Remember last week how I said, “Maybe I love peanut butter more than I should?” Well, I gave up the ghost on Sunday after church and baked some peanut butter cookies.
Now, you might be familiar with the Magic Peanut Butter Cookie—so-called because it comes together with only three ingredients: sugar, eggs, and (of course) peanut butter. This recipe is not that straightforward, but it is old-fashioned. Admittedly, I’ve only made this kind of peanut butter cookie.
Maybe it’s because I’m old-fashioned, but these cookies more closely resemble a recipe from the Betty Crocker Cooky Book for something called Peanut Jumbles. Using extra crunchy peanut butter (my personal favorite), the inclusion of whole peanuts makes these cookies feel more substantial. Not to mention you can (much like with banana pudding) talk yourself into seeing these cookies as somewhere in the ballpark of “health food.”
This particular recipe is yet another one from the Tucker family recipe box. Don’t worry—there’s plenty for me to keep a mystery. In Demopolis, there’s been a number of self-appointed monarchs of southern cookery, but to me there’s one reigning queen: Carolyn Nelson. Long may she reign, indeed!
Her cookbook, Memaw’s Southern Cookin’, is a treasure trove of recipes both new and old from my Marengo County home. Imagine my surprise when I read the dedication to this book and discovered Nelson and I have quite a number of relatives in common—including my maternal great, great grandmother whom I’ve only known as Big Mama.
To keep the names relative, “Sis” Tucker is the baker behind these peanut butter wonders. In true Tucker fashion, it makes enough to feed a whole Baptist congregation and any visitors who may happen to be around. Feel free to half this recipe; it’s easy to do so with these measurements.
Sis Tucker’s Peanut Butter Cookies
1 lb. (4 sticks) oleo
2 1/2 cups crunchy peanut butter
2 cups sugar
2 cups light brown sugar
4 eggs
4 cups sifted plain flour
2 teaspoons baking soda
3 teaspoons vanilla extract
Sift flour and soda together in a medium bowl; set aside. On medium speed of an electric mixer, cream together oleo, peanut butter and sugars until well-blended. Add eggs and vanilla; beat 2 minutes. On low speed of the mixer, add flour, about 1 cup at a time. Mix only until just blended.
Drop onto an ungreased cookie sheet by tablespoonfuls or with a cookie scoop. Bake at 325 degrees for 12 minutes or until the moment they turn golden-brown. Cool for 2 minutes on the cookie sheet, then transfer cookies to a wire rack. Cool completely.
In the original notes for this recipe, it’s recommended to go ahead and make the full recipe and freeze whatever baked cookies you won’t eat right away. If you make the full recipe, you can refrigerate any leftover dough for up to a week to bake off as needed. Anything you don’t keep cold will stay fresh at room temperature in an airtight container for up to a week.
One thing you might notice, versus other peanut butter cookie recipes, is the absence of the “pressing” step. Typically, peanut butter cookies have a distinct criss-cross pattern, made by pressing a fork on top of the rounded scoop of dough into a disc shape. That’s not necessary for these cookies, but I have done it myself from time-to-time, just so the cookies don’t get a complex.
These have a crunchier texture than most peanut butter cookies; not snappy, but crunchy for sure. Apparently, that’s the next food trend—crunchy foods, that is. For all I know, cookies like these could be sweeping New York City off their feet, much like a pimiento cheese and Conecuh sausage pizza did not too long ago.
Around this time of year, I get all abuzz about the Marion-Perry County Library’s Annual Bake Sale. It gives me an excuse to stay in the kitchen all day and share some of my favorite recipes with the community I love. It’s a great way to share and connect—giving back what we can, where we can.
Usually, I bake off sheets of cookies, solely for the volume. Put them in those jars or plastic containers you’ve been hoarding and have to force back into the cabinet every time you need to use one. Maybe that’s just a ‘me problem.’
At any rate, you should do yourself a favor and get some Valentine’s goodies for yourself (and maybe your sweetheart) on Friday, February 13. Who knows? You may even get to try these cookies beyond the newsprint.
