Cookie Day! Snickerdoodles and Peanut Butter Cookies

The Colonel LOVES LOVES LOVES warm cookies, and I have discovered a desire to bake some for him despite the fact that I've never been all that keen on baking. Plus, I came across a nice big bowl for use in making sourdough starter, and bought two because as The Colonel says, I love my containers. Now that the sourdough starter has been started and used, I transferred it to a different container (container!) and it lives in the fridge for now. But the two plastic bowls with lids make great cookie containers (containers!).

I made two types of cookies on the same day. The oven can handle two large baking sheets at once, so capacity baking was not an issue, however it took A LOT of paper towels for all the cooling on counters, and wiping off dough-covered hands.

The first step toward solving a problem is
admitting you have one.

Using all those paper towels gave light to a problem we didn't realize we had with our little Kagan: paper towel addiction. She had evidently got a hold of a few and had been busy happily chewing, digesting and using some to decorate her "room".

We knew she likes to pick things up and put them in her mouth, but I guess we have to be a bit more diligent about handling paper towels and napkins around her.


It's been ages since I made peanut butter cookies, so thank heaven the recipe reminded me about the traditional fork prints you make on top of them. Why do peanut butter cookies have those marks?Well, let's turn to the Interwebs, where, of all possible places, ProFlowers enlightens us:

Peanut butter – a household favorite since the early 1900’s. And the history of peanut butter cookiesstarts around the same time, with the first recipe made public around 1916. Since they have been made, there has always been a unique feature about this particular cookie. That feature is the fork hash marks impressed in the top of the cookie. The question is though, why are they there? Several reasons are speculated for these delicious peanut butter cookies to have these hash marks, but the most common reasons known is pure baking tradition, to help the cookies bake more evenly, and as a warning sign for people with peanut allergies.

Tradition

The first time that these fork marks were widely instructed to be placed on the cookie tops was in a recipe from a 1936 Pillsbury cookbook. There was no explanation given in the recipe as to why the fork hash marks were called for, but people made them anyways. Now, most people who bake these cookies put the hash marks on them out of pure tradition without knowing why they are even doing it. Maybe it’s because it’s simply more fun to make old fashioned peanut butter cookies!

Better Baking

Probably the most common reason specified for the marks on the cookies is because it’s supposed to help them cook more evenly. When peanut butter is added to cookie dough it makes it denser, which in turn makes it harder to bake through. Putting the hash marks in the cookie dough balls actually flattens them for more even baking. When the cookies bake, they should come out soft with crispy edges where the hash marks have been formed. Most people agree that the best peanut butter cookies are the ones with a soft center and crispy edge.

Nut Allergies

Although most people love these little desserts, those who are allergic to peanuts cannot eat them. However, because their color, shape, and texture causes them to look like other cookies, they can be easily confused and accidentally eaten by someone with an allergy. Therefore, this cookie was thought to have been given fork marks to warn people who are sensitive to nuts what they are about to eat. Since the marks are such a unique cookie feature, it is a great reminder of the ingredients.

If you’re unsure of what these fork marks look like, try looking up peanut butter cookies online. Or if you simply want to feast on these delicious, traditional treats, try Mrs. Fields peanut butter cookies. If peanut butter just doesn’t suit your taste, then stick with the traditional chocolate chip cookie, brownie or slice of cake!

There you have it. And now here we have loads of tasty cookies resting in plastic containers (containers!) waiting to be devoured.

Mangia!

Yummmmmm

Snickerdoodles

Food.com

1 cup butter

1 1⁄2 cups sugar

2 large eggs

2 3⁄4 cups flour

2 teaspoons cream of tartar

1 teaspoon baking soda

1⁄4 teaspoon salt

3 tablespoons sugar

3 teaspoons cinnamon

DIRECTIONS

Preheat oven to 350°F.

Mix butter, 1 1/2 cups sugar and eggs thoroughly in a large bowl.

Combine flour, cream of tartar, baking soda and salt in a separate bowl.

Blend dry ingredients into butter mixture.

Chill dough, and chill an ungreased cookie sheet for about 10-15 minutes in the fridge.

Meanwhile, mix 3 tablespoons sugar, and 3 teaspoons cinnamon in a small bowl.

Scoop 1 inch globs of dough into the sugar/ cinnamon mixture.

Coat by gently rolling balls of dough in the sugar mixture.

Place on chilled ungreased cookie sheet, and bake 10 minutes.

Remove from pan immediately.

Peanut Butter Cookies

Food.com

1 cup creamy peanut butter

1 cup packed brown sugar

1 cup white sugar

1 cup butter or 1 cup margarine, softened

2 eggs

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon baking powder

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

2 1⁄2 cups flour

DIRECTIONS

Cream butter, peanut butter and sugars together. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well. Add baking soda, powder and vanilla. Stir in flour. Roll into balls, roll in sugar. Flatten cookies, using a fork, in a criss-cross pattern.

Bake on ungreased cookie sheet at 350 degrees for 6-7 minutes or adjust to suit your oven and size of cookies!