Best Peanut Butter Cookies Recipe

Sink your teeth into our crispy, crunchy, yet soft and chewy peanut butter cookies and you’ll see why we rave about them! Bursting with peanut butter flavor and so easy to make, this has to be one of the best peanut butter cookies ever!

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Why you’ll love this easy cookie recipe

• Hands down, they are much better than store-bought!
• They are SO easy to make!
• A real crowd pleaser, the kids LOVE them!
• You can make them ahead and freeze these classic peanut butter cookies.
• All the ingredients are 100% vegetarian.

Warning!

This peanut butter recipe should come with a warning. Seriously.

That they are TOTALLY addictive!

Nowadays, we just cut to the chase and make a double batch.

We freeze one batch in portions so we can whip them out of the freezer whenever we have a craving for them.

It makes total sense – doesn’t it?

What ingredients do I need?

You’ll need all the ingredients shown in the photograph below. Making for a vegan? Try these vegan peanut butter cookies!

Is there any better smell to flood your home than the smell of freshly baked cookies? And when they’re peanut butter cookies, that’s even better!

How to make peanut butter cookies with step-by-step instructions

Making our homemade peanut butter cookies is easy if you follow our simple instructions.

A full printable recipe and the measurements in both US customary and metric are available in the recipe card below.

Using either a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment or a handheld electric mixer, cream unsalted butter, crunchy peanut butter, granulated sugar, and light brown sugar.

Then add your eggs and vanilla extract and mix on a slow speed until combined.

Now, in a separate bowl, mix together all-purpose flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt and whisk together until combined.

Next, slowly mix the flour mixture with the peanut butter mixture until it becomes light and fluffy.

Cover the cookie dough bowl and chill in the fridge for 4 hours.

Preheat your oven to 375°F/190°C.

When the cookie dough has chilled, scoop and roll into balls approximately 1 – 1.5 tablespoons large.

Flatten the dough balls using the palms of your hands.

Place them onto prepared baking sheets, approximately 2 inches apart.

Bake for 10 minutes until the cookies are lightly browned.

When cooked, remove the peanut butter cookies from the oven and let them rest on the baking sheets for a few minutes.

Then, transfer them to a cooling rack to cool completely.

Serve and enjoy your cookies!

Recipe notes and expert tips

• Peanut butter
  Feel free to use either chunky or creamy peanut butter but steer away from natural peanut butter.
• Add extras
  Add peanut butter chips, chocolate chips, or even white chocolate chips.
• Out of light brown sugar?
  You can use dark brown sugar instead; it will give a slight caramel flavor but will work.
• Line your sheet
  Use parchment paper or a silicone sheet to prevent your classic peanut butter cookies from sticking.
• Storage
  Keep them in an airtight container for up to 3 days and freeze for up to 3 months.
• Double up
  Make a double batch and store them in cookie portions so you can grab them whenever you need them.
• Don’t touch
  When your cookies come out of the oven, they will be very soft, don’t touch them, let them stand for a few minutes before handling them, or they will fall apart.

Do I need to chill the cookie dough balls?

Yes, you’ll need to chill the cookie dough for an hour.

What kind of peanut butter should I use?

For this peanut butter cookie recipe, we’ve used crunchy peanut butter.

We love the crispy crunch that it adds to the cookie.

Many people like to use creamy peanut butter, and sure, if you prefer creamy peanut butter then use it!

Natural peanut butter can be a little more problematic, as your cookies could turn out very runny and soft.

Do I need a stand mixer to make cookies?

Stand mixers always make life a lot easier – right?

But not everyone has the room for a stand mixer.

So, if you don’t have one, then don’t worry, a handheld electric mixer will do the job.

Just make sure it’s got a good motor in it; you don’t want it to burn out.

And let’s face it; cookies have been made for hundreds of years.

WAY before contraptions like the stand mixer was invented.

So, you could roll up your sleeves and use a wooden spoon!

How do I store leftover peanut butter cookies?

Our peanut butter cookies store really well.

More easy recipes for you to try

If you like our peanut butter cookies, then why not try these easy recipes

• No bake Oreo cheesecake
• Apple crumble
• Creme brulee cheesecake
• Biscoff cheesecake
• Creme brulee

If you like S’mores, then you’ve got to try these S’mores cookies, from Glenda Embree!

Why not try these eggless chickpea flour cookies from our friends at Caramel and Spice?

Or an apricot puff pastry pinwheel from One Hot Oven!

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