Nutty for Cookies

With my ginormous sweet tooth I love, love, love cookies. The choco-holic in me tends toward chocolate chip cookies, especially MY chocolate chip cookies. My Big Bad Dad aka Mr. Picky Eater on the other hand is a sucker for peanut butter cookies. He doesn't have nearly the sweet tooth that I have, but when there's peanut butter cookies in the house he can't walk by the jar without eating one. I dig the cute little criss-cross pattern that you see on almost all peanut butter cookies, but I don't like that crumbly texture that many peanut butter cookie recipes yield. So, long ago I decided that if they're going to be the much requested cookie around our house I need to find a recipe that suits me. After numerous tries, all of which were edible, some I considered promising even, but most of which weren't worth blogging or making a second time, I found the one. From the tempting dessert cookbook Caprial's Desserts I tried and loved Caprial's mom's peanut butter cookie recipe. The cookies are sweet, soft and chewy. They're totally F-A-B-U-L-O-U-S I tell ya. The only change I made was to add a cup of peanut butter chips, which for us is a must in any peanut butter cookie. I've been making these cookies for some time now, several years probably, and have been meaning to blog them, but slacked off and never did. My apologies for depriving you lovely readers of such delicious cookies. And my thanks to Marco for prodding me for this recipe, thus prompting me to get off my butt and share it with everything. Doubley Peanut Buttery Peanut Butter Cookies 1 cup cold unsalted butter, diced 1 cup granulated sugar 1 cup firmly packed brown sugar 2 eggs 1 tsp vanilla extract 1 cup peanut butter (NOT natural and I prefer chunky) 3 cups all-purpose flour 2 tsp baking soda 1/2 tsp salt 1 cup peanut butter chips Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease or line baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside. Place the butter and both sugars in the bowl of a mixer and beat on high, scraping down the sides of the bowl often, until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. With the mixer on low, add the eggs and vanilla, then add the peanut butter and mix well. Add the flour, baking soda, and salt and mix on low until all ingredients are incorporated. Increase the speed to medium and mix just until the dough is smooth. Stir in peanut butter chips. Using a tablespoon or a small ice cream scoop, form the dough into 1/2 inch balls and place on the prepared pan. Flatten dough balls with a fork. Bake just until golden brown about 10 minutes. Let the cookies cool for about 5 minutes on the pan, then transfer to a rack and let cool completely. Yield: approximately 48 cookies

Look Gram - I BOILED cookies!!

Growing up I could always tell when it was getting close to Christmas because my grandmother would whip up a batch or two of her famous oatmeal cookies. They are outta this world and not like anything else I've ever tasted. I would venture to say that MOST people reading this probably have never had a cookie quite like this. They're BOILED not baked. Yes I said boiled!!! They are outta this world, simple with few ingredients...a very unassuming, unsophisticated cookie, but gosh I could eat myself sick with these cookies. And yanno what?? Tummy ache and all I would still be the happiest thing you've ever seen...they are that delicious! The cookies cotain no flour, the base is peanut butter and oatmeal, and seems extremely simple...well if you have the knack for making these it really is simple. I've always been the baker in my family and I tried for years and years to make these cookies, always failing miserably. They would always taste fine, but the consistancy was always totally wrong. It's SO totally unexplainable. But last year I finally beat my struggles & knock on wood I got the hang of it 'cause I've done 2 batches this year & both came out. The chocolate batch was a little off, a tad bit soft, but they hardened into those delicious little cookies I remember from my childhood. So I challenge you, no better yet I encourage you to try these cookies out & let me know how you do. I would love to know if you enjoy these cookies as much as my family does. Boiled Cookies 2 c sugar 1 stick butter/margarine 1/4 c cocoa(optional) 1/2 c milk 1 tsp vanilla 1/2 c peanut butter 2 1/2 c oatmeal 1 c nuts(optional) Mix and boil sugar, butter/margarine, cocoa & milk for 1 minute. Remove from heat, add vanilla, peanut butter, oatmeal & nuts. Mix well. Spoon by spoonfuls onto wax paper. *Work quickly as mixture will start to thicken in a hurry. I've tried both quick-cook and old fashioned oatmeal with these cookies and been sucessful & unsucessful with both. So I guess it's a toss up. I used old fashioned this year.