This classic peanut butter cookie recipe is thick and chewy, dusted with sugar, and downright delicious.
Our week of holiday cookie recipes on the blog this week continues today with another throwback classic…
…soft, chewy, buttery, always-a-hit peanut butter cookies.
Over the years, I’ve made a variety of healthier peanut butter cookies, which I also really love and make most often nowadays. But whenever I happen to spy one of the fork-crossed, sugar-dusted originals at a holiday party, I’m instantly reminded just how irresistible this classic peanut butter cookie recipe still is. And when we baked up a batch during my little holiday bake-a-thon this week, our friends here were quick to agree that nothing beats this classic recipe.
Gotta love a good peanut butter cookie. ♡
So if you feel like baking up a batch this season, here’s the recipe I’ve used for years!
Peanut Butter Cookies Recipe | 1-Minute Video
Peanut Butter Cookie Ingredients:
To make this peanut butter cookie recipe, you will need:
- All-purpose flour: Or you are welcome to substitute white whole wheat flour.
- Baking powder and baking soda: This recipe calls for both.
- Cornstarch: To help make them extra-chewy.
- Salt: To bring out the flavor.
- Butter: Two sticks, completely softened.
- Sugars: Both granulated (white) and brown sugar, plus extra for rolling the dough balls if you’d like.
- Peanut butter: Either smooth or crunchy.
- Vanilla extract: Either store-bought or homemade.
- Eggs: Two, please!
How To Make Peanut Butter Cookies:
So, how to make peanut butter cookies? Simply…
- Prep your oven and cookie sheet. 350˚F and parchment paper.
- Combine dry ingredients. Whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, cornstarch and salt.
- Mix the wet ingredients. In an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat together the softened butter, granulated sugar and brown sugar on medium speed until light and fluffy (about 2-3 minutes). Mix in peanut butter until it is incorporated and smooth. Add vanilla and eggs, one at a time, scraping the bowl down after each addition.
- Add in the dry ingredients. Reduce mixer speed to low and slowly add dry ingredients until they are just incorporated and the batter is smooth, being careful not to over-mix.
- Form your dough balls. Form the dough into 1.5-tablespoon round balls and place on the prepared baking sheet. (If you’d like, you can roll each of these balls in a bowl of granulated sugar before adding them to the baking sheet.) Press a criss-cross pattern into each dough ball with a fork to flatten slightly, being sure that each dough ball is at least 2 inches apart.
- Bake. For about 10-12 minutes, until the edges are golden brown and the centers are slightly puffy. Remove from the oven, and then transfer the cookies to a cooling rack to cool.
- Enjoy! Serve warm, or store in a sealed container for up to 4 days. Or freeze for up to 3 months.
Possible Variations:
Feel free to add in some:
- Chocolate chips: Semisweet, dark, white, normal-sized, mini-sized…any kind. :)
- Cinnamon chips: I’m a big fan of mixing cinnamon and peanut butter in this recipe.
- Nuts: Chopped walnuts, pecans, almonds, or even extra chopped peanuts would be delicious in these cookies.
More Favorite Cookie Recipes:
- Healthy Peanut Butter Cookies
- Chocolate Chip Cookies
- Chocolate Chocolate Chip Cookies
- Chocolate Crinkle Cookies
- Gingerbread Cookies
- No-Bake Cookies
- Brown Sugar Cookies
- Chewy Ginger Molasses Cookies
Peanut Butter Cookies
These peanut butter cookies are soft, chewy, and absolutely delicious!
Ingredients
- 2 2/3 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon cornstarch
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 cup (2 sticks) butter, softened
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 1 cup packed light brown sugar
- 1 cup peanut butter (smooth or crunchy)
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 2 large eggs
- (optional: 1/2 cup granulated sugar for rolling the dough balls)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350˚F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper; set aside.
- Whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, cornstarch and salt in a large bowl and set aside.
- In an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat together the softened butter, granulated sugar and brown sugar on medium speed until light and fluffy (about 3 minutes). Mix in peanut butter until it is incorporated and smooth. Add vanilla and eggs, one at a time, scraping the bowl down after each addition. Reduce mixer speed to low and slowly add dry ingredients until they are just incorporated and the batter is smooth, being careful not to over-mix.
- Form the dough into 1.5-tablespoon round balls and place on the prepared baking sheet. (If you’d like, you can roll each of these balls in a bowl of granulated sugar before adding them to the baking sheet.) Press a criss-cross pattern into each dough ball with a fork to flatten, being sure that each dough ball is at least 2 inches apart. Bake for 10-12 minutes, until the edges are golden brown and the centers are slightly puffy. Remove from the oven, and then transfer the cookies to a cooling rack to cool.
- Serve warm, or store in a sealed container for up to 4 days. Or freeze for up to 3 months.
Did you make this?Let me know how it turned out in the comments below!
Love peanut butter cookies! How much chocolate chips do you had recommend adding for the variation? Also, 1.5 tablespoons I have the medium cookie scooper is that one scoop or 1.5 of that scoop size?
Made this recipe. Super easy. Excellent cookies. Thank you!
It’s been many years since I’ve made homemade peanut butter cookies! Really easy recipe! Thank you!
I didn’t like them. Definitely not enough peanut butter flavor. I like a chewy cookie and these were crispy. More like a shortbread than a peanut butter cookie.
Chewy and crunchy and delicious!
Hi, I’m a 13-year-old girl who made this recipe, it worked great. (a bit messy) The cookies were delicious and I found that smooth peanut butter works best, you should definitely try this!
Hey, I want to make these and I am 13 too. How many cookies did it make? I making them for a family gathering.
These peanut butter cookies turned out great! They are wonderful all by themselves…. But also looking forward to having these with milk, ice cream, and maybe spread with a layer of Nutella! Thanks for a great recipe! :)
These cookies are the bomb.com. Made these last night. I put them in a ziplock bag then in the refrigerator until now. Chewy and delicious, perfect cookie. However, because of product shortage (at 2 different stores didn’t have) I could not find jiffy creamy peanut butter… but I had an unopened jar of jiffy extra chunky and a large unopened of skippy creamy, so I used half of each one… still a good cookie. But next time I will use only one brand peanut butter and hopefully it will be jiffy. Thank you for this recipe and God bless you!!!
Good, but more like a peanut butter flavored sugar cookie….sweet & crunchy
I added a drop or two of maple syrup to the wet ingrediants like someone else in the comments. I also added a little Cinnamon to the dry ingredients. When they were cooled I spread a thin layer of melted peanut butter and a thicker layer of melted semi sweet/milk chocolate that had some coconut oil in it. Overall they were suuuuuper good, especially with the extra peanut butter and the chocolate! Will most likely make them again!!
I am baking these Peanut Butter cookies this morning for my son who will be going in for surgery. He loves my cookies of all flavors, but this on is his favorite.
I found it only made 3 dozen and I needed to cook 14 minutes.The cookies however were delicious.☺ I also like how the recipe was easy to follow.
Thank you
Can I eliminate the cornstarch in this recipe? I don’t have cornstarch or any cornstarch substitute In my pantry.
Not sure what happened because I followed the recipe exactly. My cookies have good flavor but they are not soft and chewy at all. They came out very hard and crispy.
Excellent!!