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    Easy Peanut Butter Cookies

    By Julia | Updated: Dec 05, 2023 | Published: Jul 16, 2014 | 243 Comments

    546.1K shares
    • Facebook1.5K
    Jump to Recipe Print SaveSaved!
    This post may contain affiliate links. For more information, please see our affiliate policy.

    These easy peanut butter cookies have an amazing brownie-like texture: both chewy and soft.  The peanut butter flavor is perfectly balanced without being overpowering.

    Easy Peanut Butter Cookies

     

    These are truly the best peanut butter cookies I've ever tried! It's not only my opinion - everybody around me loves them too and asks for a recipe! I've posted about these cookies last year, and here I am writing about them again!

    Easy Peanut Butter Cookies

     

    There is just the right amount of peanut butter in these easy peanut butter cookies: not too much and not too little. You can use a regular peanut butter, such as JiF, and you can use natural one too. You can use regular crunchy one and natural crunchy peanut butter. I've tried them all, and the recipe works well! If you use natural peanut butter, the cookie will come out just a little bit dryer but the difference is really hardly noticable, if you make sure to sift or aerate your flour (see the note below, under recipe instructions) - it's very important not to overpack the flour in a measuring cup so that the cookie does not come out dry!
    Easy Peanut Butter Cookies

    You can definitely taste a peanut butter in this cookie, and yet it’s not like you’re eating overly rich peanut butter cookies.  That's how I like peanut butter cookies, which is why this is the best peanut butter cookie recipe for me!

    Easy Peanut Butter Cookies

    The seemingly unimportant step of rolling these cookies in granulated sugar right before putting them in the oven is the reason why these cookies look so pretty (almost like sugar cookies), why they are light in color and have beautiful cracks on top. Coating these peanut butter cookies in sugar before baking serves two purposes: 1) The cookies acquire lighter, much more attractive color when sugar coated. If you don’t roll these cookies in sugar, they will come out much darker, almost looking like dark peanut butter. Rolled in sugar, the peanut butte cookies come out looking like sugar cookies! 2) Rolling cookies in sugar gives them a nice soft crunch on the outside of the cookie.

    Easy Peanut Butter Cookies

    For cookies to have that nicely rounded, puffed up shape, roll them in balls between the palms of your hands and then roll each cookie ball in sugar. If the peanut butter cookie dough is too soft for you to work with, let it chill in the refrigerator for 30 minutes before rolling.

    The result are some of the best peanut butter cookies you'll ever make!  Amazingly yummy cookies that are popular with kids and adults alike! They have a moist, almost brownie-like texture and only get better as the days pass by. Keep them in air-tight container and they will last you for up to 2 weeks – that is, if you’re disciplined enough not to eat them all the first day!

    Easy Peanut Butter Cookies

    Easy Peanut Butter Cookies
    4.85 from 104 votes

    Easy Peanut Butter Cookies

    These easy peanut butter cookies have a perfect brownie-like texture: both chewy and soft at the same time.  They are not overly rich peanut butter cookies - just perfectly balanced.  These are some of the best peanut butter cookies you'll ever make!
    Print Recipe Pin Recipe Save RecipeSaved!
    Prep Time 15 minutes mins
    Cook Time 15 minutes mins
    Total Time 30 minutes mins
    Course Dessert
    Cuisine American
    Servings 18 cookies
    Calories per serving 83 kcal

    Ingredients

    • ¼ cup creamy peanut butter (can use natural one too)
    • 2 tablespoons unsalted butter room temperature (not melted - just let the butter from refrigerator sit on the counter for about an hour or so)
    • ½ cup brown sugar
    • 1 egg
    • ½ teaspoon pure vanilla extract
    • ¾ cup all-purpose flour sifted or aerated (see important note below!)
    • ½ teaspoon baking powder
    • 2 tablespoons granulated sugar for coating
    Prevent your screen from going dark

    Instructions 

    Important note about properly measuring flour using measuring cups:

    • The proper way to measure flour using measuring cups is to aerate it first. This is done either by sifting flour or aerating it by fluffing it up and whisking it well, then spooning it into the measuring cup, then carefully removing any excess flour with a knife. If you just stick that measuring cup in the bag of flour and scoop some out, you will get a lot more flour than what the recipe calls for. Do aerate the flour, or you will end up with dry dough!

    How to make peanut butter cookies:

    • Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Using an electric mixer, cream peanut butter and butter in a mixing bowl until smooth. Add brown sugar; beat until combined. Add an egg and vanilla, and continue beating until creamy.
    • In a separate bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder. Gradually add dry ingredients from step 2 to wet ingredients in step 1, beating on low speed.
    • Prepare a baking sheet by lining it with parchment paper or lightly greased aluminum foil. Place granulated sugar on a plate. Roll spoonfuls of cookie dough into balls, rolling each ball between your hands. Roll balls in sugar to coat them completely.
    • Place cookie balls 2 inches apart on a prepared baking sheet. Bake until cookies begin to puff up slightly, about 12 minutes, until cookies just brown around the edges and crackle on top. Remove from the oven and let the cookies cool at least 10 minutes on the baking sheet before transferring cookies to rack to cool completely.

    Notes

    Recipe is adapted from Martha Stewart.

    Nutrition

    Nutrition Information
    Easy Peanut Butter Cookies
    Amount per Serving
    Calories
    83
    % Daily Value*
    Fat
     
    3
    g
    5
    %
    Saturated Fat
     
    1
    g
    6
    %
    Cholesterol
     
    12
    mg
    4
    %
    Sodium
     
    22
    mg
    1
    %
    Potassium
     
    51
    mg
    1
    %
    Carbohydrates
     
    12
    g
    4
    %
    Sugar
     
    7
    g
    8
    %
    Protein
     
    1
    g
    2
    %
    Vitamin A
     
    50
    IU
    1
    %
    Calcium
     
    14
    mg
    1
    %
    Iron
     
    0.4
    mg
    2
    %
    * Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.

    Nutrition Disclaimer:

    The nutritional information on this website is only an estimate and is provided for convenience and as a courtesy only. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed. It should not be used as a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.

    Keyword easy peanut butter cookies
    Tried this recipe?Be sure to leave a comment and provide a Star Rating below - I love your feedback and try to respond to every comment!
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    Reader Interactions

    Comments

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      Recipe Rating




    1. Jenny McGhee

      October 02, 2024 at 9:20 pm

      This truly is THE BEST peanut butter cookie recipe ever!! I'm not normally a peanut butter cookie fan but I love these!! And my husband wants them for his birthday instead of a cake!!

      Reply
      • Julia

        October 04, 2024 at 1:00 am

        Hi Jenny, I am so happy to hear you like these cookies as much as I do! 🙂 They do not have an overwhelming peanut butter flavor - which is what I love about them.

        Reply
    2. Btiles

      November 04, 2023 at 9:50 pm

      Definitely not worth the calories. Lacking in flavor, especially the peanut butter. Wouldn’t recommend this recipe.

      Reply
    3. Laura

      April 05, 2023 at 10:11 am

      I usually put those lava hershey kisses on top but today I will add mini eggs. This is my go to peanut butter cookie recipe and we all love it!

      Reply
      • Julia

        June 07, 2023 at 10:59 pm

        Laura, I am so glad you love this recipe! Thank you for the 5-star review! ❤️

        Reply
    4. Suellen

      December 13, 2022 at 9:53 am

      I love these cookies. Very tasty, light peanut butter
      I overcooked them bc they didn’t look like they were done. Bake them the as recipe says, I will definitely make these again.

      Reply
      • Julia

        December 23, 2022 at 3:53 pm

        Suellen, I am so happy you liked these! Thank you for taking the time to share this positive feedback and 5-stars. And, Happy Holidays! 🙂

        Reply
    5. Suku

      September 29, 2022 at 9:47 pm

      These came out pretty great, really soft and chewy, only issue is that I don’t really taste the peanut butter in them. I personally say it needs more peanut butter but overall it came out pretty decent.

      Reply
      • Julia

        October 02, 2022 at 6:05 pm

        Suku - great feedback, thank you so much! I know, these cookies are pretty light on peanut butter flavor - which is how I personally like them. 🙂

        Reply
    6. carol carey

      January 03, 2022 at 6:45 pm

      in the past i made these really good peanutbutter cookies rolled in sugar before bakeing can i do that with these cookies i cant find recipe i used that yr but they were the best cookies i ever made

      Reply
      • Julia

        February 11, 2022 at 11:28 pm

        Yes, the cookies in this recipe are rolled in sugar before baking and they taste wonderful and have a beautiful texture!

        Reply
    7. Matt

      December 03, 2021 at 9:55 pm

      Very good, mine were soft but not brownie like, more cake like. Not excessively sweet, but great peanut butter flavor. Should I reduce the back time to get the brownie texture? Flour was sifted first then measured.
      Thanks!!

      Reply
      • Julia

        December 12, 2021 at 6:23 pm

        Matt, thank you for the feedback! Glad you liked the cookies! Yes, reduce the baking times for softer, brownie-like texture!

        Reply
    8. Anita

      September 06, 2021 at 4:36 pm

      I was just wondering. Can you use regular butter or does it have to be unsalted?

      Reply
      • Julia

        September 22, 2021 at 4:41 pm

        You can use either salted or unsalted butter.

        Reply
    9. Ann

      April 18, 2021 at 5:38 am

      Thanks for this recipe. The cookies came out really well.

      Reply
    10. MtnLady

      March 07, 2021 at 3:43 pm

      I have made these several times - no fail easy peanut butter cookies. They are soft too!

      If you do not like the recipe, or think the are too sweet, adjust it to your liking?

      Reply
    11. Dianr

      February 06, 2021 at 8:59 pm

      These are the best peanut butter cookies ever! I have made them several times. This will be my go to recipe for pb cookies. Thank you

      Reply
    12. Victoria

      December 24, 2020 at 7:50 pm

      Making these for Christmas for my family, and the recipe was nice and easy to follow, hopefully they taste as good as they look!

      Reply
      • Julia

        December 25, 2020 at 6:55 pm

        Victoria, I am glad you tried this recipe and found it easy! Thank you so much for your feedback!

        Reply
      • Janice Marco

        February 05, 2021 at 7:01 am

        So? Did you find them as terrible as I did? Wondering what your point to leaving your comment was it you didn't follow up with the taste. Does it really matter if they are easy to make it they taste terrible? I found these didn't have enough on and were too sweet! Ugh!

        Reply
    13. Sal Rappo

      December 15, 2020 at 8:14 am

      Can you add chocolate chips to this recipe?

      Reply
      • Julia

        December 21, 2020 at 10:29 pm

        Yes, you can.

        Reply
    14. NA

      December 10, 2020 at 5:33 pm

      My favorite peanut butter cookies! Thanks for sharing!

      Reply
      • Julia

        December 11, 2020 at 1:24 am

        Glad you liked them!

        Reply
    15. Karen

      November 30, 2020 at 11:45 am

      Fabulous recipe. Made these cookies along with your pecan sandies this Thanksgiving. What a treat!

      Reply
      • Julia

        November 30, 2020 at 11:59 am

        Glad you liked it! 🙂

        Reply
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    Julia is the author of JuliasAlbum.com (a food blog focused on easy dinner recipes, pasta dishes, salads made with seasonal ingredients). In this photo, Julia is pictured wearing a yellow sweater against an Autumn background.

    Hi, I'm Julia!

    I am a full-time food blogger living in beautiful Colorado. I focus primarily on savory recipes (protein-based & fiber-rich main dishes, pasta, salads) using fresh & seasonal ingredients. A food blogger since 2012, I help home cooks create well-balanced and visually appealing dinners (many of which are 30-minute ONE-PAN meals). Find out more about me and my cooking philosophy. 

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