I spent much of November thinking about important things like gratitude and thankfulness. And if you’ve been on blogs, or Pinterest, or ever watched Oprah, then you’ve probably had someone tell you that these are important muscles to strengthen. November is all about working them out. How many friends of yours posted something they were thankful for every day on Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram? A million? Me too. I’ve done it myself before.
But I didn’t this year, mostly because I never got enough get-go to start.
And kind of sort of also because this whole celebrate thing has me thinking about action. I can easily find something to be grateful for each day. And I should. That’s important. But I could also act on those things. Maybe not every day, but a lot of the time, I could. I just don’t. Cue December. Another month perfect for cultivating a thankful attitude. So this month, as I go through the holiday motions, with less of a focus on gifts, and more of a focus on gratitude, I want to make sure the people and things I’m grateful for know and feel that they’re important to me.
Cookies, I find, are always a great way to show gratitude. These are some of the best I’ve had in a while. They’re a riff on Ina’s chocolate peanut butter globs, and they’re amazing.
To make at least 2 dozen, you will need:
12 ounces semisweet chocolate chips, divided
2 ounces unsweetened chocolate
2 extra-large eggs
1 tablespoon instant espresso powder, such as Medaglia d’Oro
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
3/4 cup sugar
1/3 cup plus 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
With the mixer on low, slowly add the chocolate mixture to the egg mixture. Combine the 1/3 cup of flour, baking powder, and salt in a small bowl and fold it into the chocolate mixture with a rubber spatula. In another bowl, combine the peanut butter cups, the remaining 6 ounces of chocolate chips, and the tablespoon of flour, and fold it into the chocolate mixture. With 2 soup spoons, drop rounded mounds of batter 1 inch apart onto the prepared sheet pans. Bake for 15 minutes exactly. Cool on the baking sheets.
Whenever I read about cookie anything with peanut butter, I immediately think, I’m going to eat those, but with Nutella instead. Not that these weren’t probably delicious (if you like peanut butter) (which I know you do) (which is all that matters).
I would love to share in your making that decision.
I’m so sorry, I hate peanut butter cookies. But every other cookie that you’ve ever made has been absolutely and seriously and deeply delicious.
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