Nutella-stuffed peanut butter cookies

I love Nutella. I am obsessed with peanut butter. Put them together (or, rather, one inside the other), and what do you get? Hand-held perfection. Truly, there is nothing more I can say. The pictures speak for themselves.

For the cookies:
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup whole wheat pastry flour
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
1 Tbsp ground flaxseed
1/2 cup (1 stick) Earth Balance, softened
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup creamy peanut butter
1 tsp vanilla

For the filling:
1/4 cup Nutella
1/4 cup creamy peanut butter
1 Tbsp cocoa powder
3 Tbsp sugar
3 Tbsp powdered sugar
1/2 tsp salt

In a small bowl, sift together the flours, baking soda, and salt. In a measuring cup or small bowl, whisk the flaxseed with 3 Tbsp warm water. In a large mixing bowl, combine the margarine and sugars.



Beat at medium speed for 2-3 minutes. Add the flax mixture and beat until well combined. Scrape down the sides of the bowl and beat in the peanut butter and vanilla.



Add the flour mixture a little bit at a time, beating until all the flour streaks are gone (do not overmix).



Cover and refrigerate while you make the filling.



Combine all filling ingredients in a large bowl and beat well.



You should be able to easily roll the filling into balls. If it’s too sticky, add more powdered sugar. Set aside until ready to use.



Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Grease two baking sheets or line with parchment paper. Divide the chilled cookie dough into 1-Tbsp portions and roll into balls.



Flatten out two balls of dough at a time. Roll about 1 tsp of the Nutella dough into a smaller ball, flatten, and place on top of one round of dough.



Cover with the other round of dough, pinch edges to seal, and roll gingerly into a ball again. Repeat with all dough (you may have some filling left over) and place balls onto the baking sheet.



Gently press down on the cookies to flatten slightly. Bake for 8-10 minutes, or just until the edges are golden. Let cool for 2 minutes on the baking sheet, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.



WONDERFUL. Please do yourself a favor and make make MAKE these!



Yield: 20 cookies. Per cookie: 203 calories, 10.7g fat (3g sat), 23.6g carbs, 2g fiber, 3.5g protein.

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Chocolate peanut butter cookies
Peanut butter bliss cake