Wow. Awesome. Where did you have it...45 women! Boo, your cookie looks exactly like the one I am making. I already made the shortbread, the chocolate is in the doubler boiler, and as soon as I get some energy, I wil do the caramel. Gorgeous cookie!
Sounds like you had a good time. Jojoco, isn't Boo a sweetie?
Sherry

What a great time it was last night. I was a little intimidated at first. I tend to be a little quiet and am not use to big groups. There were lots of people I didn't know (including the hostesses!) but Jo did a great job of making me feel welcome. By the end of the night everyone was talking , laughing and having a good time. Quite ironocally, Jo made a shortbread thumbprint cookie filled with jam and drizzled the chocolate & white chocolate! Great minds think a like! Oh yeah, I won a prize for my cookie. A cute wooden spoon and a Christmas tree cookie cutter.

Thanks Jo,it was a great time.

Boo, you may start out quiet but you do get going. ;-)

Recipe please...that looks like a good addition to ones I'll take for a Christmas lunch.

Jo, how did you shape the thumbprints?

Those cookies look great! I would definitely love to sink my teeth in the chocolate caramel one! And the pathetic Christmas tree prize is the best. Thanks for sharing.

Becky is a lot of fun if you get her started, isn't she? LOL

All the cookies look wonderful, I love cookie exchanges. We used to have one here at the courthouse but it seems that not many people bake any more. I loved them all, including the rice krispie treats and the puppy chow, and I wish I could convince people to do it again!

Annie

I love your creative awards and prizes, Jo! I remember from last year :)

Ooh, the Charley Brown cookies look good! I love the idea of just a tiny taste and crunch of peppermint without having to eat a stick of candy. Is it just a butter cookie with a bit of chocolate and crushed candy cane? For some reason it looks really yummy to me!

How much fun Jo! 45 women , holy heck I don't even want to think about the decibel level! LOL

Sounds like a great time Jo! Love the categories ! Those cookies look pretty good too.

I'm in total agreement about the appropriateness of the Jon Bon Jovi award. That's one yummy looking cookie -- and the chocolate caramel looks delish, too. :)

OT, I love your countertops!

Here's my recipe for the Chocolate Caramel Treasures:

Cookie type: formed

These are another variation of thumbprint cookie. This recipe came from Gourmet Magazine, December 1999. This makes about 2 dozen cookies.

Ingredients

For the cookies:
1 stick unsalted butter, softened
2/3 cup sugar
1 egg yolk
1 teas vanilla
1 cup flour
2 tbsp whole milk
1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
¼ teas salt
1 egg white, lightly beaten
½ cup chopped hazelnuts

For the filling:

10 (1 x ½ inch)plain caramels
2 tbsp heavy cream

For the drizzle:

3 oz semisweet chocolate, finely chopped

Directions

For the cookies: Beat together butter, yolk, milk, sugar, and vanilla until well blended. Sift in flour, cocoa, and salt and mix until mixture forms a dough. Chill, wrapped in plastic wrap, until firm, at least 30 minutes.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Roll tablespoons of dough into balls, then coat with egg white, and roll in nuts. Place balls 1 ½ inches apart on a greased baking sheets. Press your thumb into center of the balls to flatten, leaving a depression. Bake until puffed slightly but centers are still soft, 10-12 minutes. Remove from oven and immediately press centers of cookies again with a spoon. Let cool.
Make the filling while cookies are cooling.
Heat caramels and cream in a small sauce pan over low heat, stirring occasionally, until melted and mixture is smooth. Spoon into centers of cookies and cool completely.
Make chocolate drizzle one hour before serving.
Melt chocolate in a double boiler or a metal bowl set over a pan of barely simmering water, stirring until smooth. Cool to warm and pour into a heavy-duty sealable plastic bag. Seal bag and snip 1 corner to form a small hole. Drizzle chocolate over cookies and let stand until set, about 30 minutes.

Hints, tips, tricks and how to cheat

I usually donÂt bother with the chocolate drizzle. TheyÂre showy and chocolatey enough.

That sounds like alot of fun. I like your award titles.

The recipe I used was Barefoot Contessa's jam thumbprint cookies. But the dough just wouldn't come together, so I added extra butter until it held its shape. I found the trick to forming them to be to roll them out when the dough is soft and pliable (before chilling), do the indentation, and THEN put the whole tray in the fridge to chill. After it has chilled, I fill them and then bake. I find it very hard to form the balls after they have chilled, and I don't want to cook them when they are room temp, either.
On a very nice side note, yesterday my co-host and I brought 4 garbage bags full of wrapped toys to P.E>A.C.E. incorporated, a charity that helps (in our case) inner city families with everything from jobs, financial responsibility, parenting classes... They are having their annual Christmas party today for their clients and had no toys for the kids. I don't know who was happier, them or us.
Becky, I hope you are still enjoying your cookies! Ours are in the garage, in the bakery box and my kids keep putting their hands in and rummaging until they find the "right" one. Oh wait, that's me.

Jo

Jo, the cookies look great and the party sounds like it turned out great as well. I love cookie exchanges!

/tricia

Kudos to you on a successful cookie exchange! Great awards, delicious cookies, and good hearts.

Well done.

Eileen

The cookies look wonderful!

I'd like the recipe for Becky's chocolate caramel nut treasure please.

Michelle

They look great! I love the awards!

They do look great. The Michael Jackson cookie cracked me up.

Sol