When someone lists their favourite cookies this cookie is almost always on their list. It is a classic and I collect classics. I call it a polite peanut butter cookie. It is at once crisp and chewy. There’s a whisper of a crunch and then a murmuring of sweet, closely followed by an exclamation of salt. This polite cookie does not have an aggressive peanut butter flavour. Your know the kind of cookie. The peanut butter cookie that clings to and overpowers your taste buds. This peanut butter cookie can be kept simple. Or, you can adorn it with chocolate. A little cocoa powder and a sprinkle of finely chopped of your-very-best chocolate and you have a winner. Then you sign your cookie creations with the traditional classic crisscrosses.
When you’re whipping up this cookie creation refrain from using all-natural peanut butter. As with most peanut butter recipes you won’t get the texture you want with this type of peanut butter. Save this for sandwiches and midnight munchies.
This is a generous recipe. If you allow a level tablespoonful of dough for each cookie the recipe will give you four to five dozen cookies. Wrapped well or in a cookie jar(graciously separating the layers with parchment paper) they will keep for about five days at room temperature. You can freeze these cookies. They’re good for about two months.
| THE POLITE CLASSIC CRISPY PEANUT BUTTER COOKIE | Print |
- 2½ cups all purpose flour
- 1 tsp baking soda
- ½ tsp baking powder
- ¼ tsp salt
- generous pinch of freshly grated nutmeg
- 1 cup (8 ounces) unsalted b utter at ROOM TEMPERATURE
- 1 cup peanut butter - crunch or smooth BUT NOT NATURAL
- 1 cup packed light brown sugar
- ¾ ciup sugar
- 2 large eggs at room temperature
- 1½ cups chopped salted peanuts
- About ½ cup sugar for rolling the cookies (set aside)
- Preheat oven to 350F and position the rack in the center of the oven.
- Line baking sheets with parchment paper. (2 or 3 sheets as needed)
- Whisk together the flour, baking soda and powder, salt and nutmeg.
- Using a stand mixer with paddle attachment or with a hand mixer in a large bowl, beat the butter on medium speed for minute or two until smooth and creamy.
- Add peanut butter and beat for couple of minutes.
- Add the sugars and beat for 3-4 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. Mix only until they just disappear
- Briefly. mix in the chopped peanuts. You'll have a soft, pliable (quite mushable, actually) dough.
- Pour the ½ cup sugar in a medium sized bowl. Working with a level tablespoonful of dough for each cookie, roll the dough between your palms into balls and the balls, a couple at a time into the sugar.
- This recipe will yield between 40 and 50 cookies depending on the size of the cookies you measure out.
- Roll the balls around in the sugar to coat them, then place on the baking sheets, leaving 2 inches between them.
- Dip the tines of a fork in the sugar and press the tines against each ball first in one direction and then in the other. You should have a FLATTENED round of dough with crisscross indentations.
- Bake the cookies , one sheet at a time, for about 12 minutes rotating the sheet from front to back at the midway point. It is time consuming but I never bake more than one tray of cookies at a time.
- When done the cookies will be lightly coloured and still a little soft.
- Let the cookies SIT on the sheets for a minute before transferring them to cooling racks with a wide metal spatula. This minute resting allows the cookies to firm and crisp a little more.
- Cool to room temperature. Again the cookies will crisp up a little.
- Using the extra cookie sheets allows you to continue forming cookies while one batch is in the oven.
- Repeat with the remaining dough making sure to cool the baking sheets between batches.
- COCOA-PEANUT BUTTER COOKIES:
- For the chocolate version of this cookie reduce flour to 2 cups and sift ½ cup unsweetened cocoa powder in the dry ingredients.
- Use 1 cup chopped salted peanuts and add ⅓ cup finely chopped bittersweet chocolate (or mini chocolate chips) along with the nuts
This recipe is from the fabulous book BAKING FROM MY HOME TO YOURS by Dorie Greenspan.
