Small Hands on Deck for These Easy Cookies

During my childhood, many years ago, neighborhood kitchens bustled with wives whose days were filled with cooking and often teaching their children the basics of cooking.

In my case, my grandmother taught me how to make fudge when I was about 7 years old. I loved making it as much as I loved eating it. She encouraged me to give gifts of fudge to some of the neighbors, and it was a proud moment for me when they ate a piece and told me how much they liked it.

This cookie recipe is ideal for children to make. These cookies are almost impossible to ruin, and in spite of their simplicity, they taste very good. The only problem is your children might be tempted to eat them all, forgetting the old adage, “It is better to give than to receive.”

Super Peanut Butter Cookies

Active Work Time: 10 minutes * Total Preparation Time: 30 minutes

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1 cup sugar

1 egg

1 cup creamy or chunky peanut butter

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Heat the oven to 350 degrees.

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Cream together the sugar and the egg in the bowl of an electric mixer.

Add the peanut butter and vanilla and beat until the dough is all one color.

Form the dough into 1-inch balls with the palms of your hands and place them on a baking sheet; do this in batches until all the dough is used.

Press the tines of a fork twice on each cookie to make a crosshatch.

Bake the cookies until light brown on top and firm, 9 to 11 minutes. Let them cool on the baking sheet 3 to 4 minutes, then remove to a wire rack to cool.

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24 cookies. Each cookie: 100 calories; 53 mg sodium; 9 mg cholesterol; 6 grams fat; 1 gram saturated fat; 10 grams carbohydrates; 3 grams protein; 0.63 gram fiber.

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Trivet from Freehand, Los Angeles.