Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies are soft, thick, chewy, and made completely from scratch with simple ingredients. Adding chocolate chips to peanut butter cookies elevates them to a new level!
Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies have become a staple around my house since I discovered this recipe. I know, I know. Everyone says that their cookie recipe is the best and that doesn’t always mean much, but I promise that this is the BEST peanut butter cookie recipe you have ever tried.
Check out these 5-star reviews from other readers! ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Why are these Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies the best?
- Perfect texture. I tried dozens of peanut butter chocolate chip cookies and many of them are crumbly and dry. Not this one! These cookies are soft, thick, and chewy – just like you want a peanut butter cookie to be!
- Simple recipe. All of the ingredients are likely to be in your pantry. The dough doesn’t require any chilling or extra steps – just mix everything together and bake the cookies!
- Milk. I think it’s the 3 tablespoons of milk in the recipe that sets these cookies above other similar recipes. You only need a little bit, but I think it helps to make the cookies so soft and chewy.
Ingredients in Chocolate Chip Peanut Butter Cookies
Peanut butter: For best results, use regular peanut butter. Every time I have made these cookies I have used regular creamy peanut butter (like Jif or a store-brand alternative). Several readers have commented that the cookies do not turn out as well when using natural-style peanut butter.
Butter: I use salted butter, but you can use unsalted if you prefer. No margarine! Make sure the butter is softened to room temperature, but not melted before adding to the recipe.
Sugars: Can’t leave the sugar out – kind of an important ingredient in cookies! Make sure your brown sugar isn’t dried out or stale.
Egg: We only need 1 large egg, but it helps to bind the dough together so that the cookies cook properly and don’t crumble.
Milk: Just a little bit of milk, but it is needed to add a bit of moisture to the cookie dough. Any type of milk will work just fine!
Vanilla: I suggest using a good-quality vanilla extract or a Vanilla Bean Paste.
Flour: I usually use all-purpose flour, but you can use bread flour, or even pastry flour in this recipe.
Baking powder: Leavening agent in the cookies. Make sure your baking powder isn’t old or expired for best results.
Salt: Just a little bit, but don’t leave it out!
Chocolate chips: I usually use semi-sweet chocolate chips, but milk chocolate chips are fantastic as well. Or dark chocolate. Or throw in some peanut butter chips. A combination of chocolate works too! I like to swap out the regular sized chips for mini chips sometimes too! Or you can leave them out completely – peanut butter cookies are great on their own too!
Tips for making Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies
Full instructions on how to make these cookies are found below in the recipe card, but I want to make sure everyone has these tips.
- Lightly flatten the cookies before baking. Make sure to slightly press peanut butter cookies on the top with a fork before baking. This helps the cookies to bake more evenly since the peanut butter prevents the cookies from spreading very much. If you don’t like the look of the fork marks, you can slightly flatten the tops with a wooden spoon or the bottom of a glass.
- Use a cookie scoop. Using a cookie scoop is the quickest way to scoop cookie dough, and it helps to ensure that all of your cookies are the same size and shape.
- Make sure to use regular peanut butter (Jif, Skippy, etc.). Some readers have found that the cookies don’t turn out as well when using natural peanut butter. If you prefer to use natural peanut butter, make sure that the oil is well blended before adding the peanut butter to the other ingredients (this is more successful if you use an electric mixer to blend the peanut butter until the oil is fully incorporated).
Can you freeze peanut butter cookies?
Peanut butter cookies are easily frozen, either before or after baking them. I prefer to form the cookie dough balls and freeze them so that I can pull them and bake them whenever I need them. This way the cookies will be warm and fresh every time!
FREEZING COOKIE DOUGH
To freeze the cookie dough, place the balls on wax paper on a cookie sheet and freeze for about 30-45 minutes. Then you can place all of the frozen cookie dough balls in an airtight container or Ziplock freezer bag. When you are ready to bake them, just pull them out and place them on a cookie sheet, let them thaw for about 10-15 minutes, and then bake as usual.
FREEZING BAKED COOKIES
You can also freeze the cookies once they have been baked. Just make sure they have cooled all the way to room temperature and then place them in an airtight container in the freezer. I like to wrap them in plastic wrap and then place them in a freezer bag or airtight container to make sure to prevent freezer burn. If stored properly, peanut butter cookies will stay good in the freezer for 2-3 months.
PEANUT BUTTER CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIE RECIPE
Ingredients
- 1 cup peanut butter
- ½ cup butter softened
- ½ cup white sugar
- ½ cup brown sugar
- 1 egg
- 3 Tbsp milk
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 ½ cups flour
- ¾ tsp baking powder
- ¼ tsp salt
- 1 ½ cups semi-sweet chocolate chips optional
Instructions
- With a hand mixer, cream together the peanut butter, butter, white sugar and brown sugar until blended.
- Beat in the egg, milk, and vanilla.
- Combine the flour, baking powder and salt in a separate bowl.
- Add flour mixture to the peanut butter mixture and mix together. Stir in chocolate chips at this point if desired.
- Scoop tablespoonfuls of dough and roll into balls.
- Place cookies 2 inches apart on ungreased cookie sheets (I used parchment paper since my cookies tend to burn on my darker pans). Press each ball once with a fork.
- Bake for 8-10 minutes at 375. Don’t overcook! These cookies are much better soft and just barely cooked all the way through! Enjoy!
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How do you keep peanut butter cookies soft and fresh?
If you don’t eat all the peanut butter cookies within the first day or two, you can keep them soft and fresh by placing half a slice of white bread with the cookies in an airtight container or Ziplock bag. Make sure the bag or container is sealed well. The cookies will absorb moisture from the bread and stay softer for a longer amount of time this way!
Why do peanut butter cookies always have fork marks on the top?
Peanut butter makes cookies more dense, so they need to be slightly flattened before baking so that they can cook more evenly. There is nothing worse than a cookie with burnt edges and a doughy middle! My kids like to help make the criss-cross pattern on the tops of the cookies, but if you don’t like the pattern, you can just use the back of a wooden spoon to slightly flatten the tops before placing the peanut butter cookies in the oven.
More delicious peanut butter cookie recipes to try:
More delicious peanut butter cookie recipes to try: - Adding candy to cookies is always a great idea! Peanut Butter Butterfinger Cookies, Peanut Butter Cup Cookies, and Snickers Peanut Butter Cookies are some of our favorites.
- Running short on time? These No-Bake Peanut Butter Cookies only take a few minutes to put together, no oven is required.
- I love oatmeal in my peanut butter cookies. Five Chip Peanut Butter Oatmeal Cookies have five different kinds of chips in them! Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Cookies combine my three favorite cookies into one delicious cookie.
Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies are soft and chewy, and they turn out perfect every time! Add chocolate chips to this classic peanut butter cookie recipe to take these cookies to the next level!
Jane Saunders says
The reviews people have already left speak volumes for this recipe. Simply one of the best around and perfect for my family who also don’t like too much chocolate overtaking the PB flavour.
Judith says
I like these cookies but I think they could use a little less flour.
Karen Huff says
These turned out beautifully. Everyone in the office LOVED them, and my family is now addicted. Thank you!
Jessica says
So glad you enjoyed them Karen! And way to go for sharing! 😉
Jarry says
I consider myself a pretty good baker. I am not sure what’s going on with this recipe. But I followed it to perfection and when I took the cookie off the sheet it crumbles into dust? Is it because there’s only one egg?
Nellie says
I’m not sure what happened- it definitely shouldn’t be crumbly! This dough is actually even a little bit more wet than other cookie dough. Did you add the milk? What type of peanut butter did you use?
Annette Foster says
Was exactly what I wanted. I wanted only a hint of chocolate so I only used about a third of a cup. Love mini chips. When you want just a little chocolate. I sprinkled some course sanding sugar on top.
pinoybay says
Looking a good recipie but the result will be shown when i make this for my family..!
Kim Adams says
I made these the other day . My son is 7 and loves them. He doesn’t eat chocolate. I just mad some without . I am making more right now . They are the best cookie I have made . Perfect combination not to sweet.
Thank you
lambingan says
could I use another sweetener instead of 10x sugar? Maybe powdered organic stevia? I make everything using all organic. I will even use organic graham crackers and organic p.b. and butter in mine. And organic chocolate! Maybe I can use organic brown rice syrup?
Nellie says
I haven’t tried with other sweeteners but I’m guessing they would work fine!
Anne Van Wicklen says
After testing out several other recipes that left me feeling “meh,” I settled on these, primarily because I was looking for a recipe that had more of a peanut butter flavor. These were by far my favorite of all the ones I tested. They are the perfect blend of peanut butter, chocolate and sweetness. I did add two cups of chocolate chips as opposed to one and a half cups, because my husband likes them more chocolate-y. I probably would have preferred them with the amount the recipe calls for.
Jessica says
So glad you enjoyed them Anne!
Carol says
I had the same problem as the review a few above mine. I thought the dough was too wet so I added about an eighth of a cup more of flour. They were still pretty wet. But I had to get them in the oven. They took a lot longer than the recipe. More like 15 min. And still no browning on top or bottom. When I took them out they were crumbly still. I used Jeff peanut butter — and also followed the recipe to the T. Has anybody else found a solution to this?
Pinoy Teleserye says
The best cookie recipe I have ever used . thanks for information , keep it up.
Alison says
Thanks so much Pinoy!
pinoytv says
could I use another sweetener instead of 10x sugar? Maybe powdered organic stevia? I make everything using all organic. I will even use organic graham crackers and organic p.b. and butter in mine. And organic chocolate! Maybe I can use organic brown rice syrup?
Jessica says
I’ve not tried all of those variations, but I find cookie recipes are pretty forgiving! We haven’t had great luck with natural peanut butter though, just FYI.
Vivian Lee says
I made these yesterday and I loved them! I wanted to comment because of the disclaimer you made about using regular p.b. over natural. I used natural because it’s all I buy and I couldn’t imagine them being better. I followed your advice about softening the butter (not melting it) and I didn’t overcook them. I added a touch more salt to make up for the lack of salt in the natural p.b.. I shared them with several people and got rave reviews. Definitely going to make them again!
Vickie says
This recipe is great! I followed the recipe exactly and it made the same amount of cookies listed. The cookies are fantastic. My husband agrees with me-this recipe goes into the mix of tried and true recipes. Thank you for taking the time to create this recipe. Thank you very much for allowing cookie lovers like me the opportunity to find it.
Jason says
Very tasty! The next time I make these, I will probably only use one cup of chocolate chips as the recipe amount made it difficult for me to get the dough to hold together.
Ann says
Too soft and not chewy like I expected.
Catherine Van Loock says
Excellent recipe. Only thing I did differently is about half the recipe I smashed down with a fork, other half I didn’t. The ones I didn’t smash down were “cakier”. Both were positively delish! Excellent flavor. Thank you for the new recipe.
Jessica says
So glad to hear Catherine!
Amanda says
I have a tendency to skip right to the recipe and not read anything else…I used natural peanut butter and they were awful. If I pick up some regular peanut butter I will try again.
Jessica says
Dang it- yeah, natural peanut butter doesn’t work well in cookies unless it’s specified in the recipe. It has a very unique consistency!
Tiffany Kelleher says
I want to try these! But I don’t have cow’s milk, only almond milk. Would that affect the outcome too much?
Nellie says
Almond milk should be fine! Enjoy the cookies!
Season Cox says
Wonderful recipe
Carolyn says
My mom is a peanut butter expert and she absolutely LOVED that I made these for her for mother’s day!
Amazing and so delicious. Even great the next few days (with coffee I might add)! We used mini chocolate chips because that’s all I had and still turned out great.
Nellie says
I love using mini chocolate chips too! So glad your mom enjoyed them!