Killer Peanut Butter Fudge Cookies

Peanut butter (PB) is a staple in our household. The husband and I eat it for breakfast almost every other day. That's why we can go through a jar of PB in a week and a half. The mama, on the other had, can make a jar last six months. I kid you not.  And, the mama, definitely likes peanut butter, but she's very stingy (though her word would be "economical") about how much she puts on her roll or slice of bread.

A month ago, she ran out of peanut butter.  (Yes, we have our own separate jars.) I pulled out the jar of PB I had bought last year in anticipation of her getting to the end of her current jar.  The "sell by" date on the new jar was January 2010.  Sigh.  I couldn't have the Mama eat a stale jar of PB for six months, and I surely didn't want to be eating it either.

So, like any home cook on a budget, I found ways to use up the PB quickly and generously. I integrated it into a pasta dish and meat marinade, for instance.  I also dug out the cookbooks to find a peanut butter cookie recipe.  And, what do ya know? In one of my favorite cookbooks, The San Francisco Chronicle Cookbook, Volume I,  by Michael Bauer and Fran Irwin, I discovered a recipe called "Killer Peanut Butter Fudge Cookies." 

The result was a cakey-like cookie made with cocoa and lots of PB. Very yummy! Making them was not at all hard. In other words, nothing to sweat or fret about.  I modified the recipe a bit by substituting 3/4 cup fructose for 1 cup white sugar. Because I'm into a gluten-free diet, I substituted non-gluten flour for the all-purpose flour. You can find the actual recipe here at Google Books. 

Happy Eating!