Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Shortbread Cookies
1 stick, (1/2 cup) unsalted butter, room temp
1/3 cup creamy peanut butter
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1 1/4 cup all purpose flour
1/4 cup confectioner’s sugar
scant 1/2 tsp sea salt
3/4 cup milk chocolate chips
Cream the butter and the peanut butter together in a stand mixer, with a hand mixer, or a wooden spoon. Beat in the vanilla.
Whisk the dry ingredients together and add to the butter mixture. Mix until the dough comes together.
Stir in the chips, and turn the dough out onto a piece of waxed paper. Gently pull the dough together and form it into a log. If it is still crumbly, work it with your hands until it holds together smoothly. Roll it up in the paper, smoothing the shape as you go. Twist the ends securely and refrigerate for at least a couple of hours.
Slice the log into slices with a sharp knife. Not too thick, not too thin, about 1/3 inch. If a slice crumbles a bit, just smoosh the dough back together. These don’t have to be perfect disks.
Bake on a parchment or silpat lined baking sheet at 325 for about 12-14 minutes. The cookies will not be browned, and they may look undone, but don’t over bake. One of the joys of shortbread cookies is that they fall apart and melt in your mouth.
Let the cookies cool on the pan for 5 minutes before transferring to a rack.
These cookies have a melting texture, and I’m sure I don’t need to tell you about the magical combination of peanut butter and milk chocolate. They’ll even stick a wee bit to the roof of your mouth…have a cold glass of milk ready.
