Classic Peanut Butter Cookies

Classic Peanut Butter Cookies

My son doesn’t eat much of what I bake.

See, he’s a vanilla kid. He loves plain desserts, like sugar cookies. He’ll usually opt for crackers or tortilla chips instead of something sweet. He’s also as blonde and blue-eyed as the day is long, whereas I have extremely dark hair and eyes. So much for dominant genes!

One of the only desserts I make that he’ll eat are peanut butter cookies, the plain kind. No mix-ins allowed. I tried it once with peanut butter cups and he was pretty annoyed. So until he can bake, I’ll keep making the plain cookies. This recipe is pretty old school, and it works great!

Classic Peanut Butter Cookies

Old school is great when it comes to food, but not so great when it comes to aging. As I get older, my body is more prone to failing me unpredictably. Sometimes it’s my lower back, sometimes my hamstrings, sometimes my neck or shoulders. I can be fine one minute and unable to turn my head the next.

From what I understand, these little body fails are all a natural product of three categories I easily fall under: getting older, exercising intensely and frequently, and having arthritis. And with my usual approach, I power through the pain. Movement is a friend. True, exercising with a bum knee can really suck, but the extra blood flow loosens everything up and at the end of an hour of movement, I feel better.

Classic Peanut Butter Cookies

The phrase “use it or lose it” might be cliche, but it’s true of just about everything. If you don’t eat those veggies in the fridge at their peak (or cook them one they’re no longer fresh), they just turn to slime. If you don’t use your brain and challenge yourself intellectually day after day, you start worrying about inconsequential nothings and become unhealthily obsessed with minutiae. And if you don’t let your body move consistently, especially if you suffer from pain, it’ll just get harder and harder to be active.

In other words, to quote the great Dylan Thomas, “Rage against the dying of the light.” We’re all getting older, and while we can’t change the inevitable outcome, we can sure make it the best possible journey. Giving up is for the birds. Making yourself proud? That matters.

Classic Peanut Butter Cookies

Making my kids happy also matters, which is why these peanut butter cookies exist. Oh, who am I kidding? I ate my fair share. They came with me to school every day for my lunches to hang out with my PB & J. Peanut butter all around!

These cookies are soft in the middle but firmer at the edges, like every good cookie should be. They don’t puff up as much as some of the other peanut butter cookie recipes I like to make, but that’s because old school cookies don’t do that. So let’s keep it real, yo.

While my son and I don’t seemingly have a lot in common on the surface, we share a love of peanut butter cookies. We also love being on time (or even early) for everything, we love music (both playing and listening), and we are into working hard for good results. Yep, he’s eight with a work ethic.

Anything worthwhile is worth striving for. It might not be easy, but that can make the end result that much sweeter. Fight for your right to party and eat cookies, but also fight for your own best self. You won’t be sorry!

 

Classic Peanut Butter Cookies

Ingredients

1 egg
3/4 cup peanut butter
1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
1 and 1/4 cups firmly packed light brown sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla
2 tablespoons milk
1 and 3/4 cups flour
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt

Instructions

  1. In the bowl of a stand mixer, beat the egg, butter, peanut butter, vanilla, brown sugar and milk until creamy.
  2. Add the dry ingredients and mix until just combined.
  3. Place the bowl in the refrigerator, covered, and chill for at least two hours. I prefer to chill my cookies overnight.
  4. When you're ready to bake, preheat the oven to 350. Line two cookie sheets with parchment paper or silicone baking mats.
  5. Remove the dough from the fridge and let it warm up for about 10 minutes on the counter. Roll the peanut butter cookie dough into balls and place each one on the prepared cookie sheet. Press a fork gently into each one, creating the traditional pattern. The cookies will flatten slightly, but not much.
  6. Bake the cookies for 9-10 minutes: no longer. They might not look done. Remove them from the oven and let them cool completely. Remove to a plate when cool.
  7. Store in an airtight container.
http://justaboutbaked.com/classic-peanut-butter-cookies/

Mir

I fulfill many roles in life: wife, mother, teacher, everlasting learner. This site is dedicated to one role that expresses my creativity in ways that I find consistently challenging and rewarding: baker. Inventing new ways to enhance food, especially if that food involves chocolate or peanut butter (or both!), is a passion of mine. I look forward to sharing my ideas with you.

This Post Has 22 Comments

  1. Hannah

    I followed this recipe and the COOKIES turned out PERFECTLY. Although, I did add a little bit of WHITE SUGAR!
    Hannah recently posted…Make use of your microwaveMy Profile

    1. Mir

      I’m so glad! The white sugar would still work, but probably made the cookies crispier. Nothing wrong with a crispy cookie!

  2. Gayle @ Pumpkin 'N Spice

    Your son sounds a little like my husband…he’s pretty basic, too! And I will admit that I opt for sugar cookies over chocolate ones, too. These peanut butter cookies look delicious! You definitely can’t go wrong with a classic!

    1. Mir

      Basic isn’t bad. It’s just a little boring for me when it comes to dessert. But sometimes boring is what we need!

  3. annie@ciaochowbambina

    This is the cookie I grew up eating! Mom made pb cookies, chocolate cake and lemon meringue pie…a lot. We were lucky little ladies – my sisters and I! I appreciate your commentary, my friend. It’s all true. Every last word of it. Have a great weekend, Mir! 🙂
    annie@ciaochowbambina recently posted…Pepperoni Chicken ParmesanMy Profile

    1. Mir

      Your mom sounds like my favorite kind of classic baker!

  4. Rachelle @ Beer Girl Cooks

    Awwww, your son sounds sweet and adorable, Mir! I found your words about making yourself proud to be true and inspiring today. You are absolutely 100% correct. And I love all things peanut butter too, so these cookies are perfect in my book!

    1. Mir

      Thanks, Rachelle! I get very philosophical about cookies. 🙂

  5. Kim | Low Carb Maven

    I was a vanilla kid, too. Now, I like all kinds of flavors and textures mixed up together. I am also getting older. Yikes, like another year older…. now! And I totally believe in the “use it or lose it” statement. I have seen it happen with my mom. I don’t want to end up like that. But back to these cookies. There is nothing like a classic peanut butter cookie. These look perfect. Thanks for sharing a great recipe and for reminding me that we need to do things even though they may not be easy.
    Kim | Low Carb Maven recently posted…Low Carb Vanilla Buttermilk Cupcakes with Cream Cheese FrostingMy Profile

    1. Mir

      Yeah, I’ve seen some people get older and lose their athleticism because they’re just not giving it any attention. I want to make it a priority to be different if I can be!

  6. Manali @ CookWithManali

    I am glad your son shares the love for Peanut Butter! Hard to understand how people (like my hubby!!) cannot like PB! anyway the cookies look wonderful, classics are the best!

    1. Mir

      Your husband doesn’t like it? Oh man. I guess you’re not baking with PB a whole lot, then!

  7. Aria

    I gotta tell ya, even though I do love my sprinkle-filled, busy cookies, sometimes a plain simple cookie is even better! So, these look wonderful! But I honestly think that everything I see on your site looks wonderful. Haha.
    Aria recently posted…Orange Cream SmoothieMy Profile

    1. Mir

      Awww, thanks, Aria! I like the tricked out desserts, too. Yay for sprinkles!

  8. Medha @ Whisk & Shout

    I was always a chocolate kid. Still am, and I just can’t understand vanilla people, but I”m glad that your son is a peanut butter fan, because I can jive with that. These cookies look so soft and delicious!
    Medha @ Whisk & Shout recently posted…Lemon Saffron Barley Risotto {Vegan Option}My Profile

    1. Mir

      I can live with it ONLY because he likes PB. Otherwise, I’d be really annoyed by chocolate ban!

  9. Amanda

    I totally understand what your saying about the aging body. My knees have annoyed me on and off for a couple years now. But there’s no way I’m going to stop exercising because then I’ll have a whole new set of problems.
    This peanut butter cookies look like the food equivalent of a warm, cozy blanket. They look like something my grandma would have made. Lovely!
    Amanda recently posted…Big Green SmoothieMy Profile

    1. Mir

      Yeah, leaving them to atrophy just makes it all worse!

  10. Michele @ Alwayzbakin

    I love any kind of peanut butter cookie, plain or otherwise. My son is pretty picky too, except he wants me to make EVERYTHING chocolate. I totally feel you when it comes to failing body parts. There’s always something new bothering me! Getting older sucks!
    Michele @ Alwayzbakin recently posted…Butter Toffee with Hawaiian Sea SaltMy Profile

    1. Mir

      I can never resist any kind of PB cookie, either!

  11. Dorothy @ Crazy for Crust

    Isn’t it funny how the kids like things plain? I’m all, “But I made a chocolate tart with peanut butter, caramel, pretzels, M&Ms, Snickers, and whipped cream!” and Jordan’s all, “Um, where’s the plain brownie?” Gotta love a classic PB cookie!
    Dorothy @ Crazy for Crust recently posted…Chocolate Chip SnickerdoodlesMy Profile

    1. Mir

      Kids have very simple palates, so they can’t deal with all the rich stuff we make. I can deal and then some!

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