In our house there are a few staples we cannot live without. Peanut butter is one of those.
The husband and I absolutely love the stuff. It's like crack, we can't get enough. The husband will wake up from a dead sleep at 3 am to eat a spoonful of peanut butter. It's kind of a problem. If we have a child that is allergic to nuts, I might cry. For days.
A few weeks ago, with advice from my mom ( I think that's where the pb addiction comes from ), I bought a jar of whipped peanut butter. It's like eating peanut butter mousse. The husband initially said he wasn't a fan, but when I opened the jar today for the cookies, it was 3/4 gone. Mmm hmm , sure you didn't like it.
Now we don't share peanut butter because I prefer the natural kind with no added sugar or oil, the kind made with just peanuts. The husband prefers the sugary, shelf stable kind. This is a good thing, especially when making peanut butter cookies.
This recipe makes the absolute best peanut butter cookies. It adds in some chocolate to accentuate the peanut butter flavour, plus who doesn't peanut butter and chocolate? They are crispy on the outside, yet chewy and cakey on the inside. Seriously not good for pb addicts like me.
Peanut butter cookies
[ Loosely adapted from the Magnolia Bakery Cookbook ]
1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
1 cup peanut butter, I used a blend of chunky and the whipped
3/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup brown sugar, firmly packed
1 large egg, at room temperature
1 tablespoon milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup chocolate chips
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
In a large bowl, combine flour, baking soda and powder, and salt. Set aside.
In a large bowl, beat together the butter, sugars and peanut butter until smooth and fluffy. Add the egg and mix well, then mix in the vanilla and milk. Add the flour mixture and beat until well blended. Stir in chocolate chips.
Drop by rounded teaspoons onto baking sheets and bake for 10 - 12 minutes. Cookies may seem underdone, but they are not. Cool cookies on sheets for 1 minute, the place on rack to cool completely.
Store in airtight container or in the freezer so the husband doesn't eat them all in one night. It will happen. Trust me.
