Candy Corn and White Chocolate Softbatch Cookies

I love candy corn.  It's so so yummy.  Yes, it's a bit like eating a candle.  But a really good honey-flavored candle.  A friend of mine tagged me in a post on facebook, and it was this recipe.  A few weeks ago I made Candy Corn Krispy Treats (you can find the recipe here on my blog) and this seemed like a logical next step.  This recipe was on Pinterest (from Averie Cooks...I don't know if Cooks is her last name, which would be cool, or if it's a verb).  This is my first Pinterest recipe.  I was hoping it wouldn't be a Pinterest Fail...have you ever seen those?  If not it is worth 15 minutes (at least) of your time to google "Pinterest Fail" and see what comes up...

Candy Corn and White Chocolate Softbatch Cookies
1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened (I never have unsalted so I used salted)
3/4 cup light brown sugar
1/4 cup white sugar
1 egg
1 tbsp vanilla extract
2 tbsp cream or half and half
2 cups flour
2 tsp cornstarch
1 tsp baking soda
pinch salt, optional (I think if you use salted butter you don't have to add this, but I still did)
1 1/2 cups candy corn
1 cup white chocolate chips

Place first 5 ingredients (through vanilla) in stand mixer and mix until light and fluffy, about 5 minutes.  Stop and scrape down sides of bowl, then add next 5 ingredients.  Mix on low for 1 minute, just until incorporated (don't overmix).

Add candy corn & white chocolate chips and mix just until incorporated.

Using a cookie scoop, scoop cookies onto a plate; flatten slightly.  Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 3 hours or up to 5 days (I got stuff to do, I can't wait 3 hours...I waited 1.5 or so).  Do not bake without chilling or cookies will spread too much. 

Important note (she says): "strategically place candy corn so that it's not baking directly on cookie sheet because it will melt, burn, or turn runny if it is.  The candy corn pieces need to be in the interior of the cookies, shielded and buffered by dough" (how do you think this turned out?  I certainly did not carefully shape my dough around each piece of candy corn...I just do not have that kind of time).

Preheat oven to 350.  Place mounds on baking sheet (use cooking spray or silpat baking mat [she says])(I used my baking stones) spaced at least 2 inches apart and bake for about 9 minutes, or until edges are set and tops are just beginning to be set, even if slightly undercooked, pale and glossy in the center.  Do not overbake because cookies will firm up as they cool.  Baking longer than 10 minutes will result in cookies with overly browned undersides (this is never an issue if you use stones though--in my experience at least).  Cool on baking sheet for about 5 minutes before transferring to wire racks.

Results:
Well, you can see the picture above.  Those were the best looking ones.  A great  many of them turned out like this:

And then folded up on themselves when removed from the cookie sheet like this:

Ha!  Oh wait, do you want to know how they tasted?  Pretty good (of course).  I thought these were going to be crazy sweet.  But really they weren't.  Maybe baking the candy corn makes it lose some of that famous sweetness.  So this was kind of a fail, but kind of not.  I did get like 13 normal looking cookies.  And some halfway between the melted ones and normal ones.  And then a lot of folded up ones.  These were fun to try and the kids were really excited about them.  But I think this is more of a novelty thing that I won't make again....but I'm glad I made them today :)