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Peanut Butter Cookie Recipe

Peanut Butter Cookie Recipe

Some people are bakers. They savor the exacting measurements that come along with creating perfect, moist, delectable breads and sweets. Other people are cooks, who find joy in the chopping, sauteing and forgiving nature of creating savory dishes. I know very few people who really love to both cook and bake. For me, I definitely fall into the cooking realm of things. I love the instinct of cooking, being able to add a bit of this and that and come out with excellent dishes.

Last weekend though, I really wanted some cookies. It was the night before a friend was coming to visit and go foraging with me. Out of chocolate (seriously, I have no idea how that happened!), I decided on peanut butter cookies. When Shawn saw me baking, he asked if I was trying to prove that I can bake too (she’s an excellent baker).

Okay, I know I don’t bake often, hun, but that is so not me.

Honestly, I just wanted the cookies, which turned out to be wonderfully crisp and full of peanut buttery goodness. I would choose cooking over baking any day. Although I do love to bake a lot at Christmas … otherwise, baking involves way too much measuring and cleanup for me.

So, which are you? The cook or the baker?

Peanut Butter Cookie Recipe

Peanut Butter Cookies

Yield: 3 dozen
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 30 minutes
Total Time: 45 minutes

adapted ever so slightly from Better Food For Kids

Ingredients

  • 1 cup peanut butter
  • 1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
  • 3/4 cup light brown sugar
  • 1/2 cup granulated sugar
  • 1 large egg
  • 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
  • 1 cup all purpose flour
  • 1 tsp baking soda
  • 1/4 tsp salt

Instructions

  1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.
  2. Combine the peanut butter, butter, brown sugar and granulated sugars in the bowl of a stand mixer and cream together until well-combined and almost fluffy. Add the egg and vanilla and beat to incorporate.
  3. In a smaller bowl, sift together the flour, baking soda and salt. Turn the mixer on low and add the flour mixture slowly (as in one spoon at a time) to the peanut butter mixture, until all the mixtures are fully incorporated.
  4. Using a small ice cream scoop or two tablespoons, drop balls of dough onto a nonstick baking sheet. Use a fork to press down the dough, and create the traditional crosshatch marks. Bake for 8-10 minutes until golden. Let the cookies sit on the cookie sheet for one minute before transferring to a cooling rack.
  5. Devour.

magpie

Friday 17th of July 2009

Baker. But I cook too. Recently I've been getting a kick out of inventing things in my head, writing them down (loosely) and getting my husband to make them. I told him I've become the executive chef.

Sarah Caron

Wednesday 15th of July 2009

Cate, you are truly one of the few!

Sonya, if I could instinctively bake, I would probably do more of it. ;)

Dawn, thank you so much for your feedback! The link color is a problem I intend to fix (it's complicated, unfortunately). As for linking the question -- that is a GREAT idea. I will try and do that from now on.

Peter, nope, definitely not intended for breakfast.

peter

Wednesday 15th of July 2009

I love to have food like this but these are not meant for breakfast.

peter

Dawn

Wednesday 15th of July 2009

I love baking. I especially love fussing with chocolate chip cookie recipies to get them to come out different. It's like a continuous science experiment.

I just cook 'cause I love eating.

Note to Sarah: You should make the question at the end of your blog post clickable to the post, so people receiving it via email can answer your question easier. Right now, I can only click your blog name to get to the home page.

I was also a little confused about what's clickable on your home page. (I guess it's the title of the post, but your gray headlines are the same color whether they're clickable or not...

Anyway, your blog is always a must-read for me! I love it, though I'm totally jealous about your broccoli. I've tried twice and just gotten tiny flowers, or none.

Sonya

Wednesday 15th of July 2009

I'm a baker by instinct, it's rare that something I bake is a flop. It's taken lots of trial and error, but I've become a pretty good cook as well over the years.

Yum

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