Fruity Peanut Butter Cookies

Sometimes, there are just too many words, aren't there. Too many emotions, too much noise, too much to do, and not enough time.

And sometimes, you realise that you are a long way from a lot of the people you love and you're not going to see them that afternoon on the school run, and you can't just magically make your son feel better about being uprooted from his friends, or stop him winding his sister up because that's how he best expresses his displeasure with life.

And sometimes, you can't stop the dog licking the toads that have chosen your garden as toad-sex central, so that he is sick. Alot. Turns out toads can release toxins and shag at the same time. Nice one!


Sometimes you just need to bake cookies instead. (And eat a few of them.) 'Talking' (texting/messaging/emailing) to some of those good friends helps too (you know who you are :-))

But on the cookie side of things, I'd recommend these ones. Just saying.

Fruity Peanut Butter Cookies

200g crunchy peanut butter

125g unsalted butter, at room temperature

150g caster sugar

150g light muscovado sugar

2 tsp vanilla extract

1 large egg

125g wholemeal self raising flour

1 tsp bicarbonate of soda

125g rolled oats

140g berries & cherries dried fruit mix, or dried sour cherries as you like

You’ll also need 3-4 baking sheets lined with greaseproof paper.

Pre-heat the oven to 170C

Put the peanut butter, butter, sugars, vanilla and egg into a bowl and beat until evenly mixed together.

Sift together the flour and bicarbonate of soda, then beat in to the mixture, followed by the oats and the fruit.

Spoon balls of the mixture – about the size of a walnut (shell on – I used a tablespoon measure which worked quite well) – onto your baking trays, leaving a good 3 cm between each ball, then flatten slightly with a fork.

You should get around 30, although I got 27 and ate the left over dough raw. It was that kind of a day.

Bake for 20 minutes or so till lightly golden on top but still relatively squidgy. Leave the cookies to cool on the tray for 5 minutes before cooling completely on a wire rack. Although, to be honest, eating one warm isn't going to hurt...