Happy Cookie Friday! The week just went by like a flash! I hope you are all fine and you haven’t been sweating too much in the last few days… it’s pretty hot in Germany right now. Summer is giving us all with high temperatures and sunshine all day long. Even though I am liking it – if you have to bake, you want it to be a bit cooler actually ;) When it is already hot outside, you don’t really want to switch on the oven in the kitchen… Fortunately, these Date Peanut Butter Cookies only need a few minutes in the oven. The result is absolutely worth the extra degrees in your kitchen ;P

Baking can be a bit tricky in summer. When it’s already 30°C (86°F) or more in the kitchen, you don’t really want to produce extra heat by turning on the oven. On those days every single digit counts on the thermometer. Unfortunately, I have to bake even on the hottest days sometimes. Well… you can’t complain if you decided to become a baking blogger. That’s the job ;P The only thing I can try is keeping the baking times short. Cookies work on hot days – bread on the other hand with a baking time of apex. one hour… no way Jose! ;)
Well… the cookies made it in and out of the oven without any problems, nobody got a heat stroke, so everything is fine. If you can wait to make these cookies – bake them when it’s a bit cooler again outside. It’s better for the chocolate coating anyway. With very high temperatures the chocolate will not set properly or it will take ages to dry… Working with chocolate is something you should definitely do on a cooler day. I learned that the hard way with a chocolate cake several years ago ;)
Anyway. The cookies are really easy to prepare, taste damn good and are also somewhat “healthy”, or let’s say “a little healthier” than other cookies. There is no white sugar added – something I try to avoid for quite some time already. The sweetness comes from the dates in this recipe here. Dates have a lot of sugar – I know that – but that kind of sugar is (much) better for your body than industrial white sugar. The chocolate normally also has sugar added, but you can minimize that amount by using chocolate with a high percentage of cocoa – more cocoa means less sugar. Or you can use sugar-free chocolate as I did. Since I got diagnosed with diabetes I use sugar-free chocolate (sweetened with xylitol or erythritol) in 99% of my bakes. Works as good as regular chocolate ;)

Anyway. I like these cookies a lot. They are a bit on the “chewy side” and a great (healthy-ish) snack if you are craving for something sweet. So go and make them. When it’s cooler again ;)
Oh and sorry Bruno – if you are reading this: once again something with peanuts :P
INGREDIENTS / ZUTATEN
7 oz. (200g) dates
1 cup (250g) peanut butter
1 medium egg
1 tsp. vanilla extract
2.8 oz. (80g) semi-sweet chocolate, melted
some chopped peanuts or cocoa nibs for decoration
200g Datteln (entsteint)
250g Erdnussbutter
1 Ei (M)
1 TL Vanille Extrakt
80g Zartbitterschokolade, geschmolzen
ein paar gehackte Erdnüsse oder Kakaonibs zum Dekorieren


DIRECTIONS / ZUBEREITUNG
2. Add the dates to a food processor or mixer (you can also work with an immersion blender, but that takes a bit more time and is a bit more difficult) and mix until you get a smooth paste – if you can see some smaller pieces of the dates it’s fine. Add the peanut butter and mix to combine. Add the egg and vanilla extract and mix well. The dough will be tough and sticky now. Use a small cookie scoop or tablespoon to make small dough portions and shape into balls. You should get about 16-18 balls. Place on the baking sheet and flatten the balls with a fork and press a criss-cross pattern into the dough. Bake for 9-10 minutes. Do not overbake the cookies! Take out of the oven and let cool down completely on a wire rack.
3. Melt the chocolate and dip the cooled cookies halfway into the chocolate or drizzle the cookies with it. Sprinkle with some chopped peanuts or cocoa nibs and let dry/harden. Store in an airtight container.
2. Die Datteln in eine Küchenmaschine (Mixer) geben (geht auch mit einem Stabmixer, ist aber aufwendiger und dauert länger) und zu einem glatten Mus pürieren. Es ist ok, wenn noch ein paar kleinere Stücke zu sehen sind. Die Erdnussbutter dazugeben und alles gut verrühren. Ei und Vanille Extrakt dazugeben und unterrühren. Der Teig sollte recht kompakt und etwas klebrig sein. Mit einem kleinen Cookie Scoop (Eisportionierer) oder Esslöffeln Teigportionen abstechen und daraus etwa 16-18 Kugeln formen. Die Kugeln auf das vorbereitete Blech setzen und mit einer Gabel flach drücken (Kreuzmuster). Für etwa 9-10 Minuten backen. Aus dem Ofen holen und auf einem Kuchengitter komplett abkühlen lassen.
3. Die Schokolade schmelzen und die Cookies zur Hälfte in die Schokolade tauchen oder die Cookies damit beträufeln. Gehackte Erdnüsse oder Kakaonibs darüberstreuen und trocknen lassen. In einem luftdichten Behälter lagern.


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Here is a version of the recipe you can print easily.
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Dates Peanut Butter Cookies
- Prep Time: 00:20
- Cook Time: 00:10
- Total Time: 01:00
- Yield: 18
- Category: Cookies
- Cuisine: American
Description
If you want cookies without any added sugar you might want to try these delicious Dates Peanut Butter Cookies. The sweetness comes here from the dates.
Ingredients
Instructions
Notes
Enjoy baking!