Peanut butter cookies are a tradition and a longstanding favorite for many. They are an American original, pioneered by George Washington Carver who is best known for promoting peanuts as the replacement crop for cotton in the south. In his 1916 research bulletin on ways to use peanuts for human consumptions, Carver listed 3 recipes for cookies using peanuts. It wasn't until 1923, however, that peanut butter was listed as ingredient for cookies.
Pillsbury's Balanced Recipes contained a recipe for Peanut Butter Balls. Though it's hard to find now, we do know that this is the first time you were instructed to use a fork to press the cookie down, giving peanut butter cookies their famous cross-hatch markings.
There are many ways to make a peanut butter cookie. Paula Deen and The Galway Girl blog prescribe a recipe that requires no flour- just peanut butter, eggs and sugar. I call it the macaroon method- as it's very similar to making a coconut macaroon, which is just coconut, sugar and egg whites.
The macaroon method is a far cry easier than the recipe I normally make, which is similar to a chocolate chip cookie recipe, but there are a couple of do's and don'ts to keep in mind when making your peanut butter cookies this way:
DO:
- Have flour (or rice flour if you are going gluten free) on hand to help you roll out the cookies. The dough is really sticky, so coat your hands with flour to roll the cookies into balls. Neither Paula nor Galway Girl mention this and its a huge PAIN if you don't know to do it.
- Line your baking sheet with parchment paper. Again, stickiness issue
- Use a high quality peanut butter. I recommend Honey Roasted Peanut Butter from Whole Foods (the kind you roast and grind right in the store). It will shine through in this recipe
DON'T
- Use natural peanut butters where the oil is separated on top. It just doesn't turn out right.
- Use granulated sugar. Use brown sugar instead. Molasses is the perfect complement to peanut butter.
Sugar Love's verdict on the macaroon method? Easy & fast.
So fast, in fact, that while I was doing my research, I decided to make them and try them and still finished this post in under an hour from start to finish.
It's also incredibly moist, which is a bonus given so many version of peanut butter cookies are dry. It also packs a ridiculous peanut butter flavor punch, which again, is often lacking from a peanut butter cookie. Here's my version of the recipe.
My favorite peanut butter cookies are made by my Aunt Theresa who uses a cookie press, and only at Christmas. They are unlike any peanut butter cookie I've seen- they are long and thin and wavy and bear no resemblance to the traditional looking cross-hatch-or-Hershey-kiss peanut butter cookie we always see:
I wish I could say I make them too or that the other peanut butter cookie recipe I'm sharing is hers, but alas, it's a family secret that I've not been let in on yet. I'm hoping that for Christmas this year, Aunt T. gives me the recipe and a cookie press...hint, hint!
In the meantime, we can talk about the other method for making peanut butter cookies, which is the drop cookie method. If you've ever made chocolate chip cookies, you can make peanut butter cookies with no issues.
Again, there are some basic do's and don'ts.
DO:
- Use high quality peanut butter
- Use butter AND butter flavor shortening. It will keep your cookies from spreading too thin and becoming rock hard.
DON'T:
- Use the natural peanut butter with the oil on top. Same story as above
- Over-bake these cookies. Peanut butter cookies get exceptionally hard and crumbly when over-baked.
This method is by far the most common version of peanut butter cookies you'll find. It's the one that most bakeries use and most grocery stores sell. It's a great way to make them, and the dough will keep when frozen for six months if you don't feel like making what you prepared all at once.
Find my recipe here.
So what's your favorite way?
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