Chewy Peanut Butter-Oatmeal Cookies

Yum. Yum. Yum. Sunday = Baking Day in my house. I always look forward to Sundays; they're so relaxing and low-key. I bake goodies on Sundays that way we have homemade treats to get us through the week - it's perfect. I found this recipe in my Better Homes & Gardens New Cook Book. I've made some main meals from this cook book, but this was my first attempt at a cookie recipe. You can add chocolate chips and/or peanuts for an even tastier treat. I decided to hold off on both - mainly because I just made the Pretzel Chocolate Chip Cookies last week, and that seemed too similar. These are so chewy and soft - absolutely perfect!

Source: Better Homes & Garden New Cook Book

Ingredients:

3/4 cup butter, softened

1/2 cup peanut butter

1 cup granulated sugar

1/2 cup packed brown sugar

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

2 eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla

1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour

2 cups rolled oats

*Optional: 1 cup chopped peanuts and/or chocolate chips

Directions:

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. In a large mixing bowl, beat butter and peanut butter with an electric mixer on medium to high speed until well-combined - about 30 seconds. Add sugar, brown sugar, baking powder, baking soda. Beat until combined. Beat in eggs and vanilla. Beat in as much of the flour as you can with the mixer (I was able to do it all with my KitchenAid Stand Mixer). Stir in rolled oats - and peanuts/chocolate chips if using them.

Drop dough by rounded teaspoons 2 inches apart onto an ungreased cookie sheet - I used parchment paper on the cookie sheets. Bake for 10 minutes & transfer to a wire rack to cool. Makes about 48 small cookies - I made 36 normal-sized cookies.