Chocolate-Cookie Spiders

Ingredients

• 0.5 teaspoon baking soda 
• 1 cup mint 
• 1 large eggs 
• 1.3 cups flour all-purpose
• 36  m&m's red mini
• 72  pretzel sticks mini
• 0.5 teaspoon salt 
• 1 cup sugar 
• 10 tablespoons butter unsalted softened
• 6 tablespoons dutch process cocoa powder unsweetened sifted
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract 

Equipment

• baking sheet
• oven
• whisk
• wire rack
• hand mixer

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350F. Line two baking sheets with parchment.
2. Whisk together flour, cocoa, baking soda and salt.
3. Cream butter and sugar with an electric mixer until fluffy, 2 to 3 minutes. Beat in egg and vanilla until smooth. Beat in flour mixture.
4. Roll a teaspoonful of dough between your palms, then roll ball in sprinkles. Repeat with remaining dough and sprinkles.
5. Place 9 balls on each baking sheet, pressing lightly to flatten just a bit.
6. Place two mini M&M's or red hots on one end of each ball. Insert 4 pretzel stick halves into each side of each ball.
7. Bake one sheet of cookies until dry on top, 12 minutes.
8. Let cool on sheet on wire rack. Repeat with remaining sheet.