Homemade Rolo Cookies Recipe

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
2. Line a few baking sheets with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat.
3. In a large bowl or stand mixer, beat 1 cup butter until light and fluffy, 2 minutes or so, scraping the edges. If you have a mixer that is powerful enough, start with cold butter, otherwise you will have to let it soften a bit.
4. Add 1/2 cup granulated sugar and 1 cup brown sugar and beat 1 more minute, scraping bottom and sides.
5. Add 2 eggs and 1 tablespoon vanilla and beat well, scraping the edges and bottom of the bowl.
6. Add 2 cups flour (spooned and leveled!), but do not mix it yet. Add 1 cup cocoa powder (if your cocoa looks clumpy, sift it into the bowl through a strainer. You don't want chunks of cocoa in your cookies.) Don't stir yet.
7. Add 1 teaspoon baking soda and 3/4 teaspoon salt. Stir the dry ingredients together a bit with a small spoon so you don't end up with any lumps of salt or soda in your cookies. Then beat the dry ingredients into the dough, but only until just incorporated.
8. When the dough is just starting to come together and there are still streaks of flour, take a second to scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl. Finish mixing it all together but don't go overboard; over-beaten cookies turn out tough. We want nice tender cookies.
9. Unwrap one thousand Rolos. Just kidding, but it might feel like a thousand. Enlist help if you can! This recipe makes about 35 cookies give or take, so you either need 35 Rolos or 70, depending on how excessive of a person you are. Obviously I added 2 Rolos for every cookie. I promise they still taste great with only one. It's totally up to you!
10. Use a spoon to scoop about 1 and 1/2 tablespoons of dough into a ball. It should be about the size of a large walnut. Don't be alarmed that the dough is pretty sticky, I promise it bakes up great. Press either 1 or 2 Rolos into the center of the dough and then wrap the dough around it so that it is completely covered. Make sure no rolo is peeking out.
11. Add about 1/2 cup or more of granulated sugar to a bowl or plate. Roll each cookie dough ball in sugar, making sure it gets well coated.
12. Place each ball on the prepared baking sheet. I did 12 cookies per sheet, but make sure you have at least 1-2 inches in between each cookie.
13. Bake at 350 for 9-10 minutes. Do not over bake! When they are done, the edges will have cracked. The cookies should not be shiny in the middle. The edges should be firm.
14. Let cool on the pan for 5 minutes before removing to a cooling rack to cool. Be aware that the center of these cookies are approximately the temperature of molten lava for the first couple minutes.
15. Eat warm with a tall glass of milk! These are great warmed up in the microwave for 10 seconds or so on day two.