peanut butter chocolate cookies (makes about 2 dozen, adapted from The Spruce Eats, here)

ingredients

1/2 cup unsalted butter, room temperature

1/2 cup granulated sugar

1/2 cup light brown sugar

1/2 cup peanut butter

1 large egg

1/4 cup malted milk powder, optional

1 cup + 1/4 cup + 2 Tablespoons all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 Tablespoon unsweetened cocoa butter

method

Cream the butter with the sugars until light and fluffy. Add the peanut butter and continue to beat until incorporated.

Add the egg and continue to beat until incorporated.

In a separate bowl, add the rest of the ingredients except the cocoa together and stir with a whisk.  Dump into the creamed butter mixture and mix on low only until all the flour is moistened.

Transfer dough to a large piece of parchment paper and pat it into a large disc and wrap it up in the parchment paper. Refrigerate for about 30 minutes until it is easier to handle.

Remove from refrigerator and divide into two pieces of dough, 2/3 and 1/3 respectively. Add 1 Tablespoon of unsweetened cocoa to the dough that is 1/3 and massage the cocoa into the dough until the dough is one even chocolate tone. Set aside.

Take the one that is 2/3 and roll into a rectangle about 6″ by 8″, and the smaller dough into a smaller rectangle about 4″ by 6″. Place the smaller piece of dough over the larger rectangle and fold once, roll it into a sausage shape, then lift up the right side of the dough and press the end into the center of the sausage and roll it back into a sausage. You can also arrange the two pieces of dough and twist together, or use some other configuration to make different patterns. It should be about 2″ in diameter and about 7 inches long. Wrap back into parchment paper and place back in the fridge for at least 2 hours until hardened.

Heat oven to 350 degrees F. and prepare two baking sheets by lining each with parchment paper.

Slice into 1/2 inch thick slices and arrange about 12 to each baking sheet, spaced about 1″ from each other.

Bake for about 10-12 minutes and let sit in baking sheet on a wire rack for about 10 minutes before removing from the baking sheet. Cookies will harden sufficiently as they cool, but might be too soft to remove when immediately out of the oven.

Store in an airtight container with a slice of bread to help keep them from getting too soft.