Reese’s Peanut Butter Cookies
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This soft Peanut Butter Cookie Recipe made with Reese’s pieces is so simple to make and comes together super fast (in a Jiffy- yes pun intended!). With peanut butter chips and Reese’s pieces folded into the peanut butter cookie dough, these Reese’s peanut butter cookies are a peanut butter lover’s dream!
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When it comes to making time for dessert, I always find the time. But finding the time to make a fancy layer cake to enjoy. Not so much. But the time to whip up a batch of cookies.
Now that’s time I always have.
So when I was craving a peanut butter cookie. Or maybe it was the Reese’s Pieces? Hmm, either way. You know the mixer came out in no time. But here’s the thing I wanted a thick, soft, and chewy peanut butter cookie. And let’s be honest, I’ve had so crummy (or maybe it was crumbly?) and dry peanut butter cookies in my day that no glass of milk could save.
So I took a peanut butter cookie recipe I’ve made before, and got to tweaking the recipe a bit. With a only a few minor changes, I took an OK cookie to EPIC. Yes epic status in just two changes. Who knew it was that easy?
I bet you want to know my secret 😉 Of course you do. Why the heck else are you still reading?
Bake For LESS Time.
So simple right? For this Reese’s peanut butter cookie recipe, I found that baking them for only about 10 minutes was the trick. Maybe 12 minutes max. And you will have a soft peanut butter cookie on your hands. In fact, these stayed soft for a few days. What about a week you ask? I couldn’t tell you. They were gone by then.
But by baking them for a little less time, kept them from getting too crispy in the oven.
Use More Brown Sugar Than White Sugar
Brown sugar is bringing moisture to the party. And some chewiness as well. Well, welcome to the party brown sugar. Come on in. And put your shoes over there.
By using more brown sugar than white, you end up with a chewy (and soft- thank you secret #1!) peanut butter cookie.
How To Make These Reese’s Peanut Butter Cookies
- Preheat and prepare cookie sheets. Preheat oven to 375oF degrees. Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat.
- Cream butter and sugar. In the bowl of your stand mixer or a large mixing bowl with an electric mixer, cream together the butter, granulated sugar, and brown sugar until light and fluffy (about 2 minutes).
- Add remaining wet ingredients. Add in the egg to the butter mixture and stir to combine. Mix in peanut butter and vanilla until smooth and creamy.
- Add dry ingredients. Stir in salt, baking soda and flour until well combined. Stir in peanut butter chips and Reese’s pieces with a spatula.
- Shape cookies. Roll dough into 1 inch balls and then roll in sugar. Place on baking sheet and flatten with fork in a crisscross fashion.
- Bake and cool cookies. Bake for 10-12 minutes. Cool on a wire rack.
Recipe Tips
- Be sure to measure your flour correctly. Over-measuring your flour is going to result in a dry, crumbly cookie. Read my full post on how to measure your flour correctly here.
- Use room temperature butter. By softening your butter properly (and here are 3 ways you can do that in a hurry!) will allow the sugar to punch tiny holes into the butter incorporating air into the dough. Cold butter won’t allow this to happen. So room temperature, unsalted, and you’re good to go.
- Don’t forget to take those eggs out early too. You also need a room temperature egg as well. Remember you want your ingredients all playing along well together. So a cold egg and room temperature butter just don’t play nice on the playground together. You’ll end up with butter that starts to seize up in your bowl. My trick? Put your eggs in a bowl of warm water for 5 to 10 minutes and you’re good to go.
- Flatten those cookies a bit. These cookies won’t spread much, so you want to help them out a bit and flatten them a bit. I prefer the fork criss cross method, but even a quick flatten with the palm of your hand will do the trick. Have you read my post on why your cookies are flat? Check it out here!
Recipe FAQ’s
Baked cookies will keep at room temperature for up to 2 days (they may keep longer but I think they are best enjoyed within a few days. You can make the dough and scoop them then cover and refrigerate (up to 24 hours). These will also keep for 2-3 days at room temperature. I just store mine in a ziploc bag.
You can freeze the dough and/or cookies. Freeze baked cookies for up to 3 months, just thaw at room temperature. If you freeze the dough, when ready to bake just bake froze and then add a few minutes of baking time. Read here on How To Freeze Cookie Dough.
This could be because your butter was too warm when you creamed it, or you overmixed the dough as well. Try chilling your cookie dough next time. Making cookie dough ahead of time does magical things for it. It actually makes the dough better I think. It also helps the cookies from spreading too much.
This is probably because you added too much flour. When measuring the flour, it’s best to use a kitchen scale. But if you’re using a measuring cup, make sure to SPOON IN THE FLOUR, and LEVEL IT OFF. Do NOT pack it down into the cup, or scoop directly from the bag.
More Recipes To Try
Reese’s Peanut Butter Cookies
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups (180 g) all-purpose flour
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 cup (50 g) granulated sugar plus additional sugar to roll cookies in
- 3/4 cup (160 g) packed light brown sugar
- 1/2 cup (1 stick, 113) unsalted butter softened to room temperature
- 1 large egg room temperature
- 1 cup (135 g) smooth peanut butter
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 cup (170 ) peanut butter chips
- 1 cup Reese's pieces
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375°F (190°C) degrees. Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper.
- In a medium mixing bowl, stir together the flour, baking soda, and salt. Set aside.
- In a large bowl, (I use my stand mixer with my paddle attachment, but a hand mixer also works) cream together the sugars and butter on medium speed until light and fluffy about 2-3 minutes. Scrap down the bowl as needed.
- Add in the egg to the butter mixture and beat to combine.
- Mix in peanut butter and vanilla until smooth and creamy.
- Stir in the dry ingredients until well combined. Stir in the chips and candies, if adding.
- Using a small cookie scoop, scoop about 2 tablespoons of dough and roll into balls and then roll in sugar. Place on baking sheet and flatten with fork. I flatten with a criss cross.
- Bake for 10-12 minutes until edges are set and middles are still slightly soft. Remove from the oven and allow to cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack to continue cooling.
Notes
- Make ahead/storage: Baked cookies will keep at room temperature for up to 2 days (they may keep longer but I think they are best enjoyed within a few days. You can make the dough and scoop them then cover and refrigerate (up to 24 hours). These will also keep for 2-3 days at room temperature. I just store mine in a ziploc bag.
- Freezing: You can freeze the dough and/or cookies. Freeze baked cookies for up to 3 months, just thaw at room temperature. If you freeze the dough, when ready to bake just bake froze and then add a few minutes of baking time. Read here on How To Freeze Cookie Dough.
- Be sure to measure your flour correctly. Over-measuring your flour is going to result in a dry, crumbly cookie. Read my full post on how to measure your flour correctly here.
- Use room temperature butter. By softening your butter properly (and here are 3 ways you can do that in a hurry!) will allow the sugar to punch tiny holes into the butter incorporating air into the dough. Cold butter won’t allow this to happen. So room temperature, unsalted, and you’re good to go.
- Room temperature eggs: Don’t forget to take those eggs out early too. You also need a room temperature egg as well. Remember you want your ingredients all playing along well together. So a cold egg and room temperature butter just don’t play nice on the playground together. You’ll end up with butter that starts to seize up in your bowl. My trick? Put your eggs in a bowl of warm water for 5 to 10 minutes and you’re good to go.
- Flatten those cookies a bit. These cookies won’t spread much, so you want to help them out a bit and flatten them a bit. I prefer the fork criss cross method, but even a quick flatten with the palm of your hand will do the trick. Have you read my post on why your cookies spread too much? Check it out here!
- Cookies NOT spreading (cakey/dry): This is probably because you added too much flour. When measuring the flour, it’s best to use a kitchen scale. But if you’re using a measuring cup, make sure to SPOON IN THE FLOUR, and LEVEL IT OFF. Do NOT pack it down into the cup, or scoop directly from the bag.
These are delicious. I did leave the peanut butter chips and Reeses pieces out, I have a kid with a severe food allergy and he can’t eat them. But these are great cookies without the extras. Easy to make too. I did pop the bowl in the fridge while the first batch was baking just to keep them from getting too sticky. I will definitely be making them again. Thanks Heather!
oh that’s wonderful Julia! I’m so glad you loved them and were able to make them work for your son!
So glad you loved them Julia and you were able to make them work for your child!