Fudgy Peanut Butter Mousse Cups

This recipe won a holiday cookie contest in the Cook's Country magazine. They take some time to make but definitely worth it!

INGREDIENTS

1 (17.5 oz) package sugar cookie mix

1 cup pecans, toasted and chopped fine

2 Tbsp. flour

1 stick unsalted butter, melted

1 1/4 cups heavy cream

1 cup peanut butter

1 (8 oz) package cream cheese, softened

1 cup powdered sugar

1 tsp vanilla

1 cup milk chocolate chips

PREPARATION

1. Toast pecans on a cookie sheet (I did 350 for about 5-8 minutes). Chop.

2. Grease 12 cup mini muffin tin. Combine cookie mix, pecans, and flour in a bowl. Slowly stir in butter until mixture resembles wet sand. Press 1 Tbsp. cookie mixture into bottom and sides of each muffin cup. Bake until golden, about 10 minutes. Cool 20 minutes in tin, then turn out cookies. Repeat with remaing dough.

3. With electric mixer on medium high speed, beat 1 cup cream to stiff peaks, about 2 minutes. In another bowl, beat peanut butter, cream cheese, powdered sugar, and vanilla on medium speed until smooth, about 1 minute. Fold in whipped cream.

4. Microwave chocolate and remaining cream in small bowl, stirring occasionally, until smooth, about 1 minute. Pour 1/2 tsp chocolate mixture into each cookie cup, then fill the cups with 1 Tbsp peanut butter mixture. Drizzle remaining chocolate evenly over cookies and refrigerate until firm, about 1 hour. (I put the chocolate mixture into a small ziploc bag and cut off a little on one of the bottom corners to make it easy for filling the cookie cups and drizzling on top.)