Peanut Butter Oatmeal Cookies

As you probably know, I love making cookies and trying new cookie recipes. And this is the best time of year to do it! These Peanut Butter Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies are the result of my latest successful cookie adventure.

These may not look like Christmas cookies, but as far as I’m concerned, any cookie I make after Thanksgiving is a Christmas cookie. The recipe is a pretty basic, easy-to-execute drop cookie, no more difficult to make than the average oatmeal cookie or chocolate chip cookie or peanut butter cookie. I love all three of those cookie styles, and this one has a little, or maybe a lot, of each, which means they’re totally delicious!

I think you could vary these in many ways to your personal taste. I like the ratio of brown sugar to white sugar, so I probably wouldn’t mess with that, but other flavors could surely be swapped in. You may be able to use a different nut butter, like almond or cashew, or a different chocolate, like milk chocolate chips, white chocolate chips, or bigger chocolate chunks. The chocolate could be left out and perhaps replaced with dried fruit or toffee bits, too.

While I like fancy cookies with swirls and sprinkles and frostings and other embellishments this time of year, I will definitely take a humble-looking but delicious drop cookie on my holiday cookie tray. These are wonderful and worthy, loaded with multiple classic cookie ingredients, and if you need them to look more Christmas-y, feel free to put a pretty bow on them.

Peanut Butter Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies

Based on a recipe in Better Homes and Gardens Baking

½ cup unsalted butter at room temperature

½ cup creamy peanut butter

1 cup brown sugar

½ cup granulated sugar

2 eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 ½ cups all-purpose flour

½ teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon baking soda

3 cups rolled oats

1 12-ounce package semi-sweet chocolate chips

1. In the bowl of a heavy duty stand mixer (or another large bowl if using a hand mixer or stirring by hand) combine the butter and peanut butter. Beat together on medium speed until fluffy. Add the brown sugar and granulated sugar and beat on medium speed until pale and fluffy.

2. Add the eggs one at a time, beating until well combined. Beat in the vanilla extract.

3. In a medium-size bowl, combine the flour, salt and baking soda. Whisk or sift together to combine well.

4. Add the flour mixture a little at a time to the butter mixture, beating on low speed until just combined. Stir in the oats on low speed. Stir in the chocolate chips. If necessary, complete the final stirring with a sturdy spoon or rubber spatula.

5. Cover or wrap the dough in plastic wrap and chill for 2 hours or up to 2 days. If planning to store for a longer time, freeze wrapped dough in a freezer safe bag or container.

6. When ready to bake the cookies, preheat oven to 350 F.  Lightly spray a cookie sheet with nonstick cooking spray or line it with parchment paper. Scoop about 2 tablespoons dough for each cookie on the prepared cookie sheet, spacing at least 2 inches apart.

7. Bake at 350 F for 8-11 minutes or until golden brown on the edges and set in the middle. Cool on the pan for 2 minutes. Remove from the pan and cool on a wire rack. Repeat with remaining dough.

Makes about 5 dozen cookies. Store in an airtight container or freeze baked cookies or unbaked dough well-wrapped for up to 3 months.

Other recipes like this one: Peanut Butter Cookies with Peanut Butter Cups, Rum Raisin Oatmeal Cookies, Oatmeal Date Cookies with Cardamom, Milk Chocolate Chip and M&M Cookies