These peanut butter protein cookies are packed with protein and only 5 ingredients.
So the story with these cookies is kind of funny.
It’s around the normal “sweets witching hour” of the afternoon earlier this week, I decide I need something stat otherwise I can’t go on with another minute of my day. I head to the kitchen and decide to experiment by throwing pretty much nothing more than protein powder, an egg and peanut butter into a bowl, mixing it vigorously and rolling into balls to bake. Please note, it took every ounce of restraint I had to not leave them in ball form since it’s been approximately 3-4 weeks since the last “ball” recipe on here. Nope, I resisted and lightly pressed them down with a fork instead to make them more like cookies. Mostly because I don’t think I could come up with another peanut butter ball name considering the amount already on here. Throw cookie on the end and it’s a completely different beast. Obviously.
So they’re baking. I’m watching intently having no idea if this super simple combination is too good to be true when 8 minutes passes and I deem them done.
They kind of slid all over the silpat like air hockey pucks do from the oil in the peanut butter oozing out as they baked which I found slightly amusing. Mostly because it brought back memories of when Ulysses and I were dating in high school and going to the arcade was the cool thing to do. He was that person that would win and beat every game. Even the one with the claw thing that you grab the stuffed animal that’s been shoved down in the pile as tightly as possible. Yep, that one that no one wins. He did. But I kicked his ass in air hockey every time. I like that game. And therefore, I was already smitten with these little cookies.
I think I let them cool for about a minute before inhaling one, realizing the combination more than worked and doing a little happy dance in the kitchen. It didn’t last long though when I remembered I only made 6 since I was too scared to waste precious protein powder and peanut butter on an untested concoction.
So I let them cool, have another to make sure I wasn’t imagining things before and then make my final decision. They’re going on the blog.
I’m all excited. A new cookie recipe, 5 ingredients and packed with protein. Really, does it get better than that?
So I sit down to write this post and for some strange reason decide to google “peanut butter protein cookies” first.
Well guess what folks, they already freakin’ exist.
Am I pissed that I’m not as creative as I thought? No. But I am incredibly annoyed that I didn’t just turn to google in the first place because then I would’ve had more than 6 cookies on my counter.
Gina Matsoukas is an AP syndicated writer. She is the founder, photographer and recipe developer of Running to the Kitchen — a food website focused on providing healthy, wholesome recipes using fresh and seasonal ingredients. Her work has been featured in numerous media outlets both digital and print, including MSN, Huffington post, Buzzfeed, Women’s Health and Food Network.
Ha–I think it’s easy to repeat recipes that others have made, if not precisely, than closely! So many of us food bloggers have similar palates. Creativity is crucial, but of course, it becomes easy to overlap. Very kind and respectful of you, though to link to the original!
I just started “seriously” working out, so I need protein. And if I can get it from a cookie, all the better!
Great minds think alike, no? What an easy recipe. Loving the minimal ingredients. I wonder how they would taste with some cocoa powder?!
It’s always a bummer to discover you haven’t invented the wheel but I say you still get props for these cookies. Peanut butter cookies RULE!
hmm, so you made these and then went to google to see that they already existed. to me, i still think that it’s “your” recipe. i’ve always had issues with this because i feel that no recipes are really unique. i feel that you’ll think of a brilliant recipe idea, make it, google it and then be like shit, it already exists. i don’t know, i just feel that if you conceptually came up with it all on your own without finding a recipe and then adapting it, it’s still “yours”..like i mean, people with cookbooks that have chocolate chip cookies..it’s not technically “theirs” but it’s their cookbook with their name all over it. but they must’ve gotten the recipe somewhere or they came up with it on their own and then just happened to have the same ingredients as most choc chip cookies.
sorry, i’m writing a novel. i just always have issues with this subject because i sometimes never know what to do either. to me, this is how i rationalize it: if i see a picture of a recipe I like and not look at the recipe, it’s inspired and i didn’t jack their recipe..if i USE a recipe and adapt it, i give credit, of course; but if i straight up stole it (not that i ever would), that’s another issue that we food bloggers deal with haha…and then if i just randomly think of something off the top of my head “omg this would be brilliant!” then make it and see it already exists..well, tough. to me, it’s still original because it stemmed from my brains.
i probably made no sense. sorry if you hate me now lol
I agree with most of this, Julie! First of all, this is the first time I’ve ever “checked” a recipe on google so I’m sure there are other ones on here with the recipe written out and claimed as my own that other people have done before. We’re all just not original enough to create something 100% unique all the time :). My “policy” (which is self-imposed) on adapting or being inspired by and writing out recipes is this.. If I change one or two, sometimes even three if especially if they’re not “major” recipe components (like a recipe calling for cheddar and I use monterrey jack..) I will not write out the recipe and just link to the creator and state my changes. If I legitimately adapt (and of course that’s a gray area of definition), I’ll cite the site that inspired me and say “adapted from..” but write out my recipe.
With this one, I just felt weird posting the recipe KNOWING it already existed. It was like choosing to not acknowledge it for me and if the reverse was true and someone KNEW my recipe existed but they posted it anyway, I’d be pissed. So I went with the old “do unto others…” saying in the end :)
regardless of whether they exist already or not, i’m all about peanut butter and cookies. yum!
Cookies and air hockey… really? lol I love it though and kind of wish I could convince hubs to get one. I want a game room, maybe. But then we’d battle over ping pong.
These look awesome! Thoughts on using mashed dates as a sweetener vs. sugar substitute? Also, I love that you are the queen of portable food (ehhm, queen of balls) :) Happy weekend!
I think you could try it! They barely need any sweetener since the pb is kinda sweet to begin with so don’t add too much!
Looks delish. I wouldn’t discredit your creativity – you still thought of it before you realized it existed!
Well, it may not be your recipe, but they look delicious anyways!