Kitchie Coo

Do you remember these Perfect Peanut Butter Cookies?  The ones I raved and raved about that were soooo good, the best peanut butter cookie in the history of the universe, yada-yada-yada?  Well, it turns out this it true, but then I decided to make them even better. 

I dipped them in bittersweet chocolate.



I dipped them in bittersweet chocolate and they became the most beautiful cookie to ever grace these lips.   

I dipped them in bittersweet chocolate and they tasted so good I almost cried.

I dipped them in bittersweet chocolate and fell madly in love for the third time in my life...first Mace, then Anna, then Chocolate Dipped Peanut Butter Cookie.

Don't even pretend that you're not going to eat every last one of these when you make them.  I was going to give them away for Christmas treats, but I am not sure they'll make it that long.  Sorry guys!  Merry Christmas anyway? 


J/K.  I'll at least leave you with the recipe so you can make 'em yourselves.  I wouldn't be so mean as to leave you totally hanging, eh? 


Bittersweet Chocolate Dipped PB Cookies

1 batch Perfect Peanut Butter Cookies - Perfect Peanut Butter Cookies recipe can be found here
1 pound (16 oz) HIGH QUALITY bittersweet chocolate (please please please use good chocolate, its what brings these cookies from amazing to extraordinary.)

Line two cookie sheets with parchment paper.

In a microwave proof dish melt the chocolate in 30 second increments, stirring in between.  When chocolate is almost completely melted remove from the microwave and stir with a rubber spatula until smooth. 

Transfer chocolate to a dish wide enough to fit the peanut butter cookies, but narrow enough to have some depth for dipping.  Taking one cookie at a time, dip half of the cookie into the chocolate and then lay carefully on the prepared cookie sheet.  Repeat until the cookie sheets are full.  Chill in the refrigerator for 45 minutes or until the chocolate is set completely.  These can then be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator or a freezer-safe bag in the freezer. 

But who are you kidding?  If you're anything like me, you're just going to...

Eat it!

These peanut butter cookies are the epitome of peanut butter cookies.  They were so perfect I don't even know where to begin.  They were the perfect amount of sweet, they were the perfect density, had the perfect amount of give when you bit into them and, well, the perfect size (I made 'em kinda big). 

I can fess up about all the cookies I've been making lately because they were for Mace's birthday.  And since his birthday was Tuesday he's finally gotten all these scrumptious cookies in the mail.  I suspect a lot of them are goners by now, because let's be realistic here, if you had a giant box of cookies staring at you every time you walked in the door, could you just ignore them?  I didn't think so.  Plus, I think the cafeteria food is starting to wear on him.  If I could have sent him some of my falafel and pita bread I would have, but I think cookies were a pretty good stand-in for now.

So, back to these absolutely perfect cookies.  I highly recommend using all-natural peanut butter in these.  Any of the more commercial PBs like Jif or Skippy would be fine, but they have molasses and other sugars added to them so they'll add to the sweetness of the cookie.  And plus, I think this tastes more like a peanut butter cookie rather than a cookie with some peanut butter added to it.  This is the real deal.

Something else I'd like to talk about briefly is weighing ingredients while baking.  I recently bought a digital kitchen scale and it has changed the way I bake.  It is unbelievable the difference in weights 1 cup of flour can be and if you weigh your ingredients you will get more consistent baked goods every time.  I am going to include weights in my baking recipes from now on, whenever possible, but I'll continue doing volume measurements too because I know scales aren't standard in a lot of kitchens.

Now...onto our feature presentation!





Perfect Peanut Butter Cookies

Adapted from flour by Joanne Chang

PRINT THIS RECIPE!

1 cup unsalted butter, softened
1 cup (200 grams) granulated sugar
1 cup (220 grams) brown sugar, packed
2 large eggs
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
1 3/4 cups (455 grams) chunky peanut butter, all-natural is best
2 2/3 cups (375 grams) all-purpose flour
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp kosher salt

Cream together the butter and sugars on medium speed in a stand mixture fitted with the paddle.  Cream for about 5 minutes or until mixture is light and creamy.  On medium speed, beat in eggs and vanilla until well combined, about 2 minutes.  On low speed, beat in the peanut butter until thoroughly combined, about 2 minutes.

In a medium sized bowl whisk together the flour, baking soda and salt.  On low speed, add to the butter mixture until all ingredients are just combined and dough is evenly mixed.

Ok, now comes the hard part, but you have to do it.  It makes your cookies shine, I promise.  Put the dough in an airtight container and put in the refrigerator for at least 3 hours or overnight. 

Okay, did you really wait at least 3 hours? 

Preheat the oven to 350F.  Drop the cookies in 2 tbsp sized balls onto a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.  Flatten each cookie slightly with the palm of your hand and then make the crisscross pattern on each with the back of a fork. 

Bake for 15-18 minutes or until edges are golden brown and the center is still slightly soft.  Remove from the oven and allow to cool on sheet for 5-10 minutes, then put on wire cooling rack and...

Eat it!