Looking for a sweet and salty cookie recipe? Or a Christmas cookie recipe that’s perfect for the holidays? This Trader Joe’s recipe is a chocolate chip cookie combined with caramel sea salt baking chips! The sea salt flakes on top add a nice, savory touch to balance the sweetness. Let’s dive into this quick and easy recipe!

Cookie Recipe Ingredients

This smoked chocolate chip cookie recipe calls for 11 ingredients and some super easy steps. First things first, preheat the grill to 375 degrees using indirect heat. As far as smoke flavor goes, I like to use a blend of hickory and pecan.

Note: If you don’t have a grill or don’t feel like going outside in the elements, you can easily make these inside in the oven.

In a medium or large-sized mixing bowl, combine 1/2 cup of softened butter (1 stick), 1/2 cup of sugar, and a 1/4 cup of brown sugar. Mix these ingredients with a baking spatula or wooden spoon (or use a mixer like I do) until you can’t see the yellow of the butter. Next, add one egg and a teaspoon of vanilla and mix some more until the ingredients look like a cream.

The Dough Is Made!

Now that the ingredients you’ve used so far have formed a cream-like texture, add in 1 1/4 cups of flour, 1/2 teaspoon of baking soda, and 1/4 teaspoon of salt. Mix these ingredients in and the dough will form fairly quickly. Once this is done, add in 2/3 cup of milk chocolate chips and 2/3 cup of caramel sea salt baking chips and mix into dough.

Making the Chocolate Chip and Caramel Sea Salt Smoked Cookies

Now that the dough is made, ball up pieces of dough into roughly the size of a golf ball. Place balls of dough on a cookie sheet, preferably lined with parchment paper to keep cookies from sticking. The typical cookie sheet should fit 12 cookies.

How Long Should I Bake Chocolate Chip Cookies?

Place cookie sheet on the grill (or oven) for 8-10 minutes. The cookies will likely look a little gooey on top, but this is perfect. Cook any longer and the bottoms could be getting burnt. Check with a flipping spatula to gently lift cookie up and take a peek at the desired brownness. Once they are done, remove from grill.

Don’t Forget the Sea Salt Flakes!

Immediately after removing from the grill, sprinkle sea salt flakes on top of each cookie. I like to pinch some in my fingers and sprinkle on that way. These sea salt flakes give the perfect balance to the sweetness of the cookie and help bring out the salt flavor of the caramel baking chips.

Where Can I Buy Caramel Sea Salt Baking Chips?

The only place I’ve seen caramel sea salt baking chips is at Trader Joe’s and they’re seasonal, popping up only during the holidays. You could substitute caramel chips, especially since you’re using sea salt flakes on top for this cookie recipe.

How Many Cookies Does This Recipe Make?

Following the directions, this recipe makes 24 chocolate chip and caramel sea salt baking cookies.

Is This Considered a Christmas Cookie Recipe?

I came up with the idea during the Christmas season, so they can pass for Christmas cookies. Also, the sea salt caramel chips are seasonal at Trader Joe’s, so that helps the holiday cause.

Can I Make This Cookie Recipe in the Oven?

Absolutely! You won’t get the hint of smoke flavor from the grill, but you’ll still have some incredible cookies!

Other Treats from the Grill

Smoked Candied Pecan Pie

Smoked Chex Mix

Skillet Chocolate Chip Cookie

Grilled Twinkies w/ Raspberry Compote

Looking to learn how to smoke a turkey for the holidays (or just because it tastes dang good any time of year)? This smoked turkey recipe will walk you through all of the steps, from thawing to serving. Follow the details for how to smoke turkey below or simply skip down to the recipe card!

The Fastest Way to Thaw a Turkey

When you buy your turkey, it will most likely be frozen. They say it can take 24-72 hours to thaw out in your fridge, but ain’t nobody got time for that! You can thaw it faster by submerging in cold water. You’ll need to keep the water at the same temp as your refrigerator, which should be around 35-38 degrees Fahrenheit.

If you have space in your refrigerator, put the packaged frozen turkey in a five-gallon bucket, particularly a food-grade one. Fill the bucket until the turkey is completely submerged, then place in your fridge for at least six hours.

The reason meat thaws faster when submerged in cold water is due to the density of the molecules. Air is much less dense and thus takes more time to get the turkey to thaw. Keep in mind the thawing process will vary depending on how big of a bird you have. The bigger the bird, the longer the time it will take.

Remove the Stuff from the Inside

After the bird is thawed, remove the packaging and rinse the turkey. After you’ve done that, dig up the turkey’s cavity and you’ll find these surprises: turkey neck, pack of gizzards, and usually a pack of gravy. If you don’t find the pack of gizzards, then dig around the cavity where the head/neck used to be. That is where I have found it.

How to Brine the Smoked Turkey

Once you have those removed, the next step for this smoked turkey recipe is brine time! I made a simple brine of water, kosher salt, brown sugar, apple juice, and sliced apples. Start by filling your food-grade brine bucket with two gallons of water. Next, pour in two cups of kosher salt, two cups of sugar, four cups of apple juice, and two cups of sliced apples. Stir the brine ingredients as to not have the kosher salt and brown sugar settle at the bottom or the brine will be much less effective.

Now that the brine is mixed, submerge turkey in the brine and place in the fridge. If you don’t have enough space in your fridge, you could always resort to a big enough cooler for your brine. Make sure to put ice cubes in to keep it cold. It is suggested to brine for 24 hours, but you can get away with less time than that if needs be. After the turkey is finished brining, pull it out and pat it dry.

Spatchcock Turkey

If you prefer to spatchcock a turkey, now’s the time to do it. To spatchcock, turn the bird back facing upward and completely cut along both sides of the spine. You’ll want either a sharp knife or kitchen shears (and some muscle) to cut through this.

The advantage to smoking a spatchcock turkey is that it cuts your smoke time down from six or seven hours to four or five. Some say it also provides a more thorough smoke penetration. If you are planning to smoke other items when you smoke your turkey, make sure you have enough room because a spatchcocked bird takes up a lot more grill space.

It’s okay if you keep the turkey whole. It will still taste great! You can also follow the this link here for more details.

Prep Tip for Smoked Turkey Recipe

To help your white meat in the smoked turkey get more flavor, apply rub and herbed butter under the skin. The best way to do this is to the top cavity of the bird and stick your hand in between the skin and the meat. It is preferred you wear nitrile gloves to protect your hand from the raw chicken juices.

Make some separation of the skin and meat by wiggling your hand and forcing it down further to the bottom. You will need to do this on both the left and right turkey breasts. Slide the butter and rub underneath, then apply olive oil and rub on the outer layer all over the turkey.

How Long to Smoke Turkey?

With your grill preheated to 275 degrees over indirect heat, it’s time to put your turkey on. In this smoked turkey recipe, we are smoking the bird until the internal temp in the turkey breast reaches close to 165 degrees. This may take about five hours, but depends on the size of the turkey: the bigger the bird, the longer it will take. The dark meat will be ready at 175 degrees and will likely reach that temp quicker than the white meat will reach 165 degrees.

Spritz a few times during the cook with a blend of apple juice and apple cider vinegar. This will help keep the turkey from being too dry. It also helps to wrap foil around the tips of the wings and the bottoms of the turkey legs. This will keep them from burning as they are the skinniest parts of the thick bird.

Once the turkey breast is just under 165 degrees, remove and rest either on a cutting board for at least 30 minutes. The smoked turkey will cook internally for a little bit and raise a few degrees soon after coming off the grill. Slicing right away will cause juices to run out of the meat, which means you’re losing flavor. Resting for a while will allow the meat to cool and retain juices better. Carve up and enjoy your smoked turkey!

What to Serve with Smoked Turkey

Looking for some ideas of what to serve with your tasty smoked turkey? Here’s some inspiration:

Green Beans w/Bacon and Onion

Easy Smoked Mac n’ Cheese

Grilled Sweet Potatoes

Roasted Brussels Sprouts with Bacon and Parmesan

Cast Iron Biscuits

Entertaining a smaller crowd? Check out this Smoked Turkey Breast recipe!

The Smoked Turkey Recipe!

Smoked Turkey

Prep Time: 12 hours

Cook Time: 4 hours

Total Time: 16 hours

Smoking a turkey on Thanksgiving just might become your new tradition!

Print

Ingredients

• 1 whole turkey
• 2 Tablespoons olive oil (or mayo)
• 1/2 cup butter (same as one stick)
• 2 Tablespoons (minimum) of your favorite rub
• BRINE
• 1 gallon water
• 1 cup kosher salt
• 1 cup brown sugar
• 2 cups apple juice
• 2 apples, sliced
• HERBED BUTTER
• 1/2 cup (aka- 1 stick) butter, softened
• 5 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 Tablespoon parsley, chopped
• 1 Tablespoon thyme, chopped
• 1 Tablespoon chives, chopped
• 1 Tablespoon sage, chopped

Instructions

1. Remove turkey from packaging, remove packet, gizzards from inside of bird. Set aside.
2. Prepare brine by combining water, kosher salt, brown sugar, apple juice, and sliced apples into a cooler or five-gallon bucket. Double or triple the brining ingredients as necessary to have the turkey completely submerged. Place turkey in brine in the refrigerator overnight or for 12 hours.
3. Make herbed butter by combining butter, garlic, parsley, thyme, chives, and sage. Set aside.
4. Preheat grill/smoker to 250F, using pecan wood (or smoking wood of your choice)
5. Remove turkey from brine and rinse off the bird. Spatchcock the bird as described here
6. Using your hand, create separation between the skin and the meat by starting where the head used to be. As you create separation between the skin and the breasts, smooth in some herbed butter. Then put in the rub. Repeat the process with butter and rub on top of the skin.
7. Put turkey on grill at 250F and cook for four hours or until the middle of the thickest part of the turkey breast reaches 165F. Remove from grill/smoker and let rest for 20-30 minutes before slicing.

Notes

Keep in mind the prep time is so long mostly due to the brining of the turkey. This is usually done overnight.

If you decide not to spatchcock, the bird will take an extra couple of hours to cook.

Nutrition Information:

Yield: varies Serving Size: 4 oz
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 260Total Fat: 9gSaturated Fat: 3g

Looking for ideas for your upcoming holiday meal? Well, you’re in luck! This BBQ holiday recipe guide is a compilation of main dishes, sides/appetizers, and dessert (yep, singular. I’m working on that). The list will be updated as more recipes get developed and posted, so keep checking back!

MAIN DISHES

Smoked Prime Rib

Prime rib is the crown jewel to any holiday meal! Bone in or boneless, this recipe is has you covered. Adding some smoke flavor will help you win over any hungry crowd!

Twice Smoked Ham

Take that store-bought ham and smoke it again with wood flavor of your choice! Also, make a glaze that will taste much better than that packet you got in the package.

Holiday Smoked Turkey

Smoking a turkey for the holidays just might become your new favorite tradition! With the help of a brine, smoke flavor, and garlic butter, this juicy, flavorful bird will be an upgrade from the holiday turkey you grew up with.

Smoked Beef Tenderloin

Do you like filet mignon? What if I told you the smoked beef tenderloin is a meaty log full of them? Beef tenderloin is perfect for meals at Christmas, Valentine’s Day, or any gathering that you’re looking to impress. The combo of lean, beefy flavor and the seasoning cooked into the crust is off the charts good! Oh, and the smoke flavor infused while on the grill helps.

Smoked Turkey Breast

Having a smaller gathering this year? Smoked turkey breast is quicker to cook than a full turkey and still tastes amazing! Brine, rub and smoke is all you need!

BBQ Smoked Brisket

Brisket is the king of all barbecued meats. With some folks wanting to buck tradition for their holiday meals, I added this one to the BBQ holiday recipe guide. It can be intimidating to cook due to the time and cost, but this recipe will guide you and make you look like a natural to your friends and family!

Smoked Teriyaki Pork Tenderloin

Pork tenderloin lends itself well to many different variety of seasonings and styles. Marinating in teriyaki, smoking on the grill with cherry wood, and searing provide an excellent way to eat this excellent cut of meat!

SIDES/APPETIZERS

Smoky Ham & Cheese Sliders

Ham and cheese sliders are mini sandwiches that pack a punch of flavor! Using Hawaiian rolls, slices of ham and Swiss cheese, and a mixture of other ingredients including Worcestershire sauce, onion flakes, and butter, these sliders are very popular and vanish quick!

BBQ Pulled Pork Nachos

BBQ pulled pork nachos are an excellent use of leftover pulled pork. They can be served up as either an appetizer for a small crowd or a main dish for a small gathering.

Roasted Brussels Sprouts w/ Bacon

In my opinion, roasted Brussels Sprouts are the best way to eat this vegetable. But add bacon and garlic to them and you’ve got a side dish worth diving into!

Southern Corn Pudding

A recipe from Chef Anthony DiBernardo from Swig & Swine in South Carolina, this side dish is comfort food at its finest.

Cast Iron Biscuits

Biscuits are the ultimate comfort food: they can be a side to your comfort food main dish or be the main dish itself. They are also acceptable to eat with any meal any time of the day, which makes them a perfect addition to this holiday meal guide! With a kiss of hickory smoke, this recipe will make you want to eat biscuits with every meal!

Smoked Chicken Wings

Smoked chicken wings are great for watching football during the holidays…or any time of the year! Get some smoke flavor first, then crank the heat to get a crispy skin. Sauce them and you’ve got yourself an awesome appetizer!

DESSERT

Smoked Candied Pecans

These smoked candied pecans are perfect for holiday snacking! Mixing ingredients like brown sugar, maple syrup, and cinnamon, then adding a hint of hickory smoke flavor take pecans to the next level.

Smoked Candied Pecan Pie

Take those smoked candied pecans and put them in a pie! With the help of sugar, butter, and a kiss of hickory smoke, this smoked candied pecan pie is exactly what your family and friends want for a holiday dessert!