Gimme Some Oven

Peanut Butter Cookies

This post may contain affiliate links. Please read my disclosure policy.

This classic peanut butter cookie recipe is thick and chewy, dusted with sugar, and downright delicious.

Peanut Butter Cookies

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

How To Make Peanut Butter Cookies

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!

Peanut Butter Cookie Dough

How To Make Peanut Butter Cookies:

So, how to make peanut butter cookies? Simply…

  1. Prep your oven and cookie sheet. 350˚F and parchment paper.
  2. Combine dry ingredients. Whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, cornstarch and salt.
  3. 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.
  4. 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.
  5. 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.
  6. 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.
  7. Enjoy! Serve warm, or store in a sealed container for up to 4 days. Or freeze for up to 3 months.

How To Make Peanut Butter Cookies

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.

Peanut Butter Cookies with Milk

More Favorite Cookie Recipes:

Print
clock clock iconcutlery cutlery iconflag flag iconfolder folder iconinstagram instagram iconpinterest pinterest iconfacebook facebook iconprint print iconsquares squares iconheart heart iconheart solid heart solid icon
Peanut Butter Cookies

Peanut Butter Cookies

5 Stars 4 Stars 3 Stars 2 Stars 1 Star 4.8 from 128 reviews
  • Prep Time: 20 minutes
  • Cook Time: 10 minutes
  • Total Time: 30 minutes
  • Yield: 0 About 4 dozen cookies 1x

Description

These peanut butter cookies are soft, chewy, and absolutely delicious!


Ingredients

Scale
  • 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

  1. Preheat oven to 350˚F.  Line a baking sheet with parchment paper; set aside.
  2. Whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, cornstarch and salt in a large bowl and set aside.
  3. 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.
  4. 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.
  5. Serve warm, or store in a sealed container for up to 4 days.  Or freeze for up to 3 months.

Soft Peanut Butter Cookies Recipe

Share this Post

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Recipe rating 5 Stars 4 Stars 3 Stars 2 Stars 1 Star

219 comments on “Peanut Butter Cookies”

1 2 3 4
  1. I organize my life by notes in my phone. I even had a list of all the recipes I had made and when they were going on the blog.  Then, I accidentally deleted it.  
    It was a bad day.
    BUT, there is NO bad day that these PERFECT Peanut Butter Cookies can’t fix! Pinned!

  2. These look perfect Ali! Thanks for saving me the headache of searching through 41 milllion results! Pinned!

  3. I used to make pb cookies with my mom every Christmas. We just used the kind out of the package, but these look divine! Pinned :) 

  4. Classic cookie perfection!  I am so behind on my holiday baking this year. Today will be all day in the kitchen!!

  5. These remind me of growing up! My mom used to make some PB cookies that are very similar to these.

    Ugh, I struggle with getting and staying organized! (<-story of my life!!!)  I am not sure there is any One Thing that will help me. Blogging and recipe creation has definitely added to the clutter and chaos. I am curious to hear how you like Evernote. I do have an account set up with them. Maybe I just don't know how to use it.  Or maybe the paid version is the one with all the awesomeness? Keep us posted!

  6. We made this recipe last week and absolutely loved it! We ended up tweaking the recipe a bit by adding a bag of peanut butter chips, and the cookies turned out delicious. 
    https://mydaughterandi.com/2015/01/27/peanut-butter-chip-cookies/

  7. Easy recipe. I dont like PB but my hubby and son love it sooo I made this for them. I divided the batch in 2 and add chocolate chips. They love it.

  8. Oh man, these were awesome!! We had some natural peanut butter that had been in my fridge that needed to be used up and it was perfect. We will definitely be making these again!

  9. Just made these for a work function. They came out beautifully! I’ll never search for another recipe, thanks :)

  10. Thank you for sharing the best peanut butter cookie recipe! My husband is OBSESSED with Kiss cookies and I have been using your recipe when I make them and he can’t get enough, I don’t do the criss-cross with the fork though, just roll them into balls and ever so slightly flatten them, then bake then press a kiss into them. These only last at our house 2 days… if I’m lucky.

    • You’re so welcome Britt, we’re happy you and your husband enjoyed these! We bet they’re especially yummy with that Hershey’s Kiss in the center! :)

  11. The women’s group at my church hosts a cookie swap every year and today’s the day! I will be making these! I can’t wait to give them a try! Thanks for posting! I am a die hard peanut butter cookie lover and these look delish! I may get crazy and dip half of them in chocolate! Oh boy! 

    • Jamie, we’re so happy you’re giving this recipe a try for your cookie swap – how fun! We hope you and everyone else enjoys these! :D

  12. Wow love this recipe! so simple & looks delicious! Thanks Ali!

  13. What does the cornstarch do? Have you made these without the cornstarch? Thanks!

    • Hi Gigi, we’ve just found that adding cornstarch to cookie recipes lends a nice texture that makes them extra chewy! :) We hope you enjoy these!

  14. I love them I am 11 and my mom makes me make them all the time

  15. These are good I mixed 1/2 cup of each creamy and peanut for texture 

  16. Amazing recipe!!! Followed the recipe and everything turned out perfect!

  17. These cookies look amazing I am about to give it a shot!

  18. This is my go-to PB cookie recipe.  They come out perfect every time and they taste amazing. 

  19. This is very similar to my recipe. I’m curious about the corn starch ingredient which is not in my recipe. I think mine are world-class already so I’m curious what I might have been missing by not using the corn starch?

    By the way, when I flatten the cookies I prepare a saucer with a tablespoon or two of sugar. I dip the fork in the sugar after pressing each cookie. The oils in the cookie dough helps just the right amount of sugar to stick to the fork which is transferred to the cookie when pressing.

    • Hi Roger! We like your flattening method, and the corn starch is totally optional. We like it because it makes a chewier cookie (you don’t detect it at all taste-wise).

  20. This recipe is a keeper, the cookies turned out great.Thanks for sharing your recipe?

  21. I made these this weekend. I didn’t change one thing and the recipe was perfect. The result was: yummy soft cookies that were not too sweet! My husband and boys couldn’t get enough and I also gave some to my parents and in-laws and they all loved them too! I definitely recommend this recipe to anyone. 

  22. Thank you for a really yummy recipe. Instead of sprinkling sugar over the cookies. I ground a light dusting of Himalayan Pink Salt over the batch I made. Absolutely delicious.

    • You’re welcome — we’re so glad you enjoyed these, and the Himalayan Pink Salt sounds fabulous!

  23. I made this and it’s my favorite!!!! I want it all the time now!

  24. Hi! I made these today and they came out soft in the middle but a little crunchier than I had anticipated on the edges. Any thoughts?

    Things that may have affected it – I used 1/2 salted and 1/2 unsalted butter and the butter and eggs were at room temp.

  25. Update to my comment on 12/20/16 where I was worried the edges were too crunchy: I left them sit in an tupeprware container over night and they are surprisingly soft and chewy now! The only thing I will do differently next time is get the butter to room temp but not for too long. The cookies did have a bit of spread but I am chalking that up to the butter melting too quickly while they were baking. Kudos on another excellent recipe!

  26. Soft and delicious and yes you must eat one or two warm!






  27. I made these incredibly delicious cookies today! Amazing! Definitely going to use this recipe for future use. By the way, I used extra chunky Jiff.






  28. This is the only peanut butter cookie recipe I use now! Perfect!

  29. So yummy. Just made these. The kids loved them. I made a second batch with almond flour and oat flour instead of regular flour and they turned out great as well. Thanks for your recipe.






  30. These cookies were great!






  31. I want to make the cookies for christmas and freeze them. When I am ready to use them do I just take out and defrost? Thanks they look yummy

  32. Once I made peanut butter cookies, and it married so we’ll with some jelly on top… and then you take them to the oven WITH the jelly… it is soooo good!!! Every one should try it!

  33. I made this last night. These were so good. Delicious. Thank you!






  34. OMG! THE best peanut butter cookies ever! My hubby and I both agree, this recipe is a keeper! Simply delicious
    Thanks very much!

  35. I made this recipe for Peanut Butter Cookies and they were absolutely delicious. The recipe is very simple and with the last batch I mixed chocolate chips into the cookie mix. They, too were very good. My husband loves peanut butter cookies, but this very honestly were soooooo goooood. I highly recommend this recipe. My husband gets romantic (or seems like it) when I’m cooking and it wavers tothe room he is in. It’s pretty funny and predictable. And, he is very complimentary. So, it’s all good.






  36. These are now part of our regular cookie rotation. Thanks for another wonderful recipe!






  37. THE best cookies!!! I top mine with Reese’s Pieces?






  38. EXCELLENT! I didn’t have cornstarch so I went and bought it, glad I did. They were right when they said cornstarch makes the cookie crispy on the edges and chewy in the center. This recipe is a keeper.






  39. I’ve been looking for a really good peanut butter cookie recipe for a long time. My family loves pb cookies. I have never been satisfied with the peanut butter taste and texture until now. My family thinks they are the best pb cookies I have ever made, and I’ve made many over the years. Thanks for sharing such a great recipe.






  40. this is 100% the best peanut butter cookie recipe in the universe! even my husband agrees and PB cookies are lower on his favorite list than my favorite list. since i’m the baker he will eat whatever i make, though. he actually noticed that the texture is slightly different and i’m guessing that’s the corn starch. genius! i sprinkle most of my cookies with flaky sea salt because salty/sweet is the best.






  41. These are literally perfect. Thank you! My husband is on heaven!






  42. Approximately how many cookies will a batch make? Thank you!

  43. I just made these, debating whether to use this recipe or Sally’s Baking Addiction. Ultimately, I landed on Gimme Some Over purely because I didn’t have time to chill the dough as required by Sally’s. However, I am SO GLAD I opted for these!!! They are so so good. Soft and chewy on the middle but the right amount of crunch you want in a cookie on the outside. The flavor is perfect-the peanut butter is definitely there but not too overpowering. They are the right amount of sweet as well. I highly recommend this recipe for peanut butter cookies.






  44. I made these without baking soda and corn starch and I also rolled the dough in powdered sugar before baking them- delicious.

  45. Ok, for anyone else that is curious how many cookies a batch will make… about 6 dozen. We left half the batch plain and half the batch we added mini chocolate chips and crushed pretzels (with a little salt sprinkled on top). Both were great but WOW the half we added things to was sooo good. You can’t go wrong leaving them as they are though. Thanks for the great recipe!






  46. I made them exactly per recipe and they were perfect! Wouldn’t change a thing. Thanks for a great new “go-to” recipe.






  47. I’ve tried hundreds of cookie recipes and this is, hands down, the best peanut butter cookie I’ve tried. Even people who told me they weren’t fans of peanut butter cookies love them. They have the crispy, chewy outside but the inside is fluffier and softer than other recipes I’ve used. The Peanut Butter isn’t overpowering but just right. Great recipe, thank you for publishing it.






  48. These were awesome and the corn starch is a must. Mine baked for 10 minutes and they were perfect. Thanks for the awesome recipes.






  49. Love this recipe! I was looking for a recipe whereas I could really taste the peanut butter and this did not disappoint. My new go to???






  50. I made these today cookies today and they came out fantastic. Absolutely delicious. My new go to peanut butter cookie recipe! Thanks so much :)