PEANUT BUTTER FUDGE CUPS

COOKIE

• 1/2 cup butter, softened {or coconut oil}
• 1/2 cup creamy peanut butter
• 1/2 cup white sugar
• 1/2 cup packed brown sugar
• 1 egg
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 3/4 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt

Fudge Filling:

• 1 cup milk chocolate chips
• 1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
• 1 (14 ounce) can sweetened condensed milk
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees F (165 degrees C). Spray a mini muffin pan liberally with cooking spray. Using a hand mixer, cream butter, peanut butter and white and brown sugars. Mix in egg and 1/2 teaspoon vanilla. Add in flour, baking soda and salt, stirring until combined.
2. Measure out dough into 1 TBSP scoops. {I use my 1 TBSP cookie scoop so this process is super fast!} No need to shape the cookies, just place each scoop in one compartment of a mini muffin tin. Bake for 14 to 16 minutes or until lightly browned.
3. Remove from oven and immediately make wells in the center of each using a melon baller or a 1 tsp measuring spoon. Make a good sized well in the center so that you can add a lot of fudge! Cool in pan for 8-10 minutes. Then carefully remove to wire racks. I used coconut oil in my recipe, so the cookies popped out super easily. If you use butter, you should spray the muffin pans well, as instructed earlier, so that your cookies come out easy too! Cool for an additional 10-15 minutes.
4. While the cookies are cooling, you can prepare the fudge filling. Combine the chocolate chips and sweetened condensed milk in a microwave safe bowl. Mix lightly and microwave on high for 1-2 minutes. The mixture doesn’t look melted, but give it a few gentle stirs and you’ll see it’s heated well enough. Add vanilla and stir again until smooth.
5. Transfer about half the fudge into a quart-sized ziplock bag. Squeeze the fudge into a corner and snip the corner off. Now you can easily pipe the fudge into the cookies! The great thing about this fudge too is that it sets up super fast, so feel free to fill the cookies well, so that the fudge goes above the cookie- it will set up and not run out! If your fudge gets too solid, just pop it back in the microwave for 10-15 seconds.
6. Heat up about 1 TBSP peanut butter in a small baggie and then drizzled it over the tops of my fudge cups.