Ingredients:
- 1 ¾ cups All-Purpose Flour
- 1 teaspoon Baking Soda
- ½ teaspoon Salt
- ½ cup (1 stick) Unsalted Butter, softened
- ½ cup Granulated Sugar
- ½ cup Packed Light Brown Sugar
- 1 cup Creamy Peanut Butter (standard processed)
- 1 Large Egg, room temperature
- 1 teaspoon Vanilla Extract
- ½ cup Granulated Sugar (for rolling)
- 36 pieces Milk Chocolate Kisses, unwrapped
Instructions:
- Preheat oven to 350°F (175°C). Line two baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone mats. Unwrap the 36 chocolate kisses and set aside.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, and salt. Set aside.
- In the bowl of your stand mixer, cream the softened butter, granulated sugar, and brown sugar on medium speed until the mixture is light, fluffy, and noticeably paler (about 2–3 minutes).
- Scrape down the bowl. Beat in the egg and vanilla extract until just combined.
- Add the creamy peanut butter and mix on low speed until fully incorporated and smooth.
- Gradually add the reserved dry ingredients to the wet mixture. Mix on low speed only until no streaks of flour remain. Be careful not to overmix.
- Cover the dough bowl and chill in the refrigerator for a minimum of 30 minutes. This prevents excessive spreading during baking.
- Place the ½ cup of rolling granulated sugar in a shallow dish.
- Use a 1.5 tablespoon cookie scoop to form uniform dough balls. Roll each ball lightly in your palms to smooth, then roll thoroughly in the granulated sugar until completely coated.
- Place the sugared dough balls 2 inches apart on the prepared baking sheets.
- Bake for 10–12 minutes, rotating the trays halfway through. The cookies are done when the edges look set and lightly golden, but the centres still look slightly soft.
- Immediately upon removing the cookies from the oven, gently press one unwrapped chocolate kiss into the centre of each warm cookie.
- Let the cookies rest on the baking sheet for 5 minutes before carefully transferring them to a wire rack to cool completely.