Food @ GregsHead.net

These cookies are fairly quick and easy, and are a delicious treat! (I know this because they don’t last much longer than it takes to cool them off! They are a hit in the Campbell home!)

Recipe adapted from Betty Crocker’s 40th Anniversary Cookbook

Ingredients:

1/4 cup butter, softened
1/4 cup shortening
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup peanut butter (creamy or crunchy)
1 egg
1 1/4 cup flour
3/4 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp baking powder

Preheat oven to 350ºF. (Recipe says 375ºF, but I have found 350ºF to work better with my oven.)

Mix the first six ingredients together until smooth and then add the flour, baking soda and baking powder. Optional extra ingredients include chopped peanuts and chocolate chips. (And whatever else you might want to throw in!)

The recipe says to chill, but I’ve never found that to be necessary. Roll teaspoon size balls of dough and place on a cookie sheet. Press down to about 1/4″ thick with a fork (making crisscross marks by turning the for 90º) or with any sort of styled press for even more fun-looking cookies! Sprinkle each cookie with white sugar and bake for 9-10 minutes, or until cookies look dry and you can see a slight browning around the bottom edge.

Let them cool for a minute or two on the cookie sheet, and then remove to a baking rack to cool more thoroughly.

Recipe makes about 3 dozen cookies.

INGREDIENTS:
1/2 C warm water
2 packages of yeast
2 Tbsp sugar
3.5 oz. instant vanilla pudding
1/2C melted butter
2 large eggs
1 tsp salt
8 C flour
app. 1/2 C melted butter

Topping:
2 C packed brown sugar and 2 Tbsp cinnamon

Cream Cheese Frosting:
8 oz/ cream cheese – softened
1/2 C soft butter
1 tsp vanilla
3 C powdered sugar
2-3 Tbsp milk, just enough for fluffing

In a small bowl, combine water, yeast and sugar. Stir until dissolved. In a large bowl, make pudding according to package. Add butter, eggs and salt. Mix well. Add the yeast mixture, blend. Gradually add flour and knead until smooth. Adding flour as needed. When dough is smooth, place in a large bowl, cover and let rise until doubled (about 1 hr.). Punch down and let rise again for about 45 minutes.

Roll out onto a floured surface – into a rectangle. Spread 1/2 C melted (I think really soft butter might be better as it won’t run as much) and then sprinkle the topping on. Roll up very tightly. Make a notch every 2 inches. Use some thread to go under dough and criss-cross at notch to make a clean cut. Place on greased baking pan 2 inches apart and press down slightly. Cover and let rise again – 1 h our. Bake at 350 for 15-20 minutes. Take them out just as they turn brown. Don’t overbake. Frost when they are warm and serve when they are warm!!

That is a lot of rising. One thing to note is that on the first rise cycle, the dough does not rise much as the ingredients are cold. It rises a LOT the second and third times though!

Enjoy!