The best peanut butter cookies! They're soft, chewy, and practically melt in your mouth. This no-chill recipe is easy to make with 9 ingredients.
This peanut butter cookie recipe yields the best peanut butter cookies I’ve tried! They have soft and chewy middles, lightly crisp edges, and a bold peanut butter taste. They’re easy to make with 9 ingredients, and you don’t have to chill the dough. What more could you ask for in a peanut butter cookie recipe?
I’ve tested and tweaked this recipe countless times over the last 5 years. My first version had a delicious nutty flavor…but the texture was a bit too crumbly. The second time, the cookies were softer, but they didn’t taste as rich. Fast forward a few batches, and I finally landed on what I think are the perfect homemade peanut butter cookies.
Readers love them too. Maurice wrote, “This is the ULTIMATE peanut butter cookie. I find a lot of recipes leave the cookies dry and they crumble into a million pieces. These are soft and crumble in the perfect way!” I hope you agree!
Peanut Butter Cookies Ingredients
Here’s what you’ll need to make this easy peanut butter cookie recipe:
- Peanut butter, of course! This recipe calls for a higher ratio of peanut butter to flour than most classic recipes do. It gives the cookies an amazing peanut butter flavor and a melt-in-your-mouth texture. I recommend using creamy peanut butter over crunchy peanut butter for the best texture.
- All-purpose flour – Spoon and level it to avoid packing too much into your measuring cup.
- Baking soda – It helps the cookies rise and spread.
- Unsalted butter – Let it soften at room temperature before making the recipe.
- Brown sugar and granulated sugar – The white sugar helps the cookies spread, while the brown sugar adds molasses-y depth of flavor and keeps them soft and chewy in the middle. Light brown sugar and dark brown sugar both work well here.
- An egg – It acts as a binder, perfecting the cookies’ chewy texture.
- Vanilla extract – For warm depth of flavor.
- And sea salt – To make all the flavors pop! Add 1/2 teaspoon if you’re using salted peanut butter. Add 3/4 teaspoon if your nut butter is unsalted.
Find the complete recipe with measurements below.
Can I use natural peanut butter?
Yes! I often use natural peanut butter here. 365 Organic, Thrive Market, and Smucker’s Natural Peanut Butter are my favorite brands.
- Tip: Make sure that your peanut butter is well-stirred and smooth before making this recipe. Avoid the dry, stiff stuff that you might find at the bottom of a jar.
Feel free to sub processed peanut butter like Jif or Skippy if you prefer.
How to Make Peanut Butter Cookies
You can find the complete peanut butter cookie recipe with measurements at the bottom of this post. For now, here’s a quick overview of how to make peanut butter cookies:
First, make the dough. In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, and salt.
In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment (a handheld electric mixer works too!), cream the butter and sugar. Beat in the peanut butter, egg, and vanilla. The mixture will smell amazing!
Gradually add the dry ingredients to the peanut butter mixture and mix on low speed until just combined.
Next, form the cookies. Scoop slightly heaping tablespoons of the dough and roll them into balls.
Fill a small bowl with 1/2 cup granulated sugar, and roll the dough balls in the sugar.
Recipe Tip
Roll the cookies in sugar. I tested this recipe with and without rolling the cookies in sugar, and the sugary cookies were my favorites every time!
Without it, your fork will stick to the cookies when you decorate them with their signature fork marks in a criss-cross pattern.
It also adds a nice crunch to the outsides of the cookies and brings out their rich peanut butter flavor.
Arrange the cookie dough balls on two large baking sheets lined with parchment paper, leaving at least 2 inches between them.
Press down on the tops of the cookies with the tines of a fork to form a cross-hatch pattern.
Finally, bake the cookies. Bake one sheet at a time in a 350°F oven for 10 to 12 minutes. The cookies will be just set around the edges but look underdone in the middle.
- Tip: The bake time affects the cookies’ texture! Bake 10 minutes for softer cookies and 12 minutes for crispier ones.
Allow to cool on the baking sheet for 10 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.
How to Store Peanut Butter Cookies
Store these homemade peanut butter cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 5 days.
Can I freeze peanut butter cookies?
Yes! These cookies freeze perfectly. Seal them in an airtight container or freezer bag and stash them in the freezer for up to 3 months.
More Easy Cookie Recipes to Try
If you love these classic peanut butter cookies, try one of these delicious cookie recipes next:
- Peanut Butter Blossoms
- Easy Sugar Cookies
- Perfect Oatmeal Cookies
- Best Chocolate Chip Cookies
- Or any of these 17 Easy Cookie Recipes!
Peanut Butter Cookies
Ingredients
- 1 cup all-purpose flour,
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon sea salt*
- ½ cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
- ½ cup packed brown sugar
- ¼ cup granulated sugar, plus ½ cup for rolling
- 1 cup creamy peanut butter**
- 1 large egg
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F and line two large baking sheets with parchment paper.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, and salt.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer, beat the butter, brown sugar, and the ¼ cup granulated sugar until light and fluffy, 2 to 3 minutes. Add the peanut butter, egg, and vanilla and mix until creamy. Gradually add the dry ingredients and mix on low speed until just combined.
- Scoop slightly heaping tablespoons of the dough, then use your hands to roll it into balls. Place the ½ cup granulated sugar in a small bowl and roll the cookie dough balls in it. Arrange on the prepared baking sheets, leaving at least 2 inches between balls. Press down on the tops of the balls with a fork to form a cross-hatch pattern.
- Bake, one sheet at a time, for 10 to 12 minutes, 10 minutes for a softer cookie and 12 minutes for a crispier cookie. The cookies will be just set around the edges but still seem underdone in the middle. Allow to cool on the baking sheet for 10 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.
- Store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 5 days.
Notes
Looked through the comments but didn’t see if anyone asked this – apologies in advance if it’s a repeat Q! If I use unsalted peanut butter, should I increase the salt in the recipe?
Hi Kila, you should be good with this same 1/2 teaspoon either way. If you love sea salt in desserts, a bit of flaky sea salt sprinkled on top would be a welcome addition.
Excellent- thanks for the quick response!
Hi recipe looks great, can i add chocolate chips or will that change things?
Thanks!!
I did! Dark Belgium dairy free chips on top. Also used vegan butter and a flax egg. Turned out great.
Love this recipe, but there’s a bit of a flaw: step one is to preheat oven; step 5 is to chill batter for 30 min…do you see?
I put chocolate chips in it, too!!
Great recipe for a natural peanut butter cookie! They came out crispy on the outside and soft on the inside.
Admittedly, I made just a *few* changes. One, using a gf flour and two, subbing non-vegan ingredients (sorry!) it was hard to find a recipe that used natural pb but this one is great! I’ll definitely be saving it to use again!
These were tasty! My dough was really crumbly, so I added some extra peanut butter. They turned out pretty well. I’ll definitely make these again.
Very good recipe. My daughter loved it so much.
I’m so glad you both loved them!
I’m so glad you loved them!
In light of national peanut butter cookie day on Friday, I decided to make these along with the peanut butter snickerdoodle in the cookbook! Both are nothing short of amazing… I was planning on bringing all the cookies to share with my family on Friday… I don’t think they are going to make it! Thank you for sharing your recipes 🙂
Next time I am tempted to try putting Nutella in the centre.. or at least in some of them!
A quick question also, how do your cookies turn out so well with the fork method on top? Mine never lasts in the oven!!
Hi Leah, I’m so glad both recipes were a hit! For the hatches – did you change anything about the recipe and are you using natural peanut butter?
I don’t believe I did change anything! I also used natural peanut butter, I even made my own because you gave me the idea too on the blog! However, I clearly did something wrong – haha!
I think I might just try pushing down harder? Sometimes my hatches bake out too. I don’t know if it’s just a humidity thing or different in moistness of types of peanut butter. I hope they tasted great either way!
Thank you for the tip and quick replies! They tasted absolutely amazing regardless!
I’ve been on a roll with your second cookbook since the pandemic began, I haven’t been disappointed yet!!
I made these cookies and the only thing I did different was use Bob’s Red Mill Gluten Free Flour Blend. They were a bit dry using this flour so I had to add a bit of almond milk (about 1/4 cup). And I also had to bake them a little longer, about 16 minutes. They were perfect! Firm enough but still chewy with a great peanut-buttery taste. So good. Thanks so much! =)
Hi Christin, I’m so glad you loved them. Thank you for leaving your gluten free tips!
Used crunchy natural peanut butter instead of creamy for 2/4 cup, then used 1/4 cup creamy almond butter. Used 1/4 teaspoon sea salt instead of 1/2. The added 1 1/2 teaspoons tequila to the mix, because why not.
Baked outcome looked a little crumbly, but still held together and was fantastic.
Also really liked the coconut oil flavor in this recipe.
Thank you!
Hi Kris, I’m so glad you loved them!
Wow! These really are fabulous! Thanks for the recipe.
These look so good! Can I use gluten free flour?
Hello! Have you tried without using sugars and just maple syrup and/or honey instead?
Hi Angela, I don’t think it would be an equal swap because it’ll change the wet to dry ingredient ratio.
Hi Katie, I haven’t tried these with gluten free flour so I can’t say.
Hi! I was just wondering if you tried it with gluten free flour.
I made them with Bob’s Red Mill Gluten Free flour. I had to add about 1/4 cup almond milk because the batter was a bit dry, and I baked them longer, around 15-16 minutes. So good!!
Thanks Christin! Wonderful! I’m just afraid to bake them because I will eat them all! My husband is not a peanut butter fan.
No problem Alene! =) And if that’s the case, I’d probably make a 1/2 batch, cause it makes a lot of cookies! Enjoy. =)
Quick, easy, and very tasty. I used liquid coconut oil and baked for a few extra minutes.
1 egg!
Hi Susan, yes, I would definitely try fresher peanut butter that is more runny, it’ll help the dough be less dry and they will be more cohesive.
I look forward to trying this. I use Trader Joe’s organic no salt peanut butter with Valencia peanuts. It is a great peanut butter at an amazing price. I typically pour off as much of the oil on top as possible before using the jar, but for this recipe I will blend in all of the oil as I think that is needed since you recommend using a runny peanut butter.
Hi Karen, I hope you enjoy the recipe! Yes, I would definitely stir the oil into the peanut butter really well.
These look delicious! I can’t wait to make this for my daughter’s surprise birthday party!
yes please make these for me (i am her daughter)
Haha, I hope you both enjoy them 🙂
These cookies look so good! I love the fork trick you did at the end.
Hey this is a great recipe. Can’t wait to try it!
Thank you!
I hope you enjoy them!
These look yummy and I want to make them. Can I ask you what is your favorite brand of runny peanut butter?
Thanks!
Hi Tricia, we tested these with both Whole Food’s Organic and regular (natural) peanut butter.