Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies — These are hands down the best peanut butter cookies I’ve ever made. Know that I don’t say that lightly! They’re melt-in-your mouth soft and chewy, and extremely moist!
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BEST EVER Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies
I’m not one to throw around labels like ‘The Best’ or ‘Best Of’ if I really don’t think something is. When people talk and every other thing is amazing, life-changing, or the best, I tend to not take them seriously.
But I can proudly say, these peanut butter chocolate chip cookies get my vote as “The Best” peanut butter cookies I’ve ever made.
They’re the easiest cookies you’ll ever make, with only six ingredients, and one of them is vanilla, which hardly counts. The recipe is naturally gluten-free because there’s no flour, and it’s one egg away from being vegan.
Instead of granulated sugar, this peanut butter chocolate chip cookie recipe uses all brown sugar. Why? Because it helps baked goods stay moist and soft, and it adds greater depth of flavor than granulated sugar!
The cookie dough itself is as robustly peanut butter flavored as you can get. There’s no butter and no flour to take away any of the intensity of flavor. Just pure peanut butter intensity.
The edges have a bit of chewiness to them, the interior is so soft and tender, the peanut flavor is distinctly present, and chunks and rivers of dark chocolate ooze everywhere.
It’s hard to believe there’s no butter, no flour, and no granulated sugar in them. They’re my definition of the perfect cookie.
Ingredients in Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies
Here’s what I used in these chocolate chip peanut butter cookies:
- Creamy peanut butter
- Light brown sugar
- Egg
- Vanilla extract
- Baking soda
- Chocolate chips or chunks
A Note About the Amount of Vanilla Called For
I am a vanilla fiend and added it amply enough to matter — 1 tablespoon, to be exact. No more of this 1/2 teaspoon business!
However, if you’re one of those people who prefer less, go with less. I go with more.
How to Make Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies
Making soft and chewy peanut butter cookies with chocolate chips is so easy! Just make sure you plan ahead, because the cookie dough MUST be chilled before baking it.
Here’s an overview of the recipe steps:
- Add the peanut butter and light brown sugar to the bowl of a stand mixer. (Spraying the measuring cup with cooking spray will help it plop out easier.)
- To the peanut butter and brown sugar, add an egg, vanilla extract, and baking soda. Mix all the ingredients until well-combined.
- Add the chocolate and beat momentarily to incorporate.
- As tempting as it is to bake the cookies right away because the dough is just so good, it must be chilled for at least 2 hours before being baked for thicker, puffier cookies.
- Using a medium-sized two-inch cookie scoop, form the dough mounds. This translates to almost 2 tablespoons of dough, or about 1.60-ounces by weight.
- Place the dough onto baking sheets about two inches apart, about 8 per tray. Prior to baking, flatten the mounds slightly. If your dough is very well-chilled, you can flatten them a bit more so they don’t stay mounded up in little puffballs while baking, just don’t over-flatten them.
- Bake at 350ºF oven for 8 to 10 minutes.
A Note About the Bake Time
I recommend baking the cookies at the lower end of the bake time range. The cookies in the photos were baked for 8 minutes exactly, with the trays rotated once at the 4-minute mark.
The chocolate chip peanut butter cookies will look underdone at 8 minutes, but firm up as they cool. Let them cool on the baking trays for 5 to 10 minutes before moving them.
If you like crispy and crunchy peanut butter cookies, this probably isn’t the recipe for you since these are all about soft, chewy, and melty. But if you prefer slightly more well-done cookies, bake them for 9-ish minutes, maybe 10.
I would not bake them longer than 10 minutes or they’ll set up too firm and crunchy as they cool, and you’ll miss out on the ooey, gooey, melt-in-your mouth qualities, which are make these the best chocolate chip peanut butter cookies!
Recipe FAQs
Of course! The honey roasted peanut butter makes for a slightly sweeter cookie than using regular peanut butter, and it’s a great contrast to the bittersweet dark chocolate. However, use what you have!
For my version, I used 1 cup Peanut Pan Creamy Honey Roasted Peanut Butter and I don’t advocate using natural or Homemade Peanut Butter.
As lovely as homemade peanut butter is for eating with a spoon, spreading on toast, or making pans of bars with, it lacks the structure that store-bought peanut butter has.
Because these cookies have no flour, which would lend structure, using peanut butter that’s oily, natural, and loose is going to result in cookies that are loose and may not bake up as thick.
You could try using natural peanut butter — and I’ve seen some people have success with it — but I get much better results with commercial. Good old-fashioned Jif, Skippy, or Peter Pan are my recommendations.
I don’t care for nuts in cookies, generally speaking, and creamy peanut butter is the only way for me, but if you like little pebbles in your cookies, go with crunchy.
Use whichever you have on hand to make these accidentally gluten-free peanut butter chocolate chip cookies!
I like the darkness and slight bitterness of chopped chocolate, contrasted with the honey in the peanut butter, and with molasses that’s naturally found in brown sugar. Most semi-sweet chocolate chips are in the 50 to 55% range, and I relish the extra bump in dark chocolate intensity.
However, chocolate chips are definitely the easier and quicker option since you don’t have to chop them up before throwing into the dough. In short: use what you have!
You probably can, but I’ve never tried it myself so I can’t say for sure. But I imagine substituting chopped nuts for part of the chocolate chunks would be fine.
Yes, pre-baked peanut butter chocolate chip cookies will keep in the freezer for up to 4 months.
Alternatively, unbaked cookie dough can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days, or in the freezer for up to 4 months, so consider baking only as many cookies as desired and save the remaining dough to be baked in the future when desired.
Storage Instructions
These flourless peanut butter chocolate cookies will keep airtight at room temperature for up to 1 week. You can also freeze the baked cookies for up to 3 months.
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Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies
Ingredients
- 1 cup creamy peanut butter, I prefer creamy honey roasted; plain or crunchy may be used; do not use natural or homemade peanut butter – see below *
- 1 cup light brown sugar, packed
- 1 large egg
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 6 ounces semi-sweet, dark, or bittersweet chocolate, chopped (1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips may be substituted)
Instructions
- To the mixing bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, combine peanut butter, brown sugar, egg, vanilla, and beat on medium-high speed until well-combined and the sugar is fully incorporated and is mixture is no longer gritty or granular. Stop to scrape down the bowl as necessary.
- Add the baking soda and beat to incorporate.
Add the chocolate and beat to just incorporate; don’t overmix or the nice chocolate chunks will break down. - Using a medium 2-inch cookie scoop, form two-tablespoon mounds. If chocolate is falling out of dough since there is an abundance, roll ball between palms to encourage it to stay in the dough.
- Place mounds on a large plate, flatten mounds slightly, cover with plasticwrap, and refrigerate for at least 2 hours, or up to 5 days, before baking. Do not bake with warm dough because cookies will spread and bake thinner and flatter.
- Preheat oven to 350F, line a baking sheet with a Silpat or spray with cooking spray.
- Place mounds on baking sheet, spaced at least 2 inches apart (I bake 8 cookies per sheet) and bake for 8 to 10 minutes, or until edges are set and tops are barely set, even if slightly underbaked in the center. Watch them very closely after 7 minutes and I recommend not baking longer than 10 minutes. Cookies firm up as they cool, and baking too long results in cookies that become too crisp and hard. The cookies in the photos were baked for 8 minutes, with trays rotated at the 4-minute mark, and have chewy edges with pillowy soft centers.
- Allow cookies to cool on the baking sheet for 5 to 10 minutes before removing and transferring to a rack to finish cooling.
Notes
- *Although natural peanut butter or homemade peanut butter may work, I recommend using storebought peanut butter like Jif, Skippy, Peter Pan or similar so that cookies bake up thicker and spread less. Using natural or homemade peanut butter tends to result in thinner and flatter cookies that are prone to spreading.
- Cookies will keep airtight at room temperature for up to 1 week, or in the freezer for up to 4 months. Alternatively, unbaked cookie dough can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days, or in the freezer for up to 4 months, so consider baking only as many cookies as desired and save the remaining dough to be baked in the future when desired.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
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Great recipe! I’ve tried this twice and both times I failed at creating the same beautiful cookies in your photos. The first time I used natural peanut butter (obviously my mistake) and the batter was so crumbly that it was difficult to form into balls. When they baked, they kept its shape and didn’t flatten at all. Then I got regular creamy Jiffy and the batter was extremely oily. When it baked, they flattened out really thin. Both times I kept the batter in the frig overnight. What did I do wrong? Both versions tasted the same but I can’t get the texture right! I’d love to see your step by step pictures to see what the batter should look like. Thank you!
1st time – we know the problem, natural PB
2nd time “Then I got regular creamy Jiffy and the batter was extremely oily. When it baked, they flattened out really thin.” – That sounds to me like the baking soda isn’t working properly, or the sugar is very moist, and when it’s heated, sugar liquifies and spreads and some types are more prone to this than others (I use C & H brand light brown sugar, or in other recipes same brand but their Dark brown). When you put the cookie dough on the baking tray, they should be not as high as golf balls, but fairly domed.
See this post midway down for what the cookie mounds should look like going into the oven – same idea. Good luck!
https://www.loveveggiesandyoga.com/2013/02/soft-batch-dark-brown-sugar-coconut-oil-cookies.html
Hi I was wondering if you knew the fat, carbs,protein, and fiber per cookie or for the batch. I’m on WW and need to know the point value. Thanks!
No but use one of those online calculators and DIY!
I’m on WW too and I did the recipe as is (except I had to plug in SunButter b/c we have a peanut allergy in our house but the caloric info is basically the same for it and peanut butter) and they were 8pts+ a piece using 12 servings.
I made these for Valentine’s Day last night and they were a HUGE hit! Thank you for posting this! Three people have already asked me how to make them. So good!
That’s awesome! Thanks for LMK they were such a hit with you and at least 3 more!
These are fantastic! I will be able to make them for all of my friends and family and they’ll never believe that they are gluten-free. Thanks!
Glad you like them and your friends, too!
Seriously…these are the BEST COOKIES EVER!!! I’ve now made them twice, and it’s truly amazing that I haven’t just kept stuffing them into my face until they are gone. I use PB&Co Dark Chocolate dreams and 82% cocoa…wow…just…wow. Thank you for sharing! :-)
Cara thanks for coming back to LMK they’ve been the best cookies ever! What high praise and that you’ve already made them twice and are loving them! Yay! Thanks for coming back to LMK!
This recipe looks incredible, but I only have a hand held mixer. Would this still work for the recipe or throw off the dough?
Use it and just take your time and really mix things well – enjoy!
Hello! I tried to make these today! I used my hand mixer and mixed it for about 10-15 minutes and it remained grainy. I finally just decided to put in the baking soda, mix, and then add the chocolate chunks. I tested the dough to see if it would come together well, and it did, so I’m hopeful that they will still be delicious even though the dough never creamed up! I will let you know! Maybe this will be a good excuse to convince my husband i need to get a stand-mixer. :)
Did you read the part in my post about adding a bit more peanut butter if you were having a hard time getting the dough to combine? That could help next time. Everyone’s PB is different.
Not sure if your dough wasn’t combining OR…if it’s a mixer situation on your end and your machine isn’t able to get past the grainy and into the smooth territory?
Regardless, if you mixed for 15 mins and chilled the dough before baking, you should be fine. LMK how they turn out! And if you can convince your husband for a new mixer :)
Yikes! This homemade butter sounds like it will be evil around me. Good stuff :)
Thank you so much for the amazing recipe! Half of the cookies were gone in the first hour :)
Thanks for coming back to tell me they were a huge hit! I appreciate it and glad you tried them! :)
Can you you almond butter or seed butters like sunflower seeds in place of peanut butter?
You can use anything you want and see if it will work! I don’t know. My guess is that the cookies will spread quite dramatically with either, but you never know til you try!
Is it normal for the dough to be super oily before putting it in the fridge? A bunch of chocolate chips wouldn’t combine because of it. I’m hoping it is easier to work with after it gets a little colder. Could I have messed up something?
Oily but not obscenely oily…but yes, there is no flour to bind it so it’s oilier than other doughs. And choc chips DO fall out b/c there are so many :) but as the dough cools it becomes much easier to work with…you’re going to be fine. LMK how you like them!
mmm have to try it gr8 reviews