Ice Cream Cookie Cups

Doesn't this look delicious? We try to do a movie/pizza night at least one Friday a month & tonight was that night. It drives KC nuts, but I like to make a special dessert. Tonight, I surprised the boys with this fun treat. The idea is originally from Family Fun. They are really easy to make, but you do need to plan a little ahead. I was running out of time, so I put our cookies dough in the freezer for about 20 minutes. I topped our ice cream with some hot fudge & caramel sauce. They were so yummy!

RECIPE INGREDIENTS:
1/4 cup shortening
1/4 cup butter, softened
2/3 cup sugar
1 egg
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
1 1/2 cups flour
1/4 cup miniature semisweet chocolate chips

1. To make the cookie cups, beat together the shortening, butter, and sugar in a large bowl. Add the egg and vanilla extract, beating until combined.

2. In a separate bowl, sift together the salt, baking powder, and flour, then gradually stir them into the batter. Stir in the chocolate chips.

3. Divide the dough in half, shape each half into a flat disk, and wrap it in plastic. Chill the dough in the refrigerator for at least 2 hours.

4. Heat the oven to 375°. Turn two 12-cup muffin tins bottom side up and cover 10 of the cup bottoms with squares of aluminum foil (use every other cup so there's some space between them). Grease the foil with shortening and set it aside.

5. Unwrap 1 disk of dough, place it between 2 sheets of waxed paper, and roll it out to a 1/8-inch thickness. Cut out 4-inch circles of dough and place each one over a cup bottom, smoothing out any cracks. Repeat with the other disk, rerolling and reusing any scraps.

6. Bake the cookie cups for 10 to 12 minutes or until light brown. Let them cool for 10 minutes, then remove the foil and cookies together from the muffin pan. Peel off the foil and let the cups cool completely on a rack. Just before serving, fill each cookie cup with a scoop of ice cream. Makes 10.