Peanut Butter Filled Chocolate Cookies

One look at this recipe for chocolate cookies, I know that I have found a perfect way to combine and enjoy my two favorite food groups – protein and carbohydrates. They are better known to me as peanut butter and chocolate (or cocoa).

As a bonus, shaping these cookies is a breeze because the healthy unsaturated fat in peanut butter makes the dough very easy to handle.

All purpose flour	1½ cups
Unsweetened cocoa powder	½ cup
Baking soda	½ tsp
Unsalted butter, softened	½ cup or 1 stick
Sugar	½ cup
Brown sugar, packed	½ cup
Peanut butter,	¼ cup
	½ cup for the filling
Egg	1 large
Vanilla extract	1 tsp
Powder sugar, sifted	¾ cup

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit, and line cookie sheets with parchment paper.

• Combine flour, cocoa powder, and baking soda in a bowl and set aside.

  

• Cream butter using an electric mixer at medium speed for 1 minute. Gradually beat in granulated sugar, then brown sugar and finally ¼ cup peanut butter until everything is well combined.

• Add egg, vanilla extract and continue beating until well blended.

• Using a spatula or wooden spoon, gently stir in the flour mixture. Shape dough into ¼-inch balls and place them on prepared cookie sheets.
  
  
  

• For peanut butter filling, stir together powder sugar and ½ cup peanut butter until smooth. Shape mixture into ¾-inch balls.
  
  
  
• 
  Flatten each chocolate dough ball and top with a peanut butter ball. Wrap chocolate dough over the peanut butter filling so that it completely covers the filling. Roll dough into balls, then slightly flatted them again, and sprinkle the top with some granulated sugar.
  
  
  
• Bake for about 8 minutes or until just set and surface is slightly cracked. Cool chocolate cookies on baking sheets for 1 minute before transferring them to wire racks to cool completely.

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