Three-Nut Butter Cookies for National Peanut Butter Cookie Day

June 12 is National Peanut Butter Cookie Day!

The original patent for peanut butter was given to Dr. John Harvey Kellogg who initially developed peanut butter as a protein alternative for his patients, but it is believed that peanut butter was invented by the Aztecs in the 14th century. The ancient Incas also made a paste-like substance from peanuts, but it wasn’t the peanut butter we know and love today. Peanut butter was first introduced to the American public in St. Louis at the 1904 World’s Fair, where over $700 worth of it was sold at a penny per sample.

Peanut Butter cookies originated in the United States in the 1910s, and there were three recipes for cookies made with chopped and crushed peanuts in George Washington Carver’s 1916 Research Bulletin How to Grow the Peanut and 105 Ways of Preparing it for Human Consumption.  The early cookies were rolled thin and cut into shapes or dropped and made into balls. The first reference to the famous criss-cross marks created with fork tines was mentioned in a recipe that was published in the Schenectady Gazette on July 1, 1932. The recipe said to “Shape into balls and after placing them on the cookie sheet, press each one down with a fork, first one way and then the other, so they look like squares on waffles.” Another recipe in Pillsbury’s Balanced Recipes published in 1933 also instructed the baker to press into the cookies with fork tines. It is believed that this signature crosshatch came about as bakers began flattening the stiff dough so it cooked properly.

We can’t think of a better way to celebrate National Peanut Butter Day than with these vegan Three-Nut Butter Cookies from Nut Butter Universe by Robin Robertson, which offer a modern spin on the classic cookie.  If you don’t have all three nut butters on hand, make this recipe using whatever one (or two) nut butters you do have. 

Ingredients:

Preheat oven to 350°F. In a medium bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, and salt.

In a bowl or food processor, combine the three nut butters, sugar, butter, and vanilla, and blend until smooth. Add to the flour mixture and stir briskly until just blended. Stir in the chopped nuts.

Pinch off a piece of the dough (about 2 tablespoons) and shape it into a ball. Place it onto a nonstick baking sheet. Repeat with the remaining dough, spacing them a few inches apart. With the tines of a fork, press light- ly into the tops of the cookies to flatten them slightly.

Bake until lightly browned but still slightly soft, about 12 minutes. Cool completely before serving. Store in an airtight container.