Peanut Butter Cookies

So I had a craving for peanut butter cookies the other day, and after searching through Pinterest, I found this recipe. (I guess these are also known as Welfare Peanut Butter cookies, as the recipe was originally found on the back of the generic canisters of peanut butter at food banks.)

2 1/2 c flour
1/2 t salt
1/2 t baking soda
1 c fat*, at room temperature
1 c peanut butter
1 c white sugar
1 c brown sugar, packed
2 eggs

(*note: I used 1/2 c butter, 1/2 c Crisco)

Preheat oven to 375°.
In a separate bowl, combine the flour, salt and baking soda. Set aside.
Cream the room temperature fat (butter, Crisco). Add the peanut butter and mix well. Add both sugars, and mix until creamed further. Add eggs and beat well.
Add the flour mixture to the peanut butter mixture.
Drop by teaspoonful onto ungreased baking sheet. Use a fork to flatten with a criss-cross design.
Bake for 10 to 15 minutes, until browned. (Time will vary based on the size of your cookies.)

Aunt Hazel's cookies ... via Natalie

So here's the recipe for the incredible chocolate chip cookies from Natalie. (Thanks Nat!!) It is a family recipe handed down to her from her aunt Hazel Erickson. (Thank you, Aunt Hazel!!)

Now... these bad boys call for shortening (read: Crisco). But Natalie swears it's what gives them their wonderful, crispy tender texture. So ... I guess I will be buying my first can of shortening very soon.

Aunt Hazel's Chocolate Chip Cookies ...

1 cup shortening
1/2 cup white sugar
1 cup brown sugar
1 tsp vanilla
Cream above ingredients.
Fold in 2 well beaten eggs.
Sift 2 1/4 cup flour.
1 tsp soda
1 tsp salt
Add a bag of chocolate chips.
Bake 10 minutes at 350 degrees.

Snow ... and cookies ...

After returning home from a weekend in the Black Hills, we woke up this morning to our first real snowfall of the season! (Setting a record for the earliest, significant snowfall - no less.) It was made all the sweeter because the kids don't have school today.

After throwing snow around for a couple of hours over at the neighbors house, the boys returned home with these!

Made. from. scratch!

No lie... they melt in your mouth. Crispy on the edges, soft on the inside... completely, utterly, delicious! (...and they were STILL WARM!!)



Thank you Natalie, Aaron and Noelle!! :) (fyi... I'm working on finagling the recipe...!)

Top image via Josh (busychild424) on Flickr - beautiful, isn't it?!
Bottom image, Natalie's Chocolate Chip Cookies on my counter!! :)