Fudge Puddles & Family Game Night

Two things that are top on my list, Chocolate and Peanut Butter. Oh how they go together so well. I saw this recipe for Fudge Puddles at The Sunday Baker quite awhile back, but I had forgotten about it.

The kids wanted to have a game night, so of course you have to have some yummy snacks to go along with game territory. I thought Tanya's Fudge Puddles aka Puddles of Yum would be the perfect snack.

This recipe was so easy to make and didn't take long at all. I could hardly wait the full hour for the dough to chill, so I took Tanya's advice and let the cookie dough crust sit in the freezer for about 15 minutes.

The cookie crust is almost exact to peanut butter cookie dough. The chocolaty filling OH MY GOODNESS GOOD!!!!! Butterscotch Chips (my weakness) and chocolate chips with sweetened condensed milk what a great combination plus melted down to top it off.

I just knew I wasn't going to be disappointed with these cookies. The Verdict!!!!!!!! we ate every single one of those Fudge Puddles in one night!!! So they were awesome. Do you have a fun family activity that you do together?

Mackenzie and Carson setting up the game. For some reason making hand gestures helps the game along.

Kenzie waiting for her turn, she is so good at Disney Scene it, no problem Kenzie so is mommy you are forgetting I watch all those movies right along side you so watch out.

That's me trying to steal some kisses from my youngest son who now says he is no longer my baby. He said he is a big boy now. :(

More hand gestures I think Carson is doing the hook em horns!!!

OK Kenzie whats that? Alright enough of the silly's lets get onto the cookie recipe.

Carson is helping get the fudge puddles going. He is so good at using the mixer all by himself.


Right out of the oven and using the back of my wooden juicer (it is perfect for this task, I also use it for Pecan Tassies) to make an indention in the center. Umm I cant wait to pour in all that fudgy goodness.


Melting down the butterscotch, chocolate chips, sweetened condensed milk and vanilla.


Filling them up with fudge. Isn't this just a beautiful sight??? it is so hard to wait for these to firm up, I had to taste one right after i added the fudgy filling. All I can say is HEAVENLY GOOD.





Fudge Puddles Aka Puddles Of Yum

Cookie Crust recipe:
Ingredients:
1/2 c. butter, softened
1/2 c. creamy peanut butter
1/2 c. sugar
1/2 c. packed brown sugar
1 egg
1/2 t. vanilla extract
1-1/4 c. all-purpose flour
3/4 t. baking soda
1/2 t. salt

Directions: 
In a large mixer bowl, combine butter, peanut butter, and both sugars. Beat in egg and vanilla Next, in a separate bowl, mix the flour, baking soda, and salt. 

Gradually add flour mix. to the creamy mixture. Chill in the fridge for at least one hour (or if you're impatient, chill the dough in the freezer for about 15 minutes). 

Remove from fridge and form into 1" balls. I use a small melon baller scoop to make mine a uniform size. 

Grease a mini-muffin pan and add 1 ball to each muffin cup: Bake in a 325 degree oven for about 15 minutes or until very lightly browned. 

Remove from oven and make an indentation in the center of each ball. Let them cool in the pan for at least 5 minutes and then move to a cooling rack.

Once all of the cookies are done baking, it's time to make the fudge filling. Immediately start filling the cookie cups with the filling. 

It will start to harden just a bit as you do it, so make sure to give it a good stir once in awhile. Sprinkle with the nuts or just leave plain. Let set for an hour or so. 

That is if you can wait that long, the wait is definitely worth it.

Fudgy Filling recipe:
1 c. semi-sweet chocolate chips

1 c. butterscotch chips
(if you don't like butterscotch, just use milk chocolate chips)
1-14 oz. can sweetened condensed milk
1 t. vanilla extract
chopped nuts or sprinkles (optional, I omitted this part)

In a microwave safe bowl or saucepan, combine all of the ingredients except the nuts/sprinkles. Microwave for 1 minutes. Stir well. If there are still unmelted chips, continue to melt in microwave for 15 second increments until all smooth:

Semi Homemade Version

OK I played around with this recipe a bit and came up with a simplified version of the Fudge Puddles. I was trying to figure out how to simplify this recipe just a bit, because I was in a pinch for time.

I decided to use Betty Crockers Peanut Butter Cookie Mix in place of the homemade cookie recipe. I still used the same fudgy filling recipe because I did not want to change something so great.

I did find out that you replace the butterscotch chips with peanut butter chips for a nice change. The semi version turned out just as great as the original. Here is what I used.


There ya go a simplified version of a great cookie recipe. So now you can make this cookie all the way homemade or semi homemade. It just depends on how much time you have on your hands.

Both versions are awesome. Follow the recipe on the back of the cookie pouches to make the semi homemade cookie cups. Proceed with the same filling recipe.


37 comments

Heidi said…
These look so GOOD!!! I love peanut butter and chocolate. I'll bet that fudgy part in the center melts in your mouth. I'm drooling!
Jess said…
These look great!!!
I need to run to the grocery store RIGHT now!!!!
I LOVE butterscotch and I don't have any :(
Stephanie said…
Wow, those look amazing! What a great idea!
♥ mesa para 4 said…
They look so great :-9 and you have a beautiful family :-)
Wendy said…
Those look so good!!! I will have to make these soon!
Emily said…
This look soooo good! My brother is having us over for dinner tomorrow and I may just make these to bring over!
Ingrid_3Bs said…
Oh,my,goodness, those do look wonderful especially that filling. I bet it would taste wonderful on/in all kinds of other baked yummies! I'm thinking cupcakes, in the middle of a bundt cake maybe?

We have game night all the time at home though nothing formal. The funny thing is my three will try to quietly get me to play a game with them so that the other two won't know we are playing. It's pretty funny. They want to play with just Mommy.

The photos of your kids are great! They are a goodlooking crew!
~ingrid
Becky said…
These look so good! I can't wait to try them! In the directions it says add egg and vanilla but I don't see eggs in the ingredient list. I am guessing that its just one egg?
Thanks!!
Tina Butler said…
Hi Ingrid, we love game night. The kids got disney scence it for christmas. It was a bit hard at first but now i can play to. The little ones are kinda of sore loosers but they are getting better.

Becky thanks for catching that. I fixed it in the recipe and the printable version. My Bad!!
Nonnas News said…
Wow!! Those look so yummy! You always come up with the best recipes!!
Tiffany said…
Oh yum! Those sound great and look even better!
Boy I bet those were mighty good.

Your kids are just precious!

Mary
LOL, Y'all Longhorns fans?
McBee said…
Thanks for stopping by!:) Have a good weekend!
McBee said…
I used fat free sweetened condensed milk, sugar free pudding mix, lowfat milk and light cream cheese. As rich as it still was-I seriously didn't miss anything! I also added an extra layer of bananas to up the potassium intake-hey every little bit counts, right! :)
I'm always reluctant to use fat free cheese because I really think it compromises the taste and sometimes even the texture of your finished product.
These fudggie cookies look awesome BTW, I think I'll make them for my next book club!
Live.Love.Eat said…
Gotta love the kids making peace signs!!!! And these little puddles are adorable!!!! Have a great weekend.
Kelly said…
They look amazing! And I love your kids’ pictures, thanks for sharing. I feel like you can never have enough chocolate in your life! Try exploring the versatility of everyone’s favorite flavor through a Chocolate Tasting Party! Go to www.dove-chocolate-discoveries.com to learn more. A chocolate Tasting Party is also a great way to make some extra money while still having time to spend with your family!

Kelly,
DCD Team
Phyllis said…
Can't wait to try these!! I have really enjoyed reading your Blog. I love receipe books and have saved them for years. Sometimes I love to just sit and go thru recipe after recipe like reading a book. I wish I could display them all but I have no room :( Someday I hope to have a nice room for all my wonderful cook books and recipes.
Tina Butler said…
Hi Phyllis thanks for stopping by. Your gonna love those fudge puddles they are so addicting. I love my cookbooks as well. I have them in my display hutch. I love thumbing through them i always find something new that i didnt see before. I hope you keep coming back.
I made these yesterday for a get together and boy were they a hit! These should definitely come with a warning label because there is no way you can eat just one! *grin*

Thanks for sharing such tasty recipes.
I hope you don't mind, but I posted about these scrumptious goodies on my blog. I did give credit and a link back to you, so I am hoping I did this right so that I wouldn't go against the grain of your copyright.

http://frugalhomeliving.blogspot.com/2009/05/these-should-come-with-warning-label.html

Thank you so much for always being a tasty spot in my day.

~Warm Cozy Wishes
The Nem's!! said…
I loved these! I made them within days of coming upon your blog and brought them to work! It was a great "last Monday of the school year" treat and they were gone before lunchtime! :) They are like hershey kiss Christmas cookies (or button cookies as my husband calls them)--but for all the other times of the year!!! Thanks for sharing!
Anonymous said…
Just made these finally this morning, oh so good. Have had the stuff for them for weeks but never anytime to make them. They went perfect with the puddles outside! :) Anyway, not digging the butterscotch so much so either making it with all chocolate chips next time or maybe peanut butter, can never get enough of that! :) Anyways, thanks for a great recipe.
Colleen C. said…
Just made these finally this morning, oh so good. Have had the stuff for them for weeks but never anytime to make them. They went perfect with the puddles outside! :) Anyway, not digging the butterscotch so much so either making it with all chocolate chips next time or maybe peanut butter, can never get enough of that! :) Anyways, thanks for a great recipe.
Keylee Jo said…
Hey! Just love your site and come back just about everyday to check for new ideas. I think I'm starting to actually hate these cookies! My husband and everyone at his work LOVES these, they always make me make them for the bake sales and I have to make like a 5-10 batch. What makes me hate them is rolling out all those balls! :) But let me tell you they put 3 in a small snack bag and at $1 a pop they make tons of money for good causes, which makes it all worth while! But they really do taste great. Thanks for an awesome idea!
Allison said…
I wrote about these on my blog the other day and linked to you. My word, these little things are addicting! They should be called "crack cups". =)
Amanda H. said…
Thanks for such a helpful website! I am loving your recipes, they are so simple and don't require a ton of items I don't have. I made these Fudgy Puddles today, and they turned out GREAT. The only issue I had was that the amount of fudge you have was twice as much as I needed, so I will just halve that next time. :) Thanks again for a cute website!
Unknown said…
I made these last night!! mmmmm
I love your blog!! thanks for letting me stalk your blog!!!!
Made these with the kids...didn't even have time to chill and they were still great!! But I made another batch to use the rest of the chocolate middles!!!
E said…
I am slow getting to these. They look delicious. Your photos look like you made a ton! How many does the recipe make?
Madison Marie said…
I made these the other night for a friends birthday. They were SO good she almost didn't get any! Everyone who tasted one was trying to figure out what "the other flavor" was (butterscotch.) Great recipe!
Anonymous said…
I don't know if you will get this question or not since its now months later. Do they firm up enough to freeze for later?

Thanks,
Karen

LOVE your blog!
Tina Butler said…
Hi Karen, the cookies firm up great for freezing. I always make my cookies ahead of time and store them in my freezer. I have to many cookie monsters that like to eat everything.
Anonymous said…
Okay great! I wanted to make them for my cookie trays but wasn't sure. I will bake some today. They look so good.

Karen
JoAnna said…
Wow...love this version...can't wait to try it...in the past I have made the peanut butter temptations using a miniature peanut butter cup pressed in the center after baking.
chubbybunny said…
The Pioneer Woman, (Ree Drummond), made these recently on her show, on Food Network. She used a commercial Peanut Butter Cookie dough. She sliced the roll into 6 thick slices, and then cut each slice into quarters. She inserted each piece (24 pieces) into a cup in a mini muffin pan. When they were baked, they came out of the oven with indentations already in the middles. Then she placed a Reese's Peanut Butter Cup into the hole in the middle of each cookie.
Tina Butler said…
Chubbybunny,
These are not the same as the what the Pioneer Woman Makes. She uses store bought peanut butter cookie dough and peanut butter cups. This does not have peanut butter cups in the recipe at all. The center is butterscotch and chocolate chips mixed with sweetened condensed milk for a fudge center. The pb cookie is homemade, so this isn't even the same style of cookie.
Cindy Thornlow said…
I made something simaler to these a couple years ago. I used homemade cookie dough but you could buy cookie dough at the store. But I used a Rolo in some and some Reeses baby cups to push down into the dough. Both were yummy!
Cindy Thornlow
Palmer, Alaska