I’m on a big fat cookie kick this week and have been making different versions of giant cookies for my friends here in Chicago. After baking up some chocolate chip cookies, I pulled out this old recipe for Peanut Butter Platters to serve alongside them. The Peanut Butter Platters are big and flat while the chocolate chip are big and fat, but I suppose the two can live in harmony on a cookie plate.
Peanut Butter Platters Notes
The Peanut Butter Platters recipe was was requested years ago by a reader who was sad she lost it because it was the only peanut butter cookie her husband would eat. At first glance, the recipe looks like the usual peanut butter cookie. However, if you look closely you will see that it calls for all brown sugar plus a fairly hefty amount of leavening agents. And then there’s the fact each cookie calls for almost 1/2 cup of batter! And finally, the preparation is unusual in that you press the cookies down using the bottom of a buttered and sugared pie dish.
So these cookies area little different and a lot of fun! They’re perfect for bake sales or for gifting to your cookie monster friends. Just be sure to bake Peanut Butter Platters on a day when you have plenty of time because they’re so big you can only fit two or three cookies per sheet.
Recipe
Peanut Butter Platters
Ingredients
- 8 oz unsalted or salted butter, softened (230 grams)
- 1 cup crunchy peanut butter (260 grams)
- 2 cups firmly packed brown sugar (400 grams)
- 2 large eggs
- 2 1/2 cups all purpose flour (315 grams)
- 1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon salt only if using unsalted butter
- 1 cup chopped salted peanuts or 1/2 cup peanut butter chips optional
- Granulated sugar
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Have ready a two ungreased baking sheets — the largest you own. Depending on the size of your baking sheets, you’ll probably only be able to bake 2 or 3 cookies per sheet.
- With an electric mixer, cream the softened butter, peanut butter and brown sugar with high speed of an electric mixer. Beat in the eggs.
- Stir the flour, baking soda and baking powder (and salt, if using) together in a separate bowl. Gradually add to butter mixture, blending thoroughly. Stir in peanuts, if desired.
- Using about a 1/2 cup measure, portion out 10 or 12 big balls of dough onto a couple of plates lined with plastic wrap. Chill the dough balls for about 30 minutes, then shape into neat balls.
- When ready to bake, grease the bottom of a pie plate (or a saucepan) and dip in granulated sugar. Set two cookies on a baking sheet spacing them as far as you can. These cookies spread quite a bit! Use the sugared pan to press each dough ball into a large circle a little less than 1/2 inch thick. If you are making 12 cookies, the circles will be about 4 1/2 to 5 inches. If you are making 10 cookies they will be about 5 1/2 inches. If necessary, press cookies with fingers to make them even. Make crisscross pattern on top of cookies by lightly scoring with fork tines or pressing with a wire cake rack (which may be difficult if you using a rimmed pan!).
- Bake for 12 14 minutes or until edges are lightly browned. Let cool on baking sheets for about 5 minutes. Transfer to racks and let cool completely. Makes 10 to 12 cookies
Michelle
Anna, Which ccc is pictured with the peanut butter platter? It looks amazing!
Anna
Hi Phyllis,
I haven’t tested them as small cookies, but I don’t see why it wouldn’t work.
phyllis
can they be made regular size?
thanks, they look yummy
RunnerGirl
I kinda like cookies a bit on the darker side – my friend used to bring me any cookies she deemed too dark – lucky me!
Anna
Cheryl, I’m playing with this one recipe where you blast the cookies at 400 and turn the heat down to 330. I let that one go a little too long, but luckily it still tasted good. The outside is dark and the inside isn’t raw because I kept baking it at the lower heat. It’s a 6 oz cookie!!!!
Katrina Smith
Yeah, what Sue said!!
Cheryl
Your peanut butter cookies look great but that CCC is over cooked.
Sue
I don’t need a big flat peanut butter cookie but of course now I want one.