Recipe: Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies

Story by Lindsey Chester.

Cary, NC – Summer is winding down, and the other day I was looking for something to do with my twelve year old daughter. We always enjoy baking, and making a mess in the kitchen together.

Most of the time we have the basic ingredients for peanut butter cookies on hand (no peanut allergies in this home!). I suggested making peanut butter cookie and  Emma one-upped me with: “How about peanut butter chocolate chip cookies! It’ll be like a Reese’s!”

Being choco-holics-that sounded like an awesome idea, and one we had never created before.

I figured we would just make this one up, but first I took a look in my recipe notebooks (that’s right, I collect recipes and slip them into looseleaf notebooks by category, it’s a sickness).

Lo and behold, I found not one, but 2 recipes for chocolate chip peanut butter cookies! They were essentially the same, so I picked one and we started assembling the ingredients.

You will need:

• 2-1/2C Flour (I use whole wheat and I sub 1/4c with wheat germ)
• 1/2t baking soda
• 1/2 t baking powder
• 1/2 t salt
• 1/2 lb salted butter softened (2 sticks)
• 1 C brown sugar packed
• 1C granulated sugar
• 1 C peanut butter (creamy or crunchy, your choice)
• 2 large eggs
• 2 T vanilla
• 1-1/2 C semi sweet chocolate chips

To Make:

1. Heat oven to 350.
2. In a large bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.
3. In a second large bowl, beat butter (with a mixer) until creamy. Gradually add sugars, beating until fluffy, about 3 minutes.
4. Beat in the peanut butter until fully incorporated.
5. Beat in the eggs, one at a time.
6. Beat in the vanilla.
7. Gently stir in the dry ingredients (with a wooden spoon) a little at a time, until well blended.
8. Stir in chocolate chips just until incorporated.
9. Scoop up a generous Tablespoon at a time, roll into a balls, and place 2″ apart on ungreased cookie sheets. Dip a dinner fork into flour and press into the ball in a crisscross pattern to flatten. Repeat until you have a dozen on each cookie sheet.
10. Bake until slightly browned on the edges, 10-12 minutes. Allow cookie sheets to cool on wire racks until set- about 4 minutes. Remove to finish cooling on the racks.

Makes about 4-5 dozen.

These were easy and delicious and just a little different than either a typical chocolate chip cookie or a peanut butter cookie- and decadent! Make sure you allow the cookies to cool first on the cookie sheet because they come out of the oven very soft and need that time to set.

Then they MUST completely cool on the wire racks to crisp up.

Consider giving this recipe a shot, especially if Aunt Irene comes to visit this weekend.