The easiest recipe for soft and chewy, Classic Peanut Butter Cookies topped with a sprinkle of sea salt! These kid-friendly cookies come together in about 30 minutes. They’re full of peanut butter flavor and downright irresistible!
Classic Homemade Peanut Butter Cookies
This is the best recipe for classic peanut butter cookies! Easy to make and even better to snack on, this is a great cookie recipe to get the kids involved. The cookie dough comes together in minutes (zero chilling required!) and the end result is the most tender, soft and chewy cookies full of peanut-y goodness.
These homemade cookies are even topped with a sprinkle of sea salt to really make the flavor pop. A fresh batch of sweet and salted peanut butter cookies is hard to resist – I dare you to eat just one!
If you are running low on some of the ingredients, give our 3-ingredient peanut butter cookies a try.
What You’ll Need
- Peanut Butter – Creamy that’s shelf-stable will give the best outcome. See below for more advice on the best peanut butter to use!
- Sugar – A combination of brown sugar and regular white sugar, for the perfect chewy cookie texture!
- Butter – One stick of unsalted butter, softened.
- Vanilla – Pure vanilla extract will always have the most authentic flavor!
- Flour – I use unbleached flour for the slightly denser texture it brings to these cookies.
- Egg – only one egg is needed.
- Baking Soda and Powder – using both gives the perfect texture.
- Sea Salt – Optional, but highly recommended for the crunch factor (and boost of flavor)!
What Kind of Peanut Butter is Best?
As mentioned, regular creamy peanut butter (think Jif or Skippy) works best.
Chunky peanut butter will also work if you’re after the extra texture and crunch. Just make sure you add in about a ¼ cup extra to compensate for the dry chunks of peanuts.
However, natural butters tend to separate and can lead to mixed results, particularly cookies that are dry and crumbly. For this reason, stick to the shelf-stable options!
How to Make Soft & Chewy Peanut Butter Cookies
In three quick steps you can have this easy, no-chill cookie dough ready to bake!
Combine the ingredients. Soften the butter in the microwave. Add in the peanut butter and sugar, followed by the egg and vanilla, and finally the flour, baking powder and soda to form the dough.
Scoop out the dough. Drop even-sized scoops of cookie dough onto a lined cookie sheet. Using a fork, gently press vertical lines into the tops of the cookies, to give them that classic look. Give the dough a sprinkle of sea salt.
Bake. Bake the cookies in a preheated oven, and then allow them to cool.
Can I Make the Dough in Advance?
You can make this peanut butter cookie dough up to 3 days in advance. The dough will need to return to room temperature before you plan to scoop it onto the baking trays, so remember to take it out of the fridge approximately half an hour before you plan on baking it!
Tips for Success
- Use real butter where possible. These cookies turn out the best when they’re made with real butter, and not shortening or imitation butters.
- Don’t forget the fork marks! Since the cookie dough won’t spread as naturally when baking, gently pressing down the cookie tops with a fork helps the cookies bake more evenly.
- Use a kitchen scale to measure. For the most accurate results, a kitchen scale is always the first choice! If you don’t have one, a handy trick is to measure ingredients like flour by spooning it into the measuring cup, and then levelling it off.
- Add chocolate. Get creative with dipping your cookies in chocolate, giving them a chocolate drizzle, or even adding in a handful of chocolate chips! Chocolate and peanut butter = winning combo!
Storage Instructions
Store these cookies airtight at room temperature, in a cool and dry location.
Do These Freeze Well?
The baked cookies can be stored frozen for up to 3 months! Place the cookies in a freezer-safe container or bag, with parchment paper between layers to keep them from sticking. Thaw the cookies at room temperature and enjoy!
More Easy Peanut Butter Cookies to Try
Chewy Peanut Butter Cookies
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter 1 stick (softened)
- 3/4 cup creamy peanut butter
- 3/4 cup brown sugar
- 1/4 cup white granulated sugar
- 1 egg
- 1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- 1 1/3 cups unbleached flour
- 3/4 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
- sea salt (optional)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Soften butter in the microwave for about 20 seconds. Microwave an additional 5 seconds if needed.
- Add peanut butter, brown sugar, and sugar and mix well until smooth.
- Add egg and vanilla.
- Slowly stir in the flour baking powder and baking soda.
- Scoop dough out and shape into balls (2 Tablespoons) then place onto baking sheet spacing 2 inches apart.
- Use a fork and create horizontal and vertical lines for the classic look of peanut butter cookies (flattening just slightly).
- Sprinkle the cookies with sea salt (if desired) and bake for 9 minutes (cookies will look a bit pale and slightly under-baked, they'll continue to cook as they cool).
- Let cool on the baking sheet for 15 minutes before moving to the cooling rack.
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175 comments on “Peanut Butter Cookies”
Very good! My co workers loved them. I’m making a batch for my Dad to take to his volunteer group.
Thanks Sara!
Fantastic! I used white whole wheat flour and all natural creamy peanut butter. Perfect PB cookie! Thank you for the recipe!
Thanks Lynn!
Do you think it will still taste good if I used salted butter? Thanks!
Hi Jessicka. Yes, salted butter will work fine and you will barely notice the difference. We usually recommend unsalted to control the amount by adding the salt.
Great recipe! I have made this recipe several times now. It’s my friends favorite.
Thanks
Thanks Bec!
Very tasty cookie. Easy to make. No mixer needed. These are a real crowd pleaser!
Thankyou they are delicious and a small sprinkle of sea salt adds so much flavour!
Perfect pb cookies
Thanks Julie!
I have made these for several different occasions and they are a huge hit!!!
Glad to hear that Jill! Thanks!
Can you use regular flour?
Hi Mary. Yes all-purpose flour will work as well.
Great recipe. They turned out awesome.
Thanks Dorothy!
I made these today. Oh man! These cookies were the best peanut butter cookies I’ve ever had!!!! My husband said the same thing. A little soft in the middle PERFECT ❤️❤️❤️
Thank you Diane!
Great second time better. Added more peanut butter 1/4 cup, tad more vanilla, tad more flour finally cooked a little longer for more crunch. Thank you
What if I want to make really big cookies…how would I adjust the time and or temperature?
If I wanted to add peanut brittle would you adjust any of the ingredients? Still wanting to make pretty big so if you think a time or temp adjustment is needed would love to know! Thank you!
Hi Cupcake. I wouldn’t adjust the temp but you will have to adjust the time depending on the size. You could do a trial with one large test cookie to see what the time looks like before baking the rest. You could add the peanut brittle without any other adjustments.
These cookies turned out not only delicious but picture perfect. Definitely going to be my go to peanut butter cookie recipe
Thank you Janet!
Hi. For healthier cookies, is it possible to sub half the required butter with apple sauce ?
Yes you could use apple sauce. Bake time may be slightly different.
Excellent recipe! Thanks for sharing!!
Thanks Bev!
AMAZING! Beautifully crinkly, and chewy with crispy edges if you bake for an extra minute or two.
Thanks Addy!
Made them gave some to my boyfriend’s mother she loves them. She lets me know when she is out lol but we love them too
Easy and yummy. Next time I’ll try adding a little bit extra peanut butter for more of the peanut butter flavor. Hopefully I don’t ruin it. These are super easy to make without a mixer and I usually don’t have to be concerned about storing them because these kids eat them all
Thanks Lisa!
I tried these pb cookies they are best one I have found
Awesome Candace! Thank you!