Peanut Butter Cap'n Crunch Cookies

 Cookies seem to be everybody's go-to dessert, and are definitely what I most often am asked to bake. If you think about it, they're perfect in so many ways: they're easy to make in big quantities; there are a million and one variations on the original sugar cookie; and, they please just about everybody. Oh, and (in case you didn't know), more often than not, they're delicious.

Certain cookies also tend to make people nostalgic. Everybody has that one recipe that brings back childhood memories, be it chocolate chip cookies made from a refrigerated tube of dough or decorated Christmas sugar cookies.

 Every time my dad's side of the family gets together for the holidays, it's pretty much our mission to bake as many kinds of cookies as possible. We've had our great moments and our not-so-edible, but I guess you could say this tradition instilled a certain cookie adventurism in me.

 As soon as I saw this recipe in a book my friend gave me for my birthday, I knew I had to try it - Cap'n Crunch cereal, in a cookie? With peanut butter?
 As it turns out, this little combo is a fantastic idea. The cereal gives a great crunch to the soft, chewy cookies, and the peanut butter and cinnamon manage to be perfect together. As a plus, eating sugary breakfast cereal inside of a cookie totally makes anybody feel like a 5-year-old again.
  Enjoy!

Peanut Butter Cap'n Crunch Cookies

(slightly adapted from Coolhaus Ice Cream Book)

2 sticks unsalted butter, softened
2 cups packed light brown sugar
1/2 cup crunchy peanut butter
1 large egg plus 1 egg yolk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
3 tablespoons granulated sugar
1 tablespoon ground cinnmon
2 1/2 cups sifted pastry flour, or 2 cups sifted all-purpose flour (sift before measuring)
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 1/2 cups Cap’n Crunch cereal

In a large bowl, mix brown sugar with butter and whisk to combine. Add peanut butter and whisk to combine. Whisk in egg and yolk, one at a time, then whisk in vanilla. Set aside.
In a small bowl, whisk together granulated sugar and cinnamon. Set aside.
In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, salt, and baking soda.
Add the flour mixture to the peanut butter mixture, mixing until just combined. Add cereal, mixing until evenly distributed. Be careful not to overmix or overcrush cereal. Refrigerate dough for at least 20 minutes.
Preheat oven to 325F, with racks in lower and upper thirds. Line two half-sheet baking pans with parchment paper. Form dough into balls about the size of whole walnuts. Roll each in the cinnamon sugar mixture before placing 2 inches apart on baking sheets.
Bake for 12 to 14 minutes, or until edges are light brown and centers are still soft; don’t overbake. Immediately transfer cookies to a cooling rack. Let cool before serving.