Dark Chocolate Peanut Butter Thumbprint Cookies (Vegan & Gluten-Free)

I had to have one holiday cookie recipe that involved peanut butter, and recipe #4 is just that. Remember those peanut butter blossom cookie with Hershey’s kisses in the middle?! That’s basically what I was going for here: a soft, sweet peanut butter cookie, but instead of a kiss I used a big chunk of Alter Eco’s Dark Truffle Thin bar. I made these vegan using a flax egg and they are naturally flourless (aka gluten-free) because the peanut butter adds enough structure to hold them together. I worked with Alter Eco on a few different holiday cookie recipes using these bars, and they are ideal for adding to baked goods. The chocolate square melted perfectly and made these cookies SO delicious. You can of course use any chocolate you love! Enjoy :)

Dark Chocolate Peanut Butter Thumbprint Cookies (Vegan & Gluten-Free)

Holiday Cookie Series

Ingredients

• 1 cup smooth natural peanut butter

• ¾ cup coconut or brown sugar

• 1 flax or regular egg (for flax, mix 1 tbsp ground flaxseed + 3 tbsp liquid; let set for 10 mins)

• ¼ tsp sea salt

• 1 tsp vanilla extract (optional)

• 1 dark chocolate bar, cut into 1-inch squares (I used an Alter Eco Silk Velvet Truffle bar)

Method

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees and line a baking sheet. In a large bowl, whisk together your peanut butter, sugar, egg (or flax egg), salt and vanilla. You should end up with a smooth and firm, scoopable dough.

Rolls dough into balls and place on your baking sheet. Take a square of dark chocolate and press gently into each of the cookie balls, flattening them slightly.

Bake cookies for 10-12 minutes or until set. Remove from the oven, sprinkle with flaky sea salt and let cool at least 10-15 minutes before enjoying.

Makes 15 cookies