|

Peanut Butter Cookies with Peanut Butter Frosting

Save & Share!

These soft peanut butter cookies with peanut butter frosting are a simple homemade treat you’ll love! The peanut butter cookies are soft and chewy with lots of peanut butter flavor. A simple secret ingredient makes them even better! The frosting is a buttercream made with peanut butter, butter and powdered sugar. So easy!

Please note that this post contains affiliate links which allow me to earn a small commission when a purchase is made at no additional cost to you. Read more here.

If you love peanut butter, try my Buckeye Brownie Cookies next!

Peanut butter cookies with piped stars of peanut butter buttercream frosting.

I love a good peanut butter cookie–but too many recipes yield dry cookies with hardly any peanut butter flavor. My recipe for peanut butter cookies won’t disappoint! Each cookie has plenty of peanut butter flavor and a soft and chewy interior!

I also made a simple peanut butter buttercream to go along with these easy cookies and I gotta say, the creamy peanut buttery frosting makes these really irresistible!

You can pipe the frosting on if you wish (as shown in my photos) or just swirl it around each cookie for a quick alternative!

Fresh Baked Cookies ASAP

Get a mouthwatering cookie recipe each week straight to your inbox.

Headshot photo of woman smiling and wearing a white dress and gold necklace.

Recipes by a Real Person in a Real Kitchen

In the age of AI-generated content, I like to share that I’ve created and tested my recipes. My recipes have been hypothesized, baked, taste-tested, and refined by a real human (me!). I only publish recipes I think are awesome. This peanut butter cookie recipe with peanut butter frosting is a riff off my base peanut butter cookie recipe!

Can I Use Natural or Organic Peanut Butter here?

I’ve only tested this recipe with conventional peanut butter (think Jif or Skippy), so I can’t advise on the results you will get with natural or organic peanut butters. They are a very different product and sometimes yield surprising results!

The main differences you should consider are that natural peanut butters are more oily, fairly gritty, and often more liquidy than a typical jar of peanut butter.

If you decide to experiment in your own home kitchen, leave a comment so other bakers will know your results too!

Ingredients in the Cookies & Frosting

A few notes on some of the ingredients used in the cookies:

Unsalted Butter – Used in both the cookies and the frosting. I always use unsalted American butter in my recipes. I shop at Costco the most frequently so I often go with their store-brand of butter for baking.

Granulated Sugar and Light Brown Sugar – using two types of sugar creates the perfect balance between a chewy cookie and a cookie that spreads the correct amount.

Smooth Peanut Butter – Use a conventional peanut butter like Jif or Skippy for this recipe. I suggest avoiding “natural” or “organic” peanut butters because they are a much different product (I have not tested this recipe with them either!).

Honey – this “secret ingredient” gives the cookies another level of chewiness! I like adding it in, but if you don’t have honey on hand, the cookies will still turn out without it!

All-Purpose Flour – I use all-purpose flour in my baking. It’s very very important to measure your flour correctly. Never pack flour into a measuring cup. Use a scale for best results.

How to Make the Cookies and Frosting

Here’s a summary of how this recipe is made. Find the complete ingredients list and full instructions within the printable recipe card below!

Cookies:

The peanut butter cookies are very easy to make! The wet ingredients are creamed together (starting with the butter and sugars first of course) and after adding the dry ingredients, the dough is chilled for 2 hours.

Cookies are baked and cooled and then they are ready for some frosting!

Peanut Butter Frosting:

With the peanut butter frosting, I discovered it’s really important to beat the butter until fluffy first! Then you add in the peanut butter. If you forget, the mixture will still become smooth eventually, but it’ll take longer!

After slowly adding the powdered sugar, the mixture will be quite thick. So we’ll add in a little milk or cream (just small amounts at a time–it’ll end up to about 1-2 tablespoons) and continue to beat the mixture until smooth and fluffy!

Three step-by-step photos of making peanut butter frosting.

Decorating the cookies:

You can simply spread the frosting on with a knife or off-set spatula, OR you can go a little fancy and fill up a piping bag with a star tip. I used a small star tip (I think it is a #20) with a coupler and a disposable pastry bag.

How to Store or Make Ahead

Store the frosted cookies in an airtight container in the fridge up to 5 days.

Unfrosted cookies can be stored at room temperature in an airtight container (up to 5 days). The frosting should be stored in the fridge. After the frosting has been in the fridge, it works best to allow it to warm up at room temperature for a little while (30 minutes or so) and then re-whip it.

Cookies can be frozen for up to 1 month if desired.

More Delicious Recipes to Try:

If you love peanut butter, you should definitely not miss my Oreo-Stuffed Peanut Butter Cookies, Crumbl Copycat Buckeye Cookies, and Mini Peanut Butter Cookies!

If you loved this recipe, leave a quick comment and a 5-star rating!
Thanks so much for trying one of my recipes!

Peanut butter cookies frosted with piped stars of peanut butter buttercream.

Peanut Butter Cookies with Peanut Butter Frosting

Double the peanut butter goodness with this easy recipe for Peanut Butter Cookies with Peanut Butter Frosting! These cookies are soft and chewy with a "secret ingredient" that makes them even better!
No ratings yet
Prep Time 20 minutes
Cook Time 10 minutes
Chill Time 2 hours
Total Time 2 hours 30 minutes
Course Dessert
Cuisine American
Servings 24 cookies
Calories 234 kcal

Ingredients
 

Cookies

  • 8 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened/room temperature (4 ounces)
  • ½ cup light brown sugar, packed (3.5 ounces)
  • cup granulated sugar (2.5 ounces)
  • ½ cup smooth peanut butter (4.5 ounces)
  • 1 tablespoon honey (see notes)
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 1 large egg
  • 1 ¼ cups all-purpose flour (6.25 ounces)
  • ¾ teaspoon baking soda
  • teaspoon salt

Peanut Butter Frosting

  • ¾ cup creamy peanut butter (6.75 ounces) (not natural; use Jif or Skippy-style)
  • 8 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened/room temp (softened room temp)
  • 1 ½ – 2 cups powdered sugar, sifted (6-8 ounces)
  • 1 ½ – 3 tablespoons heavy cream or milk
  • ¼ teaspoon vanilla extract
  • pinch of salt

Instructions
 

Peanut Butter Cookies;

  • In a large bowl, use a hand mixer with beaters to cream together softened butter and the sugars. Beat until totally combined and smooth, about 2 minutes. Add peanut butter and vanilla extract and beat until combined. Add egg and beat until just combined.
  • Sprinkle the flour, baking soda, and salt over the mixture and mix on low (or use a spatula to fold together) until combined and no streaks of flour remain. The dough will be soft and a bit sticky.
  • Chill dough for two hours (or up to two days).
  • Remove dough from fridge and allow to soften at room temperature for 15-25 minutes. It should be easily scooped at this point. Meanwhile, preheat oven to 350°F and line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
  • Use a #40 scoop (1.5 tablespoons) to scoop cookies. Place on baking sheets 2” apart. Bake a single sheet for 9-11 minutes or until cookies are puffed, lightly crackled on top, and the edges are golden. Don’t overbake.
  • Cookies will be puffy and then flatten as they cool. Cool on the cookie sheets for about 10 minutes and then transfer to a cooling rack to cool completely.

Peanut Butter Frosting:

  • In a large bowl, use a hand mixer to beat the butter until smooth. Then add the peanut butter and beat until very smooth.
  • Gradually add in the powdered sugar, mixing well after each addition. Pause after adding 1 ½ cups and taste test to determine if you want to add the last ½ cup of powdered sugar. Beat in the vanilla extract.
  • Now, thin the frosting down by adding 1 tablespoon of cream or milk and beating until smooth. Continue to add small amounts of cream or milk until the frosting is the desired consistency. If the frosting becomes too thin, then add a bit more powdered sugar.
  • Beat the mixture on high speed for an additional minute or two until light and fluffy.
  • Frost cooled cookies using a piping bag and a small star tip (as shown in photos) or use an offset spatula or knife to frost them flat.

Notes

Honey: this “secret ingredient” gives the cookies another level of chewiness! I like adding it in, but if you don’t have honey on hand, the cookies will still turn out without it.
Frosting: You can use either heavy cream or milk to thin down the frosting, (if you use milk then you will likely need less).
Storage: Store the frosted cookies in an airtight container in the fridge up to 5 days.
Unfrosted cookies can be stored at room temperature in an airtight container (up to 5 days). The frosting should be stored in the fridge. After the frosting has been in the fridge, it works best to allow it to warm up at room temperature for a little while (30 minutes or so) and then re-whip it.
Cookies can be frozen for up to 1 month if desired.

Nutrition

Calories: 234kcalCarbohydrates: 17gProtein: 5gFat: 17gSaturated Fat: 7gPolyunsaturated Fat: 2gMonounsaturated Fat: 6gTrans Fat: 0.3gCholesterol: 31mgSodium: 121mgPotassium: 111mgFiber: 1gSugar: 10gVitamin A: 291IUVitamin C: 0.01mgCalcium: 17mgIron: 1mg
Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!

Pin It for Later!

Peanut butter cookies with piped stars of peanut butter frosting with the words, "Frosted Peanut Butter Cookies".

Similar Posts

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Recipe Rating