B&W Chocolate Cookies

I intentionally write “B&W” rather than “Black and White” … just feels right.  This cookie started out as a chocolate base with peanut butter chips.  I do like peanut butter, but apparently not as much as others; I’m especially not a big fan of peanut butter chips in cookies.  So, I swapped out the peanut butter chips originally called for with half semi-sweet, and half white chocolate.  You can’t see the semi-sweet chips in these pix.

Ingredients:
1 ¼ cups butter or margarine
2 cups white sugar
2 eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 cups all-purpose flour
¾ cup cocoa
1 teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon salt
½ bag semi-sweet chocolate chips
½ bag white chocolate chips

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350ºF (175ºC)
In a large mixing bowl, cream butter and sugar; add eggs and vanilla, beat well.  In a separate bowl, combine flour, cocoa, baking soda and salt. Incorporate into the creamed mixture with a stout spoon, the dough will be stiff.  Stir in the chips.  Drop by teaspoonfuls onto a greased (I don’t know why all these recipes always say “ungreased” – you ever tried to scrape the cookies off an ungreased sheet?) cookie sheet.  Bake 8 to 9 minutes.  Do not over-bake; cookies will be soft.  They will puff while baking and flatten while cooling.  Allow to cool a few minutes on the sheet, and then remove to a rack or aluminum foil on the counter-top to cool completely.

Peanut Butter Bars

I’m pretty sure one of the daughters found this on the algoreweb … I mean, the internet. We were just looking for a good, basic peanut butter bar, and this one fills the bill pretty well. I have tried adding a pinch of cinnamon to the dough, but I think I like it better just the way it is, just rich and chewy and peanut buttery.

WET
1/2 Cup butter
3/4 Cup white sugar
3/4 Cup brown sugar
3/4 Cup peanut butter
2 eggs
1 Tablespoon vanilla

DRY
1 1/2 Cup flour
1 1/2 Cup oats
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda

In one bowl, combine the wet.   (Cream together sugars and butter. Incorporate eggs, then vanilla.)   In a separate bowl, combine the dry. Combine the wet and the dry.  Spread into a lightly (spray) greased 12 X 17.   Bake at 350º for 10-12 minutes. Cool, frost with:

Frosting
1 brick cream cheese, softened
A couple Tablespoons butter, softened
A shake of salt
Unsweetened cocoa powder 2 to 4 Tablespoons, to taste
Powdered sugar, to spreading consistency (3-4 Cups)
Beat ‘til smooth.

Peanut Butter Cookie – With a Plus

I can’t say this peanut butter cookie has a “secret” ingredient, or I wouldn’t very well be able to share the recipe with you. The “plus” is vanilla pudding mix. It helps make and keep the cookies chewy and moist.

Ingredients:

Bowl 1:
3 eggs
1 Cup shortening
1 Cup creamy peanut butter
1 Cup white sugar
1 Cup packed brown sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Bowl 2:
3 Cups all-purpose flour
1 package vanilla pudding mix
2 teaspoons baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt

Directions:
Preheat oven to 375 degrees. In bowl 1, combine all ingredients listed for it. (Hint: if you put the eggs in the 1-cup measure, tip it around to coat the sides with the egg whites, then use that same cup to measure the shortening, the shortening will come out a lot easier.) Blend with electric mixer on slow, then medium, stopping a time or two to scrape down the sides. In bowl 2, combine all the ingredients listed for it. Combine the two bowls, stirring with a solid spoon – it will be very stiff. Shape into 1-inch balls and place 2 to 3 inches apart on greased baking sheet. Flatten with a fork dipped in sugar to create the classic criss-cross pattern on top. Bake at 375 degrees for 7 – 8 minutes, or until edges just start to brown. If you bake until the whole cookie is brown, they will be crunchy, not chewy. Cool several minutes on the sheet before removing to cool completely.