Peanut Butter Cookies

I am on a baking marathon for the last two days. I was eagerly searching for recipes from all sites and blogs which I follow. I had to make few baked goodies for a sale. After a lot of blog hopping I finally decided to bake something from my favorite site joy of baking. I am hooked on to it. All the baked goodies in my blog are from that site. I have endless other recipes but I always end up trying something from this site. They give precise details and each recipes mentioned in it are always a hit at my home. This time I opted for a sweet and salty flavor. As a kid I enjoyed having peanut butter with bread during breakfast or for tea time. Peanut butter was not available at my hometown . Mamma (Maternal grandmother) always send it across through people who visits my home. She knows all her grand kids likes it. It was available in three flavors. Creamy, crunchy and chocolate and as always chocolate was my favorite.

Peanut butter cookies are instantly recognized by their criss cross marks made by using the tines of the fork. But I decided to bake it in my moulded pan. While baking the cookies you have to keep one thing in mind. Don't overbake it. Perfect cookies should be chewy inside and should have crispy edges. I added chocolate chips to the batter, so that with every bite you will get the richness of chocolate along with the sweet and salty flavor of peanut butter. These are perfect to have with a cup of coffee !!!

Recipe source : www.joyofbaking.com

Ingredients :

3/4 cup (170 grams) unsalted butter, room temperature

1/2 cup (105 grams) light brown sugar

1/2 cup (100 grams) granulated white sugar

1 large egg

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

3/4 cup (185 grams) peanut butter (smooth or crunchy)

2 cups (260 grams) all purpose flour

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup chopped peanuts or 1/2 cup chocolate chips (optional)

Method :

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (177 degrees C) and place rack in center of oven. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.

In the bowl of your electric mixer (or with a hand mixer), beat the butter and sugars until light and fluffy (about 2 - 3 minutes). Beat in the peanut butter. Add the egg and vanilla extract and beat to combine. In a separate bowl whisk together the flour, baking soda, and salt. Add to the peanut butter mixture and beat until incorporated. Fold in the chopped peanuts, if using. (If the batter is too soft to form into balls, place in the refrigerator for about an hour or until firm.)

Bake the cookies for about 10 to 12 minutes, or until the cookies are lightly browned around the edges. Remove from oven and place on a wire rack to cool. Can be stored at room temperature, in an airtight container, for about a week. Freeze for longer storage.

Notes : I prefer crunchy peanut butter than smooth type.  I added semi - sweet choclate chips instead of peanuts for getting some richness to the cookie. Baking time mentioned in the recipe is 10 to 12 minutes. I baked my first batch of cookies for 10 minutes and all the other batches for around 8 minutes. If you want to get the criss -cross patterns then roll the batter into 1 inch (2.5 cm) balls. Transfer the cookies to the prepared baking sheet, placing about 2 inches (5 cm) apart. Then, using the tines of the fork that has been dipped in white granulated sugar, make a crisscross pattern.