3 Ingredient Peanut Butter Cookies
Recipe and Images by Lizzie West
So – you’re stuck at home and want an easy and fun activity to do with your kids (or maybe your partner or roommates) while you’re social distancing. It’s always more fun when there is something to show for your effort. Check out this fail-proof 3 ingredient Peanut Butter Cookie recipe to make this weekend!
Makes about 15 large cookies
Prep Time – 20-25 minutes (including refrigeration time)
Cook time – 15 minutes
Total – 35-40 minutes
Ingredients:
1 cup Creamy Peanut Butter
1 egg (large or x-large)
1 cup sugar
Directions:
- Preheat oven to 350° (325 if using darker cookie sheet). Parchment paper is the easiest and fastest cleanup for preparing the cookie sheet. A light coating of baking spray is also a solid choice to keep the cookies from sticking.
- Beat 1 egg, then combine completely with 1 cup sugar.
- Add 1 cup peanut butter and completely combine the mixture, it should be similar to the texture of any other cookie dough. Place the whole bowl in the refrigerator for 10-15 minutes. This helps the cookies keep their shape, much like you use cold sugar cookie dough.
- Use a 1 Tablespoon utensil to make the dough into balls and place about 2 inches apart on the prepared cookie sheet.
- Use a large table fork with long tines to push the dough balls down onto the cookie sheet until they are about 1/2 inch tall, then press the fork down the opposite direction to create a criss-cross pattern. Greasing or spraying the fork with oil between cookies keeps the dough from sticking. Have fun and don’t take it too seriously.
- Bake the cookies on the center rack for about 12-15 minutes, until the edges are slightly browned around the bottom.
- Using an oven mitt, take the cookies out and let them cool on the cookie sheet for a few minutes before trying to take them off. At this point, you can either put them on a cooling rack or wait a little longer to put them on a plate. Voilà! Pair with a cold glass of milk and you have a tasty treat!
Mix It Up!
You can mix in different things to switch up this cookie recipe and make it a little more fun. The easiest thing to do is to add chocolate chips or M&Ms. YUM! They won’t have the criss-cross marks on them like regular peanut butter cookies, but who cares – because chocolate! You can also try using half creamy and half crunchy peanut butter to add a little crunch to your soft-baked cookies! Get creative! Play around with different sugars, going sugar-free with an alternative and even an alternative to peanut butter (ex. almond, cashew – because allergies). You can even try skipping the egg altogether and substitute it with one small ripe mashed banana or 1/4 cup unsweetened applesauce.
And lastly, when you experiment, it may not always turn out, but at least you can learn something in the process! Happy Baking!