Crunchy Whole-Peanut Peanut Butter Cookies

I love all things peanut butter. I eat it on my toast almost every morning for breakfast, and usually along with a snack (celery logs, crackers, apple slices — you name it) during the day. So naturally, I love peanut butter cookies too. 

Unfortunately, I feel like peanut butter cookies get overlooked in the cookie world. Chocolate chip cookies, brownie cookies and other chocolatey mash-ups tend to be the star of the cookie show. In this recipe, I wanted to create a peanut butter cookie that was tasty enough to stand up to these powerhouse cookies. 

To liven up the traditional peanut butter cookie, I brought in the help of whole peanuts and chopped peanuts, both inside and outside the cookie. Using whole and chopped nuts gives the cookies a more robust peanut flavor and a satisfyingly crunchy texture. The cookies are a little sweet, a little salty and definitely the best peanut butter cookies I've ever tasted. 

Let me know what you think of the recipe and don’t forget to follow the sustainability tips below!

Time: 30 minutes

Makes: 18-24 cookies

Ingredients

• 1 cup (2 sticks) butter, room temperature

• 1 1/3 cups sugar

• 1 cup peanut butter

  • For best results, use peanut butter that only contains nuts and salt

• 2 eggs

• 1 3/4 cups white spelt flour

• 1 teaspoon baking powder

• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda

• 1 teaspoon salt

• 1 cup roasted salted peanuts, plus more for rolling

Methods

1. Preheat oven to 350 F. Use an electric mixer to cream together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Then, add in the peanut butter and mix again until combined. Add in the eggs and mix once more to combine.

2. Add the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt to the bowl. Use a spatula to stir until almost combined. Add 1/2 cup of peanuts to the bowl. Roughly chop the remaining 1/2 cup of peanuts before adding them to the dough as well. Then, stir until evenly distributed.

3. Roll the dough into 1 1/2-inch balls. Roughly chop about 1/2 cup of peanuts. Roll the cookies in the chopped peanuts, coating their tops and sides with the peanuts. Chop more peanuts as needed to cover all the dough balls.

4. Arrange dough balls on a parchment-lined baking sheet, leaving about 2 inches of space between each cookie. Use your fingers to flatten the cookies slightly. Then, bake for 10-13 minutes. Allow the cookies to cool slightly before transferring them to a wire cooling wrack. Allow them to cool completely before storing. Eat up!

Sustainability Tips

• Butter: Since cows contribute a lot to climate change, I like to buy my dairy products from B Corps, which are held to really high environmental and social standards. You could also try out vegan options, but please keep in mind that I have not tested vegan butter in this recipe.

• Eggs: Local eggs are pretty easy to find in most regions. Buying locally means your eggs won't have to travel as far, reducing greenhouse gas emissions and energy use. You can also replace the eggs with flax eggs (4 tablespoons flaxseed meal mixed with 6 tablespoons of water) for a vegan egg replacement.

• Flour: I like to buy King Arthur Flour brand because King Arthur Flour is a B Corp. That means that they're held to a high environmental and social standard. Alternatively, you could find a farmer who grows and mills flour locally. Buying locally can help connect you to your local food system and cut back on the miles your food has to travel.