Soft & Sweet Peanut Buttery Goodness

We have a bit of a peanut butter epidemic in our house. For some reason, we just keep buying jars of it well before we’re out and consequently, they’ve been seriously piling up…which is surprising considering how much peanut butter I consume.

So, I decided to put our overstock of peanut butter to good use and make peanut butter cookies! It was also my reward for surviving a ridiculously long and stressful day…

Just so you know – these cookies are DEADLY. I ate about 8 right out of the oven…then, I had the dangerous idea to spread Nutella on one…then I decided to make a Nutella sandwich, with the cookies as the “bread”.

Please don’t try this at home if you value your figure.

Peanut Butter Cookies
(Adapted from Joy the Baker’s Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies)
I omitted the chocolate chips from this recipe simply because I didn’t have any…however, they would still be amazing in these cookies. The cookies themselves are softer than normal peanut butter cookies with just the right balance of sweetness and peanutty taste. They are a nice change from the chunky, hard, super peanut buttery cookies we’re used to.

Ingredients:

2½ cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 cup peanut butter- crunchy or smooth, but not natural
1 cup light brown sugar (packed)
3/4 cup sugar
2 large eggs

1/2 cup additional granulated sugar (for rolling cookies)

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F . Line two baking sheets with parchment paper (or aluminum foil).

Whisk together the flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt.

Working with a stand mixer (or hand mixer) in a large bowl, beat the butter on medium speed for a minute or two, until smooth and creamy. Add the peanut butter and beat for another minute. Add the sugars and beat for 3 minutes more. Add the eggs one at a time, beating for 1 minute after each addition. Scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl and, on low speed, add the dry ingredients, mixing only until they just disappear. You’ll have a soft, pliable dough.


Pour the 1/2 cup of sugar into a small bowl. Working with a level tablespoonful of dough for each cookie, roll the dough between your palms into balls and drop the balls, a couple at a time, into the sugar. Roll the balls around in the sugar to coat them, then place on the baking sheet, leaving 2 inches between them. Dip the tines of the fork in the sugar and press the tines against each ball first in one direction and then in a perpendicular direction- you should have a flattened rough of dough with crisscross indentations.


Bake the dough for 10-12 minutes. When done, the cookies will be lightly colored and still be a little soft. Let the cookies cool on the baking sheet for a minute before transferring them to a cooling rack. Cool to room temperature.