Red Velvet Chocolate Chip Cookies

Birthdays are a time for celebration.  Not just with family and friends, but with coworkers too.  Each month, we celebrate at least 2 birthdays, if not more!  To keep it fair, each person brings the birthday dessert for the birthday after their own.  My birthday girl loves red velvet cake.  Last year, I attempted my first cake of its kind.  This year, I decided to try something different: Red Velvet Cookies.  Oh my.  They were delicious!  Thank you Sally's Baking Addiction for such a fantastic recipe!

Ingredients:

3 cups + 2 tablespoons flour

1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 teaspoon baking soda

1 cup unsalted butter, softened to room temperature

1 1/2 cup brown sugar

1/2 cup granulated sugar

2 eggs

2 tablespoons milk

4 teaspoons vanilla extract

4 teaspoons red food coloring - This is the approximate amount I ended up using.  They weren't really red, though, so twice as much may be necessary.

1 cup semi-sweet mini chocolate chips

1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips, plus a few extra for topping

Directions:

Mix flour, cocoa powder, baking soda and salt in large bowl and set aside.

Beat butter in a stand mixer (or using a handheld mixer) until creamy.  Beat in brown and white sugar until combined.  Add eggs, milk and vanilla extract followed by the food coloring.  Once well combined, add dry ingredients.  Turn mixer on to slower speed and beat until soft dough is formed.  Add food coloring if you choose, then beat in chocolate chips.

Once dough is complete, cover your mixing bowl with foil and refrigerate for at least an hour. 

Next, preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Scoop 1 to 1 1/2 tablespoon of dough and mold into a ball.  Place balls on to cookie sheet covered with parchment paper with approximately an inch between each cookie.  The cookies will not spread a whole lot.  Bake for 10-11 minutes and remove from oven.

With a spoon, gently flatten the cookie to form a semi-crinkled cookie.  Add a few chocolate chips to the top of each cookie.  Let cool for 3-4 minutes on the cookie sheet before transferring to a cooling rack to cool completely.

These cookies were a total hit at the office!  And there were none left!  Hope you like them as much as I did!