Recipe Success: What makes a good peanut butter cookie? First: a good amount of brown sugar, and equal amounts of peanut butter to butter; second: Incorporating air into the butter and sugar properly separates the home baker from the professional. It’s that simple.
Of course, the type of peanut butter matters also, use your favorite brand and see how it goes. Sugar can be adjusted as a couple of batches are made. And remember that when a recipe is standardized, that means it’s been well tested and will work with different variables. The sugar is the variable in this recipe. Most peanut butter has sugar in it.
So, a heads up, if you’re used to peanut butter with sugar, you will want to use that for this recipe as it will not be as sweet as you’re palate is used to. If you want to reduce the sugar intake, do so gradually. Start with 1/4 cup less sugar and your taste buds will begin to change.
THE BEST PEANUT BUTTER COOKIE RECIPE
| Step 1 | Tools | Grams | Ounces | |
| All-purpose flour, unbleached | 2 1/2 cups | 325 | 11.5 | |
| Baking soda | 1 teaspoon | – | – | |
| Salt | 1/2 teaspoon | – | – |
In a medium bowl; whisk the dry ingredients together well. Set aside.
| Step 2 | Tools | Grams | Ounces | |
| Butter, unsalted, room temperature | 1 cup | 8 | ||
| Brown sugar, firmly packed | 1 1/2 cups | 300 | 10.5 |
In a mixing bowl, cream the butter and sugar together, starting on low speed and increasing to high quickly. If the butter is not at room temperature, mix it first to ensure a light and crispy cookie. Cream butter and sugar for about 3 minutes, scraping down the bowl at least twice.
Chef Notes: these cookies will come out great regardless; however, can have two major styles to them depending on how the butter and sugar are whipped, if creaming is not completed to a light and fluffy state, the cookies will flatten out more, meaning the center will be more dry and crispy than moist and crispy.
| Step 3 | Tools | Grams | Ounces | |
| Eggs | 2 large | 110 | 3.8 | |
| Peanut butter, smooth or crunchy (see note) | 1 cup | 265 | 9.3 | |
| Vanilla | 4 teaspoons | – | – | – |
Add, the egg one at a time, continue to mix between additions, add the peanut butter mixing well, and finally add the vanilla, the batter will continue to hold its light and fluffy texture even at this point.
Chef Notes:
- Peanut butter quality will make a difference.
- The best brands for this recipe are without sugar.
- The cookies will be sweeter and with less peanut flavor.
Also, the consistency will affect the cookies, using a runnier peanut butter will cause cookies to create fluff rather than the dense traditional style most are familiar with. The picture is made with runny peanut butter; therefore, the cookies lose some of the fork definition on top as they fluff when baked.
Pour; the dry ingredients into the mixing bowl all at once I and mix just until well incorporated. Using a rubber spatula scrape the bottom of the bowl and make sure dough is well mixed or your cookies will have runny spots.
Using a small scoop, portion the cookies about 1 inch apart, using a fork dipped into a bit of sugar, flatten the top of the cookies crisscrossing to create the traditional look, pressing the fork into the sugar each time to prevent sticking.
Bake for about 12-17 minutes depending on the desired flavor, more time for extra crispiness.
Remove and cool on a wire rack or sheet pan lined with parchment. Cookies will crisp up as they cool.
Storing: in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 5 days or in the freezer for a month.
Here’s a link to another cookie recipe you might like, Chocolate Oozers from our hearts to yours.
Efrona
Notes:
- AboutPeanuts.com, The History of Peanuts,
- Healthline, Atli Arnarson, PhD, Peanuts 101: Nutrition Facts and Health Benefits
Wow this peanut butter cookies looks so delicious 😋❤️
Thank you! We love cookies in our house! Enjoy, it looks like you dream to cook! (:
Hi again, just a heads up, I was in your website and I loved the cabbage sponge cake and tried to comment, but there is a glitch in your system. You might want to take a look. I had the same things happen…
Thanks for letting me know! I think I have fix it! Apparently I have a duplicate comments link on my blog and not realize until you told me! Could you try it again and let me know if this is working now! Many thanks 😊 🙏
Thank you Efrona for the appreciation of my post on Mind and Brain. In looking at your site I am impressed with its high quality. I’ll be watching for topics of interest to me, though I do love a good cookie with my coffee!
Hey there, Greg, thanks for the comment! I’ll be looking forward to the meeting of the minds! Fun. Have a wonderful weekend. Cheers, Efrona
Cookies look wonderful 😍😍 how lovely
Homemade peanut butter cookies are my favorite! I don’t bake (you should check out some of my cooking attempts on my site and you’ll see why!) but I do partake of the culinary deliciousness. 😉 And I’m so glad you included the crisscross with the fork. I’ve tried PB cookies that don’t have the crisscross. I know it’s all in my mind but it’s just not the same! Thank you for joining me over at A Couple of Stars and a Happy Face. It is very nice to meet you!
Hey there, KJ, I love them too! And it’s not in your mind, the crisscrossing causes the cookies to crisp on the top making them taste different, just food science—flat surfaces cook differently. Peanut butter cookies are a project I use for healing marriages, it’s amazing how much better men are at making the cookies even with perfect crisscrosses, and how much better women are at not burning them! I’d love to see what you’re doing with some cooking on your site! Have a great weekend, and it’s nice to meet you as well! Efrona
If you want to check out my cooking “skills”, read this: https://acoupleofstarsandahappyface.wordpress.com/2018/01/27/the-power-of-a-breakfast-casserole/ A seasoned cook would probably shake his/her head in shame at my kitchen exploits but I must say that I have gotten better since this post (although the casserole turned out pretty yummy) but I have not gotten any faster!
Oh if only it weren’t in the middle of the night and I had the ingredients!😂 You make the steps look easy..thank you💕
😍😋😋👌
Love your blog!
So fresh !🤩🤩
Thank you! The long journey is coming together! (:
😊☺️ Is Efrona Mor your name?
🤩🤩 If you don’t mind me asking…
Hi, and yes it is.. I don’t mind at all.
Okay then! Hi Efrona! You remind me of one of my favourite actors… Zac Efron! 😃
Oh, I need to smile this morning, thanks this comment cracked me up, so many people ask me about our names, but if you’re adding in Zac then what about Demi? People tell me I look like her and ask why I’ve removed the “o & e” off my last name. (;
This looks so delicious
Ooooh! Looks so delicious! I’m printing this out!
Awesome – I’ve been looking for good penaut butter cookie recipes! I’ll try this one soon!
Love it love it🤗🤗🤗🤗
Scrumptious
Sounds good . Must be super delicious. I will try it out this week end. 🙋♂️
Homemade peanut butter cookies are the best! Your delicious recipe reminds me that I have to fix our oven in the kitchen before I ask my wife to try it…..
Thank you for sharing.
Yes indeed! To be without an oven it to be without homemade cookies! That just can’t happen!! (: Thanks for the comment and enjoy the cookies, Efrona
These cookies are amazing!
The secret to a delicious peanut Butter cookie is adding extra butter. Give it a try. YOu won’t go back…
Oh, I’m sure I’d love that. I love butter and know what butter does to cookies! (;
My professor at the culinary school suggested I try it.
Oh, that’s fun…Butter is a culinary trick for so many things. When I need to fix pasta sauce, butter is it, when I reduce meat drippings with wine, it’s butter that makes it’s so good, it’s a finish for a bazillion sauces… learn to use butter and everyone will say you’re cooking skills skyrockets! Are you in culinary school? If so, we have to have fun with that on food posts. Please tell us your adventures! But also, for me, I relate life to food! Always have, when I taught cooking classes, I would teach stress management at the same time when cooking things like Souffle’s, students are in a panic to cook them correctly.
No. I’m not currently in school. I took a culinary baking program at the local junior college many years ago. I also worked as a sous chef at two cooking schools for years.
Where did you go to school? And where do you teach classes?
Hi Teri, I hope you forgive me, I see comments that I have not answered. I’m new at blogging, and I’m running a full-time business, so I’m half blind and half too busy to keep up. But I love the interactions. Makes life wonderful. I was chosen for a culinary fellowship where several of us worked with an award-winning chef from Germany and France in a live restaurant for our training, Chef Fredrich, I will never forget him. And I spent 6 months in Nice France learning laminated dough and baking. I taught at Tel-Aviv University and in London, I did only volunteer for 6-week courses, usually fun stuff. It’s amazing how fun it is to teach!! I also taught English there to new immigrants. Sounds like you’d be fun to cook with!
Amazing. I’ve been to Nice. Beautiful.
Have you heard of Rise Up Podcast? He writes about bakers and bakeries. He would probably love to learn about your baking in Nice France 🇫🇷. How cool is that?
I worked at a bakery too, but didn’t get to bake much. Had to do store front stuff.
Bet learning from the chef was fun too.
Yes. If u r ever in San Francisco Bay Area contact me.
Fun to chat with you too
Wow. Looks delicious
Delicious recipe
This looks yummm 🙂
looks delicious and simple enough!
Unfortunately, I don’t use peanut butter. ever, and I don’t think I will. My husband loves it. Well, I’m originally from Europe, we never had it. It’s something about how peanuts are fine and the when they are as peanut butter they become not what I like, but most likely, cookies are fine.
They look and sound delicious…..and not at all perfect for my diet. I guess I will start it later than planned.
Looks delicious and so yummy 👌😋😘
You had me at peanut butter. Looks delish!
Love it. Wish I could still eat them. Five peanut butter cookies equals two weeks serious dieting. That’s assuming I stopped at five, which is very hard to do. The picture looks scrumptious.
They are full of calories, but it’s a great protein, so I hope now and then you’ll get a couple of them when the diet will allow it. (:
Looks good
These cookies sure look like the best!