Name: Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 11 min
Total time: 10 min
Yield: 12
Cuisine: American
Ingredients: 4 tablespoons (2 ounces) of unsalted butter, softened; 1/3 cup natural peanut butter; 3/4 cup + 2 tablespoons dark brown sugar; 1 large egg; 1 teaspoon vanilla extract; 1 cup all-purpose flour; 3/4 teaspoon baking powder; 1/4 teaspoon baking soda; 1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt; 1 cup chocolate chips or chunks

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If these aren’t everyone’s favorite cookie flavor, I think they’re lying. My Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies are thick, chewy and rich. They use less butter to amp up the peanut butter flavor, and they don’t require a chill time before baking!

Peanut butter chocolate chip cookies on wire rack with scoop of peanut butter.

When it comes to filling the Christmas cookie jar, you might think that peanut butter chocolate chip cookies are too boring. What other time of year can we really make snowflake cookies or almond bar cookies? It seems like they should have priority in December, right?

However, I’m begging you to make these, because they’re a fan favorite. They will be the first thing eaten from the Christmas cookies box.

My peanut butter chocolate chip cookies have the perfect dense, chewy bite. They will not spread out too much in the oven, because we’re replacing some of the butter with peanut butter. They’re full of chocolate chips, and the sprinkle of salt on top is what makes you keep going back for another one!

Ingredients

Little bowls of baking supplies on a marble counter.

Butter. Four tablespoons (half a stick; 2 ounces) of unsalted butter. This recipe doesn’t call for much butter, because we’re replacing most of it with peanut butter.
Peanut Butter. One-third of a cup of natural peanut butter. I like the one with no additional hydrogenated oils, and it’s okay if it needs to be stirred before using!
Brown Sugar. My secret tip for peanut butter chocolate chip cookies is to use dark brown sugar! Dark brown sugar has more molasses than light brown sugar, and this is what makes these cookies dense and chewy!
Egg. One large egg, beaten.
Vanilla. I really recommend real, pure vanilla extract. Your baked goods will taste better when you use the real stuff, I promise.
Flour. One cup of all-purpose flour.
Baking Powder. Three-quarters of a teaspoon of baking powder.
Baking Soda. A small amount (1/4 teaspoon) of baking soda.
Salt. Please don’t skip the 1/2 teaspoon of salt. It balances the sweetness here!
Chocolate Chips. One cup of chocolate chips or chocolate chunks. You can also chop up a 6-ounce chocolate bar to make 1 cup of chips if you want extra melty gooey cookies!

How to Make Easy Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies

Preheat the oven to 350-degrees Fahrenheit. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. You can also use a silicone mat, but these cookies don’t spread too much so you should be fine without one!

Brown bowl with cubed butter and brown sugar.

Brown bowl with brown batter and a raw egg and vanilla extract on top.

Beat together the butter, peanut butter and brown sugar with an electric mixer on medium speed for about 60 seconds.

Next, add the egg and vanilla, and beat just until combined.

Next, add the egg and vanilla, and beat again.

White flour on top of brown batter in brown bowl.

Chocolate chips in peanut butter cookie dough batter.

Then, carefully sprinkle the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt evenly over the surface of the dough. Beat just until no streaks of flour remain (do not over-mix).

Stir in the chocolate chips.

Cookie dough pressed flat in a bowl, and quartered by eye.

One dozen peanut butter chocolate chip cookies on a baking sheet.

To evenly divide the dough quickly, press the dough flat in the bowl. Divide it in quarters to get 3 cookies from each quarter, for a total of 12 cookies.

Roll the dough balls lightly in your hands and evenly space them on the prepared cooking sheet. Press extra chocolate chips on top and a sprinkle of salt. Bake for 11 minutes.

Peanut butter chocolate chip cookies stacked on each other with a bite missing.

Recipe Variations

Nut Butter – I’m happy to report that his recipe works with almond butter, cashew butter, and even sunflower seed butter. I think my favorite is almond butter, but my kids like peanut butter so that’s what I usually use. Again, make sure the nut butter is minimally processed for the best (non-oily) results.
Brown Sugar – This recipe explicitly calls for dark brown sugar, because the extra molasses makes these cookies soft and chewy. However, if you only have light brown sugar, the recipe will still work just fine!
Chocolate – This recipe works with chocolate chips, chocolate chunks, or chopped chocolate. You can also experiment with white chocolate chips, or even peanut butter chips for double the flavor!

How to Store Leftover Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies

The best way to store leftover cookies is in an airtight container on the counter at room temperature. You can refrigerate for extended storage or even freeze flat. Defrost at room temperature and serve.

Yield: 12