Vegetarian Recipe: Tarantula Cookies

Every week on the Good Food Blog we celebrate Meatless Monday by sharing a vegetarian recipe from our archives.

Clare Crespo is the author of The Secret Life of Food, published by Hyperion Books. Check out her website at www.yummyfun.com. She first shared this recipe for Tarantula Cookies on October 25, 2003.

Photo by Eric Staudenmaier

Keep reading for the full recipe…

Tarantula Cookies

Makes about 25-30 cookies

2 cups all-purpose flour

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/8 teaspoon baking soda

10 Tablespoons unsalted butter, softened

1/2 cup light brown sugar

1/4 cup granulated sugar

1 egg

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

2 Tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder

1 bag (8 ozs ) thin, short pretzel sticks

1 bag (11 1/2 ounces) milk chocolate chips

2 Tablespoons vegetable oil

Chocolate sprinkles

Small red candies

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a medium bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, salt and baking soda. Set aside.

• In a large bowl, beat together the butter, brown sugar and granulated sugar until light and fluffy. Add the egg and vanilla and beat until well blended. Gradually add the flour mixture and cocoa powder. Beat to form a smooth dough.

• Roll a tablespoon-sized ball of dough, and place it on a baking sheet. Arrange 8 pretzel sticks firmly into the dough ball. Continue with the rest of the pretzels and dough.

• Bake until the cookies start to brown around the edges, about 7-10 minutes. Lift the cookies from the baking sheets with a spatula, and place on wire cooling racks. Cool completely. Place the racks on sheets of aluminum foil or waxed paper.

• In a double boiler (or the microwave), melt the chocolate chips with vegetable oil. Pour the melted chocolate over each cookie, and coat with sprinkles. Press in 2 red candy eyes on the front of the head.