I am so excited for this recipe because I think I’ve hit upon something truly new. Although I love to cook from scratch, sometimes it pays to “cheat” a little and use a premade ingredient from the store. The secret ingredient of these awesome cookies is Hersey’s hot fudge topping. This comes only in a glass jar and somehow seems much better than any other hot fudge topping that I’ve tried. Just to be clear, don’t buy the type in a plastic bottle — it is not nearly as good.

The base for the peanut butter cookies came from the “Better Homes and Gardens” cookbook. I like my cookies a bit soft in the middle and slightly crunchy around the edges. The trick to getting that effect is to add a small amount of margarine to the mix. What really makes these peanut butter cookies special, however, is the Hersey’s hot fudge topping.

We eat a lot of peanut butter in our household and we like chocolate too, so this was an instant hit. These cookies are nice, soft and full of peanut butter and just enough chocolate flavor to make them wonderful.

While I’m at it — I’ll also say that this is a great thing to make from scratch. There’s no preservatives, extra salt or sugar, or any of the other bad things you get when you buy cookies from the store. I know that not everyone has the time or energy to make everything from scratch — but if you’re going to do it, this is a nice one to do, especially with family. My teenager had a great time making these with me.

Ingredients

• 3/4 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
• 1/4 cup margarine
• 1 cup creamy peanut butter
• 2 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 cup brown sugar
• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 2 eggs (medium)
• 1 tsp. baking powder
• 1 tsp. baking soda
• 1 1/2 tsp. pure vanilla
• 1 12.8 oz. jar Hershey’s hot fudge topping chilled
• Granulated sugar to roll the cookies

Instructions

Preheat oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit.

Line 3 cookie sheet with parchment paper, then set aside.

In a mixing bowl, beat margarine, butter, peanut butter, both sugars, and eggs with an electric mixer on medium or high until smooth.

Add vanilla, baking powder, baking soda, and half of the flour. Beat until thoroughly combined. Beat in the remaining flour. Cover and chill the dough for an hour so it is easy to handle.

After an hour, use a large ice-cream scoop to make 16 equal balls. Roll in sugar, then press the balls slightly with your thumb in the middle to make a cup. Take the chilled fudge topping out of the refrigerator. Place one round tablespoon of fudge topping in the middle of each piece of dough and fold the dough around it to form round and sealed balls.

Roll the ball gently in the granulated sugar. Place balls on baking sheets lined with parchment paper. Flatten by crisscrossing with the tines of a fork, try to be careful so the cookie doesn’t crack.

Bake in preheated oven for 14-16 minutes, rotating pan once until bottoms are lightly browned. Cool cookies completely before removing from the sheet pan.

Makes 16 large cookies

Did you make this dish? I’d love to know how it turns out! Feel free to like this post and comment or use the hashtag #globaldinein on Instagram. If you would to be notified of upcoming posts, please consider subscribing to my blog!