As someone who spends far too much time examining the back of packets, I was pleased to see that M&S expanded its ‘minimal ingredients’ range earlier this year. It’s a simple premise: listing how many ingredients a product contains on the front of the pack. I appreciate the transparency of knowing that I’m buying six-ingredient pork sausages, or four-ingredient bread, particularly as similar products can contain three times as many ingredients. It’s a clever, timely response to the ongoing conversation around ultra-processed foods (UPFs), and the growing awareness that many everyday staples contain a surprising number of additives.
Of course, the issue is nuanced and cynics may argue that it fuels food anxiety, encourages fear around UPFs (which certainly aren’t all bad) and creates an opportunity to inflate the prices of wholefoods. But, overall, I’m in favour of the approach.
This week’s recipe is for four-ingredient peanut-butter cookies. They don’t even require flour as the peanut butter binds them (choose a sugar-free version). If you’re tempted to add a fifth ingredient, 100g dark chocolate would be welcome, either in chunks folded through before baking, or melted with one half of each cooled cookie dipped in.
150g dark brown sugar, £1.80; 1 tsp bicarbonate of soda, 65p; 1 large egg, £2; 250g peanut butter (100% peanuts), £1.80
METHOD
Preheat the oven to 180C/160C fan/gas 4.
In a mixing bowl, use a hand whisk to beat together the sugar and egg for a minute or so until light and combined. Next whisk in the peanut butter, bicarbonate of soda and ½ tsp salt until well combined. Fold in the chocolate, if using.
Roll the mixture into 12 equal balls and space out on a large parchment-lined baking sheet (or use two baking sheets if needed). Press the balls down lightly.
Bake for 10-12 minutes until just turning golden at the edges. Cool on the tray for 5 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely. Once cool you can dip half of each cookie in melted chocolate, if using, and leave to set at room temperature.
Store in an airtight container for 2-3 days.
