Chocolate Covered PB Cookies

You simply cannot go wrong with chocolate and peanut butter (unless of course your kid is allergic and there are no clues that there is PB in something.... I always warn!)

Here the cookie just looks like a chocolate cookie rolled in sugar.  Not so.  Once you bite in, there is a lovely peanut butter surprise.

 Here's how to do it.  Recipe came from here.  I made a few small changes.

Ingredients:

For the Chocolate dough-
1/2 cup Granulated Sugar
1/2 cup Brown Sugar
1/2 cup Margarine (her recipe said butter, but margarine did great too!)
1/4 cup Creamy Peanut Butter
1 teaspoon Vanilla
1 egg

1/2 teaspoon Baking Soda
1/4 teaspoon Salt
1/2 cup Baking Cocoa
1 1/2 cups Flour


+
For the PB dough-
3/4 cup Creamy Peanut Butter
3/4 cup Powdered Sugar
+
Extra granulated Sugar to roll dough balls in.

Instructions:
-Preheat oven to 325º F or 350 (my oven is too hot, so I use 325.)
-Recipes always say to mix the dry ingredients together, but I hardly ever do that.  I just add the salt and baking soda first and then the chocolate and then the flour last.  It all works out.
-Make chocolate dough first. In a mixer (or large bowl) beat together sugars, butter and 1/4 cup of peanut butter until light and fluffy. Add the vanilla and egg, beating to combine. Now add the baking soda and salt to the wet dough.  Now add the cocoa. Mix well before adding the flour. Stir to combine, blending well. Set aside.
-Make PB dough now. In another bowl, mix together powdered sugar and peanut butter until smooth. I used a fork and then my hands to make it really stick together.
-Make PB dough into small teaspoon size balls.  You could put them all on a plate or extra cookie sheet or just a piece of wax paper. This will save some time later.

-Now to assemble: Pull off a heaping tablespoon of cookie dough and flatten with your hands.

Take the peanut butter dough ball  and place it in the center of the chocolate dough.

Wrap the chocolate dough around the peanut butter center, pressing to seal.

 Roll the cookie into a ball and roll the cookie in the sugar.

-Place cookies on the prepared baking sheet 2 inches apart. Using the bottom of a glass, flatten each cookie to about a 1/2 inch thickness.

-Bake in preheated oven for 7 to 9 minutes. Let stand on the baking sheet for 2 minutes, then remove to a wire rack.
Some cookies are less surprises than others, but they are all still delicious!

The irony of taking a picture of a cookie above bowls of fruit is not lost on me. =)