These are soft-baked and super thick peanut butter cookies topped with Reese’s peanut butter cups. They’re exactly like peanut butter blossoms but with a peanut butter cup!
Using my absolute favorite peanut butter cookies recipe as the base, go ahead and stick a peanut butter cup inside after baking. You won’t regret it. 🙂
Today’s peanut butter cup cookies are complete with sparkly sugar. And like these peanut butter blossoms, they’re guaranteed to be the thickest peanut butter cookies you ever taste!
Have you ever tried my recipe for super soft peanut butter cookies? It’s lived on my website for years and I have many cookie recipes using the same dough:
- Peanut Butter M&M Cookies
- Peanut Butter Valentine’s Day Cookies
- Peanut Butter Blossoms
- PB&J Thumbprints
- Reese’s Stuffed Peanut Butter Cookies
Today’s peanut butter cup cookies are my personal take on traditional peanut butter blossoms, which are typically made with chocolate kiss candies. I simply used peanut butter cups instead. Whenever there’s an opportunity for more peanut butter, just say yes.
How to Make Peanut Butter Cup Cookies
They’re snap to make! Simply mix up the peanut butter cookie dough, chill for about 1 hour, then roll into balls.
- Baking tip: Roll the cookie dough balls in a little granulated sugar. This gives the finished peanut butter cup cookies a little sparkle.
Bake the cookies for only about 10 minutes.
- Baking tip: The trick to their softness is slightly underbaking, so make sure you don’t keep them in the oven for too long. The cookies will be very puffy and soft-looking, but they’ll set as they cool.
Cool the cookies for about 5 minutes, then press a peanut butter cup on top.
- Baking tip: Quickly transfer the cookies to a plate and freeze for about 10 minutes or until the peanut butter cup has set. Some peanut butter cups will melt into the cookies, but that’s completely fine.
You will LOVE how thick these peanut butter cup cookies are! If you have any cookies left by day 4 or 5, you’ll be pleasantly surprised that they remain just as soft. In fact, these cookies get softer as the days go by! They completely defy cookie science. And I love it.
If you…
- Have a peanut butter lover in your life, you have to make these cookies.
- Love peanut butter as much as I do, you have to make these cookies.
- Have any taste buds at all, you have to make these cookies. Case closed.
And while I have you… if you love these flavors plus the added texture from oatmeal-based cookies, these peanut butter cup oatmeal cookies are for you, too!
Print
Peanut Butter Cup Cookies
- Prep Time: 1 hour, 30 minutes (includes chilling)
- Cook Time: 12 minutes
- Total Time: 1 hour, 45 minutes
- Yield: 24 cookies
- Category: Cookies
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Description
Soft-baked and super thick peanut butter cookies topped with Reese’s peanut butter cups. They’re exactly like peanut butter blossoms but with a peanut butter cup! This cookie dough requires 1 hour of chilling in the refrigerator.
Ingredients
- 1 and 1/4 cups (156g) all-purpose flour (spooned & leveled)
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 cup (8 Tbsp; 113g) unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
- 1/2 cup (100g) packed light or dark brown sugar
- 1/4 cup (50g) granulated sugar
- 3/4 cup (185g) creamy peanut butter*
- 1 large egg, at room temperature*
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
Topping
- 1/2 cup (100g) granulated sugar (for rolling, optional)
- 24 Reese’s Miniature Peanut Butter Cups, unwrapped
Instructions
- Whisk the flour, baking soda, and salt together in a medium bowl. Set aside.
- In a large bowl using a handheld mixer or stand mixer with paddle attachment, cream the butter, brown sugar, and granulated sugar together on medium speed until combined. On low speed, beat in the peanut butter, egg, and vanilla extract. Turn the mixer up to high and beat until light in color and smooth, about 1-2 minutes. Scrape down the sides and up the bottom of the bowl with a rubber spatula as needed. On low speed, slowly pour in the dry ingredients. Mix until combined.
- Cover tightly and chill the cookie dough for at least 1 hour and up to 3 days.
- Preheat the oven to 350°F (177°C). Line two large baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone baking mats. (Always recommended for cookies.) Set aside.
- Remove cookie dough from the refrigerator. Measure cookies to be 1.5 Tablespoons each. I recommend this medium cookie scoop. Pour extra 1/2 cup granulated sugar for the topping in a bowl. Roll each cookie dough ball in the granulated sugar and arrange 3 inches apart on the baking sheets.
- Bake for 11-13 minutes. Cookies will look very soft. Remove from the oven and allow cookies to cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes. Working quickly, press 1 peanut butter cup into the center of each cookie. Quickly transfer the cookies to a freezer-safe dish (I use a plate) and freeze for 10-15 minutes or until the peanut butter cup has set. Some of the peanut butter cups will melt slightly—that’s ok.
Notes
- Make Ahead Instructions: Cookies stay fresh covered at room temperature for up to 1 week. You can make the cookie dough and chill it in the refrigerator for up to 4 days. Allow to sit at room temperature for 30 minutes, then continue with step 4. Baked cookies with peanut butter cup on top freeze well for up to 3 months. Unbaked cookie dough balls freeze well for up to 3 months. Bake frozen cookie dough balls for an extra minute, no need to thaw. Read my tips and tricks on how to freeze cookie dough.
- Special Tools (affiliate links): Glass Mixing Bowl | Whisk | Electric Mixer (Handheld or Stand) | Baking Sheets | Silicone Baking Mats or Parchment Paper | Medium Cookie Scoop
- Why Room Temperature Ingredients? Room temperature egg is best for cookies. General rule of thumb: when using warm or room temperature butter, I recommend room temperature egg as well. To bring egg to room temperature quickly, simply place in a cup of warm water for 5 minutes.
- Peanut Butter: Thick, non-natural creamy peanut butter is best but if using natural style, make sure the peanut butter is thick and not oily in the slightest.
- Double Batches: This recipe can easily be doubled or tripled by doubling or tripling each ingredient. Chill for at least 90 minutes if doubling or tripling.
- Be sure to check out my top 5 cookie baking tips AND these are my 10 must-have cookie baking tools.
Reader Comments and Reviews
Hi Sally this is my favorite pb blossom cookie recipe…can this recipe be doubled as is?
Hi Vicki, yes, you can double this recipe. So glad these are a favorite for you!
This is by far the best PB Blossom recipe I’ve had, very soft and peanut buttery. I was concerned because my dough was very soft and sticky so I chilled overnight and ended up baking them in a mini muffin tin as another reader had mentioned. I portioned them very small ~18 grams and the peanut butter cup fit perfectly. I think I would do it this way again as I could bake 24 at one time so it went fast and they got rave reviews, literally gone in a matter of minutes. Everyone who asks for the recipe gets a link to Sally. Thanks again for another great treat!
I love everything you do!! Just wanted to start there! My question is this: if all I have are the regular sized pb cups, if i cut them up can I place them on top and smoosh them into the dough ball? My husband is a firefighter and someone donated BAGS of these to the station. I bake for them almost every week and they are hoping I can use these for cookies. Thank you and I can’t wait for the cookbook!!
Hi Melissa, can’t see why not! Enjoy!
These cookies are amazing, I’ve made them three times in the last 2 weeks (after bringing a batch to my friends xmas party.) They are perfectly soft and fluffy <3 thank you for the delicious recipe!!