Wednesday, October 20, 2010

A Match Made in (Nut) Heaven


The first gift Adam ever gave me was jar of peanut butter.

When we first started dating in college, I returned to my dorm room one afternoon to find a gift bag hung over the knob. Inside, I found a jar of peanut butter, a bag of chocolate chips, and a post-it note wishing me a good weekend.

A man who gives me nut butter to show that he cares? True love, I tell you.

Needless to say, someone with a nut allergy would not fare well in our house. My nut addiction extends far beyond the obvious peanut butter + chocolate obsession, and infiltrates most dishes we eat. Pasta dishes, salads, desserts, even bean burgers--they're all friends of the nut.

When it comes to desserts, I'd argue that quintessential nutty treat is the classic peanut butter cookie. Who doesn't love this sweet n' salty bite-sized treat, complete with its own signature--a stylish fork imprint?

While I love my classic PB cookies as much as the next girl (bring on the butter!), tonight we're going to explore the wonderful world of lower-fat, almost-vegan peanut butter cookies.

No worries--these cookies do not take on the cake-like texture that often characterizes lower-fat cookies (because let's be honest: there's nothing more disappointing than a dry, high-rise, cake-like cookie). They're chewy and ridiculously delicious, similar to their full-fat counterparts.

I discovered this recipe a couple years ago at the amazing Cookie Madness website. It makes an appearance in our house quite regularly, and happily satisfies my after-dinner-sweets-n-peanut-butter craving.

Eat up! And remember--if a guy ever gives you a jar of peanut butter as a gift, snatch him up and marry him. It'll be the best decision you ever made :)

(Almost) Vegan Peanut Butter Cookies
(Recipe adapted from Anna at Cookie Madness)

These cookies are a tad on the crumbly side, likely due to the lack of egg. I've never experimented with the recipe to see how this could be reduced (I love the taste and texture so much, the crumbly factor doesn't bother me a bit!). Either way, they completely satisfy the sweet n' salty peanut butter cookie crave :)

*The "almost" vegan tag is because I used yogurt. The original recipe calls for applesauce.

Ingredients:
  • 1 cup, plus 2 TBSP unbleached, all-purpose flour
  • 1 tsp. baking soda
  • 1/4 tsp. salt
  • 1/2 cup brown sugar
  • 3 TBSP vegetable oil
  • 3 TBSP fat free vanilla yogurt
  • 2 TBSP honey
  • 1 tsp. vanilla extract
  • 1/2 cup natural peanut butter
Directions:

1) Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Prepare baking sheets with cooking spray.

2) Combine brown sugar, vegetable oil, yogurt, honey, vanilla, and peanut butter in a bowl. Add dry ingredients to peanut butter mixture and stir until fully combined.

3) Drop dough by large spoon-fuls onto baking sheet (makes about 12 large cookies). Use a fork to make awesome peanut butter cookie signature on top, if desired (I forgot this time).

4) Bake for about 10 - 12 minutes, or until golden brown around the edges. No worries about under-baking--they're vegan!

16 comments:

  1. So sweet. I hope my BF gives me peanut butter one day.

    He did give me heart shaped measuring cups for Valentine's Day last year though, so it's all good.

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  2. Aww, no wonder you married him! :) I'll be on the lookout for any peanut-butter-toting fellas...

    I love when recipes use yogurt! And I love peanut butter cookies...sounds like a winner!

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  3. Nut butter is a totally acceptable gift/expression of love.

    Thanks for sharing the recipe - that is definitely one I would LOVE to try. Especially since I'm always looking for "real" healthy cookie recipes.

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  4. thats soooooo sweet!!

    he knows what it takes to get in your heart :)

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  5. Nut butter should always be used for gift-giving. I know I would be thrilled with a jar of gourmet peanut or cashew butter. This is a great, vegan recipe, and I'm excited to try it. And thank you for your warm words today on my blog. They mean a lot to me (and to my family)

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  6. Peanut butter for the first gift he gave you?? He's definitely a keeper! :D

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  7. Aw, a man so wise, so sweet! And I would love to try this recipe...It's not technically "vegan" since it has yogurt, but I actually LOVE the yogurt in this...the tangy taste would go well with the smooth peanut butter!

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  8. You're right Sophia! The original recipe called for applesauce and I subbed in vanilla yogurt and completely forgot that that "un-veganized" it! I'll make a note in the recipe...thanks for catching it :)

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  9. Hahaha oh my gosh, if a guy gave me a jar of nut butter & chocolate, I'd marry him right then and there ;) That's so cute! I definitely want to try that with applesauce!

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  10. You netted a good one when you found your man!

    "almost-vegan peanut butter cookies" - LOVE IT! With vanilla soy or coconut milk yogurt, they're all-vegan :D

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  11. I would love getting nut butter as a gift :) And choc chips? What a sweet man!

    I love PB cookies -- my favorite is the kind with a hershey kiss in the middle.

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  12. awww, what a cute gift!

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  13. Oh my gosh I love peanut butter cookies, and these look so different and yummy! I bake a shortbread peanut butter cookie that my family is OBSESSED with, I wonder what they would think of these!

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  14. oh my gosh, I wish I had some of those right now!

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  15. Come move in and make cookies for me everyday! Yum!!

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  16. Hey Kylie I am Anne Gohmann's friend, she turned me on to your blog, I love it! Right now I'm sitting at my coffee table while a batch of these is in the oven - I didn't have all the ingredients on hand so I substituted plain greek yogurt, wheat flour, and almond butter. They're turning out great! Delicious, thanks for the great recipe.

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