Chocolate Peanut Butter Pinwheels

My sweet mother-in-law gave me some AirBake cookies sheets for my birthday, and to my surprise, it they came with a little cookbook.  I glanced through and quickly decided that I wasn't going to make most of them, but one recipe caught my attention.  I thought about how delicious it looked and sounded for several days.  Finally, I just had to make them.  They didn't look quite as picture-perfect as the picture in the cookbook, but they tasted amazing, just the same.  These cookies take a little bit of work, but they are amazing.  Make a big batch!

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Chocolate Peanut Butter Pinwheels
(a WearEver Airbake recipe)

*Yields approximately 2 dozen cookies

1/4 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
1/2 tsp salt
2 Tbsp water
8 Tbsp (one stick) butter, softened
2 cups flour
1 cup brown sugar, packed
2/3 cup peanut butter
1 egg

1. Combine the chocolate and water in a double boiler and melt, stirring occasionally.  Or, if you're like the me and don't own a double boiler, just put the chips in a heavy-duty ziploc bag and pop them in the microwave at 50% power for 30 seconds.  Mush the bag, then microwave again for 10 seconds at a time (mushing between each time) until the chips are just melted.  Some people say you can add a bit of water with the chocholate chips, but either way should work.  Set the chocolate aside.
2. In a mixing bowl, combine flour, baking powder, and salt.  In a separate mixing bowl, beat the butter and brown sugar together using an electric mixer on medium speed until fluffy (about 2 minutes).  Beat in the peanut butter and the egg, beating until smooth after each addition.  Stir in the flour mixture.
3. Remove a little more than half of the dough and set it aside.  Add the chocolate mixture to the dough that's left in the mixing bowl and stir until mixed thoroughly.
4. On a floured piece of wax paper or plastic wrap, pat each piece of dough into an 8 x 8 square.  If the dough is extremely sticky, put it in the fridge for a few minutes to help it harden up a bit.  Brush the top of the chocolate square with a bit of water, then top it with the peanutbutter square.  Roll up the doughs like you'd roll up a jelly roll, keeping the roll straight and even.  My roll looked a bit...funny.  If any of you have tips for rolling it up so it looks as perfect as it does in the Airbake picture, please leave a comment and let me know how you did it.  Don't worry if yours looks funky though, because it will taste great, regardless.
5. Wrap the dough roll in plastic wrap, and chill it in the refrigerator for several hours (or even a few days, if you're not in a hurry).  I actually let mine rest on the rounded holder that I've got for my rolling pin, so then it held its rounded shape along the bottom, instead of flattening out on one side.  If you're totally confused, this is what I'm talking about...

...except imagine that the rolling pin is actually a roll of delicious, peanut buttery cookie dough...
6. When you're ready to bake, preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.  Slice the roll into 3/16-inch slices and place them on a greased cookie sheet.  Bake for 14-17 minutes, or until the cookies are firm and just slightly colored.  Let them cool on the pan for 2-3 minutes before removing them to cool on a wire rack.
7. Take these bad boys to your neighborhood Christmas cookie exchange.  Yum.