Yesterday I was in the mood for something chocolatey, but I had some caramels that I needed to use up too.  So I threw in a few almonds and now I have a new favorite cookie!

Chocolate Caramel Clusters

Cream together 1/3 cup shortening, 2 eggs, 1 t. vanilla, and 1 cup brown sugar (packed).

Add 1 t. salt, 1 t. soda, 2 cups flour and beat dough until smooth.

Add 1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips, 1/2 cup of plain almonds (roughly chopped), and 1/2 cup diced caramels (I cut each caramel into 6 pieces).

Bake at 375 degrees for 8-10 minutes on a greased cookie sheet.  The timing will depend on your oven.  They were a little “doughy” when pulled out at around the 8 minute mark, but firmed up really nicely as they sat.  I thought the 10 min. batch was a little overdone.  After taking the cookies from the oven, wait just a minute or so and then transfer them to a plate or wax paper to cool.  If you leave them on the pan for too long, the caramel will stick and they will be difficult to remove.  Also, you should note that some of the caramel WILL melt out the side of the cookies.  As long as you remove the cookies fairly soon it isn’t a problem.  It looked messy but was a delicious little reward for the cookie baker (ME) as I “cleaned” the pan.  🙂

This week we are linked up with My Crowded Kitchen for their link party.  If you want to participate, go check out their site and add your link too!