These elegant cookie cups are a complete dessert in miniature. Filling a pecan shortbread cookie crust with a layer of chocolate and a plume of peanut butter mousse sounds like a lot of work, but these eye-catching cookies are much simpler to make than they appear. Since we’d be making a decadent peanut butter mousse, we decided to take a shortcut with our shortbread crust by modifying a store-bought sugar cookie mix. We combined the cookie mix, buttery toasted pecans, and some flour (for additional structure) in the food processor and pulsed the mixture until the dough was cohesive and the pecans were finely ground. Peanut butter—we liked chunky for the bold flavor and crunchy texture it contributed—and cream cheese formed the base of the filling, and we folded in whipped cream to lighten it to an airy mousse. Using a pastry bag made quick work of filling the cooled cookie shells with our rich mousse.
Ingredients
- 1 (17.5-ounce) package sugar cookie mix
- 1 cup pecans, toasted
- 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
- 8 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
- 1¼ cups heavy cream
- 1 cup chunky peanut butter, room temperature
- 8 ounces cream cheese, softened
- 1 cup (4 ounces) confectioners’ sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 cup (6 ounces) semisweet chocolate chips
- Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 350 degrees. Grease one 24-cup, or two 12-cup, mini muffin tin(s). Pulse cookie mix, pecans, and flour in food processor until pecans are finely ground. Transfer to large bowl and add butter, stirring until mixture resembles wet sand. Working with 1 rounded tablespoon dough mixture at a time, press dough into bottom and sides of each prepared muffin cup. Bake until golden, about 10 minutes. Let shells cool in muffin tin(s) for 20 minutes. Gently remove shells from muffin tin(s). Repeat with remaining dough. Let shells cool completely.
- Using stand mixer fitted with whisk, whip 1 cup cream on medium-high speed to stiff peaks, about 2 minutes. Transfer to bowl. Mix peanut butter, cream cheese, sugar, and vanilla in now-empty mixer bowl on medium speed until smooth, about 1 minute; fold in whipped cream.
- Microwave chocolate and remaining ¼ cup cream in small bowl at 50 percent power, stirring occasionally, until melted and smooth, about 1 minute. Portion ½ teaspoon chocolate mixture into each cookie cup, then fill cups with 1 tablespoon peanut butter mixture. Pipe remaining chocolate over peanut butter mixture and refrigerate until set, about 1 hour, before serving. (Cups can be refrigerated for up to 3 days.)
