Crunchy Chewy White Chocolate Cookies

Chocolate Cream Pie Murder

## Ingredients

* 1 and ½ cups melted butter ***(3 sticks, 12 ounces, ¾ pound)***
* 2 cups white ***(granulated)*** sugar
* 2 large eggs beaten ***(just whip them up in a cup with a fork)***
* ½ cup white Karo syrup
* 1 teaspoon baking soda
* 1 teaspoon baking powder
* 1 teaspoon salt
* 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
* ½ cup finely chopped pecans ***(measure AFTER chopping)***
* 4 cups all-purpose flour ***(pack the flour down in the cup when you measure it)***
* 2 cups white chocolate ***(or vanilla baking)*** chips ***(an 11-ounce bag will be fine)***
* ½ cup white ***(granulated)*** sugar for coating the dough balls

**Hannah's 1st Note: To measure Karo syrup, first spray the inside of a measuring cup with Pam so that the syrup won't stick to the sides of the cup.**

## Directions

* DO NOT preheat oven—dough must chill before baking.
* Melt the butter in a microwave-safe bowl by heating it on HIGH for 90 seconds or until melted. ***(I use a 4-cup Pyrex measuring cup with a spout.)***

**Hannah's 2nd Note: You can use a mixer from this point on if you wish.**

* Pour the melted butter in the bottom of a large mixing bowl and add the white sugar on top.
* Mix until everything is well combined.
* Feel the bowl. If it's not so hot that it will cook the eggs, add them now and mix them in.
* Add the Karo syrup, baking soda, baking powder, salt, and vanilla extract. Mix thoroughly.
* Mix in the finely chopped pecans and mix until thoroughly blended.

**Hannah's 3rd Note: You can use finely chopped almonds or finely chopped walnuts if you prefer.**

* Add the flour in half-cup increments, mixing after each addition.
* Remove the bowl from the mixer. Give it a final stir and set it on the counter.
* Stir in the white chocolate (or vanilla baking) chips by hand.
* Cover the dough in the mixing bowl with plastic wrap and stick it in the refrigerator.
* Chill the dough for at least 1 hour. ***(Overnight is fine, too.)***
* When you're ready to bake, take the cookie dough out of the refrigerator and set it on the counter.
* Preheat the oven to 350°F, rack in the middle position.
* While your oven is preheating, prepare your cookie sheets by spraying them with Pam or another nonstick cooking spray, or lining them with parchment paper.
* Once your cookie sheets have been prepared, measure out ½ cup while granulated sugar and place it in a shallow bowl. You'll use this to coat your cookies.
* With impeccably clean hands, shape the cookie dough into walnut-sized balls. ***(If your cookie dough is sticky, coat your fingers with sugar and then try to shape the balls.)***
* Roll the dough balls in the bowl of white granulated sugar to coat them. Work with only one cookie dough ball at a time.
* Place the coated cookie dough balls on your prepared cookie sheets, 12 balls to a standard-size sheet.
* Press the dough balls down slightly to that they won't roll off on the way to the oven.
* Bake Crunchy Chewy White Chocolate Cookies at 350°F for 12 to 14 minutes or until they are nicely browned. ***(Mine took 14 minutes.)***
* Take the cookies out of the oven and place them on wire racks or cold stove burners.
* Cool the cookies on the cookie sheets for 1 minute and then remove them to a wire rack to finish cooling. ***(If you used parchment paper to line your cookie sheets, you can simply pull it off the sheet and onto the wire rack, cookies and all.)***

Yield: 5 to 7 dozen tasty cookies, depending on cookie size.