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This chewy peanut butter cookies recipe makes soft, flavorful cookies with the nostalgic crisscross pattern we all grew up loving. After countless test batches (and plenty of neighbor taste-tests), this has become our go-to family cookie for dunking in milk or sharing fresh from the oven.
Looking for more cookie recipes? Try my peanut butter blossoms, famous butterless chocolate chip cookies and chocolate chip espresso cookies!
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“Just like the peanut butter cookies I grew up with. I dipped them halfway in chocolate and sprinkled them with chopped peanuts. Oh my. Scary delicious!”— Kara
What Makes This the Best Homemade Peanut Butter Cookies Recipe
Tested to perfection: I baked dozens of batches to get this right, just like I did with my chewy snickerdoodles. They are SO good!
Perfect texture: Chewy inside, lightly crisp edges, similar to my gingersnap cookies!
Classic nostalgia: The crisscross fork marks make them as timeless as thumbprint cookies.
Simple pantry ingredients: Like my classic peanut butter blossoms, these use everyday staples you probably have in your pantry!
Peanut Butter Cookie Ingredients
All-purpose flour: Creates the structure. I use the same flour in my classic snickerdoodles.
Unsalted butter: Always use unsalted so you can control the salt yourself. Room temperature butter works best.
Smooth peanut butter: I like using a creamy brand like Jif or Skippy because it works best for this recipe. (For crunch lovers, try a variation with chunky peanut butter.)
Brown sugar + granulated sugar: The combo gives these cookies their chewy texture and caramelized flavor. You can use dark brown sugar or light brown sugar for this recipe.
Large Egg: Binds everything together.
Vanilla extract: Rounds out the flavor, just like in my classic snowball cookies.
Baking soda + baking powder: They work together for a lift and a soft bite.
How to Make Peanut Butter Cookies (Step-by-Step)
- Prep – Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Mix dry – In a bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt.
- Cream butter + sugar – Beat butter, brown sugar, and white sugar until light and fluffy (about 5 minutes). Scrape down the bowl.
- Add wet – Mix in egg and vanilla, then add peanut butter until fully incorporated.
- Combine – Slowly add dry ingredients. Mix just until combined.
- Chill – Cover and refrigerate dough for 30 minutes to 1 hour.
- Shape – Roll into 1 ½-inch balls. Place 9 per baking sheet.
- Crisscross – Press the tops with a fork in a crosshatch pattern.
- Bake – 8–10 minutes until just golden around the edges.
- Cool – Let cool 5 minutes on the sheet before transferring to a wire rack.
Eden’s Expert Cookie Tips
Chill the Dough – Even 30 minutes in the fridge keeps the cookies from spreading too much and gives you that soft, chewy center.
Don’t Overbake – Pull them out when the edges are just turning golden. They’ll finish baking on the sheet as they cool, which keeps them soft.
Use a Cookie Scoop or Scale – For even-sized cookies that bake perfectly, scoop the dough with a cookie scooper or weigh each ball (about 30g each).
Use Creamy Peanut Butter – Jif or Skippy work best for this peanut butter cookies recipe. Natural peanut butter works, but can cause the dough to separate and be dry.
Chocolate-Dipped Twist – Dip cooled cookies in melted dark chocolate or drizzle on top, then sprinkle with flaky sea salt or crushed peanuts.
Holiday Style – Drizzle with white chocolate and add sprinkles for Christmas, or tint the drizzle pink for Valentine’s Day.
Peanut Butter Cookies FAQ’s
I actually press peanut butter cookies down to ensure that they have a more standard height. This helps the dense dough to cook more evenly.
As for why we use a fork for pressing, it all goes back to the 1936 Pillsbury cookbook that made the cookies famous! This recipe popularized the use of forks for pressing, and the tradition continues today.
The short answer is yes. Whenever possible, chilling any cookie dough can keep your cookies from spreading under the oven’s heat. Chilling the dough keeps the softer ingredients—namely the peanut butter, eggs, and butter—from melting too much.
If time allows, chill your dough for up to 24 hours. However, even a 30-minute chillmakes a big difference in a pinch!
Traditional recipes call for smooth peanut butter, which makes the best peanut butter cookies. Experimenting with crunchy peanut butter can be fun, but it may change the ratio and resulting texture of your cookies.
Absolutely! Peanut butter cookies are easy to freeze! Make sure they’re completely cooled, wrap them in foil or plastic wrap, and place them in an airtight container. To thaw them, let them sit in the container until they come to room temperature.
For easy peanut butter cookies whenever you want them, you can prepare ahead. There are two ways to do this.
First, you can prepare the dough and let it sit in the refrigerator for up to 72 hours.
However, if you won’t be baking the cookies for a while, you can also freeze the dough. To do this, shape the cookies and press them with a fork. Place them in the freezer on the baking tray until frozen, and then move them into an airtight container.
Absolutely. Double the ingredients and bake in batches. These are great on cookie trays alongside my chocolate sable cookies and oatmeal chocolate chip cookies.
I always use all-purpose flour because it gives the best balance of chewy and tender. You can substitute with a 1:1 gluten-free flour blend, like I do in my chewy snickerdoodle recipe, and still get a delicious result.
Yes — just make sure to reduce the bake time. In a toaster oven, they usually finish in 6–8 minutes, and in an air fryer, I bake at 325°F for about 7–9 minutes. Always check them early!
More Cookie Recipes
Recipes
Kitchen Sink Cookies Recipe
Cookies & Brownies
Gingersnap Cookie Recipe
Cookies & Brownies
Chocolate Crinkle Cookies
Desserts
Chocolate Cherry Chunk Cookies
This is the best peanut butter cookies recipe I’ve ever baked! Chewy, nostalgic, and so simple you’ll come back to it again and again.
Let me know what you think in the comments below!
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Peanut Butter Cookies Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter, room temp.
- 1/2 cup brown sugar
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 1 egg
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 cup peanut butter, smooth
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees
- In a mixing bowl combine flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt and give it a whisk with a fork.
- Cream together the butter and both sugars using an electric mixer, with the paddle attachment on medium speed for about 5 minutes. Make sure to scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl.
- Add in the egg and vanilla extract and continue to mix on medium.
- Turn the mixer to medium low and add in the peanut butter. Mix for about 2 minutes, scraping the sides of the bowl so all of the ingredients are incorporated.
- Turning the mixer to low, slowly add in the flour mix. Blend only until the ingredients are incorporated.
- Refrigerate the dough for 30 minutes to 1 hour.
- Prepare a cookie sheet with parchment paper.
- Use a cookie scooper to roll the dough into 1″ balls.
- Place 9 dough balls on the sheet, spaced out.
- Then, using a fork press into the dough twice making a criss-cross pattern.
- Bake for 8-10 minutes, until the cookies are a very light golden brown.
- Let the cookies cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes before transferring to a wire rack.
Notes
- Room Temperature – Store cooled cookies in an airtight container at room temp for up to 5 days. I like to separate layers with parchment paper so they don’t stick.
- Refrigerator – If you prefer a firmer texture, you can refrigerate them for up to 7 days, though they’ll taste best at room temp.
- Freezer – Peanut butter cookies freeze beautifully. Place cooled cookies in a freezer-safe container or bag, layering with parchment. They’ll keep for up to 3 months. To enjoy, thaw at room temperature.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
This classic has stood the test of time! Love these peanut butter cookies! Super delicious! Lovely flavor – both a little salty, a little sweet and also just really the perfect cookie to pair with hot chocolate!
Just like my mom used to make. These are classic and no fuss. Thanks for the helpful pictures along the way too! SO SO yummy.
These turned out perfectly! Thank you for explaining it so well!
Yum! These look so delicious! My hubby and daughter are going to love these! So excited to try these!
Thanks Beth!
These are my absolute favorite. They freeze really well too!
Thanks Betsy! So glad you like them 🙂
Thanks for the idea to dip them in chocolate! No one can resist that flavor combination in my house. A huge hit!!
Yay! Thank you Jen!
Just like the peanut butter cookies I grew up with. I dipped them halfway and chocolate and sprinkled them with chopped peanuts. Oh my. Scary delicous!
Thank you Kara!
A classic cookie we make over and over again! Love them!
Thanks Erin!