Chocolate Peanut Butter Cookies {Gluten Free & Vegan}

Do you know what drives me crazy?  Automated customer service.  Yesterday, my cable box decided that showing video was an unnecessary burden.  After searching high and low for a phone number to call (because, apparently, the cable company would rather assist me online), a robot answered the phone.  Now, I’m all for advancements in technology.  But after repeatedly screaming “NO. VIDEO.” into my phone while the bot responded, “Please, in your own words, explain the issue you are experiencing,” all I really wanted was a person.  But to no avail.  Instead I was walked through a useless menu until the bot reported, “I am happy that we were able to resolve your issue” and hung up on me.  Seriously.  The robot hung up on me!  And it didn’t even fix my problem!  If it makes you feel better, I eventually was able to get through to a real live person who fixed my problem.  It made me feel better.  But not as much as these cookies did.

You see, when I get frustrated (let’s say with an unhelpful robot, for instance) I want to eat junk food.  I know, I know, it probably isn’t the most constructive solution.  But quite frankly, I don’t care.  The little bits of chocolate surrounded in a soft peanut butter exterior are like tiny hugs that spread happiness.  Perhaps the happiest part of these cookies is how simple they are to make.  In the time it takes for the oven to preheat, you can have the dough made and scooped.  And before you’re off the phone with customer service, the cookies will be out of the oven helping to mollify your anger.

Gluten Free, Vegan Peanut Butter Cookies

Yields 36 Cookies

Ingredients

• 1 cup creamy peanut butter
• ½ cup white sugar
• ½ cup brown sugar
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 1 tbsp flax seed + 3 tbsp water (mixed together)
• ½ tsp baking powder
• ½ cup mini chocolate chips (vegan, if necessary)

1. Preheat oven to 350.
2. Combine peanut butter, brown sugar, and white sugar in a large bowl. Beat to combine.
3. Beat in flax seed mixture, vanilla, and baking powder, scraping down the sides of the bowl as necessary.
4. Stir in the chocolate chips.
5. Scoop onto a cookie sheet.
6. Bake for 8-10 minutes, rotating sheets halfway through.
7. Let cool on baking sheet for a few minutes before transferring to cooling racks.