Peanut Butter Cookies (Reese’s Cookie Recipe)

Featuring a peanut butter cookie dough base packed with chocolate chips, peanuts, chopped peanut butter cups, and Reese’s Pieces, these easy peanut butter cookies are a peanut butter lover’s dream. The best Reese’s cookie recipe!

Why Make These Peanut Butter Cookies?

Soft, chewy, and packed with peanut butter, these peanut butter cookies feature a creamy peanut butter cookie dough base, and are absolutely loaded with crunchy, chocolate-y add-ins. I’ve added Reese’s Pieces, chopped Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups, semi-sweet chocolate chips, chocolate chips, and  salted peanuts.

I first developed this recipe several years ago, and have many it many times since. These peanut butter cookies always disappear quickly, no matter the audience. (It’s not a bad idea to make a double batch if you have a large family or lots of coworkers!) If you love peanut butter in any and all forms, this is the Reese’s cookie recipe for you.

Reese’s Cookie Recipe Ingredients

To make these easy peanut butter cookies, you’ll need the following ingredients:

• All Purpose Flour – Or plain flour, in the UK. My go-to plain flour is McDougall’s, which I find to be the closest equivalent to US brands like Gold Medal and Pillsbury.
• Leavening Agents – Baking soda (bicarbonate of soda) and baking powder act as leavening agents in the dough.
• Kosher Salt – I test my recipes with Diamond Crystal kosher salt. Fine sea salt will also work in this recipe. If using unsalted peanuts you may wish to increase the amount of salt—see my notes below.
• Unsalted Butter – You’ll need 113 grams (1/2 cup, or one stick) of unsalted butter, softened to room temperature.
• Sugars – Granulated sugar and light brown sugar sweeten the dough and create cookies with just the right amount of moisture and spread. For deeper molasses notes, you can use dark brown sugar instead of light.
• Creamy Peanut Butter – For best results, use a commercial creamy peanut butter which contains some sugar, such as Skippy or Jif. I’ve also tested this recipe with store/own brands from Sainsbury’s, Tesco, and Wal-Mart. These are also nice with The Bee’s Knees by Peanut Butter & Co.
  
• Egg – You’ll need 1 large egg, at room temperature
• Vanilla Extract – Opt for a good-quality vanilla extract like Nielsen-Massey, or use vanilla bean paste.

• Chocolate Chips – You’ll need 175 grams (1 cup) of semi sweet chocolate chips. Feel free to substitute dark, milk, or white chocolate chips instead.
• Reese’s Pieces – About 150 grams, or 3/4 cup of standard (not mini) Reese’s Pieces. I like to keep a few more candies on hand to decorate the tops of the cookies.
• Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups – You can use at least 80 grams (about 5 snack size cups, or 9–10 mini cups; 1/2 cup) or up to 150 grams (about 18 mini cups, or 1 cup chopped peanut butter cups). I’ve tested this recipe with varying quantities of Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups.
• Roasted and Salted Peanuts – I’ve tested these cookies with salted peanuts, and unsalted peanuts. This really comes down to personal preference. If you use unsalted peanuts, I suggest increasing the salt in the dough to 1/2 teaspoon.

Peanut Butter Cookie Recipe Tools

• Round Metal Cutter – I use a round metal cutter to reshape my cookies, so they’re perfectly round and ready for their Instagram close-up! See my notes below.
• Silicone Baking Mat – These peanut butter cookies turn out best when baked on a silicone baking mat. The nonstick surface prevents the melted candy pieces from sticking to the tray.
• Half-Sheet Rimmed Baking Tray – This recipe makes about 24 cookies. I suggest baking in two batches, with 12 cookies per half sheet rimmed baking tray, and baking one tray in the oven at a time. Refrigerate the remaining dough until ready to bake.
• Cookie Scoop – You’ll find it helpful to use a cookie scoop (I prefer the kind with a release, like a mini ice cream scoop) to portion the dough into equally-sized balls.
• Sharp Chef’s Knife – I use a sharp chef’s knife for chopping the peanut butter cups into smaller chunks. I sometimes chop or crush the peanuts, too.

Creating Perfectly Round Cookies

For perfectly round homemade cookies, I like to use a round metal cutter to reshpe mine after baking. Just position the cutter around the still-hot cookie and gently “swirl” it to make smooth, rounded edges.

It’s very important to do this immediately after removing the tray from the oven. If you wait until the cookies begin to cool, your peanut. butter cookies will crack as you swirl.

Tips and Tricks for Making These Easy Peanut Butter Cookies

This recipe makes about 24 large (3 to 3 1/2-inch) cookies. However, you can also roll smaller dough balls to produce more cookies. Either way, be sure to allow plenty of space when arranging the dough balls on your tray—these will spread n the oven! I bake my batches one tray at a time, with 12 cookies per tray.

Mix up your add-ins! I used Reese’s Pieces, Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups, semi sweet chocolate chips, and salted peanuts. However, you can experiment with other mix-ins like peanut butter chips, peanut M&Ms, or chocolate-covered peanuts.

Make-Ahead and Storage Suggestions

These Reese’s peanut. butter cookies taste best on the day they are made. (I especially like these when they’re still slightly warm from the oven!) Store leftovers in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days.

Peanut butter cookies also freeze well. To freeze, layer the cookies between sheets of parchment and freeze in an airtight container for up to 3 months. You can also freeze individual portions in small food storage bags. Thaw at room temperature.

To work ahead, you can prepare the peanut butter cookie dough up to 24 hours in advance. Tightly cover the bowl with clingfilm/plastic wrap and refrigerate until ready to scoop and bake.

Other cookie recipes you might enjoy:

Rolo Cookies
Tahini Chocolate Chunk Cookies
Peanut Butter M&M Cookies
Cookie Recipe with Oreos

And if you do make these, or any of my recipes, don’t forget to tag me @bastecutfold or use the hashtag #bastecutfold on Instagram. I always love to see what you’re making!

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