Bakery Style Peanut Butter Cookies | Soft Chewy Cookies Everyone Loves
Soft, chewy bakery-style peanut butter cookies with crisp edges and a rich salty-sweet flavor. Simple techniques like chilling the dough and a gentle bake keep them thick and tender.
Ingredients
Ingredients
- 1 cup creamy peanut butter (not natural stir-in)
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened (1 stick)
- 3/4 cup packed light brown sugar
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 1 large egg
- 1 large egg yolk, room temperature
- 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt
- 2 tablespoons granulated sugar for rolling (optional)
- Flaky sea salt for sprinkling (optional)
- 1/2 cup mini chocolate chips or chopped peanuts for mix-ins (optional)
Instructions
Instructions
- Line two baking sheets with parchment and preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C) with racks in the upper-middle and lower-middle positions.
- Whisk the flour, baking soda, baking powder, and fine sea salt together in a bowl until combined.
- In a large bowl, beat the softened butter, peanut butter, brown sugar, and granulated sugar on medium speed for 2–3 minutes until light and fluffy.
- Add the egg, egg yolk, and vanilla, and mix until smooth and glossy, scraping the bowl as needed.
- Add the dry ingredients and mix on low just until the flour disappears; do not overmix.
- Fold in mini chocolate chips or chopped peanuts if using.
- Cover the bowl and refrigerate the dough for 30–45 minutes to chill.
- Scoop 2-tablespoon portions of dough (about 35–40 g each), roll if needed, and roll in granulated sugar if desired.
- Arrange the dough balls 2 inches apart on the prepared baking sheets.
- Use a fork to gently press a crisscross pattern on top, keeping cookies about 1/2 inch thick.
- Bake for 9–11 minutes, rotating the baking sheets halfway through, until edges look set and centers are slightly puffy and soft.
- Sprinkle with flaky sea salt if desired, cool on the sheets for 5–7 minutes, then transfer to a rack to cool completely.
Notes
Smaller 1-tablespoon cookies bake in 7–9 minutes; jumbo 3-tablespoon cookies bake in 11–13 minutes. Avoid natural drippy peanut butter, do not overmix after adding flour, and slightly underbake for soft centers. Store airtight at room temperature for 4–5 days with a slice of bread to keep them soft. Freeze baked cookies up to 2 months or freeze scooped dough and bake from frozen, adding 1–2 minutes.