Join the culinary journey

I like to tell people I’ve burnt water before.

Well, I actually burnt a stick of butter placed in the water. I had a friend whose definition of burning water means letting all the water boil out of the pot. (I’ve managed to do that, too.) But I say I’ve burnt water because I often find unimaginable ways to ruin recipes. Chalk it up to a lack of experience in the kitchen.

After all, there’s only so many times you can fail a boxed brownie recipe until you start to wonder if maybe this isn’t the right hobby for you. Or maybe it was that F I received in my middle school family and consumer science class — usually an “easy A” — for ruining an omelet.

My parents didn’t place emphasis on cooking skills when I was a kid. We had meals at home often enough, but the only food I really learned how to cook was store-bought pasta.

In short, I ate a lot of pasta my first few years out of the house. It was cheap and easy.

If there’s anything I learned while being stuck in an apartment for three months earlier this year, though, it’s that ramen noodles get old quickly.

I made it a goal in March to become a better chef and, consequently, a better baker.

You can imagine, to my roommates’ horror, all the times we had to open windows to avoid setting off the smoke alarm. Despite all the failed attempts, though, I began to learn.

I’m definitely still a novice in the kitchen, but I’m no longer “burning water” like before. So, for all the other less-than-adequate cooks and bakers out there, I’d like to start sharing some easy recipes I come across. Maybe you can learn with me.

Today’s recipe is beginner’s peanut butter cookies. It’s actually the first recipe that made me want to improve my baking skills, and it’s also the first recipe I tried from TikTok. 

If you’re stranded the night before a carry-in meal with no dessert, look no further. According to my co-worker, Katie Lyons, these are some of the best peanut butter cookies she’s had. Plus, they take almost no time to make.

The key is to let the cookies rest after they come out of the oven — otherwise they’ll crumble in your hands. Depending on my mood, I also like to mix it up by using different types of chocolate add-ons.



Easy-peasy peanut butter cookies

Start to finish: 15 minutes

Servings: 12



1 cup brown sugar

1 cup peanut butter

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 large egg

1/2 cup chocolate chips OR 12 Hershey’s Kisses



Heat oven to 350 F. Mix sugar, peanut butter, baking soda and egg in large bowl. 

Mix in chocolate chips if desired. Divide into twelve scoops on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Add a Hershey’s Kiss to the top of each cookie if desired. Bake for 8 to 10 minutes, then let rest on the sheet for about 10 minutes.

 

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Enjoy your quick treat and bask in the knowledge you just baked something that doesn’t taste totally awful. Congrats — you’re now on this journey with me.