My love of peanut butter runs deep, twined in the double-helixes of my DNA. I know this because my beloved grandfather never turned down a handfulorthree of peanuts. Family lore has it that he favored peanut butter-and-horseradish sandwiches. (I firmly draw the line at that one.) Dad keeps a 55-gallon-drum of roasted peanuts in the pantry. Me, I drove my mother nearly to madness by requesting a PB&J sandwich for my school lunch. Every. Single. Day.
Her: Chicken salad, maybe?
Me: PB&J.
Her: Ham and cheese?
Me: PB&J.
Guess what I’m having for lunch today? Youbetcha.
Now, while I’m committed to the nothing-but-roasted-peanuts peanut butter we get from J.E. Gibbs at Findlay Market, I’ve been casually dating other nut butters. Almond butter and I have enjoyed a little fling (I’m just as much a sucker for roasted almonds as I am for dry-roasted peanuts). And this almond-butter cookie recipe is inspired by the classic peanut butter cookie, taken in a slightly different direction.
almond-butter cookie recipe
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. salt
2 sticks unsalted butter, softened (but not too soft)
1 cup brown sugar (lightly packed)
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1 cup almond butter
2 eggs
2 1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
1 cup whole toasted almonds, coarsely chopped
Preheat oven to 350 degrees; place a sheet of parchment paper on two cookie sheets. In a medium bowl, stir together flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt. Set aside. In the bowl of a mixer, cream butter until light. Add sugars; cream until fluffy about 3 minutes. Beat in almond butter, then add eggs, one at a time, and mix to blend. Add vanilla and mix. Add dry ingredients (about 1/3 at a time) and mix slowly to thoroughly combine. Stir in chopped almonds.
Scoop generous teaspoons of cookie dough onto the parchment-lined cookie sheets, about 2 inches apart. Bake for 14–15 minutes, rotating the cookie sheets halfway through, until set and lightly brown. Cool a bit on the cookie sheet, then remove to a wire rack. Enjoy with a glass of ice-cold milk.
