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“The texture of the shortbread, the light sweetness, and classic flavors… just so delightful! This has become one of my very favorite cookies!” ~Valerie
peanut butter chocolate chip cookies are my signature shortbread cookie
They’re closely followed in popularity by my Double Dark Chocolate Shortbread Cookies. I’m not surprised, after all, when was the last time you saw a cookie that intensely chocolaty? But there’s something magical about the epic combination of creamy peanut butter and chocolate that lures people in every time.
These cookies have a melt-in-your-mouth texture thanks to the creamy peanut butter and their shortbread base. They’ll even stick a wee bit to the roof of your mouth…better have a cold glass of milk ready.
these peanut butter cookies are made with a short list of ingredients:
- creamy peanut butter ~ I don’t recommend using natural style peanut butter for this cookie, the consistency tends to be oily. Personally I think the best pb is Jif.
- butter ~ unsalted and at room temperature
- flour ~ all purpose
- sugar ~ confectioner’s or granulated sugar, both will work.
- kosher salt
- chocolate chips ~ use milk, semi sweet, or dark, it’s up to you. I love dark chocolate with peanut butter.
slice and bake cookies are a favorite around here
Who wouldn’t love to have a log or two of cookie dough hanging out in their fridge?
You can get all the measuring and mixing and messy hands out of the way early and then have the luxury of fresh dough waiting at your beck and call. Let me put it another way: when you’ve got this dough in the fridge you’re 12 minutes away from nirvana.
If you want to try a rolled dough version of these, try my Milk Chocolate Chip Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies.
tips for success with peanut butter chocolate chip cookies
- Make sure to start with room temperature butter. This helps the dough come together smoothly.
- Measure your flour carefully. I fluff the flour first to loosen it, then scoop the measuring cup and level it off. This helps insure you get an accurate measure and not too much flour, which will affect the quality of the cookies.
- I make the dough in a stand mixer, this helps the dough come together with less effort. If you’re doing it by hand, take the time to mix the dough until it comes together and there is no dry flour left.
- Use regular, creamy peanut butter, not natural peanut butter. I use Jif.
- If you have trouble with the dough crumbling when you slice it, this can be due to the chocolate chips. I just form any broken slices back into shape on the cookie sheet. It helps to use a very sharp knife, and you can also try a sharp serrated knife to cut through the chips. You can use mini chips which will solve the problem, but I prefer the taste of the big chunks of chocolate. To skirt the issue altogether, roll out your dough and cut with a round cookie or biscuit cutter.
- If you make smaller cookies (i.e. more than 10-12) adjust the baking time, it will take slightly less time for them to cook.
- Expect these cookies to have a shortbread texture, which is to say delicate, and very buttery. They aren’t the same as a regular chewy or cakey cookie. Shortbread has a distinctive texture resulting from the combination of butter, sugar, and flour, without egg.
chocolate + peanut butter is a dynamic flavor duo
The simplicity is part of the charm of these cookies, you really get to taste the pb and chocolate, which is the main reason we make them in the first place 🙂 If you’re a fan of the combo, join the club:
- Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Scones
- Chocolate Chip Peanut Butter Muffins
- Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Bread
- Flourless Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies
- Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Blondies
Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature (important!)
- 1/3 cup creamy peanut butter (I like Jif)
- 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 1/4 cups all purpose flour
- 1/4 cup confectioner's sugar Note: you can also use granulated sugar.
- scant 1/2 tsp sea salt
- 3/4 cup chocolate chips of your choice, milk or dark
Instructions
- Cream the butter and the peanut butter together in a stand mixer, with a hand mixer, or a wooden spoon. Make sure to get the butter and peanut butter completely combined and creamy. Beat in the vanilla.
- Add the flour, sugar, and salt and mx until the dough comes together and is no longer dry.
- Fold in the chocolate chips, and turn the dough out onto a piece of waxed paper. Gently pull the dough together and form it into a log. If it is still crumbly, work it with your hands until it holds together smoothly. Roll it up in the paper, smoothing the shape as you go. Twist the ends securely and refrigerate for at least a couple of hours. The log will be roughly 7 1/2–8 inches long.
- While the dough is chilling, pre-heat the oven to 350F
- Slice the log into slices with a sharp knife. Not too thick, not too thin, about 1/2 inch. If a slice crumbles a bit, just smoosh the dough back together. These don’t have to be perfect disks.
- Bake on a parchment or silpat lined baking sheet at 350F for about 12-14 minutes, depending on how thick your cookies are. The cookies will not be browned, and they may look undone, but don’t over bake. One of the joys of shortbread cookies is that they fall apart and melt in your mouth.
- Let the cookies cool on the pan for 5 minutes before transferring to a rack.
Video
Nutrition
don’t forget to pin!
Peanut butter shortbread sounds amazing, but I am one of those people (weird, I know) who don’t care for chocolate. Would there be any adjustments necessary to leave out the chips, do you think?
(I was thinking as I read the comments that all the folks who are having trouble with the chips when slicing could try leaving them out of the dough and then patting a handful onto the tops of the cooking after they are on the baking sheet.)
You can leave out the chips, and your idea of patting them on top of the cookies before baking is a great one!
What about using butterscotch chips if you don’t care for chocolate! 🙂
Great idea…I have never actually baked with them, but I just happened to pick up a bag the other day!
i thought maybe white chocolate, not sure how butterscotch would taste. Did anyone bake these sans chocolate? So curious! 🙂 But i love chocolate so i will definitely do these as is, yummm!
In the plain chocolate chip shortbread recipe,is the sugar not icing in that one?? Thanks
I usually use regular sugar in that one. You can do either.
These cookies were so yummy and so easy to make! It was a very nice, light shortbread. Definitly making again! Great recipe. 🙂
Good, but very crumbly. I used semisweet Choc chips,as it was what I had. I think I would use mini Choc chips, or rollit out and cut them. Very soft, and really fell apart.
I have a few questions……I am out of peanut butter, but have Nutella on hand. Could I interchange them in this recipe? Also, can I keep the log in the fridge for a while and do I need to bring it to room temp. before slicing?
I don’t think Nutella would work, Betty, because it has such a different consistency. However if you’re up for an experiment, you could try! And yes, I would let the dough warm up just a bit if you find it’s too stiff to slice easily.
OK Thanks!!
I am just about to make these for the second time, just wanted to know they’ve made it over to London, England!!!! We love them 🙂
That’s so exciting—you guys are the experts on shortbread!
Hi wanted to know if I can use the crunchy p.b. instead of smooth..
Thx
Sure, go for it Grace!
Delicious! Love slice and bake and love peanut butter and chocolate.
I love peanut butter cookies!!
I do believe I will have to try this recipe. One of the best combinations of flavor ever. Can you guesstimate the size of the log you end up with (diameter, length) just so I have a sense of about how big they should be given the time you recommend for baking? Thanks!
After reading some of these comments, I’m a bit worried. I chose this recipe to make for a cookie swap (in 2 days!) and now I’ll have to triple the recipe to get enough cookies to share. Also, would it help to freeze the logs of dough before slicing them to keep them from crumbling? I want to present unbroken cookies for my cookie swap.
Hi Nancy—you can do a couple of different things…you can just use a scoop and drop the dough directly onto a cookie sheet to bake, and avoid the whole slice and roll thing.
If you want to roll and slice, make sure your dough is completely mixed and smooth as you roll it up in the log. Then, when slicing, it helps to dip a very sharp knife into very hot water each time you slice down on the log. But if you do get crumbling, just push the slice back together with your fingers right on the cookie sheet. It will bake up fine. Hope this helps!