I'm not sure it's really Halloween without candy corns. These tri-colored candies have been around forever, and Halloween just isn't the same without them. Personally, they haven't been my favorite candy, but a few years ago my sister-in-law served them with a bowl of roasted peanuts and I was hooked! The flavors work so well together that I decided to try to capture it in cookie form. This recipe is part trick, part treat, and so unbelievably yummy. The trick is that I've added puffed rice cereal, which adds a light, crispy texture to these soft, chewy cookies. The other trick is that there are two candy corns tucked into the middle of each dough ball. When cooked, they turn into a soft nougat—delicious! The candy corns on top are added right when the cookies come out of the oven to preserve their good looks. If you're like me, these cookies will become an October tradition!
Candy Corn Cookies
1/2 cup butter, softened 1/2 cup peanut butter 1/2 cup sugar 1/2 cup brown sugar 1 large egg 1 teaspoon vanilla 2 tablespoons heavy cream 1 1/4 flour 1 teaspoon baking soda 1/2 teaspoon salt 1 1/4 cup puffed rice cereal 1 cup dry roasted peanuts 1 cup candy corn candies
Directions Preheat oven to 325 degrees. In a large mixing bowl, whip butter, peanut butter, and sugars until light and fluffy. Add in egg, vanilla, and cream, mixing until light and creamy. In a separate bowl, sift flour, baking soda, and salt together, then add slowly to sugar mixture until incorporated. Add cereal and peanuts, giving a few quick turns to get it incorporated without smashing the cereal. Scoop 1/4 cup scoops of dough onto prepared cookie sheets, six cookies to a sheet. Insert two candy corns into the middle of each scoop, enclosing it completely with dough. Bake for 12-14 minutes, or until golden brown. Remove from oven and immediately add 3-4 candy corns to the top of each cookie, pressing gently. Allow cookies to cool before serving. Makes 15 cookies.