Chocolate and peanut butter…it’s a complete match made in heaven! Very early on in our relationship, I learned that it is my husband’s absolute favorite combination in the world. Since Valentine’s Day is right around the corner I decided to make these as a treat for him. I couldn’t think of a better way to show my appreciation for what an amazing husband and man he is and how much I love him. This recipe is adapted from the chocolate chip cookie recipe I learned from my baking bible, Dorie Greenspan’s “Baking – From My Home to Yours”. She gives some suggestions on how to play around. So I combined two of her ideas of making the cookies more chocolate and adding peanut butter. The result were these chocolate peanut butter cookies that were just to die for!
These chocolate peanut butter cookies were craggy and crinkly with the melty chocolate chips and nuts peeking out. I loved biting into it and getting a slight crunch on the outside just before hitting the interior that was so moist and chewy. The chocolate and peanut butter melded together into one fantastic flavor. They were just made for eating with a frosty glass of milk and getting transported back to the days of after school snacks. Hubby went absolutely nuts (no pun intended!) for these, so mission accomplished. A whole lot of love went into them. I hope you all enjoy these as much as we did!
- 1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
- 3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 3/4 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 1/2 sticks butter softened to room temperature
- 1/2 cup peanut butter cannot be natural
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 2/3 cup dark brown sugar packed
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 2 whole eggs
- 2 cups chocolate chips
- 1 cup chopped peanuts
- Pre-heat the oven to 375 and line two large cookies sheets with silicone mats or parchment paper. Whisk the flour, cocoa powder, salt and baking soda together in a bowl to aerate them. Set it aside. Set up a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, then combine the butter and peanut butter in its bowl. Beat them together until fluffy and creamy. Add the two sugars and cream everything together thoroughly. Then add in the vanilla and eggs, letting them get completely mixed in. Turn the speed to low and slowly add in the dry ingredients until a luscious cookie dough forms. Turn the mixer off and use a spatula to fold in the chocolate chips and peanuts.
- Use a heaping tablespoon to scoop perfect mounds of the dough onto the baking sheets, lining up 20 per sheet. Be sure to leave enough space in between for them to spread. Bake the cookies for 10-12 minutes, until they just start to crisp up around the edges and get crackly on top. Take them out and let them cool on the trays for about 5 minutes before transferring them to cooling racks to finish cooling. Enjoy them with a frosty glass of milk and seal whatever you don't eat right away into containers for later!