Peanut-Butter-Toffee Chunk Cookies

I made these just as the recipe said because I want to rate the recipe as is, and not my changes. I have never made cookies, which I make every week, without creaming the sugar and fat first. So, when I read the instructions, I wasn't sure if this was going to work, but I wanted to know if this method in THIS recipe worked. After mixing at medium speed, I never got "until smooth" stage, so I used my cookie scooper and cooked them as is. The results were not good. The cookies never flattened, I even flattened them like instructed. They are very crumbly and gritty because the fat and sugar didn't get creamed. I used Adams Old-Fashioned Creamy Peanut Butter, which does not have salt, which makes these cookies bland. This recipe did not work for me.