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The Zach and Cilantro Saga – Day 1: Patriotic Peanut Butter Cookies

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IN THIS POST

While Justine is out of town, we figured it would be a good idea to do a few posts contributed by me. I have decided to call this series of posts “The Zach and Cilantro Saga”. As you may already have guessed, these posts will most likely be something sweet and/or something fried because honestly, in a perfect world, everything would be sweet and/or fried. For the first part in the series, we are going with something sweet: Patriotic Peanut Butter Cookies. After all, Memorial Day is just around the corner and before you know it we will all be burning crap on a grill for the 4th of July. These cookies are the perfect post-burger treat for your Memorial Day and/or 4th of July Picnic/BBQ.

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So what does it mean that Justine is out of town? Well, this means that dishes will only be cleaned once there are no more clean dishes. Currently, we have not reached this point yet. Laundry will only be done when I run out of running shorts to wear. And, cleaning the house will only happen when and where Cilantro decides to leave small packages of cylindrical brown smelly things and/or yellow liquid. Since we are only on Day 1 here (well technically it is Day 3 but this is the first that I have had a chance to try not to burn something in the oven or set the kitchen on fire), the place is still pretty clean and there has only been 2 Cilantro Surprises on the floor. I consider this to be my crowning achievement in life. However, it is still early in this saga and so this could change drastically.

But enough of that, it is time to talk cookies! I decided to go with a peanut butter cookie base for these patriotic cookies (sorry to those of you with a nut allergy . . . you can easily use another cookie recipe and just follow the last few steps for making the cookies patriotic). I love peanut butter and chocolate. It is a perfect combination of sweet and salty. The cookies are nicely disguised beneath a sheet of our nation’s colors. I suppose if you do not live in a country such as the Unites States, United Kingdom, or Australia (i.e., counties with red, white, and blue on the flag), making these cookies for guests on your independence day gathering might be awkward. So, just dye the white chocolate any color that you want so that the cookies match your country’s flag. Regardless of the color combination that you choose, these cookies will melt in your mouth and certainly make everyone super happy.

What are you waiting for . . . get baking! Bake these cookies today and they will be perfect for Monday!

 

 

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The Zach and Cilantro Saga - Day 1: Patriotic Peanut Butter Cookies

Servings:

24

Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.

Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 20 minutes
Total Time 35 minutes

Ingredients
  

  • 1 cup butter room temperature
  • 1 1/2 cups dark brown sugar
  • 1/2 cup granulated sugar
  • 2 eggs
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 1 1/2 cup chunky peanut butter room temperature
  • 1 teaspoon kosher salt
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
  • 4 cups white chocolate chips
  • 6 teaspoons vegetable shortening
  • red food coloring
  • blue food coloring

Instructions
 

  • Preheat your oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit.
  • In a stand mixer, combine the softened butter with the dark brown sugar and granulated sugar until well mixed.
  • Add the eggs and continue mixing until the eggs are completely incorporated.
  • Now pour the vanilla extract into the cookie dough and mixer for 30 seconds to combine.
  • Add the chunky peanut butter to the bowl and mix for 2 minutes, or until the peanut butter is completely mixed into the dough.
  • Now add the salt, baking soda, and flour and mix slowly for 2-3 minutes. The dough should be very sticky.
  • Scoop the dough onto un-greased baking sheets (2-3 tablespoons per cookie). Lightly press the cookie down to form a small disk (do not use a fork!).
  • Bake for 8-10 minutes or until the edges start to brown. Remove from the oven and let sit for a minute before moving to a cooling rack. Once the cookies are cool to the touch, move them to the refrigerator or freezer to cool completely.
  • While the cookies are cooling, separate the white chocolate chips into 3 bowls and add 2 teaspoons of shortening to each bowl. Microwave for 60-90 seconds to melt the chocolate. Add red coloring to one of the bowls and blue to another.
  • Once the cookies are cooled, place the cookies upside-down into the plain white melted chocolate to coat the top of the cookie. Place back in the refrigerator or freezer so that the chocolate can harden.
  • To add the red and blue stripes, use a spoon to spread the red and blue chocolate over 1/3 of the cookie. Again, place back in the refrigerator or freezer to harden. Store in the refrigerator until serving.

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Justine

Justine

I’m the voice, author, creator, and photographer behind Cooking and Beer. We started things about 10 years ago and Cooking and Beer has morphed and grown into what it is today: providing hundreds of recipes to thousands of people.

Hello! I'm Justine.

I’m a blogger and web developer from the beautiful state of Oklahoma, where my loving husband, two adorable kids, and two mischievous dogs keep me on my toes 24/7. My idea of heaven includes endless summer days, getting lost in a good book, and whipping up some delicious homemade bread.

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