The other day when I was jogging (which almost never happens), I was trying to decide how I would reward myself for my sudden burst of exercise — you see, that’s how I work, I run so that I can eat. Maybe I’ll stop for a doughnut, I thought, as I passed our local doughnut shop, Or I could get a bag of chips, I contemplated as I turned the corner by the mini-mart. Hmm, what do I crave, savory or sweet? And then around mile 2 I realized that I didn’t have any money on me, so I started rummaging through my mental inventory of snacks in my pantry. What could I do with the pittance I have in my cupboard? Let’s see, I have chocolate chips, pretzels, stuff to make cookies…wait, hang on a sec! At that moment I turned around and sprinted home to make my new favorite cookies, and they were exactly what I needed to satisfy every craving I’ve had since birth. Seriously, that’s how good they are. But I’ll warn you, don’t (DO NOT!) make these cookies unless you have a fresh gallon of milk in the fridge, because you will need it! These rich and salty beauties deserve a big, cold, creamy glass of milk to properly wash them down.

Chocolate Covered Pretzel Cookies

Makes 2-3 dozen

• 1¼ cups unsalted butter, softened
• ¾ cup white sugar
• ¾ brown sugar
• 2 eggs
• 1 tsp. vanilla
• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• ¾ cup coco powder
• 1 tsp. baking soda
• ¼ tsp. Kosher salt
• 2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips
• 1½ cups crushed pretzel sticks (preferably Snyder’s of Hanover Old Fashioned Dipping Sticks), plus 1-2 dozen pretzel sticks snapped into thirds for topping

Preheat oven to 375°F.

In a large bowl, cream butter and sugars until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Add eggs and vanilla and beat until combined.

In a separate bowl, sift together flour, coco powder, baking soda, and salt. Working in two batches, add the flour mixture to egg mixture, mixing until just combined after each incorporation.

Fold in chocolate chips and pretzels. Using a spoon, scoop out 2 Tbsp. of cookie batter and roll into thick balls, place on a cookie sheet. Take a piece of pretzel and press into the top of each cookie, slightly flattening out the ball, like this…

See, this way you’re guaranteed a crunchy, salty pretzel in every chocolatey bite — and it just looks cool.

Bake for 9-11 minutes, until just cooked through (I recommend cooking for 9 minutes, then letting sit on the hot cookie sheet for another 1-2 minutes before transferring to a cooling rack). Serve with milk. Lots and lots of milk.