Pomegranate Bliss Cookies

In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, cornstarch and salt. Set aside.

In a large bowl using an electric mixer, beat the butter and sugars on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Add the eggs one at a time, beating after each addition. Beat in the vanilla.
Reduce speed to low and slowly add in the dry ingredients. Beat until well-combined. Stir in the chocolate chips and pomegranate arils (the dough might get a bit pink but that’s fine).

Place dough in the fridge for about 10 minutes. You can leave it in the refrigerator for longer if you want but 10 minutes is about my patience maximum.

Meanwhile, preheat oven to 350 F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or grease lightly.

Remove dough from the refrigerator. Place dough by rounded tablespoonfuls onto the prepared baking sheet, at least 2 inches apart. Bake for 10-12 minutes or until the cookies are lightly golden only around the edges.

Remove pan from the oven and let cookies sit on the pan for 1 minute, then transfer the cookies to a cooling rack until cool. Repeat with remaining dough until all cookies are baked. Wait until cookies reach room temperature before adding frosting and toppings.

For the frosting:
When you start your frosting, be sure that your cream cheese is at room temperature before adding the white chocolate. Otherwise the chocolate could seize up. When I forgot to take out my cream cheese ahead of time, I simply heated the cream cheese and white chocolate together in the microwave for about 30 seconds, which softened both enough to incorporate them smoothly.

In a medium-sized bowl using an electric mixer on medium speed, beat together the cream cheese and melted white chocolate until combined. Add the vanilla and mix until combined. Reduce speed to low and add the powdered sugar. Mix until incorporated, adding more powdered sugar if necessary to reach desired consistency.

Spread the frosting on the cooled cookies. Immediately sprinkle the frosted cookies with a few of the remaining pomegranate arils.

Makes about 4 dozen cookies.