Classic Peanut Butter Cookies

Preparation

1. <p>In large bowl, beat 1/2 cup granulated sugar, brown sugar, peanut butter, shortening, softened butter and egg with electric mixer on medium speed, or mix with a spoon, until all the ingredients are smooth and thoroughly blended.</p>
2. <p>Stir in flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt just until combined. Be careful not to overmix here—you want the dough to stay light and fluffy, and overmixing can result in a tough cookie.</p>
3. <p>Cover the dough and bowl with plastic wrap. Refrigerate for about 2 hours, or until firm. To test, scoop and roll the dough into a ball—it should be cold enough to shape easily. If it’s too soft, chill for an additional 30 minutes and check again.</p>
4. <p>Heat oven to 375°F. Shape dough into 1 1/4-inch balls and place about 3 inches apart on an ungreased cookie sheet. For the best results, keep the remaining dough balls chilled while baking to prevent them from warming up too much and spreading too quickly.</p>
5. <p>Place additional sugar in a small bowl. Dip a fork in the sugar and use it to flatten each cookie ball in a crisscross pattern. Be sure to re-dip the fork each time to prevent sticking. Discard any remaining sugar when you're done.</p>
6. <p>Place cookie sheet on the middle oven rack. Bake 9 to 10 minutes or until light golden brown.</p>
7. <p>Cool 5 minutes on cookie sheet. Remove from cookie sheet to cooking rack.</p>
8. <p>Cool completely, about 30 minutes. Store covered in airtight container.</p>

Tips

• Let your cookie sheets cool between batches. Adding cookie dough to a hot or warm cookie sheet can cause the cookies to spread too much. The dough melts too quickly on a hot surface, leading to thinner, crispier cookies. To avoid this, it's helpful to have at least two cookie sheets—while one is in the oven, you can scoop and roll the next batch onto the second sheet, allowing the first to cool down before reusing it.

• Be sure to measure the flour carefully. Too much flour will make what should be a light, chewy cookie denser and more cake-like. Too little flour and your cookies will turn out more flat and crispy.

• Chilling the dough is essential for peanut butter cookies because the dough is denser and can spread too much without it. Refrigerating helps solidify the fats, ensuring the cookies hold their shape and bake evenly. This also allows the flavors to meld for a better taste and ensures easier handling, especially for shaped or cutout cookies.

Nutrition Information