You may find yourself with a bag of chocolate chips… You may find yourself with a brand-new jar of peanut butter… You may find yourself craving something decadent and delicious… And you may find yourself blessed with a willing helper who shares your enthusiasm!

Such was the case at my house the other day after I spotted these cookies at Brown Eyed Baker! I was a tad over-excited because I knew I had every single ingredient in the house! But isn’t that half the fun?

Properly motivated by a chocolate and peanut butter pep talk, my son did the measuring and mixing around me while I chopped veggies for a stir-fry! (Only one tense moment of tamping flour down in the measuring cup…easily re-directed…)

He persevered. (Baked goods were at stake!) The smell was wonderful! The fudginess was impressive! The melty peanut-buttery flavor was amazing! And, yes, we kinda spoiled our dinner…but that IS half the fun!

Gather Up:
1 ¼ cup flour
½ cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 teaspoon baking powder
½ teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon salt
½ cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
¾ cup creamy peanut butter
2/3 cup brown sugar
1/3 cup sugar
2 eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla
1 cup semisweet chocolate chips
½ cup chopped peanuts, optional
Coarse salt for sprinkling

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Whisk together the flour, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda and salt.

In an electric mixer beat together the butter, peanut butter and sugars on medium high speed until fluffy and light in color, about 3 minutes, scraping occasionally.

Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition.

Beat in the vanilla.

Add the dry ingredients and mix slowly until just combined.

Fold in the chocolate chips and peanuts.

Drop heaping tablespoons of dough on to a baking sheet, gently flattening the top of each ball. Sprinkle a small pinch of coarse salt on each cookie.

Bake for about 8 minutes, checking for the outside edge of the cookie to set, but the middles to still be soft. Cool slightly on baking sheet and remove to rack.

Recipe from Brown Eyed Baker, adapted from food52