Peanut Butter Cookies
Peanut butter cookies are tender, crumbly and slightly salty, with that unmistakable criss-cross fork pattern. The peanut butter brings both fat and a deep roasted flavour, so they need less butter than most cookies. We pull them from the oven while still soft; they finish setting on the tray and stay tender inside.
- Prep
- 20 min
- Cook
- 24 min
- Rest
- 30 min
- Total
- 1 h 14 min
- Servings
- 24
- Level
- Easy
- Per serving
- 140 kcal
Ingredients
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What to use instead
For more crunch, use chunky peanut butter, and raise the salt to 0.5 tsp if your peanut butter is unsalted.
Makes: 24 cookies, 7 cm
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Method
Oven
180 °C · top and bottom heat, no fan
With a fan: 160 °C
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Step 1: Cream butter and peanut butter
Beat the soft butter with the peanut butter and both sugars for 2 minutes, until light and creamy. Add the egg and vanilla and beat until smooth.
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Step 2: Add the flour
Mix the flour with the baking soda and salt, add to the butter mixture and stir with a spatula into a soft dough that doesn't stick to your hands.
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Step 3: Chill the dough
Cover and chill for 30 minutes so the cookies spread less and the fork pattern stays crisp.
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Step 4: Shape and press
Heat the oven to 180°C (350°F) and line a baking sheet with paper. Roll the dough into 25–30 g balls and space them 5 cm apart. Dip a fork in sugar and press each ball twice in a criss-cross to about 1 cm thick.
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Step 5: Bake the cookies
Bake for 10–12 minutes, until the edges are barely golden and the centres still look soft. Bake the second batch the same way.
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Step 6: Cool on the tray
Leave on the tray for 5–10 minutes, as they're very fragile when hot, then move to a rack.
Tips & variations
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Tip
Regular smooth peanut butter works best. Natural peanut butter that separates makes drier, crumblier cookies, so stir it well before measuring.
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Variation
Skip the fork: press a thumbprint into each ball and fill it with raspberry jam after baking.
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Swap
For more crunch, use chunky peanut butter, and raise the salt to 0.5 tsp if your peanut butter is unsalted.
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Storage
Keep in an airtight jar at room temperature for up to 5 days.
Nutrition
| 1 serving | Whole dish 24 servings | |
|---|---|---|
| Energy | 140 kcal | 3,360 kcal |
| Protein | 3 g | 72 g |
| Fat | 8 g | 192 g |
| Carbohydrates | 13 g | 312 g |
Approximate values calculated from standard ingredient data.
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