Black and White Peanut Butter Cookies

I wanted to make some peanut butter cookies for a friend's housewarming. I have been thinking about making a cookie with large chunks of mixed nuts in the batter. It seems like a manly cookie that I could send to my dad for his birthday. Also, I tend to like cookies that have salt in them so I added some coarse sea salt but this would probably sound crazy to some people.

I used 1/2 c. Planter's mixed nuts (peanuts, almonds, cashews, brazil) and 1/2 c. of macadamia nuts (I am always trying to think of ways to use the endless supply of macadamia nuts that my mother in law constantly sends us). I pulsed these in the food processor for a few seconds so that the chunks of the nuts were large enough that they maintained some of their original texture and flavor. For these I didn't want just tiny crumbs of anonymous "nut meal."

Well, as if I wasn't pushing it with the coarse sea salt, I decided that the first few batches were too dry* so I had the idea to dip them in chocolate and white frosting. This recipe is perfectly good without the frostings though or with just the chocolate. This makes about 40 cookies but it really depends on how large you make them.

*The first few batches of cookies came out dry because I was trying to be cute and make a nice crosshatch pattern by pressing down with the fork. By the last few trays I was barely touching them with the fork and they started to come out much chewier. I can't stress enough that you don't smash the cookies down very much at all.



1 1/4 cups flour
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon of sea salt
1/2 cup unsalted butter
1 cup peanut butter
3/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup firmly packed light brown sugar
1 large egg, at room temperature
1 tablespoon (I used almond milk)
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 c. of some combination of mix-ins (some kind of nuts/chocolate chips)

For sprinkling: 1 tablespoon sugar

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a large bowl, combine the flour, the baking soda, the baking powder, and the salt. Set aside.


2. In a large bowl, beat the butter and the peanut butter together until fluffy. Add the sugars and beat until smooth.

3. Add the egg and mix well. Add the milk and the vanilla extract. Add the flour mixture and beat thoroughly.


4. Stir in the nuts/chocolate chips. Place sprinkling sugar — the remaining tablespoon — on a plate.


5. Drop by rounded teaspoonfuls into the sugar, then onto ungreased cookie sheets, leaving several inches between for expansion.

***DON'T make them this flat or they will be dry***

***DON'T make them this flat or they will be dry***
6. Using a fork, lightly indent with a crisss-cross pattern but do not overly flatten cookies. Bake for 10 to 12 minutes. Do not overbake.


Cool the cookies on the sheets for 1 minute, then remove to a rack to cool completely.

For Black and White frosting:
4 c. confectioner's sugar
5 oz. or so of dark chocolate
about 1 c. of boiling water

1. For the Black part of the cookie, just melt the chocolate in a double boiler and dip half of the cookie into the melted chocolate.



2. I stick them in the refrigerator (on a flexible cutting board) for about an hour to harden the chocolate so you can get a good grip when you're dipping them in the white frosting.

3. To make the white frosting you just add the boiling water to the confectioners sugar and get rid of all of the lumps before dipping the other half of the cookie--refrigerate about another hour until the frosting is set.

Store air-tight and with wax paper between the layers.