Chocolate Gooey Butter Cookies

Photo by Katie Kay

These are exactly as awesome as they sound.  I made these for a SuperBowl party last weekend and Matt sampled a cookie in the car on the way.  If I recall correctly, this was his reaction:
"Ohh....mmmm.....mmmffgggg....hmm.  That just melted onto my tongue like butter.  Sweet chocolatey goodness.  I don't think I even chewed it.  Can I have another one?"
This from the guy who wouldn't taste ONE tiny bite of my Tuaca Lemon Drop Cupcakes because he doesn't really "like desserts."  I would love to share the reviews from the guys at the SuperBowl party, but they were profanity laced (positive, euphoric profanity) and perhaps not appropriate for sharing in this forum.
The really awesome thing about this recipe is how easy it is.  If you keep cream cheese in your fridge as a staple (which I do), and a box of cake mix in your pantry, then you have a ready-to-make dessert any time you need one!  Always be prepared, and never tell anyone how easy and fast this was!
One thing to remember before you start:  You do need to refrigerate this dough! Don't start it at 9pm thinking you'll knock out a batch before bedtime.
Paula's Chocolate Gooey Butter Cookies

1 8oz package cream cheese, room temperature
1 stick of butter, room temperature
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 18oz box moist chocolate cake mix
Powdered sugar, for dusting

In a large bowl of a stand mixer, cream the cream cheese and butter until smooth. Beat in the egg. After the egg is combined and batter is creamy again, beat in the vanilla extract. When combined, add the cake mix. 

At this point it will be VERY thick and my guess is that only a very hardy mixer will stand up to it.  I attempted this recipe with my mother-in-law's mixer from decades ago and--while it was a quality mixer--it did not have the gumption for this dough.  I have a Kitchenaid and I think it could pull a bus with its motor.

Cover and refrigerate for 1 to 2 hours to firm up so that you can roll the batter into balls. Roll the chilled batter into tablespoon sized balls and then roll them in confectioner’s sugar. Place on an ungreased cookie sheet, 2 inches apart. Bake 12 minutes. The cookies will remain soft and gooey. Cool completely and sprinkle with more confectioners’ sugar, if desired.

Source:  Paula Deen