These soft, bakery-style peanut butter chocolate chip cookies are packed with peanut butter flavor and loaded with chocolate chips. If you serve them warm, they will melt in your mouth!
These easy peanut butter chocolate chip cookies are one of my new favorite cookies because they combine two of my favorite things: chocolate chips and creamy peanut butter. These cookies are soft and gooey in the middle, with crispy, caramelized edges. One just isn’t enough! And because they’re sturdy and have a long shelf life, these babies are the perfect option if you want to ship holiday cookies this year.
How to make peanut butter chocolate chip cookies
- Cream butter and peanut butter together In an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream room temperature butter and peanut butter together until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes.
- Add the sugar, egg, and vanilla extract. Add the sugar and combine. Use a rubber spatula to scrape down the sides of the mixer to incorporate all the ingredients. Then, add the egg and vanilla extract and combine.
- Incorporate the dry ingredients. Mix together until just combined, then gently mix or fold in chocolate chips.
- Chill the dough. You can either flatten the dough into a disc and chill for 1 hour in plastic wrap, or pre-roll your cookie dough into balls (2 tablespoons/40g each) and place them directly on a parchment-lined cookie sheet. Place the cookie sheets directly in the refrigerator to chill for 30-45 minutes. Alternatively, you can pre-roll your cookie dough balls and put them into a storage container and place them in the fridge or freezer. Then, bake whenever you are ready to eat your cookies. If you bake the cookies directly from the freezer, expect to add a few extra minutes to the baking time.
- Bake. Bake your cookies for 10 minutes in a 350°F/185°C oven, just until the edges are slightly browned. Allow to cool slightly – these really taste the best while they are still slightly warm!
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Tips for making perfect peanut butter chocolate chip cookies
- Don’t overmix your cookie dough. This can result in tougher, more dense cookies, and we want them to be chewy and soft.
- Underbake your cookies. I can’t stress this one enough! The baking time can affect the texture of the cookies greatly, and slightly underbaking them makes them softer and chewier. If you end up with a hard batch of cookies, bake the next batch for less time. Mine were ready in 10 minutes, but depending on your oven it can take up to 12 minutes. I take them out of the oven as soon as they turn slightly golden brown around the edges.
- Use creamy, non-natural peanut butter like Skippy. While natural peanut butter certainly has it’s place in the culinary world, it’s not in these cookies. You want to use something similar to creamy Skippy or Jif – they have sweeteners and stabilizers already mixed in which helps produce the best flavored cookies.
- Use dark chocolate chips. I find that the flavor of milk chocolate chips gets lost in these cookies. The flavor is much better with dark chocolate chips.
- Heat your cookies for amazing flavor. If you’ve made a batch of cookies and they’ve cooled completely, you can microwave one for 5-10 seconds to heat it up before eating. They really do taste better when they’re slighty warm and gooey!
More amazing chocolate chip cookie recipes:
- Small Batch Chocolate Chip Cookies: Perfect for when you want a cookie on the fly! These chocolate chip cookies are insanely delicious.
- Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies: Pumpkin puree and autumn spices make these cookies perfect for fall.
- Brown Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies: The rich, caramel flavor of brown butter takes these cookies to the next level.
- Chocolate Chip Shortbread Cookies: Buttery, tender shortbread cookies combined with loads of chocolate chips.
- Banana Chocolate Chip Cookies: What’s a better flavor combo than bananas and chocolate? Get it in cookie form here!
Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies
Soft and chewy peanut butter cookies with loads of chocolate chips.
Ingredients
- 2 ½ cups + 2 Tablespoon (315g) all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- ¾ teaspoon salt
- 1 cup (2 sticks/225g) unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
- 1 ½ cups (375g) creamy peanut butter (not natural)
- ¾ cup (150g) light brown sugar
- ¾ cup (150g) granulated sugar
- 2 large eggs
- 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- 1 ¾ cups (300g) chocolate chips
Instructions
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In a medium bowl whisk together flour, baking soda and salt. Set aside.
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In a mixer bowl fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the butter and peanut butter on medium speed for 1 minute until creamy. Add brown sugar and granulated sugar and beat on medium speed for about 3 minutes, until fluffy. Beat in the egg, one at a time, then beat in vanilla extract. Add flour mixture and mix just until combined. Do not overmix. Add chocolate chips. The dough will be soft at this point. Chill it for about 1 hour until it’s easy to handle.
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Preheat oven to 350°F/180°C degrees. Line 2-3 pans with parchment paper.
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Roll dough into balls, the size of 2 tablespoons each (mine were about 40 grams each), and place onto the cookie sheets. Bake for about 10 minutes, until cookies just begin to brown at the edges, but the center is still soft. Cookies will appear undone, that’s ok. If the cookies are puffy, gently press them down while still warm using a spatula or the back of a spoon but leave them thick. Allow cookies to cool for 10-15 in the cookie sheet until they are easy to transfer without breaking, then gently transfer them to a wire rack to cool completely. Serve cookies warm or at room temperature.
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Store cookies at room temperature in an airtight container for up to 3 days. If you plan to keep them for longer, place in the fridge for up to 1 week, or freeze for up to 2 months.
Nicki says
Shiran, if I use natural peanut butter because I don’t condone eating/using Skippy, can you tweak the recipe to compensate for the looseness of the natural stuff?
Shiran says
Hi Nicki, natural peanut butter won’t work as well in this recipe. I haven’t tried it so I don’t know what adjustments will need to be made.
Helsa says
Hello!
I’m wondering if you experimented with this recipe and natural peanut butter again?
I really like the look of the recipe but prefer natural peanut butter although I can understand how the creamy PB would have a nicer texture…
Hmmmm….
Thanks!
Helsa
Jess says
Hi Nicki, the reason they would have been dry is the oil that you would have been missing in the natural peanut butter and that you reduced it by 1/3 using only 1 cup. Possibly try again but add in some oil to supplement the moisture missing?
Cookie monster says
So good my kids lov em
Greg says
I used natural chunky peanut butter and everything about the cookies is fabulous. I also added a teaspoon of cinnamon just because. YUM!
Wendy Simpson says
Then use Jif
Rhiannon says
These are a new family FAV!! We love them I’m making them almost once a month now! My boyfriend can’t get enough of them!! They are easy to make and incredibly delicious, I stumbled upon this recipe on IG and now I’m in love with you whole blog and all the tasty recipes!
Lola says
Hi! I’m all set to put these in the oven, but I don’t have a full hour to chill the dough. What can I do?
Allison says
Hi – I love your site! I’m wondering if this recipe might work with tahini?
Shiran says
Thank you, Allison 🙂 You mean using tahini instead of the peanut butter? Personally, I don’t think it’s a good idea because of its flavor and texture.
Brishti says
Hi, would this recipe work as a normal chocolate chip cookie recipe without the peanut butter? I loved it and want to bake it for my friends but both are allergic to peanuts. Thank you.
Shiran says
I have many chocolate chip cookie recipes, so it’s better to use those.
Danielle Dzamba says
I wonder if you used Sun butter? Made with sunflower seed oil instead? It’s really yummy. Not sure how the recipe would be without anything.
Robyn says
I made them with a mix of 2/3 tahini & 1/3 peanut butter because I like the flavour. They worked fairly well.
Claudia Danforth says
Hi! I altered the recipie a bit- all I had was the natural jif peanut butter, so I used that and added an extra egg to prevent it from spreading too much and it worked well!:)
Katie Nielson says
My favorite cookie recipe ever! I use a little less butter but other than that I follow the recipe exactly! I use milk chocolate chips in them. Anytime I make these for an event or bring them somewhere they are gone so quickly! They are soft and delicious. Thank you!
Janine says
These cookies are amazing. I followed the recipe exactly but beware – you need to watch the cookies like a hawk. I burnt the first 24 cookies even tho I took them out at 10 min exactly. May have had to do with the dark pans but they were toast. I took the 2nd batch out at 9 min and they’re perfect.
Sam says
Maybe turn the oven down 25 degrees
Susan says
One of the nicest peanut butter, chocolate chip cookie recipes that I have ever tried! Very easy to follow and baked up like a dream. Delicious results!
Wan says
Hi there, I would like to know what happen if I do not put the baking soda into the cookies mixture? what will happen?
Sarai says
Baking soda helps baked goods rise so without it these may fall flat. it’s best to follow the recipe and then tweak as you like later. As an example, for some change-up, I changed it to 1/2 choc chips and 1/2 butterscotch chips.
Danny says
Meh…too dry for my liking, too much PB.
Sarai says
You may wish to follow the recipe as stated. It’s worth it and they are chewy, ooey and yummy! You may have overmixed, overbaked?
Kathleen says
Mine were today too. I was thinking if maybe they were made a little smaller and flattened before they cooked you wouldn’t be getting a big bite of dryness. Otherwise the taste is great, they were cooked perfectly.
Whitney Mccoy says
Thankyou for the recipe!,x>
Will be making these today at work
Bev says
Has anyone worked out the calories in these? just curious
Bee says
Hi Shiran, loved this recipe! I added a little extra salt and reduced sugar and chocolate chips to a cup each. Browning the butter also enhanced the nutty flavor if you’ve got the extra time.
Absolutely fabulous.
Thanks for sharing!
Caryl says
I wanted the nutrition info too, because I track my food intake on my Fitbit . I was too lazy to figure it out this time and googled a generic peanut butter chocolate cookie, but I like to be precise, so it haunts me
Michele Kreklow says
Made these last night for some friends. They loved them. I was in a hurry and missed the step about chilling the dough. However, they came out absolutely perfect even without chilling it. 12 minutes was the perfect time for my oven, but agree with the other comments. Watch them to know the right time for your oven. I also used an entire bag of chocolate chips, cause let’s face it you can never have too much chocolate. The cookies came out moist and chewy and had the right amount of peanut butter flavor. Glad a I came across this recipe. I will be making them again soon.
Jen says
Best peanut butter cookies EVER! I can never get enough peanut butter in cookies and this is perfect! I used peanut butter chips mixed with Reece’s Pieces for that triple peanut butter flavor. Perfect recipe!
Sandy says
May I use margarine instead of butter
Shiran says
Yes you can, but keep in mins that it will change the flavor of the cookies.
Kathleen Angelone says
Hi
These have great flavor but so very dry. I followed the directions completely. Any suggestions to make it moist? I used regular peanut butter too.
Shiran says
Hi Kathleen. Peanut butter cookies tend to be dry, but with any chocolate chip cookie recipe, the trick is to slightly underbake the cookies so the center stays soft and moist. If they’re too dry, bake them for less time next time.
Kellie says
I LOVE these!!
Leslie Brockert says
This is such a great recipe! My 10 year old has made these twice (with some direction and supervision from me because she’s a learning baker) and they have turned out amazingly so well! Ours have stayed soft and chewy for days. I am in charge of baking for Teacher Appreciation Week at my kids’ schools in May and I will definitely be making these. So so good!
Linda says
Loved them so much! The second time i made they came out much more fragile and broke easily. What could have been the reason?
Shiran says
Hi Linda. If you don’t weigh the ingredients, then the result can be inconsistent. If you use too much or too little flour, it would affect the texture of the cookies.
Patricia says
These came out great. I only had natural peanut butter, but as another commenter suggested, I added an extra egg yolk. Husband and kids loved them – it’s a keeper.
Hadar says
Hi, I wanted to ask if I can use oil instead of butter? And if I can how much oil should I put?
Shiran says
Hi Hadar, I recommend sticking to butter in this recipe.
Monica says
Hi, thank you for the lovely recipe! I had some left over smooth peanut butter and whipped these up. This was my first ever bake and they turned out so well. They were nutty and sweet and not overwhelmingly peanut buttery. They remained soft for the next few days. My batch came out a little puffy at the top but they were perfect. Will use your recipes for chocolate chip cookies!
Michelle says
Thank you for the delish and easy recipe! I halved the recipe and made half the cookies without refrigerating the dough and they turned out great! I will shape and freeze the rest of the dough for little treats whenever I like.
Jen says
These were absolutely amazing! I made them a tad smaller just to make them go further but they came out perfect! This is now my go to recipe.
Delilah Smith says
They took a little longer than 10 minutes but so delicious I was about to just eat the dough!
Din says
Hi Shiran, could you please share your instructions for baking cookies after having frozen the dough? eg – ideal thawing time, and the baking time etc..?
Shiran says
If you shaped the cookies before freezing, you can bake them straight from the freezer and add about 1-2 minutes to the baking time (depending on their size). If you thawed the dough (usually overnight in the fridge), you don’t need to change the baking time.
SaguaroP says
Yum! Followed recipe except used crunchy, organic, natural Safeway brand peanut butter. Worked wonderfully. Your detailed notes were so helpful. Made 2 T around balls, I cooked until edges were just brown (was 10 minutes for me), took out, had to smoosh them down a bit as you described might be needed. Delicious! Made one batch and froze the rest of the dough in balls because I don’t trust myself to not eat all of them in one sitting….
Diatra says
Thank you!! I lost my favourite peanut butter and chocolate chips cookies recipe while moving two years ago, this one comes very close.
One thing though, the baking soda puzzled me a bit, since it won’t have enough acid in the recipe to react with. My vanilla is a bit acidic, but I don’t think that was enough. Was it, perhaps, supposed to be baking powder?
My cookies turned out delicious anyway.
Pam says
I have looked for a long time to find a recipe with more peanut butter. These are the best and so easy to make. The guy building houses next to me ask me to make him some every week. He loves them as much as we do.
Wolfgirl says
I used Skippy Extra Crunchy Peanut Butter and did bigger scoops. Took longer to cook and came out soft. Delicious too. Thank you for the recipe.
Christine says
When using natural peanut butter, using *half* the amount is PERFECT! I tried with the full amount of natural peanut butter, and the cookies were very dry and crumbly. But with half the amount, these are the best cookies I’ve ever made.
Noela Arcega says
Hello! Do you know the calorie distribution in this recipe? And is it okay if i reduce the sugars? Thank you!
Talia @ Pretty. Simple. Sweet. says
Hi Noela, I don’t calculate nutrition information but there are plenty of nutrition calculators you can use to figure this out:) I wouldn’t recommend reducing the sugar because it will change the chemical reactions in the baking process, altering the result.
Chrisp says
I loved these. I only had natural peanut butter, and decided to chance it. They came out great! I used the organic peanut butter from Costco, not sure if they makes a difference. My family loved these thank you.
Leah says
Great Recipe. I used Australian measurements, so 250g Butter (1 cup), 400g peanut butter.
Made 20 giant cookies and stuffed with 1/2tsp of peanut butter. O M G delicious. My sister said they are the best peanut butter cookies. Will be making it again and again. Thank you for a amazing recipe.
Talia @ Pretty. Simple. Sweet. says
Hi Leah, I’m so glad you enjoyed the recipe!
Terry K says
Is it normal that the oil, i assume if gathering on the dough after mixing it together and letting it sit?
thanks
Stephanie @ Pretty.Simple.Sweet. says
Hi Terry, I’m not sure what you’re asking here. Can you please clarify? There is no oil added in this recipe. Did you use a peanut butter that was oily? I recommend skippy or jif, not a natural peanut butter.
Carla says
First of all, I was wondering if you could possibly put 6000 more ads on your page so that it takes me an extra couple of minutes every time to reset the page and find the recipe that I’m following! The page is even doing it while I write this review, it is beyond annoying!
Having to scroll back through the ads that reset themselves every 20 seconds, preventing me from viewing the recipe as I’m using it is just as annoying as me trying to write this review and it resets every time another ad comes up and doesn’t allow me to continue my review.
You may want to look into that!
There is way too much peanut butter in this recipe rendering these cookies dry and crumbly.
I followed the recipe to the T and used top quality ingredients,chilled the dough like you directed, and they are an enormous disappointment and waste of my Saturday afternoon.
Stephanie @ Pretty.Simple.Sweet. says
Hi Carla, I’m sorry for the website resetting. Our page is currently undergoing construction and will be completed at the end of November to resolve technical issues. We apologize for the inconvenience and encourage our readers to his the “print recipe” button to take you to a clean, ad-free page on mobile or desktop. As far as the cookies, what peanut butter brand did you use? These turn out amazing every time I use creamy Skippy. It specifies in the recipe not to use a natural peanut butter. Most top quality peanut butters are considered natural peanut butters.
Autumn young says
Can I use salted butter, and if so how much salt?
Stephanie @ Pretty.Simple.Sweet. says
Hi Autumn, since salted butter sticks generally contain 1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon of salt, if you choose to use salted butter, then omit the salt entirely from the recipe. Hope this helps!
Autumn young says
It does thank you very much
Evelyn says
Very good, did not need to cill for an hour though.
Stephanie @ Pretty.Simple.Sweet. says
Hi Evelyn, so glad you loved these cookies.
Robin says
Best peanut butter chocolate chip cookies I’ve ever made. Tollhouse chocolate chip were my husbands fav until I made these and we haven’t made the other ones since! They are perfect every time.
Stephanie @ Pretty.Simple.Sweet. says
Thank you so much, Robin. So glad you love these!
Loretta says
How come your recipe does not allow me to pin it? The only button is the print button.
Stephanie @ Pretty.Simple.Sweet. says
Hi Loretta, you can hover over any image on the page and the pinterest button will appear in the upper left corner to pin it. Unfortunately every “feature” added to a blog has a very real and often expensive cost. We would love to purchase this feature in the recipe card itself, but cannot do so at this current moment.
Nilha Pearce says
Delicious cookies!
Barb says
We made these tonight. They were absolutely delicious!! I highly recommend making these cookies. Thank you for sharing your recipe.
Stephanie @ Pretty.Simple.Sweet. says
So glad you loved this cookie recipe, Barb! 🙂
Pat says
Taste is great but they are so delicate, they fall apart.
Melana says
Definitely listen to the note on the no natural peanut butter! That’s all I had so went ahead and tried it but they ended up more dry and not as sweet as expected surely because there is no oil or added sugar in natural. But if that’s all you have maybe add in some oil of some kind about 1/4 cup and maybe 1/4 cup more of sugar too