Peanut Butter Cookies

I still have some old recipes written out on index cards that I look up the old-fashioned way-- in a recipe box. These peanut butter cookies are one of them, and I guess I haven't made them or blogged them since this Vegetable Tuesdays blog began. In my nights-to-days-to-nights haze I got a huge craving for peanut butter (I have been craving protein like crazy lately) and thought that I must have these cookies or else I would perish. So I made some and took them to my call day last night and thank goodness, what a little bit of happiness they provided.

Note: This time when I made them I made a half batch and I used 1/4 C. white sugar, 1/4 C. brown sugar, and 1/2 C. raw turbinado sugar and I really liked what it did for the texture and flavor.

From Somewhere. It's the recipe my mom has used as long as I can remember.

Ingredients:

1 C. yellow shortening

1 C. peanut butter (I prefer crunchy)

1 C. white granulated sugar

1 C. brown sugar 

2 eggs

2 1/2 C. flour (sift before measuring)

1 tsp. baking powder 

1 1/2 tsp. baking soda

1/2 tsp. salt

Directions:

1. In a medium sized bowl, combine flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Mix thoroughly. 

2. In a large together, cream together the shortening, peanut butter, and sugars with an electric mixer until thoroughly combined and fluffy. Beat in eggs one at a time. 

3. Remove the mixer. Add the flour mixture into the egg/sugar mixture 1/3rd at a time, beating in the flour mixture by hand (using the mixer will make for tougher cookies.) 

4. Form cookies into approximately 1" diameter mounds. Using a fork, gently press down twice, with the second press perpendicular to the first, making a cross-hatch pattern, so that the cookie dough is approximately flattened 1/2 way down from its initial height. 

5. Bake 10-12 minutes at 350F. Remove from oven before the cookie is completely done, while the middles are still soft (they will finish setting up outside the oven.) Allow to cool one minute on cookie sheet, then transfer to wire rack for the rest of the cooling process-- although you should feel very welcome to eat these warm.

6. Store in an airtight container. Cookies will stale if uneaten after 48 hours.