Recently, I made birthday cupcakes for a friend, and I found myself in a place I rarely end up: the place where you’ve made too much frosting and not enough cake to put it on.  I was thankful that I had plenty for the dozen cupcakes I made, but grimacing internally at the container of excess I now didn’t know what to do with.  Now that I’m making an effort to eat healthier, having extra frosting around the house has become more of a problem than a joy.  In the old days of careless abandon, I probably would have made more cupcakes to put it on, or used it as a dip, or just eaten it straight with a spoon (judge not, I know you would do it too).  Now, the choice is between being wasteful and throwing the extra out, or being creative and finding a good use for it.  As you might have guessed, this time I chose the latter.

These cookies are super easy and lazy.  I did it all with one mixing bowl and one wooden spoon (ok, and a fine grater).  You could be a conscientious baker and stir the flour and baking powder together before adding them to the wet ingredients like you do for most recipes, but I skipped that step and had no problems.  Similarly, while you might get a slightly airier cookie if you beat the frosting for a few minutes with an electric mixer, I did all my mixing with a wooden spoon and was not disappointed.

The flavors I chose for this cookie actually stemmed from the color the frosting was originally tinted (orange).  This is an easy and forgiving recipe, so if you want to change it up to suit your tastes (or the color of your particular leftovers), feel free to experiment.  I think they would be nice with some chopped cherries and nuts, or plain old vanilla.  Just be sure to adjust the amount of flour you use if you change the amount of liquid in the recipe.  The dough should be able to hold its shape when you form it, but not impossible to stir with a wooden spoon.  If you have to choose between too runny and too stiff, I would err on the side of stiffer.

You will need the following ingredients:

For the cookies:

• 2 cups buttercream frosting
• 2 eggs
• zest of one orange (optional)
• 2 Tbsp. orange juice
• 3 cups flour (use 2½ cups instead if you don’t use the orange juice)
• 1 tsp. baking soda
• 12 oz. semi-sweet chocolate chips

For baking ambiance:

• I can’t remember if I’ve suggested them before or not, but I’m going to go with The J Geils Band.  Their music is just the right amount of sugary, synthy 80’s fun to accompany your bakeventure.

Let’s get baking!

Preheat your oven to 350°F and grease or line two cookie sheets.

In a large bowl, beat together the frosting, eggs, orange zest, and orange juice until smooth.

Stir in the flour and baking soda until they’re completely incorporated.

Stir in the chocolate chips.

Using a cookie scoop (or spoons or your bare hands), form the dough into balls and arrange them on the cookie sheets approximately 2″ apart.

Bake the cookies for 12-14 minutes, or until the bottoms begin to brown and the tops are dry.

Let the cookies cool for 5 minutes on the cookie sheets, the transfer them to cooling racks to cool completely.

Enjoy!

You can download the printable PDF recipe here: Leftover Frosting Cookies