That’s right, I equated oats with Heaven and I stand by it. I have had this recipe in my bookmarks for about two months until two weeks ago I recognized that the only thing I am missing from my cupboard to make these cookies was the Nutella which was quickly acquired at the downtown Target. From there, I walked past the gym without stepping inside, (because really making cookies is by far better than working out) went home and got work.
I normally try to leave some butter out so that it is always soft and at room temperature whenever I need it. When I don’t have that foresight, I just turn on the oven to a low temperature, put a couple of sticks of butter on a plate, and put the plate on the burner. Merely microwaving the butter changes the consistency and thus the dynamics of the butter too much and really messes up my dough so I find the softening method to work far better.
And it did. I creamed the butters with the sugars, added the dry ingredients, peanut butter, Nutella the oats and the chocolate chips.
I find that using peanut butter in baking or cooking to be quite laborious, but more so with baking where specific measurements matter most. Even at that though, I never (read: rarely) precisely measure peanut butter or any other sticky substance since I understand that a lot of it will stick to my measuring cup and be a P.I.T.A. to get out. However, if you are fearful of my method you can coat your measuring cup with oil before putting the PB/Nutella in, which helps the ingredient slide out.
It is at this point where I lightly smush the dough down a bit and sprinkle sea salt on top to bring out the sweetness – one of the best tricks I have learned about baking cookies (Thanks Dorie). Then in to the oven they went!
(Too much light in this photo, I know). What is most difficult about making cookies containing peanut butter is I find it difficult to know when they are done. Watching for color is key, but even at that you are managing a dark colored dough. Time and temperature are always critical (My mom bought me a thermometer for my oven. Huzzah!) but not always spot on. So rely on everything, including your gut.
aren’t you the sweety pie (pun intended) for mentioning me!