Peanut Butter Cookies – Easy Holiday Cookies

Pulling all stops for one more Christmas cookie batch in the oven.

Peanut Butter Cookies have been a traditional cookie in our house, and it would not be Christmas without them.

A super easy Christmas treats recipe that takes no time to prepare and bake. Peanut butter cookies are a classic American dessert. The principal ingredient is peanut butter, the creamy kind.

Add sugar, eggs, flour, butter, and vanilla, and you have a crispy outside cookie with a soft inside.

We all need peanut butter cookie or dessert recipes like this fabulous Reese’s Peanut Butter Cup Pie in our baking recipe drawers. You never know when the craving arises.

In this Article

Why do you make fork marks on peanut butter cookies?

Peanut butter is a thick and dense ingredient. Adding the criss-cross pattern to your cookies allows them to bake evenly.

It also gives you that crisp exterior around the edges and chewy interior where the criss-cross marks are formed.

Baking tips and step by step to make those beautiful peanut butter cookies:

• Start by preheating the oven and gathering all the ingredients needed.
• Add the butter to the bowl of your mixer or a regular bowl and gradually increase the speed to soften your butter.
• Add the sugars to the butter until a creamy consistency is formed.
• Add one egg at a time to the butter.
• Always sift the flour before adding it to your peanut butter mixture. Add a few scoops at a time.
• Although there is enough fat content in your cookies, I always use a Silpat mat or parchment paper to prevent sticking to my cookie sheet.
• With the help of an ice cream scooper, grab some of the dough and form a small ball.
• Place each ball 1 inch apart.
• If the fork sticks to the cookie, dip it prior into some flour and then proceed with the crisscross pattern.
• Bake in the hot oven and watch the time. With my old oven, 10 minutes is perfect. You want some golden around the edges and still soft in the middle.
• Please move to a cooling rack when you can handle them.
• Let the cookie sheet cool off completely, or use two before baking the second batch of peanut butter cookies. The hot baking sheet will not allow your cookies to rise but will make them spread out.

Working the dough too much will result in cookies that will spread all over your baking sheet. Let it rest in the refrigerator for a few minutes before baking.

Parchment paper

I cannot live without using it. Using parchment paper is convenient in case of jam spillage and burning of the cookie.

It also prevents sticking to your cookie sheet, which will relate to less mess to clean.

Storage instructions

If you are lucky to have some peanut butter cookies left over, a rare occurrence at my house, wait until they are completely cool before storing them in an airtight glass container.

You can keep them at room temperature, lasting up to 4 days.

I like to store mine on a cookie dish with a dome so everyone can enjoy one as they pass by the kitchen.

Expert Tips

Do not play with the dough too much as the butter will break down and will bake relatively flat.

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