Hearty Peanut Butter & Chocolate Chip Cookies
Kev is FINALLY home from his 6 week – Around the world extravaganza and the last week has been filled with long ICU days followed by figuring out logistics of a cross-country move while working in the ED. The good news is that we now have an address in Seattle, and we have a plan for getting all our stuff from A to B. This is the 3rd iteration of our plan though and I’m sure it will all fall apart at some point between Cincinnati and Seattle. Adventures to come…
I mentioned in a previous post that I have been deemed the black cloud of the residency program. This is mostly a joke but seems to have held true and it has been a tough few weeks for everyone. Helping patients and families navigate critical illness and end of life issues is tough in the best of circumstances, and can feel insurmountable when emotional stores are low in our personal lives. I have recently seen a number of reports of resident suicide cases at different programs, and it struck a chord this month. I am blessed to have a support system filled with people in and out of medicine to provide different perspectives and forms of help. These incidents remind me that personal wellness and balance are so important to maintain so that I can perform to the highest levels in critical patient-care moments. It’s easy to let exercise, time with family and friends, personal time, and hobbies slide. My parents have tried to instill in me that life is too short to hold on to stress (a fact I often need to be reminded of). So, here I am getting back to baking for friends and running in the sun on my week of nights.
This cookie recipe is based off a family favorite chocolate chip cookie from one of my dad’s patients. Several years ago this patient gave my dad a pack of cookies at Christmas and we loved them so much we managed to get him to share his recipe. I’m currently trying to use all the baking ingredients that would melt on a cross-country trip, so made a few adjustments for this variation. The base batter is very forgiving and subbing mix-ins for m&ms, white chocolate chips, pecans, or cranberries are just a few right off the cuff that would be delicious! These are enormous hearty cookies that are great for the soul and terrible for your cardiovascular system. Get to your favorite yoga class or walk to the zoo after you dive into these!
- 2c Dark brown sugar
- 2c Sugar
- 2c Melted butter
- 4 Large eggs, beaten
- 2t Vanilla extract
- 4c All-purpose flour
- 3c Old-fashioned oats
- 1T Kosher salt
- 2t Baking powder
- 1T Baking soda
- 1 (12oz) bag semi-sweet chocolate chips
- 1 (12oz) bag peanut butter chips
- 2c chopped walnuts
- In a large bowl using an electric mixer, combine all ingredients for the batter until well-mixed. In a separate bowl, mix the dry ingredients (including the mix-ins) until well-combined.
- Using a spatula, mix 2 cups of the dry mixture at a time into the batter until just incorporated without any dry spots in the bowl.
- Cover and refrigerate overnight. Cookie dough can be stored up to 3 days before baking.
- Remove from refrigerator and set out 1 hour prior to baking. Preheat oven to 350F. Lightly grease or line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper.
- Use an ice cream scoop to scoop out large balls of batter onto prepared baking sheet. Bake 6 cookies per sheet at a time.
- DO NOT OVER-COOK. Cookies will set after coming out of the oven. Cool completely and store in an air-tight container.
- This is a versatile recipe regarding the mix-ins. The original calls for 2 bags of chocolate chips, but white chocolate, m&m's, dried cranberries, or pecans could easily be substituted and would be delicious!
- These cookies are large, which is part of the fun of this recipe. If you make smaller cookies, cut down the bake time and start checking them around 10-12 minutes for doneness.