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How to make soft, chewy, thick bakery-style peanut butter cookies with peanut butter chips for the perfect peanut butter flavor. If you love peanut butter, you are going to love these thick peanut butter cookies.
I am a huge fan of bakery-style cookie recipes. You may know but the very first recipe I posted on Modern Honey was my famous Levain Bakery Chocolate Chip Cookie Recipe. I love making thick yet soft and chewy cookies and wanted to create a bakery-style peanut butter cookie full of rich flavor.
If you are a fan of bakery-style peanut butter cookies that are large, soft, and chewy, then this is the recipe for you. This recipe will help you create thick, bakery-style peanut butter cookies loaded with peanut butter chips for extra richness.
Why you will love these Bakery Peanut Butter Cookies:
- For my Peanut Butter Lovers: The combination of creamy peanut butter in the dough and rich peanut butter chips provides double the peanut butter flavor, making these cookies perfect for peanut butter lovers.
- Soft and Chewy Texture: These cookies are created to be thick, soft, and chewy, giving them that coveted bakery-style cookie texture.
- Large, Bakery-Style: Baking them large (5-6 ounces) creates that authentic bakery-style cookie with a gooey center and a crisp edge.
If you love peanut butter cookies, you can make my classic chewy Soft Peanut Butter Cookies, homemade Reese’s Chocolate Peanut Butter Cup Cookies, soft Chocolate Dipped Peanut Butter Cookies, famous
Peanut Butter Blossom Cookies or my Levain Bakery Chocolate Peanut Butter Chip Cookies.
Recipe Testing Process:
Oh, there is definitely a process to recipe testing and I am a perfectionist in the kitchen. I made these 4 times in my test kitchen to get them just right.
As you can see in the photo above, it is slightly thinner than the first photo. This batch had no chopped peanuts which definitely resulted in a thicker cookie just because it didn’t have as much volume. Also, the peanut butter cookie dough wasn’t chilled so it made a difference in the thickness.
Read below to find out all about the recipe testing process. Here is a little behind the scenes of what goes into cookie testing.
*I tried to bake them at 350, 385, and 400 degrees and watched the spread, the height, and the golden color of each cookie.
*I chilled the dough and I also tried not chilling the dough. The big difference there was definitely the ease in making a smooth round ball with the chilled dough. Also, the chilled dough doesn’t spread as much.
*I tried them with 1 cup of chopped peanuts, 1/2 cup of chopped peanuts, and no chopped peanuts. I found that when I added 1 cup chopped peanuts, the peanut butter cookies were dry and crumbly. They weren’t overbaked but since peanuts don’t have much moisture content in them, it was making the cookie crumbly.
*I found the sweet spot to be no chopped peanuts or up to 1/2 cup of chopped peanuts in the dough. My perfect ratio would probably be 1/4 cup of chopped peanuts.
*The peanut butter chips added more creamy peanut butter flavor so those were a win in my book.
Ingredients:
To make these large bakery peanut butter chip cookies, you only need simple ingredients found in your pantry.
- Butter: Use cold butter, cut into small cubes
- Brown Sugar: Adds moisture and chewiness
- Sugar
- Eggs
- Vanilla Extract
- Creamy Peanut Butter: Use smooth peanut butter for the best texture. I suggest Jif or Skippy’s peanut butter.
- Flour: I suggest using all-purpose flour
- Baking Soda + Baking Powder
- Salt: This is optional if you use salted butter and creamy peanut butter
- Peanut Butter Chips: I use Reeses peanut butter chips, Nestle peanut butter chips, or Trader Joe’s peanut butter chips.
How to make thick Peanut Butter Cookies:
Cream the butter, peanut butter, and sugars together in a large bowl using a hand mixer or stand mixer. Beat on medium speed until light and fluffy, about 3-4 minutes.
Add eggs and vanilla extract and beat until combined.
Fold in dry ingredients — flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt.
Stir in the peanut butter chips and optional chopped peanuts (if using).
Chill the dough in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes to prevent spreading during baking. This step is key to getting thick cookies.
Preheat your oven to 350 degrees and line two large light-colord baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone baking mats.
Portion the dough into large 5-6 ounce balls (approximately the size of a small baseball) to achieve those thick bakery-style cookies. Place the dough balls onto baking sheets, spacing them about 2 inches apart.
Bake the cookies for 10-14 minutes, or until the edges are set and golden but the centers are still slightly soft. The cookies will continue to firm up as they cool on the baking sheet. Be careful NOT to overbake the cookies.
Remove the cookies from the oven and lightly press a few peanut butter chips on the tops of the cookies. Cool the cookies on the baking sheet for 10 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.
FAQ’s:
What makes peanut butter cookies crumbly?
Peanut butter cookies can become crumbly if there’s too much flour or if they are overbaked. To avoid this, measure the flour accurately and keep an eye on the baking time to ensure the centers stay soft.
Another reason that peanut butter cookies can be too crumbly is if you add too many chopped peanuts to the dough.
Will adding chopped peanuts make the peanut butter cookies too crumbly?
Adding chopped peanuts will add extra texture and crunch, but as long as they are added in moderation (about 1/4 to 1/2 cup, they shouldn’t make the cookies too crumbly. If you prefer a smoother texture, you can omit the peanuts altogether.
How do I know when the cookies are done baking?
The cookies should be slightly golden around the edges and look soft in the center when you take them out of the oven. The heat from the baking sheet will continue to cook them, ensuring a soft and chewy texture once cooled.
How do I ensure the bakery style peanut butter cookies stay thick?
Chilling the dough is crucial for thick peanut butter cookies. Chilling solidifies the fat in the dough, which means the cookies won’t spread too much during baking. Make sure to form large cookie dough balls—around 5-6 ounces—for that bakery-style thickness.
What mix-ins can I add to the peanut butter cookies?
I would suggest adding peanut butter chips for extra peanut butter flavor but you can also add milk or semi-sweet chocolate chips. You can also add 1/2 cup of chopped peanuts.
More Peanut Butter Recipes:
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Bakery-Style Thick Peanut Butter Cookies
Ingredients
- 1 cup Butter (cold, cut into small cubes)
- 1 cup Brown Sugar (packed)
- 1 cup Sugar
- 1 cup Creamy Peanut Butter (Jif or Skippy)
- 2 large Eggs
- 2 teaspoons Vanilla Extract
- 2 3/4 cups Flour
- 1 teaspoon Baking Soda
- 1/2 teaspoon Baking Powder
- 1/8 teaspoon Salt (optional)
- 1 1/2 cups Peanut Butter Chips
- 1/4 to 1/3 cup Chopped Peanuts (optional)
Instructions
- Cream the butter, peanut butter, and sugars together in a large bowl using a hand mixer or stand mixer. Beat on medium speed until light and fluffy, about 3-4 minutes.
- Add eggs and vanilla extract and beat until combined. Fold in flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. Stir in the peanut butter chips and optional chopped peanuts (if using). May leave out 1/4 cup of peanut butter chips to place on the cookies after removed from the oven.
- Chill the dough in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes to prevent spreading during baking. This step is key to getting thick cookies.
- Preheat your oven to 350 degrees and line two large light-colord baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone baking mats.
- Portion the dough into large 5-6 ounce balls (approximately the size of a small baseball) to achieve those thick bakery-style cookies. Place the dough balls onto baking sheets, spacing them about 2 inches apart.
- Bake the cookies for 10-14 minutes, or until the edges are set and golden but the centers are still slightly soft. The cookies will continue to firm up as they cool on the baking sheet. Be careful NOT to overbake the cookies.
- Remove the cookies from the oven and lightly press a few peanut butter chips on the tops of the cookies. Cool the cookies on the baking sheet for 10 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.
- Storage: Place in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 2 days. These cookies freeze very well so they can be placed in a gallon-sized Ziploc bag for up to 2-3 months.
Notes
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
I would give these 100 stars if I could! They are THAT GOOD!
5-6 ounces, by weight or volume?
“8 servings.” Does that mean only 8 cookies?
Oh WOW!!! what a great idea this is. I really would have never thought to put the Peanut butter chips inside of the cookie. Makes sense to me now, I can’t wait to make a batch of these. They look so delicious…
Just made these cookies and they were amazing! So soft and so delicious!
Maybe it’s me, but it looks like the directions are repeating itself?
Hi Linda! Thank you so much for letting me know. I copied and pasted it twice. I appreciate you reaching out! 🙂
Love the thick cookie idea! I know chilling is important, can you form into round balls and then chill? I always have a hard time getting the cookie dough out after chilling. Also, can I refrigerate 24 Hours?
Love your recipes!
Hi Suz, absolutely! You can form the balls ahead of time (they may be a tad sticky but I just use two spoons or a large cookie scoop). I love chilling cookie dough for 24-48 hours because it just creates even better cookies. Thank you so much for trying my recipes!:)
Could you use gluten free flour instead
Hi Sue! That’s a great question. I haven’t tried this recipe with gluten free flour but I am sure they will still turn out amazing!