it’s what’s inside that counts

remember how your mother always told you that it is what’s inside that counts? well, after eating these cookies, I am quite certain that you will call your mother up and tell her that she was right.

they don’t call these bad boys “magic peanut butter middles” for nothing. there is certainly something magical about biting into a seemingly innocent chocolate cookie to find your mouth full of peanut butter deliciousness! and the crunchy sugar sure doesn’t hurt! yes, i know, by now you realize that i am incredibly biased and will say great things when it comes to just about all things peanut butter. yes, i admit that these are probably about the same level of goodness as most other things i make, but i am living in the now here…i am not comparing them, just enjoying them! i took great pleasure in watching my friend ed pick up the largest one of the bunch, holding it in both hands and eating it like a burger, with his eyes lighting up and asking if he can have more!

after i finished making erica’s fluffernutter cupcakes i got to work on these. as you may remember me briefly mentioning, i had made the peanut butter middles before i headed off to the doctor and threw them in the fridge to solidify so they were ready to go (if you did read that i am sure you were wondering what happened to them– i decided to wait a couple days to spread out my posts, plus i have been pretty busy). this was of course after the attempt at 3-D stomach ache wore off enough(btw, the doctor called me up and wants me to come back– he said my reaction was a sign that with therapy it will work). anyway, these cookies were very easy to make, but the one thing i was very conscious of was getting the proportion of cookie to filling right. i had read reviews on allrecipes and it seems a lot of people said that they had a bunch of peanut butter balls left over so i made absolute certain that i used small pieces of the dough and flattened them as much as i could. this attention to detail paid off because i had the perfect amount of everything! and the cookies came out fabulous– definitely had a bunch of folks come back for seconds and thirds! just a note: instead of going with the whole glass dipped in sugar thing, i dipped the tops of them into a bowl of sugar and then flattened them. in the past i have not been too pleased with the results when trying the glass method of putting sugar on cookies.

…and for those of you counting- 5 days until LOST!!!! (and for those of you looking at the time stamp, you may have noticed that it is 4am here. i have apparently stopped sleeping. i have had trouble sleeping on and off for the past few years, but we are on day eleven here. i have tried everything i can think of… anyone got ideas? short of having someone hit me over the head with a shovel that is…)

Recipe (from AllRecipes)

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 cup white sugar
• 1/2 cup packed brown sugar
• 1/2 cup butter, softened
• 1/4 cup peanut butter
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 egg
• 3/4 cup confectioners’ sugar
• 3/4 cup peanut butter

Directions

1. In small bowl blend flour, cocoa and baking soda. Mix until well blended.
2. In large bowl beat sugar, butter or margarine and 1/4 cup peanut butter, until light and fluffy. Add vanilla and egg, beat. Stir in flour mixture until blended. Set aside.
3. To make Filling: Combine confectioner’s sugar and 3/4 cup peanut butter. Blend well.
4. Roll filling into 30 – 1 inch balls. For each cookie, with floured hands, shape about 1 Tablespoon of dough around 1 peanut butter ball, covering completely. Place 2 inches apart on an ungreased cookie sheet. Flatten with glass dipped in sugar.
5. Bake at 375 degrees F (190 degrees C) for 7-9 minutes. When cookies are done, they should be set and slightly cracked.