Mini Peanut Butter Cookies (Gluten Free)

I'm about to show you a cookie that is flour-less, butter-less, and that boasts only 4 ingredients in its batter. Brace yourself:

Huh. I was a little surprised myself.  This is a normal looking little cookie - not what I've come to expect from gluten-free baking.  

These cookies do best with some time. They are incredibly soft so they aren't a straight-out-of-the-oven cookie. Make them, and leave them. The texture improves and the flavor holds brilliantly too.

Mini Ingredient Peanut Butter Cookies
(Slightly Modified from Spark Recipes)

• 1 c Peanut Butter* (works best with natural PB, reduced-fat, low sodium, that kind)
• 1 egg
• 1/2 c. packed brown sugar
• 1/2 tsp vanilla
• Milk chocolate chips, if desired

Combine first 4 ingredients and stir until well combined.  Use a rounded teaspoon to scoop dough onto a cookie sheet (I lined mine with parchment paper for easy removal).  Bake at 350 degrees for 7 minutes, remove from oven, stick one or two chips into the cookie tops, then return cookies to oven one final minute of baking.  Let cookie sit on baking sheet to cool then remove them to a rack.

*Kim's notes: I'd love to try this recipe again with natural Almond Butter.  Also, if you aren't a fan of chocolate, skip the chips and criss-cross the dough balls with fork tongs for a more classic PB cookie look.