Cooking Lesson #401: Peanut Butter-Granola Cookies

…from the California Kitchen

​How you doin’?  Peanut Butter cookies have been an American favorite for years. Ever wonder who invented the peanut butter cookie? The Peanut Butter Cookie was invented in 1910, when George Washington Carver of Alabama's Tuskegee Institute published a peanut cookbook to promote peanut crops across the south.
 
In his cookbook entitled, How to Grow the Peanut and 105 Ways of Preparing it for Human Consumption, Carver included several cookies recipes that called for chopped peanuts. Peanut butter was added to the cookies 20 years later along with the fork marks that are associated with this cookie. In 1932, the Schenectady Gazette published the first peanut butter cookie recipe that called for crisscrossed fork marks on the top. Today, a peanut butter cookie just wouldn't be quite right without this iconic decoration!
 
To set the record straight, the Aztecs invented peanut butter in the 14th century, but peanut butter cookies didn’t become an American favorite until the early 20th century.
 
Prep time:  10 minutes
Chill time: 30 minutes
Bake time:  12 to 15 minutes
Yield:  48 cookies+
 
Ingredients 
2-1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1-1/4 cups smooth peanut butter,
1 cup vegetable shortening (I prefer Crisco)
1/4 cup unsalted butter, softened
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 cup granulated sugar
1 cup light brown sugar, packed
2 large eggs
1 cup granola cereal (I prefer Quaker Simply Granola)
 
Directions

1. Preheat an oven to 350⁰ F.
2. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt; set aside.
3. In a separate large bowl, using an electric mixer, combine the peanut butter, shortening, butter and vanilla.
4. Add the sugars and beat until fluffy.
5. Add the eggs, one at a time, and continue beating until well combined.
6. Add the dry ingredients, 1/2 cup at a time, beating until dough is firm.
7. Fold in the granola cereal.
8. Chill the dough for about 30 minutes.
9. Use a tablespoon to make 1-inch balls of dough and place them 3 inches apart on a parchment-lined sheet pan. 
10. Use a fork to press down on each cookie twice, making a distinctive crisscross pattern.
11. Bake on the center rack oven 12 to 15 minutes, or until golden. 
12. Allow to cool on the pan 5 to 10 minutes before transferring cookies to a cooling rack.
13. Store in an airtight container for up to 2 weeks or freeze for up to 3 months.

ChefSecret:  Save the unbaked dough for another day. Scoop and bake the premade dough and have fresh-baked cookies in less than 20 minutes.

Quip of the Day: “Have you ever noticed that all the instruments searching for intelligent life are pointed away from earth?”
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