Decadent Chocolatey cookies filled with .....

Soft...GOeeYy...delicious...PEANUT buTTER!! mMmmMmm *wipes drool*Proclaiming myself as the biggest peanut butter fanatic is an understatement. My eyes twinkle at the thought of its indulgent, smooth and golden sticky-ness. I couldn't possibly imagine life without it! *laughs*
Everyone at home isn't too big a fan of peanut butter and I often feel inclined to bake treats I know eveyone will love. I rarely get a chance to experiment baking with my favorite ingredient, but I made an exception today. If nobody's going to eat them; I'll just have to 'force' myself to finish them all! *sneaky grin*. A 1/4 of the batch I made this morning has already disappeared down my tummy for Quality-Assurance before I pack them into tupperwares to give away. Hehe ;) *checks for new tyre bumps around the waist*
I think I deserve a treat from the many pounds I've lost from the past week or two. I'm not ready to wave my healthy eating regime goodbye just yet; but I've let myself slip a couple of times just as encouragement to keep going. I guess I'll have to make up for the many digested fantabulous cookies at the gym this evening. I couldn't possibly resist! They were absolutely dreaMmy!
I struck gold a couple months ago; when I spotted this recipe from Culinary in the Desert by Joe in the US. I've been dying to try them out since!
After having gone through the list of ingredient; I gave them a little touch of 'Su-yin' and here's what I came up with.I altered several sugar proportions to emphasize the flavor of peanut butter and to make it a little less sinful to eat. My recipe makes the dough less workable and the peanut butter filling had to be scooped into the centers with a teaspoon. Despite the many fiddly bits of molding the cookies; I loved how they turned out! The cookies were bursting with hot flowy peanut butter straight out of the oven.
If you aren't too good with your hands; I suggest Joe's recipe which you can find here.
Makes approximately 15 large cookies

1 cup plain flour
1/2 cup dutch cocoa powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 cup butter, softened
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1/4 cup packed brown sugar
1/4 cup peanut butter
1 large egg
1/2 tablespoon milk
1/2 teaspoon vanilla

Sift together the flour, cocoa powder and baking soda in a medium bowl.
Beat butte, sugars and peanut butter until well combined. Add egg, milk and vanilla. Beat well. Gently mix in the flour mixture about 1/3 at a time until incorporated. Form the chocolate dough into balls.

Peanut Butter Filling
1/4 cup sifted confectioners' sugar
1/2 cup peanut butter
Combine confectioners' sugar and peanut butter in a mixing bowl and beat until smooth.

Flatten each chocolate ball on the palm of your hand. Top it with a small round spoon of peanut butter. Carefully fold the dough sides over the peanut butter and pinch to seal. Roll into a ball and flatten on prepared cookie sheet.
Bake cookies in preheated 190 degree oven for about 8 minutes, until the surface begins to crack slightly. Allow 2-3 minutes before gently removing them to cool completely on a wire rack.