Old Fashioned Peanut Butter Cookies

My Great-Grandmother’s award winning, Old Fashioned Peanut Butter Cookies are a sweet, traditional peanut butter cookie that is crispy but not dry. Not only is each bite full of peanut butter flavor, but they’ll be ready in less than 20 minutes!

These are my great-grandmother’s prize-winning Old Fashioned Peanut Butter Cookies! That’s right, these two-bite, crunchy cookies won the Clark County Fair in Virginia. They are a crunchy peanut butter cookie that somehow also melts in your mouth, complete with a perfect rich flavor and hint of kosher salt.

RoRo, my great-grandmother, would send each family member home with their favorite treat. This always included homemade Pecan Tassies for me, Pinwheel Cookies for my mom and these peanut butter cookies for my dad. You’re here for the peanut butter wonders, so don’t be afraid to also make some Peanut Butter Blossoms,  chewy Reese’s cookies, or a monster skillet cookie next!

Professional Tips for How to Make Peanut Butter Cookies Taste Better

• Use a peanut butter you enjoy. Peanut butter is the star of the show in these cookies, so I always use Jif Smooth Peanut Butter. No, they aren’t a sponsor {do you know anyone at Jif?} but they’re my favorite, and what my family has been using for generations.
• Soften your butter. It helps to make sure your butter is ‘temped’ or closer to room temperature prior to use. Do not, however, melt it. A softened butter will be easier to cream with the sugars, creating the perfect texture. 
• Dip your fork in sugar between each cookie. The crispy goodness is all sealed together by a classic criss-cross pattern on top made with the tines of a fork. Dipping the fork in sugar guarantees a delicious sweet finish on your old fashioned peanut butter cookies!

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What are the basic ingredients for peanut butter cookies?

• All-purpose flour: Be sure to measure your flour by fluffing up the flour in the bag then spooning it into a measuring cup. Level it off with a knife. Be careful not to tap or compress the all-purpose flour. Not measuring correctly, will lead to dry cookies.
• Baking Soda: Do check the freshness of your baking soda! It loses potency over time. If it’s not fresh, send it to the back of the refrigerator to keep things smelling fresh.
• Butter: I use unsalted butter for baking to control the amount of salt I am adding.
• Granulated Sugar: Granulated sugar is here for sweetness, but if you add too much in proportion to the butter and flour, the cookies will spread. The sugar also shortens the gluten strands in the flour creating that tender, crunchy texture. 
• Dark Brown Sugar: Using dark brown sugar adds sweetness along with a little moisture. This will keep the old fashioned peanut butter cookies softer while adding a nice, rich molasses flavor. Just like in my soft Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies, it is important to use equal to or more brown sugar than granulated sugar in this recipe.
• Whole Egg: The eggs are here to add fat, moisture and leavening. Eggs also emulsify the batter and keep everything texturally perfect.
• Peanut Butter: I specifically use smooth Jif peanut butter in my old fashioned peanut butter cookies, forever and always. I prefer its flavor to the other brands of no-stir peanut butter. Check out my Reese’s Peanut butter blondies for another easy peanut dessert!
• Vanilla
• Kosher Salt

See the recipe card for full information on ingredients and quantities.

Variations & Substitutions

• Mix-ins: One of my Aunts just told me she has memories of RoRo adding butterscotch chips sometimes! You could add finely chopped peanuts or walnuts, using my Butterscotch Chews as some old-fashioned inspiration.
• Can you substitute anything for the peanut butter? You cannot substitute peanut butter for butter and get the same results. Eliminating the peanut butter will make the cookies too crumbly. This is an heirloom recipe, so I have not yet experimented with other nut butters, but I am all for trying! Just report back!.
• Crunchy Peanut Butter: You can use crunchy peanut butter for a little added texture in your old fashioned peanut butter cookies.
• Add a frosting: Why not frost them with the best chocolate buttercream? Or make a salted caramel sauce or apple butter dip?

How to make Old-Fashioned Peanut Butter Cookies

Further details and measurements can be found in the recipe card below.

Make the cookie dough:

Step 1: Preheat the oven to 350°F and line two baking sheets with parchment paper. 

Step 2: In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda and salt. Set aside.

Step 3: In a large bowl or in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat together butter and sugars until combined. Add the eggs and vanilla, and beat until light and creamy.

Step 4: Reduce the speed to low, and mix in the peanut butter.

Step 5: In several additions, add the flour mixture to the peanut butter mixture until just incorporated.

Portion and bake:

Step 6: Drop cookie dough by the teaspoon (the actual spoon, not the measuring spoon) onto a baking sheet spaced about 2 inches apart. Dip the tines of a fork into granulated sugar and press them into each cookie twice in a crisscross pattern flattening the dough, dipping the fork into the sugar between each cookie.

Step 7: Bake for 10 minutes in a preheated oven, or until golden brown. The cookies should have a matte (not shiny) finish when they are done. 

Step 8: Let cool for 5 minutes on the baking sheet. Then remove to cool completely on a wire rack.

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Check out our other delicious, chef-developed Cookie Recipes, these easy Christmas cookies, or peruse all our 100+ Christmas Cookie Recipes!