Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies

If you’re one of those people who can’t get enough of peanut butter and chocolate, this mashup recipe is for you. Like two treats in one, our peanut butter chocolate chip cookies come together quickly and store easily. They’re perfect for bake sales and gifting, or simply for anytime snacking.

Chewy Cookies vs. Crispy Cookies

Are you Team Crispy or Team Chewy when it comes to cookies? Many factors go into what makes a cookie chewy or crispy, from the type of butter or fat you use to the bake time and temp. And, in many cases, it also comes down to the type of sugar you choose.

Cookie recipes that call for a higher amount of granulated sugar, which has a lower moisture content, typically yield a crisp cookie. Softer, chewier cookies result when there is a higher ratio of brown sugar, which has a higher moisture content, thanks to molasses.

These peanut butter chocolate chip cookies have a near-equal amount of both sugars, which creates an ideal balance of crispy edges with a chewy center. To nail these cookies and any others, get more tips in our handy cookie baking guide.

Ingredients for Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies

Taste of Home

• Butter: The key here is to use room-temperature butter that’s soft but not too soft. When butter is too soft, it could make the dough spread out too much in the oven, resulting in a flatter cookie. Make sure your butter is soft but still slightly cool.
• Sugar: You’ll use granulated sugar and brown sugar for this recipe. The brown sugar lends extra flavor, and its moisture makes the cookies softer. There is a difference between light and dark brown sugar—use light brown sugar here.
• Peanut butter: We call for crunchy peanut butter in this recipe, which adds a great texture. If you usually eat natural-style peanut butter, save it for sandwiches. Commercial brands like Jif or Skippy are better for these cookies. They’re smoother and less oily but still have tons of peanut-y flavor. You can opt for smooth peanut butter if that suits your taste better.
• Eggs: Room-temperature eggs mix up better in cookie dough.
• Vanilla: Choose a good-quality vanilla for these cookies. Here are our Test Kitchen’s picks for the best vanilla extract.
• Oats: With the addition of oats, maybe our recipe is more like three cookies in one! We like the texture that old-fashioned rolled oats bring to this cookie.
• Chocolate chips: As with classic chocolate chip recipes, we use semisweet chocolate chips here because they add just enough sweetness to a cookie. You can also use chocolate chunks, or go for bittersweet or dark chocolate.

Directions

Step 1: Make the cookie dough

Taste of Home

Preheat the oven to 350°F. In a bowl and using a wooden spoon or hand mixer, cream the butter and sugars together.

Taste of Home

Then beat in the peanut butter, egg and vanilla.

Taste of Home

In another bowl, stir together the flour, oats, baking soda and salt. Stir the flour mixture into the butter mixture.

Taste of Home

Finally, stir in the chocolate chips until combined.

Step 2: Bake the cookies

Taste of Home

Drop the cookie dough by rounded tablespoonfuls onto ungreased baking sheets. Bake the cookies until they’re golden brown, 10 to 12 minutes.

Taste of Home

Let cookies cool for one minute, then transfer to a wire rack.

Editor’s Tip: Dark-colored baking sheets will result in darker or even burnt cookies. Stick to a light-colored baking sheet, and bake with or without parchment paper.

Recipe Variations

• Add peanuts or nuts: Replace some of the chocolate chips with peanuts for a more peanut-forward cookie. Or add pecans or walnuts for more texture.
• Go the all-peanut butter route: If you want something simpler, try our three-ingredient peanut butter cookies.
• Make just chocolate chip cookies: If you want to skip the peanut butter, here’s our recipe for the ultimate chocolate chip cookie.

How to Store Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies

To keep your cookies soft and chewy, it’s all about the storage. Store baked cookies in an airtight container or resealable freezer bag at room temperature for two to three days. Pro tip: You can even add a slice of white bread to the bag or container. The moisture in the bread creates a humid environment, which in turn slows down moisture loss in the cookies, keeping them softer for longer.

Can you freeze peanut butter chocolate chip cookies?

Baked peanut butter chocolate chip cookies can be frozen in an airtight bag or container for three to four weeks (be sure to let them cool first!). Alternatively, you can shape the dough into balls, freeze them individually on a baking sheet, then store them in an airtight container in the freezer for up to two or three months. You can bake the dough from frozen, but you may need to add a few more minutes of bake time as needed.

Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookie Tips

Taste of Home

Do you have to flatten peanut butter chocolate chip cookies?

It’s helpful to pat peanut butter chocolate cookies down a bit before baking. The peanut butter and oats create a stiffer cookie dough, so flattening them a touch will help them spread out. You don’t need to put hash marks on top with a fork, like you would with regular peanut butter cookies. A gentle pat with your hand or the back of a spoon will suffice.

Should you chill peanut butter chocolate chip cookie dough before baking?

Chilling your peanut butter chocolate chip cookie dough a bit before baking will help keep the cookies from spreading too much. If your dough is really soft, the cookies could spread more in the oven. Chilling it for 20 minutes or so will help stiffen it up.

Why are the peanut butter cookies dry and crumbly?

To avoid dry and crumbly peanut butter cookies: choose the right kind of peanut butter; stick to the measurements (too much peanut butter could result in a drier cookie); and don’t overbake the cookies. Peanut butter chocolate chip cookies are done when the edges are just set and slightly browned, and the middle is a bit soft.