Peanut Butter Cookies, and an unexpected arrival

To continue on Hubs' nesting/baking, he made peanut butter cookies. I have spent a good deal of time searching for a favorite recipe. My idea of the perfect pb cookie is soft, chewy, and very peanut buttery. Most are crispy, crunchy, or overly-buttery and not enough peanut bettery. My favorite batch was from grad school, when I made them with my friend Jenn. She sent me the recipe, but it didn't taste the same.

I told Hubs of my ideal cookie, and he set about finding a recipe to fit. He found one on epicurious.com, and added a few extra scoops of peanut butter. I loved them! I came home from my regular Sunday church gig, starving (as usual), and walked into the house to the aroma of peanut butter. Despite the considerable size of the cookie, I scarfed down two. It was all I dreamed of and more.

This ended up being the last baked good that Hubs was able to bake. That evening, we ended up at the hospital because I went into early labor. Maybe I was in denial, but I was thinking the whole time that it was nothing (I didn't feel any different), and that we'd be able to go home. Turns out, our little guy wanted to meet us 5 weeks early. Monday morning my water broke, and since he was in a breech position, I was scheduled for an immediate c-section. Two hours later, our son made his entry into the world. He weighed 4 lbs, 13 oz, measured 18 inches, and amazingly enough, was in perfect health. We named him Tyler. Despite his premature arrival, he did not need any additional care, and spent my recovery time in the hospital in the room with us.

Since we were expecting him in mid-October, we were caught quite off guard. I hadn't even had a baby shower yet. Friends and family have stepped in to get us things that we needed, and to lend their love and support as we had a crash course in baby care. We are now settled in at home, I am tying up loose ends at work, and we are spending many sleepless nights as new parents. Tyler is a wonder. I didn't think I could love my husband more than I did, but seeing him with Tyler melts my heart every time.


Old Fashioned Peanut Butter Cookies
from Bon Appetit
January 1998 (also found on epicurious.com)

3 c all purpose flour
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
2 sticks unsalted butter, room temperature
1 c plus 2 heaping Tbs of peanut butter (creamy or chunky, but not freshly ground)
2 tsp vanilla
1 c packed brown sugar
1 c sugar
2 large eggs

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line 2 large baking sheets with parchment paper. Mix flour, baking powder and salt in medium bowl. In a large bowl, beat butter, peanut butter, and vanilla. Beat in both sugars. Scrape down sides of bowl. Stir half of the dry ingredients into the mixture. Add eggs, 1 at a time, stirring well after each addition. Mix in remaining dry ingredients.

For each cookie, roll 1 heaping tablespoonful of dough into a ball. Arrange dough balls 2 1/2 inches apart on prepared baking sheets. Using the back of a fork, flatten the dough balls and form crosshatch design on tops. Bake cookies until dry on top and golden brown on bottom, about 14 minutes. Cool cookies on baking sheets 5 minutes. Using a metal spatula, transfer cookies to racks and cool completely.