This is another one from the archives…which I cannot believe that I never posted.  Ummm, hello?  Peanut butter sandwich cookies?

I’ve made my fair share of sandwich cookies, but I was a little tired of the soft cookie outside that I kept coming up with.  Instead, I wanted a crispy, almost savory-flavored cookie to hold in some creamy filling.

Enter Cook’s Illustrated magazine, which happened to make its appearance in my mailbox that day.  And, so, with my decision easily made for me, I stepped into the kitchen, bound and determined to come out with a crispy, peanut buttery sandwich cookie.

Since the cookies are made with toasted raw peanuts, they pack a lot of that savory flavor. (On the other hand, though, if you over-toast your peanuts, you could end up with some pretty icky cookies..so be careful.)  The peanuts also add an element of crunchiness to the cookie, so it wasn’t the soft, chewy kind of cookie that I was used to.  And the peanut butter filling? To die for.

Peanut Butter Sandwich Cookies

Servings: 24 cookies (12 sandwiches)

Ingredients

For the cookies:

1 and 1/4 cups raw peanuts, toasted and cooled

3/4 cup flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

3 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted

1/2 cup creamy peanut butter

1/2 cup granulated sugar

1/2 cup light brown sugar, packed

3 tablespoons whole milk

1 egg

For the filling:

3/4 cup creamy peanut butter

3 tablespoons unsalted butter

1 cup confectioners’ sugar

Instructions

1. For the cookies: Adjust the oven racks to the upper-middle and lower-middle positions, and preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

2. Line cookie sheets with parchment paper; set aside.

3.  In your food processor, pulse the peanuts until finely chopped.

4. In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, and salt.

5.  In the bowl of your standing mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the butter, peanut butter, both sugars, milk, and the egg together on medium speed until smooth.

6. Reduce the mixer speed to low and add the flour mixture,mixing until just combined.

7. Using a rubber spatula, gently fold the peanuts into the cookie dough.

8. Using a cookie scoop or tablespoon measure, place 12 mounds of dough onto each baking sheet, gently flattening the mounds into evenly-sized discs.  (If you wet your fingers a little, this makes it easier.)

9.  Bake the cookies until golden brown, about 15 to 18 minutes, switching and rotating the baking sheets halfway through.  Let cool completely before filling.

10. For the filling:  Microwave the peanut butter until melted and warm, about 40 seconds.

11. In a medium bowl, mix together the melted peanut butter, butter, and confectioners’ sugar until smooth.

12. For assembly: Place about 1 tablespoon of the peanut butter filling on the center of 12 cookies.  Place the second cookie on top of the peanut butter filling (right side-up!) and gently press the cookies together.

Source:  Directly from Cook’s Illustrated, March and April 2012 issue.

It’s been one of those weeks where I want to drown myself in chocolate.  Because chocolate can’t add more work to your already busy load, break your heart, or not allow you a chance to get your thoughts together.

Yeah.  It’s been one of those weeks.

So I pulled this one out of my archives for some last minute chocolate healing.

Peanut butter blondies with thick, creamy chocolate ganache on top.  Because sometimes you just need some peanut butter and chocolate.

Chocolate Peanut Butter Blondies

Servings: about 12 blondies

Ingredients

For the blondies:

16 tablespoons (2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature

1 and 3/4 cups sugar

1 cup creamy peanut butter

2 large eggs, plus one egg yolk

2 teaspoons vanilla

2 cups flour

1 and 1/2 cups Reeses peanut butter chips

1/2 teaspoon salt

For the chocolate ganache:

1 and 1/2 cups semisweet chocolate chips

1/2 cup heavy cream

1 tablespoon unsalted butter

Instructions

1. For the blondies:  Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

2. Generously butter or spray a 13 x 9-inch baking dish and line with parchment paper.  Butter or spray the parchment paper.

3.  In the bowl of your standing mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream the butter and sugar at medium-high speed until light anf fluffy, about 3 minutes.

4. Add the peanut butter and continue mixing until well-mixed and smooth.

5. Add the eggs, egg yolk, and vanilla.

6. Decrease the mixer speed to low and slowly add the flour, mixing well.

7. Using a rubber spatula, gently fold in the peanut butter chips.

8. Pour the batter evenly into the baking pan and smooth the top with the rubber spatula.

9. Bake until a tester inserted into the center comes out clean, about 40-45 minutes.  Let cool completely.

10. For the ganache:  Place the chocolate chips in a medium bowl; set aside.

11. Bring the cream to a simmer over medium heat.

12. Once simmering, pour the cream directly over the chocolate chips and let sit for about 1-2 minutes.

13.  Whisk the mixture together until smooth and creamy.

14. Cover and chill the ganache until firm and of your desired piping or spreading consistency.  Pipe or spread as desired over the cooled blondies.

Source:  Slightly adapted from Smitten Kitchen.

Consider this a merging of two fantastic cookie-ish recipes.  Take a solid chocolate cookie recipe (my favorite chocolate cookie recipe, in fact) which I have used before in THIS post and a combine it with a spring-time classic kiddo treat (which apparently adults love, too, judging by Pinterest… ) from THIS post.

And what do you get?  Good old fashioned chocolate cookies with chocolate mini eggs.  I know it’s not super original, I know.  But this actually has a funny story behind it.

I was going to make chocolate thumbprint cookies and fill the center with the Cadbury creme egg filling, complete with a piped yellow center.  I had such great intentions, but not a lot of foresight when it came to my pantry inventory.  I’ve been doing such a great job of using up ingredients and making (a little) space on the shelves in there that I didn’t realize that I, the one who perpetually has frosting on her face and dried in her hair on the weekends, was out of powdered sugar.  AKA the main ingredient in the Cadbury creme filling.  As it was already late in the day and I may or may not still have been in my pajamas and in between episodes of the Real Housewives of Orange County (guilty confession), the last thing I wanted to do was run to the store to pick up sugar.  Thankfully, when I went to the store the night before on an empty stomach, the little Cadbury mini eggs (my favorite spring treat) caught my eye and I picked up a bag.  A little last minute improvisation, but they still tasted great.

Chocolate Thumbprint Nests

Servings: about 20 cookies

Ingredients

2/3 cup unsalted butter, softened

1/2 cup sugar

1/4 cup unsweetened dark cocoa powder

1/4 teaspoon baking soda

1/8 teaspoon salt

1 egg

1 teaspoon vanilla

1 and 1/4 cups all-purpose flour

3/4 cup chocolate sprinkles

60 (or however many cookies you end up with….) mini Cadbury eggs

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees.  Line two cookie sheets with parchment paper.

2. In a large mixing bowl, beat butter on medium-high speed for 30 seconds.

3.  Add sugar, cocoa powder, baking soda, and salt.  Beat until combined, scraping the sides of the bowl occasionally.

4. Beat in egg and vanilla until combined.

5. Beat in the flour.

6.  Your dough should be at ball-rolling consistency at this point.  If it’s not, let it chill in the refrigerator for a while to firm up a little.

7. Once easily handled, roll dough into 1-inch balls.

8.  Roll balls in sprinkles to coat.

9. Place balls 2 inches apart on your lined cookie sheets, and, using your thumb, make an indentation in the center of each cookie.

10. Bake for 7 to 8 minutes or until edges are firm.  Let cool slightly before lightly pressing three mini eggs into each cookie’s center.  Transfer to a wire rack and let cool.

Source: Adapted from  The Ultimate Cookie Book.