A Salty Treat for the Salty Shore

Prepping for the 4th of July literally meant Mr. and I were in the kitchen all day - ALL day.  Today was the first truly sunny day in what I think we had in weeks, if not months, maybe even years. I feel like rain has been pouring down since as long as I can remember -and the one day the sun decided to peek out, we had to man the kitchen.  However, after looking at the five day forecast, it seems promising that we didn't miss out on the only sunny day. 

After visiting the local ice cream shop multiple times this week (and it's only Wednesday), I can't seem to get enough of the Salted Carmel Pretzel ice cream.  I decided to carry this sweet treat over in the form of a cookie.  Scouring the internet, I adapted the recipes I found from Ambitious Kitchen,  and created a salty goodness ready for the 4th of July. 

The one main ingredient that makes this recipe mind-blowing (maybe that's a bit exaggerated, maybe not) is Nutella. Now, if you have never in your life had the chocolate hazelnut spread that is Nutella, please run out to the store now,buy it and spread it on anything. Seriously - anything. A piece of bread, moldy cheese, anything. It will literally change your life in only the best way possible. 

Now with that being said,  if you aren't a fan of hazelnut chocolately goodness, then just omit it from the recipe. But don't hate it till you tried it :)

Nutella Stuffed Chocolate Chip Cookies and Sea Salt

2 1/4 cups flour
1 1/2 sticks of butter (melted)
2/3 jar of Nutella
1 cup chocolate chips (let's be real - I use the whole bag)
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 cup brown sugar
1/4 sugar
2 eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 tablespoon greek yogurt

1. Mix flour and baking soda together and set aside. 
2. With a mixer, mix the butter and sugars until well blended. Beat in the eggs, vanilla, and yogurt until combined. Add the flour mix and beat until completely combined. Gently fold in all of the chocolate chips.
3. Place dough in fridge for at least 2 hours. I left mine in for 4 hours, which worked out better with the Nutella. Place Nutella in fridge during this time to solidify a bit. 
4. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. After dough hardens, take out of fridge and make into balls of dough.  Flatten them in the palm of your hand and spoon chilled Nutella in the middle. Be sure to fold dough around this gently and completely. 
5. Bake the cookies 10 minutes or until the edges of the cookies begin to turn golden brown. They will look a bit underdone in the middle, but will continue to cook once out of the oven. Cool the cookies on the sheets and sprinkle with a little sea salt. 

I am NOT a fan of salt, but these cookies had a different type of taste that set them apart from most chocolate chip cookies I've made.  I think sea salt had a lot to do with that.  So yummy with a tall glass of milk!
Enjoy!