Inside Out Red Velvet Cookies

Preheat oven to 350° and line a large baking sheet with parchment paper. Make cheesecake filling: Combine cream cheese, powdered sugar, and salt in a small bowl. Mix well until mixture is smooth. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate until slightly firm, about 30 minutes. Make cookie dough: In a large bowl using a hand mixer, cream butter and sugars until light and fluffy. Beat in egg, food coloring, and vanilla until incorporated. Add flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, and salt. Mix until just combined.  Make cookies: Scoop a heaping tablespoon of the cookie dough and flatten into a pancake-like circle on the baking sheet. Place about 2 teaspoons of cream cheese filling on top. Bring the edges of the dough around the filling and pinch the edges together to seal, adding more dough if necessary to cover completely, then roll the filled dough into a ball. Space cookies about 3" apart on prepared baking sheet.  Bake cookies 15 to 17 minutes. Let cool slightly before serving.