St.Louis' Peanut Butter Cookies

These peanut butter cookies use a generous ratio of peanut butter to flour, so the roasted peanut flavor comes through loud and clear. Both brown and white sugar work together: the granulated sugar gives you crisp edges while brown sugar keeps the centers soft and chewy.

A splash of water in the dough might seem odd, but it loosens the batter just enough for easy dropping and creates a bit of extra steam in the oven that helps the cookies puff before settling into that signature crackled top.

Dip your fork in granulated sugar before pressing the crosshatch pattern. The sugar prevents sticking and leaves a sparkly, crunchy surface on each cookie.

Kitchen Tips

• Use creamy peanut butter, not natural. Natural peanut butter has too much oil separation and makes the cookies greasy and flat.
• Cream the butter and peanut butter together until truly fluffy, not just combined. This incorporates air and gives the cookies lift.
• Don’t overbake. Pull them when the edges are set but the center still looks slightly soft. They firm up as they cool on the sheet.
• These freeze beautifully. Stack with parchment between layers and store in a freezer bag for up to 3 months.

Variations

• Press a chocolate kiss into the center of each cookie right after baking for a peanut butter blossom.
• Add a cup of chocolate chips to the dough for a peanut butter chocolate chip cookie.
• Use chunky peanut butter for visible peanut pieces and extra crunch in every bite.