Classic Peanut Butter Cookies

Recipe by PJ Hamel
219 Reviews 4.6 out of 5 stars

A classic that never goes out of style, these easy peanut butter cookies are the kind you crave with a cold glass of milk — simple, nostalgic, and undeniably satisfying. Made with brown sugar for rich flavor and a soft, chewy texture, they’re everything you want in a peanut butter cookie. Use butter for a more traditional flavor, or go with shortening if you want a cookie that stays fresh for days. Either way, they bake up golden brown and have just the right amount of peanutty flavor.

Prep
15 mins
Bake
12 to 16 mins
Total
27 mins
Yield
about 2 dozen cookies
An assortment of Classic Peanut Butter Cookies on a kitchen table next to a glass of milk with a straw - select to zoom
An assortment of Classic Peanut Butter Cookies on a kitchen table next to a glass of milk with a straw - select to zoom
Freshly baked Classic Peanut Butter Cookies on a sheet pan - select to zoom
A baker pressing scooped balls of peanut butter cookie dough with the back of a fork on a baking sheet - select to zoom
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Instructions

Prevent your screen from going dark as you follow along.

  1. Preheat the oven to 350°F. Lightly grease (or line with parchment) two baking sheets.

  2. Beat together the shortening or butter, sugars, egg, vanilla, and peanut butter until smooth.

  3. Add the flour, baking soda, and salt to the peanut-butter mixture, beating gently until everything is well combined. It may take awhile for this rather dry dough to come together; and when it does, it'll be quite stiff. Only if necessary, drizzle in enough water to make the dough cohesive.

  4. Drop the cookie dough by tablespoonfuls onto the prepared baking sheets (a tablespoon cookie scoop works well here), leaving 2" between them.

  5. Use a fork to flatten each cookie to about 1/2" thick, making a cross-hatch design.

  6. Bake the peanut butter cookies for 12 to 16 minutes, until they're barely beginning to brown around the edges; the tops won't have browned. Remove them from the oven, and cool on a rack.

  7. Store well-wrapped peanut butter cookies at room temperature for a week or so; freeze for longer storage.

Tips from our Bakers

  • For a pretty circular design on top of your peanut butter cookies, flatten with the end of a food processor's plastic "pusher" (if it has a circular design on the end). For other imaginative ways to flatten your cookies, see our blog post, Drop cookies: beyond the fork.

  • Looking for a gluten-free version of this recipe? Find it here: Gluten-Free Classic Peanut Butter Cookies.

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