Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies

Happy Mother’s Day to any of you mothers out there! My little one is currently napping and I’m relaxing with a movie as I write this. I recently posted a sneak peek on my blog’s new Instagram account. Follow me at tasteandsparkle as I add pictures from my food and crafting journey!

Let’s face it: nearly everyone loves a good chocolate chip cookie. My mom and I have been making this recipe for years and it is always a huge hit. Most chocolate chip cookie recipes end in a flat cookie, but the peanut butter in this one help it keep its shape and isn’t too overpowering. This is my go-to cookie, as it comes together quickly and easily.

Begin by preheating the oven to 350 and getting out the ingredients. For this batch, I halved the recipe (my recipe makes about 4 dozen, or more if you use a small cookie scoop). I also chose to use Cup4cup to make it gluten free – just make sure to mix in the dry ingredients by hand if you go this route!

I started by beating the margarine with the sugar, brown sugar, and peanut butter. I used my OXO adjustable measuring cup for the peanut butter. This little tool works wonders for any messy ingredients (Crisco, honey, molasses, etc.). I highly recommend getting one if your kitchen doesn’t have one! Once these ingredients are combined, add in the eggs and vanilla. I’ve mentioned this before, but I like using Nielsen Massey’s vanilla bean paste instead of regular vanilla extract.

Once my wet ingredients were fully incorporated, I added in the flour, baking soda, and salt. Last, I stirred in the chocolate chips. I used my cookie scoop to make them all roughly the same size, and then baked the cookies for 10 minutes. Depending on your oven and how you like your cookies, you may want the additional 2 minutes. I like mine lightly browned and not too crunchy, so I go with the shorter amount of time.

I let them cool briefly before transferring them to the wire rack. They then finished cooling on the rack until time to box them up. I may have eaten a cookie or two before they finished cooling…I had to make sure they turned out okay, right?

These cookies are so good and very easy! I hope you enjoy!

Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies
From the kitchens of Laurie and Leslie, my mom and I 🙂

Ingredients:
¾ c margarine
1 c sugar
1 c brown sugar (packed)
½ c peanut butter
2 eggs
2 tsp vanilla
2 ½ c all-purpose flour
1 tsp baking soda
½ tsp salt
2 c chocolate chips (1 – 12 oz bag)

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.

Beat margarine, sugars, and peanut butter in a large bowl with mixer on medium speed, until light and fluffy. Blend in eggs and vanilla. Mix in flour, baking soda, and salt. Stir in chocolate chips.

Drop by rounded tablespoons onto an ungreased cookie sheet. Bake 10-12 minutes. Cool for 2 minutes before transferring to a wire rack.