Peanut Butter & Friends

’tis the season for holiday baking. this cookie isn’t your traditional christmas cookie, but it is sure to put smiles on faces.

once again, i’ve been inspired by something i’ve seen out and about that was wheat-filled and not an option for me, but looked so delicious that i was bound and determined to make my own version. a new local charlottesville bakery, paradox pastry, carries these cookies. i’ve bought them before for my son and was temporarily appeased to just take a long sniff from the bag. but i couldn’t take it anymore…. peanut butter cookie, chock-full of pretzels and chocolate pieces… the time had come to make them for myself! (… and for other gluten-free family members who deserved to eat such a cookie too!)

i don’t know about the bakery’s cookies, but i wanted these to be nice and chewy so i’ve added some oat flour to achieve that. (just grind up some gluten-free oats in a blender or food processor… and voila, oat flour.) but like their gluten-version, i’ve made these enormous. i love “big as your head” cookies. you feel like you’re being so calorie-frugal when you opt for a half, or like you’re “only eating one” even though it’s probably equivalent to 3 regular-sized cookies.

so whether you package them up to generously give to friends and family, or sit down to a well-deserved one all to yourself after trimming the tree, i think i may have just started a new christmas tradition.