Peanut Butter Apple Cookies

I was totally fascinated by the idea of these cookies, and at first was a little skeptical.  Then I remembered how fabulous peanut butter and apples are together and decided to give these cookies a try.  They turned out really nicely!  They are a tiny bit crumbly and a little sandy in texture.  The apple chunks provide little bursts of tart apple flavor in the peanut butter cookie.  The final and somewhat surprising component is cinnamon!  I almost didn't add the cinnamon because cinnamon in a peanut butter cookie didn't seem quite right to me. It is totally right.  There is just enough cinnamon to be an intriguing flavor without screaming cinnamon.

Peanut Butter Apple Cookies

1/2 cup shortening
1/2 cup creamy peanut butter
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup packed  brown sugar
1 egg
1 Tablespoon milk
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
1 small granny smith or other tart apple, peeled and diced

Preheat the oven to 375F.  Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.  Set aside.

Cream together the shortening, peanut butter, granulated sugar, and brown sugar until light and fluffy.  Beat in the egg, milk, and vanilla extract until well combined.  Add the flour, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon, and beat until just combined.  Stir in the diced apples.

Use a 2 Tablespoon size scoop to scoop the dough into balls.  Place on the prepared baking sheet about 2 inches apart.  Bake for 12 minutes, or until lightly browned at the edges and the top.  Remove the cookies from the oven and let cool for a minute or two on the pan before transferring to a cooling rack.  Makes about 18 cookies.

Enjoy!  -Cardamommy