Milk Chocolate Cookie Sandwiches with Peanut Butter Filling

This recipe was in Every Day with Rachael Ray over a year ago.   Shania is a huge fan of Reese’s candy so I thought she might like these cookies.  I kept the magazine out for a while, intending to make them all last summer and never got around to it.  I was actually planning to make chocolate cupcakes with peanut butter frosting today but then I remembered that I’d never made these cookies.  I can’t believe how long it took me to try them- they were so easy!

Milk Chocolate Cookie Sandwiches with Peanut Butter Filling

Ingredients

• 2 1/2 cups (15 ounces) milk chocolate chips
• 6 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature (2 for the cookie dough; 4 for the filling)
• 1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 2 eggs, at room temperature
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 1 cup creamy peanut butter
• 8 tablespoons confectioners’ sugar

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 350°. Line 2 cookie sheets with parchment paper. In a medium, microwavable bowl, melt together 2 cups chocolate chips and 2 tablespoons butter on medium power until almost melted, about 1 1/2 minutes; stir just until smooth.
2. In a small bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder and  salt. Using an electric mixer, beat together the eggs, granulated sugar and vanilla at high speed until thickened and fluffy, about 5 minutes. Mix in the melted chocolate at medium speed; whisk in the flour mixture. Stir in the remaining 1/2 cup chocolate chips. Refrigerate the dough until firm enough to scoop, but still soft, 10 to 15 minutes.
3. Onto each prepared pan, drop 12 rounded tablespoons of dough 2 inches apart. Bake, switching and rotating the pans halfway through baking, until the cookies appear bubbly and still soft, about 10 minutes. Let cool completely.  They will seem under baked but they crisp up quickly as they cool.
4. In a medium bowl, beat together the remaining 4 tablespoons of butter and the peanut butter. Sift in the confectioners’ sugar; beat until fluffy. On the flat side of each of 8 cookies, spread about 1 1/2 tablespoons of the peanut butter mixture; sandwich with the remaining cookies.

Modified from: Every Day with Racheal Ray