Peanut butter addict, Susan Duffy, has been known to bring a jar of peanut butter to the office on occasion. One of her favorite PB recipes is PB & J cookies, which she’ll be baking this month for Easter. Originally from the Chicago Tribune, find Susan’s recipe below:
PB & J Cookies
Prep: 15 minutes, Bake: 9 minutes, Makes: 21 cookies
1/2 cup whole-wheat pastry flour
1/4 teaspoon sea salt
1/2 cup crunchy natural peanut butter
1/3 cup maple syrup
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon lemon juice
3-4 tablespoons fruit spread, flavor of your choice
1. Heat the oven to 375 degrees. Mix the flour and salt in a bowl. In a separate bowl thoroughly blend the peanut butter, maple syrup and vanilla.
2. Place lemon juice into a cup; stir in the baking soda until dissolved. Quickly mix into the peanut butter. Pour the flour mixture into the peanut butter mixture. Stir until just barely moistened.
3. Scoop up the dough by tablespoon-size portions; roll into balls. Place them 2 inches apart on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Dip an index finger in some flour; poke an indentation into the middle of each cookie, about half-way down.
4. Stir the fruit spread until smooth. Fill the dent in each cookie with the fruit spread, about 1/2 teaspoon per cookie, using a bag or teaspoon.
5. Bake until the bottoms of the cookies are lightly browned, 9-10 minutes. Allow to cool on the baking sheet, 5 minutes. The cookies will firm up as they cool. Transfer to a rack to cool completely; store in an air-tight container.
