Cookies baked in a sheet pan are a miraculous thing – the recipe is simple to make and feeds a large group without the effort of portioning out individual spoonfuls of dough. Our childhood lunch lady knew all the strategies to feeding a hungry throng, so we were inspired by her.
Cookies baked in a sheet pan are a miraculous thing – the recipe is simple to make and feeds a large group without the effort of portioning out individual spoonfuls of dough. Our childhood lunch lady understood all the strategies of feeding a hungry crowd, so we drew inspiration from her when creating our Peanut Butter Lunch Lady Cookie Bars. (However, we hope our food tastes a little better than conventional lunch room fare!)
If you usually buy anything from the grocery store for dessert, we recommend that you try some homemade cookie bars. Of course, store-bought snacks take some of the stress out of entertaining, but once you realize how simple it is, you might never go back. While we normally make something chocolate, we enjoy a good sheet pan cookie in any flavor. We rarely say no to something delicious! We used peanut butter in our most recent cookie bars, and it was the ideal choice. Absolutely delectable!
We topped these cookie bars with a peanut butter icing, which is both sweet and delicious. You can never have too much peanut butter. A chocolate icing might be a nice alternative if you want a little more contrast – but we’re getting ahead of ourselves. Peanut butter sweets are amazing – we adore the sweetness, but the dash of salty adds something special. Salty and sweet are a dessert combination made in heaven, and our peanut butter cookie bars combine the best of both worlds onto one sheet pan.
Bars of Peanut Butter Cookie
1 hour of preparation yields 16-24 servings
INGREDIENTS
2 cups of flour 2 cups of sugar
2 big beaten eggs
12 cup milk + 2 tablespoons, split 1 12 cup peanut butter, divided 1 12 cup (3 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp vanilla extract 1 tsp sea salt
4 cups confectioners’ sugar
PREPARATION
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit. Grease or line a large cookie sheet with parchment paper.
Combine the dry ingredients (flour, sugar, baking soda, and salt) in a mixing bowl. Place aside.
12 cup milk, vanilla extract, and eggs are whisked together. Place aside.
Melt 1 cup (2 sticks) butter and 1 cup peanut butter in a pot and bring to a boil. Remove from heat and gradually stir in the flour mixture, followed by the milk and egg combination. Mix until everything is well blended.
Spread batter evenly to the edges of the cookie sheet. Bake for 20 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean. Allow to cool completely before icing.
To make the frosting: Bring 1 stick butter and 12 cup peanut butter to a boil in a saucepan. Mix in 2 tablespoons milk and powdered sugar until nicely mixed. Spread the icing evenly over the cake. Before serving, allow the frosting to cool and harden.
