These peanut butter chocolate chip cookies are soft and chewy in the middle, golden on the bottom, and loaded with milk chocolate chips and peanut butter chips. The dough comes together in one bowl with no chilling, you roll it into balls, give each one a light fork crisscross, and bake for about 12 minutes, then let them rest on the pan for 5 minutes before you move them. Plus, the dry ingredients layer into a quart mason jar, so you can tuck a jar away in the pantry for later or give it as a gift.
Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies At A Glance
Prep
15 min
Bake
11 to 13 min
Total
45 min
makes
2 dozen
Pan
Ungreased baking sheet
Main ingredients: Flour, brown sugar, granulated sugar, chocolate chips, peanut butter chips, peanut butter, vanilla, egg, butter, milk
Why I Tested This as a Cookie Mix in a Jar
I am on a quest to come up with fail-proof cookie recipes that can be pre-mixed ahead of time, but still taste amazing. I recently did a cranberry chocolate chip oatmeal cookie that is just SO GOOD. This is my second recipe, based on much-loved peanut butter cookie recipe. I added peanut butter chips so there’s a little pocket of peanut butter in every bite.
Whenever I have an idea for a pantry mix, I test every one in my own kitchen before it goes anywhere. That means filling the jar, checking that everything actually fits, and then baking from that exact jar with only the things written on the tag. These mix up into a fantastic cookie you’re going to love.
Let’s dig in!
Tips and Notes Before You Start
- No chilling and no mixer needed. A spatula or fork and your hands do the work.
- Soften the butter, but don’t melt it. Cut it into tablespoon pieces, wait for about 15 minutes, and chill it again if it looks greasy.
- Use regular peanut butter. Creamy or crunchy, but not natural.
- Don’t skip the tablespoon of milk.
- The dough will look crumbly at first. Do a squeeze test.
- No need to flatten. Use a light fork crisscross and leave 2 inches between balls, since they spread.
- Leave the baking sheet ungreased.
- Pull them while the centers still look soft.
- Let them cool 5 minutes on the pan. The most important tip.
- Make-ahead friendly. Freeze the dough balls and bake them from frozen.
Want to Save This Recipe?
Enter your email below and we’ll send it straight to your inbox! Plus you’ll get new recipes each week!
What You’ll Need for Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies
Everything here is an ordinary ingredient. A few of them make a real difference, though, so here’s what to look for.
Dry Ingredients:
All-purpose flour. Regular all-purpose flour is all you need. Spoon it into the measuring cup and level it off with a knife instead of scooping straight from the bag. This helps because scooping packs the flour down, and too much flour is the fastest way to a dry, crumbly dough.
Baking soda and salt. These get whisked right into the flour at the bottom of the bowl or the jar, so they’re spread evenly before anything else goes on top.
Brown sugar and granulated sugar. We use equal amounts of each. Brown sugar keeps the centers soft and chewy, and granulated sugar helps the bottoms turn golden. Pack the brown sugar firmly when you measure it. This helps because loose brown sugar measures short, and then the dough ends up even drier.
Milk chocolate chips and peanut butter chips. Milk chocolate is the classic partner for peanut butter, since it’s mellow and sweet. Semi-sweet works too if you like a little less sweetness. The peanut butter chips go in last, right at the top of the jar, and they’re what make these taste like peanut butter all the way through, so I really don’t skip them.
Wet Ingredients:
Peanut butter, creamy or crunchy. Use a regular, no-stir peanut butter like the kind you’d put on a sandwich. I actually made my test batch with crunchy, because that’s what we had in the pantry, and it worked great. The little bits of peanut just add a bit of texture. Creamy works exactly the same way. Be careful not to use natural peanut butter (the kind with oil on top). It separates, and the cookies come out greasy and crumbly.
Butter. Soften it until a finger leaves a dent. If it’s soft enough to look shiny or greasy, it’s too warm, and the cookies will spread more than you want. This matters more than you think.
Milk. Just 1 tablespoon, but please don’t skip it. Without it, the dough stays sandy and won’t hold together (that’s what happened in my first test). Any milk works, including lactose-free.
Egg and vanilla. One large egg and 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract.
How to Make Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies
The method is the same whether your dry ingredients came out of a jar or you just measured them into a bowl. We’ll beat the wet ingredients together first, then stir in everything else at once. No chilling and no stand mixer.
Start by heating the oven to 350°F. You don’t need to grease the baking sheet or line it with parchment. There’s enough butter and peanut butter in the dough that they won’t stick.
Put the softened butter, peanut butter, egg, milk, and vanilla in a large bowl and beat them together with a sturdy spatula or a fork until they’re smooth. A hand mixer works too, but you do not HAVE to use one. Don’t worry if it looks a little lumpy or curdled. Butter and egg don’t fully blend without sugar beaten in, and this is totally normal. It all comes together once the dry ingredients go in.
Now add the whole jar (or your bowl of dry ingredients) and stir with a spoon. At first it will look like there’s WAY too much dry mix. Keep going. Once the spoon stops helping, switch to your hands and squeeze the dough together against the side of the bowl. The warmth of your hands softens the peanut butter and helps it coat everything.
Why Is My Peanut Butter Cookie Dough So Crumbly?
Peanut butter dough is stiffer than regular cookie dough, and when the sugars go in dry (the way they do from a jar), it can look sandy at first. That’s exactly why the tablespoon of milk is in the recipe. Here’s the test: squeeze a small handful. If it holds together in a ball, it’s ready, even if the dough in the bowl still looks a little crumbly. If it falls apart, keep working it with your hands for another minute before you add anything else. Be careful not to add more milk unless it truly won’t come together, because extra liquid makes the cookies spread flat.
How Big Should I Make the Cookies?
Roll the dough into 2-tablespoon balls (a medium cookie scoop is perfect) and set them 2 inches apart on the baking sheet. Give them the full 2 inches, because they spread more than you’d expect. At that size you’ll get about 2 dozen cookies. You can go smaller, but they get really tiny really fast, so I like this size best.
Do I Need to Flatten Peanut Butter Cookies With a Fork?
Nope. I expected this stiff dough to stay in tall little balls, but these cookies spread out nicely all on their own in the oven. So there’s no need to press them flat. The fork crisscross is just for that classic peanut butter cookie look. Press a fork lightly into the top of each ball, then turn it and press again. If the dough sticks to the fork, dip the fork in a little granulated sugar between cookies.
Don’t worry if the lines mostly disappear in the oven. Mine did, because the cookies spread and soften the marks as they bake. This is totally normal, and they taste exactly the same.
How Do I Know When They’re Done?
Bake for 11 to 13 minutes, until the edges are lightly browned and the bottoms are evenly golden. Mine took 12 minutes. The centers will still look soft and a little underdone, and that’s exactly right. They keep baking on the hot pan, and if you wait until the middles look done in the oven, they’ll be dry and crumbly once they cool.
Why Do These Cookies Need to Cool on the Pan?
This is the most important step in the whole recipe, so please don’t skip it: leave the cookies alone on the hot pan for 5 minutes. They’re VERY fragile when they first come out of the oven. I tried to lift a corner right away to check the bottom, and the cookie fell apart.
The reason is that the butter and peanut butter are still soft and melty, so there’s nothing holding the cookie together yet. As they sit on the warm pan, the bottoms finish baking and the centers set. After 5 minutes they firm up enough to slide a spatula under them and move them to a wire rack to cool the rest of the way. Be careful not to stack them or put them in a container until they’re completely cool, or they’ll steam and get soft.
How to Make a Peanut Butter Cookie Mix in a Jar
This is where the recipe does double duty. The jar holds all the dry ingredients, and whoever gets it just adds butter, peanut butter, an egg, a little milk, and vanilla. You’ll want a 1 quart wide-mouth mason jar, since the wide mouth makes layering SO much easier and it pours out cleanly later. A canning funnel keeps the layers neat so nothing sticks to the glass.
We’ll layer from the bottom up in this order, pressing each layer down firmly before adding the next one:
| Layer | Ingredient |
|---|---|
| 1 (bottom) | 1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour, 1/2 tsp baking soda, and 1/4 tsp salt, whisked together right in the jar with a fork |
| 2 | 1/2 cup packed brown sugar |
| 3 | 1/2 cup granulated sugar |
| 4 | 1 cup milk chocolate chips |
| 5 (top) | 1/3 cup peanut butter chips, plus extra to fill the jar to the brim |
The reason we whisk the flour mixture right in the jar is that nobody will whisk it later. It all gets dumped into the bowl together, so this is the only chance to spread the baking soda and salt evenly. Then pack it down well before the brown sugar goes in. The brown sugar acts like a seal on top of the flour, which helps keep the layers above it from sinking in.
Packing is the part that makes or breaks a jar mix. A small tamper or the back of a spoon works great. Unpacked layers settle on the way to wherever the jar is going, and then the stripes slump together. Don’t worry if your lines aren’t perfectly level… a slightly wavy line looks homemade in the best way.
The peanut butter chips go in last. If there’s space left at the top, fill it with a few extra peanut butter chips so the jar is full to the brim. A full jar keeps the layers from shifting, and a few extra chips won’t hurt the cookies one bit.
What to Write on the Gift Tag
I put the baking directions on a round label right on the lid, but a tag tied on with twine works just as well. Here’s what it should say:
Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies
You’ll need: 6 tablespoons (3/4 stick) softened butter, 1/4 cup peanut butter (creamy or crunchy), 1 egg, 1 tablespoon milk, and 1 teaspoon vanilla.
Heat the oven to 350°F. Beat the butter, peanut butter, egg, milk, and vanilla. Stir in the whole jar, then work the dough with your hands until it holds together. Roll into 2-tablespoon balls, place 2 inches apart on an ungreased baking sheet, and press lightly with a fork in a crisscross (no need to flatten). Bake 11 to 13 minutes, until the edges are lightly browned. Cool 5 minutes on the pan before moving, since they’re very fragile when hot. Makes about 2 dozen.
Best by: [date about 3 months from filling]
How Long Does a Cookie Mix in a Jar Last?
The mix keeps for about 3 months in a cool, dark pantry with the lid on tight. After that, the brown sugar starts to harden. Write the best-by date on the tag so whoever gets it doesn’t have to guess.
If you’re giving these away or selling them at a craft fair, please mention on the tag that the jar contains peanuts. Peanut butter chips are easy to miss in a jar full of chocolate, and this mix also contains wheat, milk, and soy. Many states also have cottage food rules for labels, so check yours before you sell.
Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookie FAQs
Can I skip the peanut butter chips?
You can, and the cookies will still be good. Use more chocolate chips in their place so the jar still fills to the top.
Can I freeze the dough?
Yes. Roll the balls, give them the fork crisscross, and freeze them on a pan until solid, then move them to a freezer bag for up to 3 months. Bake straight from frozen at 350°F, adding a minute or two.
Why did my cookies fall apart?
Almost always, they were moved too soon. Give them the full 5 minutes on the pan. If they still crumble once cool, the dough was probably a bit dry, so next time squeeze it together longer before rolling the balls.
How should I store the baked cookies?
Keep them in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 4 days, or freeze the baked cookies for up to 3 months.
Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookie Recipe
Equipment
- baking sheet
- large mixing bowl
- sturdy spatula
- Wooden spoon
- medium cookie scoop
- fork
- wire rack
- 1 quart wide-mouth mason jar For the jar mix
- canning funnel For the jar mix
Ingredients
Dry mix (these go in the jar)
- 1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1/2 cup brown sugar packed
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 1 cup milk chocolate chips
- 1/3 cup peanut butter chips
To bake
- 6 Tbsp butter (3/4 stick), softened
- 1/4 cup creamy or crunchy peanut butter (not natural)
- 1 large egg
- 1 Tbsp milk
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
Instructions
- Heat the oven to 350°F. Leave the baking sheet ungreased.
- Whisk the flour, baking soda, and salt together with a fork in a medium bowl, then add the brown sugar, granulated sugar, chocolate chips, and peanut butter chips. (If you’re using a jar of mix, skip this step.)
- In a large bowl, beat the butter, peanut butter, egg, milk, and vanilla with a spatula or fork until smooth. It may look a little lumpy, and that’s fine.
- Add all of the dry ingredients and stir with a wooden spoon, then work the dough with your hands until a squeezed handful holds together in a ball.
- Roll into 2-tablespoon balls and set them 2 inches apart on the baking sheet (they spread). Press the top of each one lightly with a fork, then turn the fork and press again to make a crisscross. There’s no need to flatten them.
- Bake 11 to 13 minutes, until the edges are lightly browned and the bottoms are golden. The centers will still look soft.
- Cool 5 minutes on the pan before moving. The cookies are very fragile when hot and will fall apart if you move them too soon. Then move them to a wire rack to finish cooling. Repeat with the remaining dough.
Nutrition
Notes
If you make a batch of these jars this year, I’d love to hear who’s getting one. And if you want another cookie mix to line up next to it, my Cranberry Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Cookies fill a quart jar the same way.
Happy baking!
Love,
Jennifer
Tried this recipe?
Tap the stars in the recipe card to leave a quick rating. Your rating helps other home cooks know this recipe works in a real kitchen, not just mine.
And as a thank-you for your feedback, you will receive a free printable copy of my Maker Home Companion Cookbook, featuring my most popular recipes, each one formatted on a SINGLE, easy-to-use page, a perfect kitchen companion for easy meal prep. Click here to learn more about this cookbook and how you can get your copy!
Meet Jennifer
Jennifer cooks and experiments in the kitchen at Maker Farm, where she focuses on simple pantry cooking, homemade staples, and practical recipes that make everyday meals easier. Over the years she has tested many ways to make cooking simpler and more dependable, and shares the methods that work best in her own kitchen, occasionally showing them on her Heart to Home at Maker Farm vlog.