Sweet Things Remembered

This is a chocolate cookie base with peanut butter chips and Reese’s Pieces® candy.

Reminder About the Series

Inspired by my grandma’s Christmas tree cookie jar, I have always loved the idea of having a cookie jar on the kitchen counter full of cookies to enjoy or for anyone who stops by to visit. I also have a growing list of cookie recipes and ideas that I want to try, so this series is my way of getting to try some of those recipes out and filling my cookie jar at the same time. Once a month, I try a new cookie recipe, share it with you all here, and give a verdict on whether or not the cookie is jar worthy. This post is recipe number two in this series that I’m calling the “Cookie Jar Series.”

The Recipe

When I was choosing the type of flavor for this month’s cookie, I was thinking of my husband. He tries and enjoys all the things I bake, but our dessert preferences tend to differ. He’s a chocolate and peanut butter kind of guy while I’m a vanilla and fruity flavors kind of gal, and most of what I’ve made in the past couple months has fit my likings more than his. So, I made these cookies for him.

To make these cookies, I combined a couple recipe ideas. I had one recipe pinned on Pinterest for peanut butter cookies with peanut butter chips and Reese’s Pieces®, but Tyler said he would prefer a chocolate cookie with the peanut butter inclusions. I adapted a recipe from a Hershey’s Classic Recipes cookbook to fit that idea. Here are the steps I followed to make these –

• Preheat oven to 375° and line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
• In a mixing bowl, combine the dry ingredients – 2¼ cups flour, ⅓ cup cocoa powder, 1 tsp baking soda, and ½ tsp salt.
• Using an electric hand or stand mixer, beat together 2 sticks of softened butter, ¾ cups of white sugar, and ¾ cups of brown sugar until light and fluffy. This should be at least 2 minutes on medium speed.
• Add in 1 tsp of vanilla and 2 eggs. Mix until well combined.
• Add the dry ingredients a little at a time and beat until well combined.
• Add in 1 cup of peanut butter chips and 2 cups of Reese’s Pieces®. Mix until just combined.
  • You can change this to do 2 cups of chips and 1 cup of candies if you prefer. I just did more of the candies to have more color in the cookies.
• Use a cookie scoop to measure out the cookie dough and drop it on the baking sheet. Bake for 8-10 minutes.
  • I used a 2 tbsp cookie scoop, which I believe is considered a large scoop. With that size, I was able to get 24 cookies. If you do the larger size, just be aware that the cookies do spread some and may merge together some. You could chill the cookie dough to prevent this.
• Let the cookies cool 2-3 minutes, and then remove from the sheet to cool completely on a wire rack.

Review and Verdict

I really liked these cookies, and I am glad that Tyler suggested doing a chocolate base instead of peanut butter. When making them, I was worried the chocolate flavor wouldn’t be strong enough, but it wound up working well. It wasn’t incredibly strong, but it balanced out the peanut butter perfectly. The texture on these was also very good – crisp on the outside and chewy on the inside. The one thing I don’t love about them is they are a little greasy. With two whole sticks of butter, though, I shouldn’t be surprised.

With all that said, the question is “Are they jar worthy?” Reminder of the rating scale:

• Jar Regular – These are the cookies that will become a go-to, repeat recipe.
• Jar Guest – These cookies are tasty and were great to try, but they just aren’t top tier.
• Not My Jar, but Maybe Yours – These are cookies that weren’t my taste, but still worth trying.
• Toss the Cookies, Keep the Jar – These are cookies that are a hard no, likely due to a faulty recipe.

Chocolate Peanut Butter Chip Cookies w/ Reese’s Pieces® = Jar Regular!

Since I made these for Tyler, I let him decide on the verdict, but I totally agree with his judgement on these. They are such good cookies! I’ve said before that I have a massive sweet tooth, so it may not be surprising to you that I enjoy a little sweet treat every night (don’t tell my doctor). I am excited for these cookies to be that treat over the next several days with a nice, cold glass of milk. I highly recommend trying them, and who knows, maybe they’ll become a jar regular for you too!