It’s not often I want peanut butter, and when I do it’s mild.

Just a couple of weeks ago I decided to throw some peanut butter cookies together to unwind after work.

Since I was little, I haven’t really been fond of peanut butter. It gave me heartburn as a kid and still does. Not to mention the hiccups.

I’m not a fan of the taste, either.

The more I sit and think about it, I don’t have a single warm and fuzzy memory tied to peanut butter.

I won’t even go near peanut butter cups or — wait for it — buckeyes.

But my actual distaste doesn’t stop me from wanting the extremely occasional peanut butter cookie (or peanut butter blossom).

Isn’t it a science thing that if you’re craving something it’s because you’re deficient in a nutrient?

I keep my favorite recipes in a three-ring binder, hand-written. When something makes it to that book, I know it’s what I consider perfection.

There was no peanut butter cookie recipe until the night I made them.

After spending the day in the newsroom, I went home with a slight headache from staring at the screen too long.

Watching TV didn’t sound good, so naturally whipping up a batch of a cookie I’m not fond of was the only option. Any reason to use my Kitchenaid is a good reason.

I found a recipe that looked good, and the rest is history.

I used my large ice cream scoop and didn’t roll the dough, but I did smoosh them with a fork to make that criss-cross pattern.

A perfect, thick and rustic cookie was the result, and although one was enough, it was incredible.

Circling back to the pattern on most peanut butter cookies, some research found that because it’s a dense cookie dough, mashing it helps the cookie evenly bake. It looks pretty cool, too.

To pay respect to peanuts, I found some facts about them from the National Peanut Board.

• It takes about 540 peanuts to make a 12-ounce jar of peanut butter.

• An average European consumes less than 1 tablespoon of peanut butter annually. Americans, on the other hand, eat so much peanut butter that we can coat the floor of the Grand Canyon.

• When a peanut is in a high-pressure environment, it can make a diamond.

• There are enough peanuts in one acre to produce 35,000 peanut butter and jelly sandwiches.

I hope you enjoy these peanut butter cookies as much as I (rarely) will.

Peanut butter cookies

2 sticks slightly chilled butter

1 cup packed brown sugar

1/2 cup granulated sugar

2 large eggs

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

1 cup creamy peanut butter

1 teaspoon baking soda

Couple pinches of salt

2 2/3 cup all-purpose flour

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Cream butter and sugars together. Add eggs and vanilla, followed by peanut butter. Slowly add the baking soda, salt and flour.

Once dough is mixed, put it in the refrigerator for about 20 minutes.

Using a large spoon, scoop out cookie dough and place on baking a sheet. Use a fork to “mash” each portion of dough. Bake for 12-14 minutes.

Share your favorite recipes and memories with Features Editor Ashley Fox at afox@tribtoday.com.