Mini Peanut Butter Cup Cookies

Let’s talk about these mini milk chocolate peanut butter cups from Trader Joe’s.

These teeny tiny treats have become staple freezer items in our household. I snacked on them this entire holiday weekend, while Matt and I were binge watching Godless on Netflix (so good). I’ve also been known to put them in little mason jars, and bring them as road snacks / instant dessert. Once (all the time) I’ve even snuck them into the movie theater.

But in spite of their snack-worthiness, I like these best in baked goods. Fresh from the oven, they get all melty, like tiny pockets of warm peanut butter and chocolate. As is the case with these Mini Peanut Butter Cup Cookies.

These are a riff on the first peanut butter chocolate chip cookies I made, and I’ve perfected them over the years. They’re gluten-free peanut butter cookies with some brown rice crisps for added texture, and mini milk chocolate peanut butter cups for added flavor and instant cuteness. I mean, just look at them:

If you don’t have Trader Joe’s near you, Reese’s also makes unwrapped mini cups. You can also substitute Reese’s pieces, chopped up peanut butter cups, peanut butter M&Ms, peanut butter chips, or chocolate chips. It’s easy to adapt the recipe to your liking, and the combination of chocolate and peanut butter is well-loved by many that it’s hard to go wrong.

Classic cookies like these are high on my holiday baking list. While I do appreciate elaborate, multi-step, show-stopping desserts, I really cherish these simple, non-fussy recipes that are sure to be crowd-pleasers.

You only need one big mixing bowl to make these cookies – no mess, and no intimidating clean-up afterwards.

You don’t need any fancy equipment nor any fancy ingredients – yes, there’s smoked sea salt sprinkled on top, but if you don’t have that, any flaky salt with do or you can even omit the salt altogether.

If you don’t have brown rice crisps, you can use regular rice crispies or even cornflakes (like I did with these cookies).

And best of all, these cookies don’t require any chilling – so you’ll get instant gratification!

That way, you can focus less on baking lists and to-do lists and all the other stressful things, and focus more on the things that really matter this season: savoring moments with your loved ones, being grateful for your blessings, and helping others when you can.

I also treasure holiday traditions and Matt and I are starting to make our own. That includes plenty of home-cooked meals and a New England trip, where I’ll be bringing some of these cookies (and extra mini peanut butter cups) for the road.

Yield: 32 cookies

Mini Peanut Butter Cup Cookies

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Cook Time: 12 minutes

Total Time: 27 minutes

Ingredients

2 cups creamy peanut butter
1 cup dark brown sugar
1/4 cup white sugar
2 eggs
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
1 cup mini peanut butter cups (I used Trader Joe's brand)
2 tablespoons smoked sea salt
1 cup rice crispies

Directions

  1. Preheat the oven to 350 F.
  2. Combine all the ingredients, except peanut butter cups, in a big mixing bowl. Mix by hand, then fold in peanut butter cups (you might want to save a few to press on top).  Using a standard cookie scoop (a generous 1 tablespoon of dough, or approximately 2 inch rounds), portion out the dough and place evenly on a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper.
  3. If you saved extra peanut butter cups, press a couple on top of each cookie before baking. Bake for 12 minutes, flipping the pans halfway.
  4. Srinkle smoked sea salt on top, let cool, and enjoy!

Hope you guys had a great Thanksgiving weekend, and that you’re ready for the thick of the holiday season. I am thankful to be able to create recipes and share this blog with all of you <3

   

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