stirring until it’s smooth. Use a spoon to drizzle chocolate over cookies. Top each cookie with a light sprinkling of sea salt. Store in an airtight container in the fridge.
[/directions]