Southern Peanut Butter Blossom Cookies

Ingredients

Equipment Needed

• •Stand mixer or hand mixer
• •Rimmed baking sheets
• •Parchment paper
• •Wire cooling rack
• •Shallow bowl for sugar rolling

Instructions

1. 1

   Prepare dry ingredients

   Whisk together the flour, baking soda, and salt in a medium bowl. Set this aside. The salt matters here: it does not just season the cookie, it balances all that sweetness and makes the peanut butter flavor sing. Without enough salt, these cookies taste flat and one-note.

   Spoon your flour into the measuring cup and level it with a knife. Scooping compacts the flour and throws off your ratio, giving you dry, crumbly cookies instead of tender ones.
2. 2

   Cream butter and peanut butter

   Beat the softened butter and peanut butter together in a large bowl using a stand mixer or hand mixer on medium speed for about 2 minutes. You want these two fats completely married, smooth and fluffy with no visible streaks. This foundation determines everything that follows.

   Your butter should yield easily to a gentle press but still hold its shape. Too cold and it will not cream properly. Too soft and your cookies spread into sad, flat disks.
3. 3

   Add sugars and cream thoroughly

   Add the 1/2 cup granulated sugar and the brown sugar to the butter mixture. Beat on medium speed for 3 to 4 minutes until the mixture turns pale and increases in volume. Stop and scrape down the sides of the bowl halfway through. This creaming step builds tiny air pockets that give the cookies their tender, slightly cakey texture. Rush this and you get dense hockey pucks.

4. 4

   Add wet ingredients

   Add the egg and beat until fully incorporated, about 30 seconds. Add the milk and vanilla extract and beat until smooth. The mixture might look slightly curdled at this point. That is normal and nothing to worry about. The flour will bring everything back together.

5. 5

   Incorporate flour mixture

   Add the flour mixture in two additions, mixing on low speed just until the flour disappears after each addition. The moment you stop seeing dry streaks, stop mixing. Overworked dough develops gluten and produces tough cookies. You want tender, not chewy like bread.

6. 6

   Chill the dough

   Cover the bowl and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes. Cold dough is easier to roll and holds its shape better in the oven. While the dough chills, unwrap all your chocolate kisses and set them on a plate. Trust me, you will be grateful to have these ready when the cookies come out hot.

   Unwrapping 48 chocolate kisses takes longer than you think. Put on some music, pour yourself something nice, and make it part of the ritual.
7. 7

   Shape and roll in sugar

   Preheat your oven to 375°F. Line baking sheets with parchment paper. Pour the remaining 1/2 cup granulated sugar into a shallow bowl. Roll the dough into 1-inch balls using about a tablespoon of dough each. Roll each ball in the sugar, coating it completely. Place on prepared baking sheets about 2 inches apart. The sugar coating gives these cookies their signature sparkle and slight crunch against the soft interior.

8. 8

   Bake until set

   Bake for 8 to 10 minutes until the edges are lightly golden and the tops have developed their characteristic crackle pattern. The centers will look slightly underdone. That is exactly what you want. They continue baking on the hot sheet after you pull them out.

9. 9

   Press chocolate kisses immediately

   Here is where timing matters: the moment the cookies come out of the oven, gently press one unwrapped chocolate kiss into the center of each cookie, pushing straight down until the bottom of the kiss meets the cookie surface. The cookie will crack slightly around the edges of the kiss. This is right and good. Work quickly because the cookies need to be warm enough for the chocolate to adhere but not so hot that the kiss melts into a puddle.

   If your kisses start sliding or the cookies crack too much, you waited too long. Get those chocolates in within 30 seconds of leaving the oven.
10. 10

    Cool completely

    Let the cookies cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely. The chocolate will firm up as it cools but remain slightly soft in the center. Resist the temptation to eat one before the chocolate sets. Actually, eat one warm anyway. You earned it.

Chef Tips

• •Use a standard grocery store peanut butter for this recipe, not the natural kind where the oil separates. The stabilizers in regular peanut butter give these cookies their proper texture. Save the fancy stuff for toast.
• •Milk chocolate kisses are traditional, but dark chocolate works beautifully if you prefer less sweetness. At Lagniappe, we sometimes use white chocolate kisses and add a pinch of cayenne to the dough for a Louisiana twist.
• •If the chocolate kisses are not adhering properly, your cookies cooled too much. Pop the sheet back in the oven for 30 seconds to warm them, then try again.
• •These cookies ship well in tins with layers of wax paper between them. They have traveled from my kitchen to family across three states without a single broken kiss.

Advance Preparation

• •The dough can be refrigerated for up to 3 days before baking. Let it sit at room temperature for 10 minutes before rolling if it becomes too firm.
• •Shaped and sugar-rolled dough balls can be frozen on a baking sheet, then transferred to a freezer bag for up to 3 months. Bake directly from frozen, adding 2 minutes to the baking time. Press kisses as soon as they come out.
• •Baked cookies keep in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 1 week. The chocolate may bloom slightly (develop a whitish appearance) but the flavor remains perfect.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nutrition Information

1 serving (about 21g)