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Peanut Butter Cookies with Whipped Ganache Filling

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Peanut Butter Cookies

These Peanut Butter Cookies with Whipped Ganache Filling came about because I wanted a good peanut butter cookie, but with chocolate in it somewhere. Plus, Bret likes those Tagalong Girl Scouts cookies and I thought these would be a like those with a little variation.

To be a little more authentic they could have been dipped in chocolate, but it would have been way overkill and too rich. Instead, I whipped the ganache so it would be lighter, but still have that silky chocolate feel. They ended up as a nice two-bite little cookie – rich, delicate in a way, and deeply satisfying.

You can make the cookies any size you want, but I recommend about 1 1/2″ in diameter. Put plenty of filling in them, too, so it kind of squishes out when you bite into it. That’s the good part. The squishing of chocolate ganache.

Oh, and I didn’t mention how soft and tender the peanut butter cookies are. It’s the old classic recipe from the side of the Crisco can. (I did add a little more peanut butter, though.)

Don’t forget the glass of milk or coffee. These Peanut Butter Cookies with Whipped Ganache Filling are great for a snack or dessert (or breakfast as I found out this morning!). Your family and friends will love them.

Peanut Butter Cookies with Whipped Ganache Filling

Peanut Butter Cookies with Whipped Ganache Filling

Yield: 2 dozen sandwich cookies
Prep Time: 25 minutes
Cook Time: 8 minutes
Total Time: 33 minutes

Lightly salty peanut butter cookies with a sweet whipped chocolate filling.  

Ingredients

  • Peanut Butter Cookies:
  • 1/2 C shortening
  • 1 C creamy peanut butter
  • 1 1/4 C firmly packed brown sugar
  • 3 tbsp milk
  • 1 tbsp vanilla
  • 1 egg
  • 1 3/4 C all-purpose flour
  • 3/4 tsp salt
  • 3/4 tsp baking soda
  • Whipped Ganache Filling:
  • 1/2 C evaporated milk
  • 1 C chocolate chips (or your favorite chopped chocolate)
  • pinch of salt
  • 1/2 tsp vanilla
  • 2 tbsp powdered sugar, sifted

Instructions

  1. Preheat oven to 375°.  Prepare cookie sheet(s) by lining with parchment paper.
  2. Combine shortening, peanut butter, brown sugar, milk and vanilla in a large bowl.  Beat at medium speed until well blended.  Add egg and mix to combine.
  3. In a small bowl, combine sifted flour, salt, and baking soda.  Turn mixer to low and add flour into creamed mixture, 1/2 cup at a time.  Mix until just blended (don't over mix).  Dough with be semi-firm.
  4. Take a heaping teaspoonful of dough and roll into a ball.  Place on the cookie sheet and press cookie down with fingers to slightly flatten.  Repeat with the rest of the dough.
  5. Bake cookies for 7 to 7 1/2 minutes until just set.  They won't brown, so don't over bake.  Cool for 2 minutes on baking sheet and slightly flatten cookies again (with back of a spatula or your fingers).  Remove to a rack to cool completely before filling.
  6. For the ganache:  Pour the evaporated milk into a glass measuring cup and microwave for one minute.  The milk should be steaming - if not, microwave for 30 to 45 seconds more.  Do not let it boil.
  7. Put chocolate chips into a medium glass bowl.  Pour the hot milk over the chocolate chips and let sit for 30 seconds.  Stir with a silicone or wooden spoon until smooth, creamy, and glossy.  Add salt, vanilla, and sifted powdered sugar and stir to combine thoroughly.  Place the ganache into the refrigerator for about 1 hour until thickened.  
  8. Remove ganache from the refrigerator and beat with an electric mixer with whisk attachment until fluffy.  Spoon into either a pastry bag with tip or a Zip-loc bag with one corner cut out.
  9. Match up like-sized cookies.  Pipe about 2 teaspoons (or more - your preference) of chocolate onto one cookie of the paired cookies and place the other cookie on it, pressing down lightly.
  10. Store cookies in an airtight container.  Stay fresh for about 3 days.

Notes

Tips and Stuff:

Refrigerate the cookie dough between bakes to keep it firm.

Make the cookies whatever size you want, but bite-sized is best.  They're pretty rich little cookies.

Do not over bake the cookies - they definitely don't brown except a touch on the bottom of the cookies.

If you don't want to warm the evaporated milk in the microwave, use a small pan on low on the stovetop until just steaming (don't boil).  Then pour over the chocolate.

If the ganache is too firm to pipe, after putting it into the piping bag, massage it gently to soften it a bit.

Nutrition Information:
Yield: 24 Serving Size: 1 cookie
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 228Total Fat: 13gSaturated Fat: 5gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 7gCholesterol: 12mgSodium: 188mgCarbohydrates: 25gFiber: 1gSugar: 15gProtein: 5g

Nutrition Values are Approximate

© sblades
Category: Cookies

Vanilla Butterballs with Chocolate Ganache

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Every year we make Christmas platters for our neighbors and it’s so much fun to pick out what to put on them!

This year I’m trying a few new ones and thought I’d test them first before making my friends eat them.

These little Vanilla Butterballs with Chocolate Ganache have been tucked back for awhile.  I just love the looks of them and the name includes everything I love (particularly chocolate ganache).

Vanilla Bean Butterballs

They kind of look like they’ve been out in the snow, right? So they’re perfect for Christmas.

The buttery bite-sized vanilla shortbread cookies alone are fabulous. I ate a few of those before slathering on the ganache and rolling them in homemade vanilla-sugar. And yes, they’re even better after that!

Vanilla Bean Butterballs 2

These are easy to throw together, but the dough needs to be refrigerated for at least 3 hours before baking, so plan accordingly.

The ganache is super easy and I found that the leftover is great rolled into little balls, rolled in sugar or cocoa and eaten as truffles. Smooth, silky and sigh-inducing.

Vanilla Butterballs with Chocolate Ganache are an excellent choice for this year’s holiday platter!

Vanilla Bean Butterballs

Vanilla Butterballs with Chocolate Ganache

Yield: 20 cookies
Prep Time: 30 minutes
Cook Time: 10 minutes
Additional Time: 3 hours 30 minutes
Total Time: 4 hours 10 minutes

Delicious two-bite rolled shortbread cookies filled with chocolate ganache.

Ingredients

  • Shortbread:        
  • 1 C. unsalted butter, softened (2 sticks) 
  • 1/2 C. granulated sugar
  • 3/4 tsp. salt
  • 1 tsp. high quality vanilla extract
  •  1 3/4 C. all-purpose flour 
  • Vanilla sugar: 
  • 1 1/2 C. granulated sugar
  • 1 tsp. high quality vanilla extract
  • Chocolate ganache filling:
  • 4 oz. quality semi-sweet chocolate (I used Ghirardelli baking chocolate)
  • 1/3 c. heavy whipping cream 
  • 1/4 tsp. salt

Instructions

  1. First make vanilla sugar so flavors will blend.  Put the 1 1/2 Cups sugar in a small mixing bowl and pour the teaspoon of vanilla across the top of it.  Stir for a few minutes with a fork until the vanilla is well-blended into the sugar.  Cover and set aside while the cookies are made.
  2. In a mixer, beat the butter until soft and fluffy, about 3 minutes.  Add sugar, salt and vanilla and mix until well blended.  Stir in the flour gradually by hand until a soft dough is formed.  Shape the dough into a disk, wrap in plastic wrap and chill in the refrigerator for at least 3 hours.
  3. After dough is chilled, break off heaping teaspoon-size pieces and roll into 36 to 40 , 3/4 inch sized balls (don't make them much larger, so they'll be bite-sized).  Make them very uniform for stacking later.   Place them on parchment lined (or waxed paper) cookie sheet and freeze for about 30 minutes.  While they are in the freezer, make the chocolate ganache for the filling.
  4. Ganache:  Place the chocolate, cream and salt into a small heavy-bottomed pan over medium heat, stirring just until the chocolate melted and combined with the cream into a glossy mixture. Transfer the ganache to a bowl and refrigerate until very thickened and scoopable.
  5. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees and place balls of dough about two inches apart on cookie sheets.  Bake 10-11 minutes until set (not browned) and cool on the cookie sheet.   After the cookies have cooled, assemble by putting a generous smear of ganache on the flat side of one cookie, then place
    another on top.  Roll in the vanilla sugar until well-coated.
  6. Refrigerate for about 30 minutes after assembling the cookies so they
    will set.  After that they can be stored at room temperature.



Notes

Tips and Stuff:


I mixed the flour into the butter mixture by hand - it came together much better than trying to stir in the flour. Just do it quickly so the butter doesn't melt from the warmth of your hands.


If using salted butter, cut the salt down to 1/2 tsp.


While they were cooling, I paired up the similarly shaped cookies so they would
sandwich together better.


Also while they're cooling, I press lightly on every other cookie so that the completed sugar-rolled cookie would have a flat bottom and sit upright instead of rolling around on my plate!


Be sure and let the ganache not only completely cool, but also to get to the almost hardened stage so it will stick the cookie together well (about 45 minutes).


If you have a vanilla bean, you can scrape that into the 1 1/2 Cups sugar to make the vanilla sugar if you'd rather.



Nutrition Information:
Yield: 20 Serving Size: 1 cookie
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 243Total Fat: 13gSaturated Fat: 8gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 4gCholesterol: 29mgSodium: 120mgCarbohydrates: 32gFiber: 1gSugar: 24gProtein: 2g

Nutrition Values are Approximate

© sblades
Category: Cookies