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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.
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!
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!
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!
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.
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
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
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
Nutrition
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.
WOW!! These really do look like the best pb cookies!! They look so soft and chewy!! YUM 🙂 Great recipe!
They taste even better than they look! 🙂
Oooh, a brownie like texture in peanut butter cookies??? Sounds fab! Love the trick of rolling them in sugar too!
Ohh they do look like the best Peanut Butter cookies ever! The texture seems flawless 🙂
Thank you, Consuelo!
I have no doubt that these scrumptious Peanut Butter Cookies are the best! Such a comforting cookie recipe!
i don't see how much salt to add.
Lara, I do not like to add salt to peanut butter cookies, because to me there is already enough salt from the peanut butter. But, you could add 1/8 teaspoon, if you like.
I love soft and chewy cookies. These peanut butter cookies look like they have the perfect texture Julia!
Coating these cookies in sugar before baking serves not 2 but 3 purposes - the third purpose is it makes me giddy! BAH to air tight containers - there's no way any of these will make it more than 2 hours in my home! 🙂
Easy to put together and very delicious!
I want to just bite into one of these right this second. Peanut butter cookies with a brownie-like texture...how can you not love that!
I have to try these! Look so simple and delicious!
ela h.
They are so delicious, Ela!
Could you add a Hershey kiss on them?
Yes, you can. Bake cookies for 7 minutes first, remove from the oven, add hershey kisses, and bake for another 5 to 7 minutes.
2 weeks?! Is it possible for any cookie to be around that long?! Definitely not in my house :D. I love a good peanut butter cookie and these sound perfect. Pinning!
I know, these never last 2 weeks in my house either - I can eat all of them myself in a matter of just a few days.
Peanut butter, avocado and potatoes are my favorite things. Love this recipe, these are perfect!
Thank you, Cheri!
The instructions say to mix the flour, baking soda, and salt but no salt quantity is given in the ingredient list. Should it be 1/8 tsp.? It looks like your version is roughly 1/2 the quantity of the Martha Stewart version. Can't wait to taste these--we're working on a batch right now!
Yes, 1/8 teaspoon of salt, if you would like to use salt. I usually don't even use salt because many peanut butters already have some salt. I updated the recipe (to remove salt).
Hi Julia,
planning to make these, just a quick question.. Becky posted "baking soda"... but in the recipe it says baking powder...?! Just wanted to clear things before I start with the cooking 😀 THank you!
Shadia, it's definitely baking powder! 🙂
Yes..it is Baking SODA.... BAKING POWDER is used in Cakes ..... Not..Cookies...
Not necessarily David!
YUM! I <3 peanut butter cookies 🙂
Ummm...ok..twist my arm:)
They do look good..
Made your strawberry Nutella crepes for j
Jacques and Noah ..A hit.
Thank you so much