Peanut Butter Spider Cookies

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Decorating and Supplies:

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*Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups, snack size (.75 ounce), unwrapped

*Malted Milk Balls

*Shoe String Black Licorice, legs (Cut 8 legs for each spider 1-1 1/2 inches long)

*Black or Silver Decorating Candy Balls, Eyes

*Glass or Scoop or Measuring Cup, size of peanut butter cup

*Tweezers, to attach candy eyes

*Rolling Pin, optional

*Round Cookie Cutter, optional (smooth cookie edge)

*2 tablespoon Cookie Scoop, optional (crumble cookie edge)

*12 Cavity Mini Pancake Pan, Wilton (we used mini pancake pan) or Whoopie Pie Pan or Silpat covered 1/2 baking Sheet

*Pam cooking Spray

*Peanut Butter Cookie Dough, purchased or homemade recipe

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Homemade Peanut Butter Cookie

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*1/2 cup Butter, room temperature

*1/4 cup Butter Flavored Shortening

*1 cup Creamy Peanut Butter

*1 cup Granulated Sugar

*1/2 cup Brown Sugar

*1/4 cup Powdered Sugar

*1 Egg, plus 1 Egg Yolk, room temperature

*1 tablespoon Vanilla Extract

*3 cups All-purpose Flour

*1/2 teaspoon Baking Soda

*1/4 teaspoon Cream of Tartar

*1 teaspoon Sea Salt

*2 tablespoons Water, use only if cookie seems crumbly (water makes the cookie crisper)

In a stand mixer on medium low-speed cream together the butter, shortening, peanut butter and sugars. Add vanilla and then the egg, egg yolk one at a time.

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Sift together into bowl the dry ingredients flour, baking soda and cream of tartar.

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Add dry mixture a cup at a time, on low-speed, into the creamed mixture and then add sea salt.
Mix the cookie dough just until combined.

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Add water only if needed.

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Make dough into flat disk shape and wrap in Saran Wrap and refrigerate the dough for 1 hour.

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Roll out the cookie dough with rolling-pin onto floured surface and cut out with round cookie cutter or use a cookie scoop and scoop out cookie dough onto mini pancake baking pan/whoopie pan or 1/2 baking sheet.

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Bake Cookies in a pre-heated oven 350*F. oven for 8 minutes. Careful not to over bake.

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Assemble Spider:

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Remove cookies from oven and press peanut butter cup into the middle of each cookie. Then add 2 malt balls to the middle of peanut butter cup when the peanut butter cup has started to melt add the malt balls making the spider body and head. Add 8 licorice legs and 2 candy ball eyes dipping each candy eye (using tweezers) in melted chocolate and add to the top of each malt ball spider head.

 

Enjoy!

Lindy