Winter has become the season for baking in our household. Just yesterday, Sunday is our big bake day of every week, I was in my kitchen…cozy socks on my feet…a CLEAN kitchen (which is like a blank canvas for a baker)…the oil lamp lit…and any other Sunday there would be music playing. Maybe jazz. Maybe classical. Maybe the Pride and Prejudice Soundtrack. But this Sunday all was quiet and I was in my element.
As I sifted and mixed, I felt so natural.
So like myself.
So comfortable.
This delicious feeling of doing something you love and loving the way it makes you feel grounded. Useful. Confident. Skilled. Nurtured. Joyful. All things I feel when I bake.
Baking with freshly milled grains has done so much for my confidence and joy as a baker, a topic I’ll save for another post, but for today I am sharing my family’s favorite peanut butter cookies. This is my son’s favorite thing to make in the kitchen. It is so easy…such a simple recipe which would be great for beginner bakers in your home. And the final result is so delicious.
The recipe uses freshly milled wheat but you can use store bought as well and it will still turn out fine.
One cookie baking tip I’ll share with you: Never overcook cookies!…which is hard to do if you are like me and can get distracted. Keep a close eye on them and the minute they turn slightly golden around the edges…pull them out. Cookies continue to cook on the pan as they cool. I’ve learned this is the key to melt-in-your-mouth cookies!
Another tip: ice cream sandwiched in between cookies is NEVER a bad idea. :)
Cheers to baking in winter and all the many ways it makes us and those we love feel loved and cared for!
Mac’s Peanut Butter Cookies
Ingredients
1/2 cup butter
1/2 cup peanut butter
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup white sugar
1 tsp. Vanilla
1 1/4 cup freshly milled soft wheat flour
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
Directions
Preheat oven to 350. Mix butters and sugars until light and fluffy with mixer. Add vanilla. In a separate bowl, mix flour, salt, baking powder, and baking soda. Add to butter mixture. Shape dough with your hands into balls and put on cookie sheet lined with parchment paper. Press each cookie with fork. (You can also add chocolate chips to the top of each cookie if you prefer) Bake for 8-10 minutes or until edges turn slightly golden. Enjoy!