Peanut Butter & Chocolate Rolo Cookies

Is that a long enough name for a cookie?

Has it been a long enough time since I wrote a blog post?  Or should I stay away for another, oh, I dunno FOUR MONTHS.

I would like to take this opportunity to make a post-dated announcement: Fleur-de-Licious went on a brief hiatus, due to…intern year.  It’s the real deal.  These 80+ hour work weeks are no joke.  But if my New Years Resolution is going to involve cookies and stuff (like, making and eating more obvi), then I see this as a perfect time to make another announcement: FLEUR-DE-LICIOUS IS BACK Y’ALL.

Back and better than ever!  Or at least the same as ever.  Really the goal is to not be worse than before.  (I find that to be a pretty inspiring life motto.  “Just don’t be worse at life than yesterday.”)

In any case, short summary of what has happened since the last post:

1. My best friend got engaged.  (AKA Kate!  Sorry Kate if you didn’t want the internet to know, but they kind of already did.)
2. Justin moved to Michigan and now we are just a couple of Michiganders, being cold together and stuff.
3. I went through the entire series of Friends (again).  It’s like my security blanket.
4. I GOT A PASTA ROLLER.
5. I turned 28.  I have some feels about being 28, and they are mostly this: I’m not 30.
6. My mom and my brother and my dad have all visited me in Michigan, and I think I convinced (tricked) them all that I’m living a fairly adult, put-together life.

Now for the cookies.  I made these to bring to work the other day, and they were kind of a big hit.  They are extra soft and the caramel makes them chewy in the middle.  They are also pretty big because of all the caramel inside so…I’m not sorry about it.  They contain my FAVORITE THING which is peanut butter.

I told Justin once that I couldn’t keep peanut butter in the house unless I bought it strictly for baking because otherwise I would eat it all via spoon, and he was like, that’s not a real problem.  And so now there will probs be peanut butter in the house all the time, and secretly I’m pretty happy about it.

Anyways. Cookie time!  Then Kate and I have to joint watch the Bachelor via long-distance.  True friendship.

Makes 18-24 large cookies

The list:
3/4 cup (=1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened but still cool
1 1/4 cup crunchy peanut butter (can also use creamy)
2/3 cup dark (or light) brown sugar, packed
1/3 cup granulated sugar
1 large egg + 1 egg yolk
2 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 tsp sea salt + extra for sprinkling
3/4 tsp baking soda
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 3/4 cup + 2 TBS unbleached all-purpose flour
36+ Rolo candies, cut in half (need 36 to fill the cookies, extra if you want to put some on top before baking)

The to-do’s: 
1. In a large bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer, beat the butter and peanut butter together on medium speed until combined, about a minute.  Add both sugars and beat on medium high speed until smooth and creamy, about 2 minutes.  Beat in the egg and yolk, then the vanilla.
2. In a separate bowl, whisk together the 1/2 tsp salt, baking soda, cocoa powder, and flour.  Add flour mixture to the peanut butter mixture and stir or mix on low until just combined.
3. Using a large cookie scoop (about 3 TBS) or a large spoon, scoop out the dough onto a baking sheet.  Take each dough ball and split it roughly in half – then place ~3-4 Rolo halves on the bottom half of the dough ball.  Cover up the Rolos with the top half of the dough ball, gently pinching together the sides.  Roll the dough ball in your hands to round them out.
4. Once all the cookies are formed and stuffed, sprinkle a liiiitle bit of sea salt over the tops.  If you want, you can top each cookie with 2 or 3 Rolo halves. Chill the formed cookies in the freezer until firm, at least 1 hour and up to a week.  I would freeze them on a baking sheet covered tightly with plastic wrap first.  Then, if you’re going to store them in the freezer for a few days before baking, you can switch them to a ziploc freezer bag once they’re firm.
5. When you’re ready to bake, preheat the oven to 325F with a rack in the middle position.  Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat, and place the cookies ~1.5in apart on the sheet.  Bake until the tops are dry, about 12-14 minutes.  Let the cookies cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes, then transfer to a baking rack to cool completely.  Cookies will keep in an airtight container for 3 days.

 

Thanks for reading, happy baking!