Brown Butter Oatmeal Raisin Peanut Cookies

I'm here in France, and I'd really like to share all of the quintessentially american recipes I know with my host family!

Problem is, peanut butter doesn't exist in this country. I mean, it exists, but it's either smuggled from the states or it's "puree of peanuts" found in health food stores only. Not Jif, not Skippy, not Peter Pan.

And I love making cookies for them--my host brother is 9 and loves cookies (in his accent, cOOkees). These are awesome. Soft and nutty from brown butter, hearty from oats. Sweet and just a tad juicy from the raisins, and the peanuts add a bit of the flavor of a peanut cookie and some much needed crunch.

It's like GORP and an oatmeal cookie, mashed up.

The only problem is that it's not exactly the smartest thing to do to turn on your oven in the height of summer in the south of France. So worth the sweat.

P.S. You could halve the recipe, but why would you want to do that? They freeze well, and I think the dough would also freeze well!

Brown Butter Oatmeal Raisin Peanut Cookies
yield: 30-40 substantial cookies

Ingredients:

• 1 cup unsalted butter
• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 1 cup loosely packed brown sugar (2/3 cup white sugar and a couple of tablespoons of caramel sauce for me, since molasses is hard to find here too!)
• 2 large egg
• 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
• 2 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 1/2 cups rolled oats
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 2 teaspoons cinnamon
• 1 1/2 cups raisins
• 1 1/2 cups roasted, salted peanuts

Method:

1. Heat a small saucepan over medium-low heat and add butter. Whisking constantly, cook butter until bubbly (most of the water has evaporated) and until small brown bits appear on the bottom of the pan – about 5-6 minutes. The brown bits are caramelized milk solids! Watch closely and immediately remove the butter from the heat, whisking for an additional 30 seconds or so. Set aside and let cool  (or put it in the fridge for a while).
2. In a bowl, combine flour, salt, baking powder, oats and cinnamon, mixing, then set aside.
3. Once butter has cooled, add to a large bowl. Whisk in sugars, stirring until smooth. Add in egg and vanilla, whisking until smooth once again. Slowly begin to stir in dry ingredients. Fold in raisins and peanuts, distributing them (as) evenly (as possible). Refrigerate dough for 30 minutes or more.
4. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Using an ice cream scoop or your hands, form dough into 1 1/2 inch balls. Place about 2 inches apart on a nonstick baking sheet, then bake for 10-12 minutes, or until bottoms and edges are golden. Between batches, put your baking sheets in the freezer for 5 minutes or so to minimize spreading in the hot summer months! Keep the cookies thick and chewy, just chill it out.

Recipe adapted (and doubled) from How Sweet It Is.