Oreo Balls

Alright, I'll admit - the name is not very glamorous. Nor are these, in fact, cupcakes. However, they have become a house favorite ever since my mother-in-law tasted them at an office party almost two years ago, and we attempted to make them for a New Year's party. They are relatively simple, and absolutely delicious! This recipe makes a lot of them, but they'll be gone before you know it, guaranteed!

1 package Oreos (or generics; don't use double-stuffed though!)
1 8-oz package of cream cheese, softened
Melting/coating/dipping chocolate

Crush the cookies into indiscernible bits. If you have a food processor, this is easy. However, if you don't, there are many creative ways to crush up the cookies. Here a few pictures of my nephews helping me last year with their various creative methods:

Isaac went for the foot-stomping method (don't worry; they're double-bagged!) while Nathan watches, confused.

Ezra decided to crush them with the corner of a lid. He eventually just placed the entire lid on top and jumped up and down on them.

And sweet Joel, after discovering that his hands didn't crush well enough, decided to use a broom. Only, he used the wrong part and just ended up "sweeping" the bag of cookies instead of crushing them.

(Warning: when crushing cookies in ziplocs, especially with children, always double-bag, and let as much air out as possible or you will have a cookie explosion!)

Now, thanks to my KitchenAid food processor, the cookie-crushing process goes much faster, but is slightly less entertaining.

Anyway, crush up almost the entire bag of cookies (save a few out for eating - about five or six - because Oreos rock).

Soften the package of cream cheese, and then mix the crushed cookies and the cream cheese together very well. Form into 1-2 inch balls, put on wax paper, and refrigerate for about an hour.

Using a variety of melting chocolate, dip each ball into the melted chocolate and set on wax paper to cool. I usually use dark chocolate, but this week I also added milk chocolate and white chocolate to the mix. Refrigerate until ready to serve (best when served cool, although can be enjoyed without cooling!)

The chocolate dipping part can get kind of messy, and if you're doing it in a warm kitchen, your cookie balls will start to soften before you dip them. In these situations, I recommend getting out a few at a time, and letting the rest stay in the fridge until you're ready for them.

Once the chocolate has hardened, they are ready to eat! Enjoy!

Just be careful about getting cookie all over your face;-)