Brown Butter Peanut Butter Truffle Chocolate Chip Cookies

I've been experimenting with brown butter lately. Before I made it for the first time a couple weeks ago, I did not care for it....I did not know of its powers...I was missing out. Then while I was melting the butter to create brown butter for the first time, I knew. I knew what it must feel like to be in Snape's potion class at Hogwarts whipping up a love potion because after first smell of the browning butter, I was in love. Who knew that just melting the butter for a few minutes and allowing it to brown could change its flavor profile completely. What kind of witchcraft is this!?! I will never look at butter the same. 

About theses cookies. I couldn't resist them when I saw they are made with brown butter. Little did I know that I was baking cookies that could possibly replace our currency. Next time you go get gas, offer the cashier one of these cookies as payment and that should suffice. These went fast. As in, less than 24 hours. Although, there were seven boys in my house last night, so I guess 24 hours is really not that much of a feat. As my friend Mark (one of those cookie-snatching boys I was speaking about earlier) was eating one, he took a bite and said "hey, these are actually pretty good".. he then walked away and a few seconds later he returned with another cookie. I eyed him suspiciously and asked how many cookies he had actually eaten...I don't remember hearing a response coming from his cookie filled mouth. I'm convinced he ate at least four last night. Now you know how I bake so much and am not extremely overweight....I have boys around every corner and in every crevice of my house to eat what I make, thankfully. I did have one before swim practice this morning though. I was going to workout. I burned it off. Then I got home and had another one. I had just worked out. I burned enough calories to eat a cookie. Life is good. 

The peanut butter truffles are hand mixed into this cookie dough until just incorporated and complement the chocolate and brown butter smashingly. This is not a full on peanut butter cookie, but that doesn't mean these cookies don't have a mean peanut butter flavor. Think of these cookies as a chocolate chip cookie gone rouge...they are bad and they know it. 

From: Budding Baktress
Ingredients:

Peanut Butter Truffles

- 1 1/2 cups creamy peanut butter

- 1 1/4 cups powdered sugar

Cookies

- 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, cut into chunks

- 1 cup brown sugar

- 1/2 granulated sugar

- 2 large eggs, at room temperature

- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

- 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

- 1 teaspoon baking soda

- 1 teaspoon salt

- 1 1/4 cups chocolate chips

1. Line an 8x8-inch baking dish with foil and spray with no-stick cooking spray. In a large bowl, mix powdered sugar and peanut butter until smooth. Spread in baking dish and flatten with hands. Place in freezer for at least 30 minutes.

2. To brown butter, melt butter in a heavy saucepan over medium heat. Whisk frequently and heat until it's golden brown and giving off a nutty aroma. 

3.Remove from heat and pour into a heat-proof bowl; allow to cool to room temperature. This is important because if not cooled to room temperature, the warm butter can cause the cookie to be flat after baking.

4. Preheat oven to 350°F. 

5. Remove peanut butter truffles and cut or tear into small pieces; place back in freezer for at least ten minutes. They won't look perfect and don't have to be cut into perfect squares...as you can tell.


Try and resist nibbling on these truffles...I dare you!

6. In a medium bowl, whisk together the brown sugar, granulated sugar, and browned butter. Whisk in eggs and vanilla. 

7. Using a wooden spoon, stir in flour, baking soda, and salt until just incorporated. 

8. Fold in chocolate chips. Gently fold in chunks of peanut butter truffle. You want them to be visible, not completely blended into the dough. (Note: This makes a lot of peanut butter truffles. Use as much or as little of it as you want!) I used about three fourths of the truffles.

9. Scoop onto a parchment-lined baking sheet, flatten slightly with hand, and bake for 9-12 minutes. Allow to cool on the baking sheet for 10 minutes, then remove to cooling rack to cool completely.