Peanut Butter Cup Cookie Dough Brownie Bites

Fudgy brownie bites stuffed with a layer of peanut butter cup cookie dough

The apartment is finally starting to feel like home.  It isn’t because I unpacked 99% of my things (the other 1% includes books and underwear that is still MIA).  It also is not because we finally have shelves in the closet so that my sweaters aren’t piled up in various places around our home.  And it certainly isn’t that all of the furniture we ordered has arrived and our dreaded IKEA trip is in the past.

While all of those things make the stress of moving a little less acute, the real reason I feel like I am home is the kitchen.  Of course I unpacked all of my dishes and appliances before anything else and have been to the grocery store 17 or so times.  But Friday morning, while Matt was at work and I was waiting for our new night stands to arrive, I had the first opportunity to bake.  Just the thought of that makes my shoulders relax and my breathing slow down.  Working around our new kitchen where I actually had to walk more than one step from refrigerator to utensil drawer, I couldn’t stop smiling.  And the fact that the first thing to come out of my oven was a chocolate and peanut butter dessert certainly didn’t hurt.

Oh, right, these little things.  Fudgy brownie bites stuffed with a layer of peanut butter cup cookie dough, I haven’t felt more at home in a very long time.

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Peanut Butter Cup Cookie Dough Brownie Bites

Makes 2 dozen brownie bites

Ingredients:

• 1 Box Brownie Mix (I used Trader Joe’s Chocolate Truffle) + ingredients the mix calls for
• 1/4 cup (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, softened
• 1/4 cup salted creamy peanut butter
• 1/4 cup granulated sugar
• 1/2 cup light brown sugar, firmly packed
• 1 tablespoon milk (I used skim)
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla
• 3/4 cup all purpose flour
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup chopped peanut butter cups (~7 peanut butter cups)

Directions:

• Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees
• Grease a 24-cup mini muffin pan
• Prepare brownie mix as directed and full cups with brownie batter (about 2 tablespoons each)
• Bake for 12-14 minutes or until a knife comes out clean; do not over bake
• Set brownies aside to cool and prepare cookie dough
• Whisk flour and salt in a small bowl; set aside
• Beat together butter, peanut butter and sugars on high speed until light and fluffy
• Mix in milk and vanilla on low speed
• Stir in flour mixture just until combined
• Stir in peanut butter cups
• Once cookie dough is ready, take your brownies and slice each in half horizontally so that you have a top and a bottom
• Place a rounded disk of cookie dough on each bottom half (about one tablespoon of cookie dough each)
• Press tops of brownies lightly onto cookie dough layer so that you can still see the cookie dough from the sides
• Serve immediately or freeze in an airtight container up to one month

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Cookie dough recipe adapted from here.

What is making you smile lately?