Don't Toss Your Stale Cookies! Make An Iconic Condiment Instead

We all have our favorite sweets we like to indulge in after meals or as a snack. Cookies are among the easiest and most delicious treats we can make from scratch or (gasp!) pick up from the store. From three-ingredient peanut butter cookies to tried-and-true chocolate chip, everyone has their favorite go-to cookie. Like most food items, however, cookies have a time stamp when they go from decadent and tasty to stale and lackluster (around a week if left on the counter). Although you can extend their shelf life by throwing them in the fridge or freezer, this route often leads to their being forgotten. Instead, there's a brilliant dessert condiment called cookie butter you can make them into. 

What is cookie butter? Well, it's a magical dessert spread that requires minimal ingredients and only around 30 minutes of your time. Making cookie butter is a sure way to get the most out of your leftover cookies, stale or not.

Like any other recipe, knowing which ingredients work and don't work is essential, but just about any crispy, crunchy cookie will work when it comes to cookie butter. If you're hoping to achieve a spread similar to the Lotus Biscoff Cookie Butter sold in stores, your best bet is to use Biscoff cookies or another variety of crisp spice cookies. From the crunchy, buttery exterior to the lingering spicy notes that taste like the holidays, these cookies (whose ubiquity on airlines might make them seem like the cookie of the skies) can play a huge part in making a delicious cookie spread.

Whichever route you choose to take when making cookie butter, you really can't go wrong. It all depends on your preference of taste and, most importantly, whatever cookies you have on hand. Maybe this will inspire you to branch out and try a new recipe, or perhaps you'll be more apt to buy various cookies to test which one you like best for your new favorite treat.