Recipe adapted from and with thanks to Living The Pie Life
- 2 eggs
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
- 1 cup butter softened
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
- 2 cups light brown sugar
- 1 1/2 cups brown rice flour *
- 3/4 cup tapioca starch *
- 1/2 cup potato starch *
- 1 1/2 cups creamy peanut butter
- optional: 12 ounces chocolate chunks or 1/3 cup raw sugar
- * if you are not in need of a gluten free recipe simply substitute 2 1/2 cups all purpose flour for the items ma
- Carbohydrate 182.714855693747 g
- Cholesterol 249.469444647316 mg
- Fat 149.928947902721 g
- Fiber 8.88533330213868 g
- Protein 34.6032144655194 g
- Saturated Fat 70.6061889475547 g
- Serving Size 1 1 dozen large cookie (593g)
- Sodium 960.225467158238 mg
- Sugar 173.829522391609 g
- Trans Fat 9.45195867447842 g
- Calories 2129 calories
Step-by-step
- Whisk together the flours, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
- In a large mixing bowl, beat the butter and the sugar until fluffy, about 3 minutes.
- Add the eggs and vanilla and beat again until light and fluffy.
- Add the peanut butter and beat just until combined.
- Add half the dry ingredients, beat until just combined, and add the remaining dry ingredients.
- Mix again until just combined.
- Stir in the chocolate chunks, if desired.
- Cover and place in the refrigerator to chill for at least 30 minutes, overnight is fine as well.
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
- Line your baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone mat.
- Place the raw sugar in a shallow bowl.
- Scoop 3 tablespoons of dough into a rough ball shape.
- Dip the top of each ball of cookie dough into the raw sugar and coat well.
- Place on the baking sheet.
- Press down lightly to flatten into a thick disk.
- Bake for 14 minutes, until the cookies are lightly brown and cracked on top.
- They should still be soft, but they will firm up as they cool.
- Let them cool on the pan for 1 minute before sliding the parchment onto a cooling rack.
- Let cool completely, before transferring to an airtight container.
- Enjoy!
Fat migration and protein development dictate whether a cookie spreads into a greasy disc or holds its structure as a thick, chewy disk. When butter and brown sugar are beaten together for a full three minutes, microscopic air pockets form to provide the structural lift required by heavy peanut butter fats, which otherwise weigh down the dough and yield a dense, oily crumb. Achieving the dual texture of a crisp exterior and a soft, pliable interior requires managing both moisture retention and starch gelatinization during the fourteen minutes in a 350-degree oven.
Managing Starches and Chilling Time
Gluten-free flour blends utilizing brown rice flour, tapioca starch, and potato starch behave differently than standard all-purpose wheat flour, necessitating precise ratios to absorb the high fat content from the peanut butter and butter without turning chalky. Tapioca starch contributes chewiness through its high gelatinization capacity, while potato starch binds free water, preventing the cookies from becoming excessively crumbly as they bake. Chilling the dough for at least thirty minutes solidifies the butter fat, slowing down spread in the early stages of baking so the edges set before the center finishes cooking.
- Bake for precisely 14 minutes until the surfaces display distinct cracks and light browning.
- Allow the baked cookies to rest on the hot baking sheet for exactly 1 minute to complete residual cooking before transferring them to a wire rack.
- Store completely cooled cookies in an airtight container to maintain their moisture balance.
- Scale quantities proportionally if adjusting batch sizes, keeping the ratio of liquid binders like eggs consistent with the total flour weight to avoid structural collapse.
