These are the BEST peanut butter and jelly cookies - Fudgy, chewy and never dry. We're talking your favorite PB&J flavors but with the texture and chew of a chocolate chip cookie.
Imagine your favorite chocolate chip cookie. Is it gooey, soft and somehow defies the laws of physics by being both chewy in the middle and crispy along the edges?
Guess what: So are these peanut butter and jelly cookies!
No dryness, no unpleasant sandy texture that immediately crumbles through your fingers and onto the floor.
Just that chewy, fudgy texture you know and love; Creamy peanut buttery goodness with a bright burst of jam.
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Ingredients
Below are helpful tips for key ingredients. A full list of ingredients and measurements is available in the recipe card.
- Butter: Provides fat and moisture to the cookies. Melting it makes it easier to mix in, which reduces the chances of overmixing the dough, and it also leads to a slightly fudgy, chewy texture.
- Brown sugar: Adds sweetness, moisture and creates a chewy texture.
- Granulated sugar: Because it tastes sweeter than brown sugar, we're adding just a little bit for an extra pop of sweetness.
- Egg: Adds stability and richness.
- Peanut butter: I used smooth but any kind will work. And if you're wondering what makes peanut butter cookies dry and crumbly, it's too much peanut butter. I recipe-tested these until I found the sweet spot at a ½ cup. Don't worry, we'll add a drizzle of peanut butter post-baking for more flavor.
All ingredients should be room temperature to prevent the dough from seizing.
Working ahead
Want to mix up these cookies now for easy baking later?
Cover and refrigerate the bowl of dough for 3-5 days. You can also bake, wrap and freeze them for up to six months.
If you're working ahead for a cookie platter, a few of my other favorite cookie recipes that prep well include pepperkake (Norwegian gingerbread), chocolate malt cookies and maple cookies.
And if you like peanut butter, salted caramel peanut butter blondies can be frozen for up to two months.
How to make peanut butter and jelly cookies
First, make the dough.
Stir the sugars and melted butter until combined. Add the peanut butter and stir until smooth.
Stir in the egg and vanilla. Fold in the flour, baking soda and salt.
Second, scoop onto the baking sheet.
Scoop 3-tablespoon balls of dough (leaving two inches between each) onto parchment paper-lined baking sheets.
Press to ½" thickness.
Third, add jam.
Scooping a heaping teaspoon of jam onto the top of each cookie.
Make sure none runs down the sides or it'll make a sticky, gummy mess on the bottom of the cookies.
Finally, bake.
Bake the cookies at 350F for 10-11 minutes or until you can see the edges just starting to brown.
Drizzle with melted peanut butter and chopped peanuts.
Expert tips
- The importance of leaving cookies on the baking sheet: To prevent the cookies from getting too brown or dry, remove them when the edges are just starting to brown, leaving them slightly undercooked. Cooling them on the baking sheet will finish the baking process.
- Fixing cookies that have spread: Place a round cookie cutter or small bowl over each cookie and, using a circular motion, gently swirl it around the edges of the cookies. This works best when the cookies are hot and fresh out of the oven.
Scaling
While this recipe can easily be doubled or tripled, I don't recommend halving it; The ratio of egg to other ingredients will be off (since there's only one egg), which will result in a cakey cookie.
Storage
These cookies will keep at room temperature in an airtight container for up to a week.
They can also be individually wrapped and frozen for up to six months.
More delicious cookies
Need more cookie recipes to satisfy those sweet cravings? Here are a few more favorites:
Did you make this recipe? Please leave a ⭐ star rating and let me know how it went in the comments below! I regularly update these posts and feedback from wonderful readers like you help me improve them.
Recipe
Peanut Butter and Jelly Cookies
Fudgy, chewy and never dry, these peanut butter and jelly have all your favorite PB&J flavors with the texture of a chocolate chip cookie.
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 11 minutes
- Total Time: 21 minutes
- Yield: 16 cookies 1x
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Ingredients
- ½ cup unsalted butter, melted
- ¼ cup granulated sugar
- ½ cup light brown sugar
- ½ cup peanut butter
- 1 egg, at room temperature
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 ½ cup all-purpose flour
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ½ cup jam
Garnish:
- Peanut butter
- Peanuts
Instructions
- Melt the butter until it's liquified but not hot. You may have to melt for 30-40 seconds and stir until it dissolves.
- Add the granulated and brown sugar and stir until combined.
- Stir in the peanut butter until smooth.
- Add the egg and vanilla and stir to combine.
- Fold in the flour, baking soda and salt. The dough should be cohesive and pull away from the sides of the bowl.
- Scoop 3-tablespoon balls of dough onto parchment paper lined baking sheets, leaving about two inches of space between cookies.
- Use a spoon or the bottom of a glass to press the cookies to about ½" thickness.
- Spoon a heaping teaspoon of jam onto the top of each cookie making sure it doesn't run over the sides.
- Bake at 350F for 10-11 minutes, or until the edges begin to brown.
- Remove from the oven and allow to cool completely on the baking sheets.
- Drizzle with melted peanut butter and coarsely chopped peanuts.
Notes
-
- The importance of leaving cookies on the baking sheet: To prevent the cookies from getting too brown or dry, remove them when the edges are just starting to brown, leaving them slightly undercooked. Cooling them on the baking sheet will finish the baking process.
- Fixing cookies that have spread: Place a round cookie cutter or small bowl over each cookie and, using a circular motion, gently swirl it around the edges of the cookies. This works best when the cookies are hot and fresh out of the oven.
- Storage: Keep at room temperature for up to one week.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 cookie
- Calories: 202
- Sugar: 13.2g
- Sodium: 160mg
- Fat: 10.2g
- Saturated Fat: 4.6g
- Carbohydrates: 25g
- Fiber: 0.9g
- Protein: 3.7g
- Cholesterol: 25mg
Keywords: peanut butter and jelly cookies, pbj cookies, peanut butter and jelly cookie recipe, peanut butter thumbprint cookies, easy peanut butter and jelly cookies
Sue says
Uff, I love the sounds of these! I will try these very soon.
★★★★★
Mikayla says
These cookies are so delicious, they are a cookie you could dress up a dessert table with!
★★★★★
Lauren Michael Harris says
You just can't go wrong with this classic combination. I would eat these pb&j cookies every day if I could - so good!
★★★★★
tristin says
I will eat any peanut butter cookies because I just love them, but the addition of jelly made these my new favorite way to make them! Thanks for the great recipe!
★★★★★
Erin says
Oh, I'd love to make these for my son! They look so much better than actual PB&Js. And they look like they have a great texture, too.
★★★★★
Susan says
Oh I love these! And what a great idea to garnish them with chopped peanuts. I can't wait to make them!
★★★★★
Lori | The Kitchen Whisperer says
So SO good! I love the addition of jam to the center to give you that true pb&j flavor profile! These are definitely a keeper!
★★★★★
Enriqueta E Lemoine says
My kind of recipe! It's easy to follow, and it produces the most amazing peanut butter jelly rookies. I'm baking this again next weekend! Thanks for sharing!
★★★★★
Loreto Nardelli says
What an incredible fudgy texture these peanut butter and jelly cookies have! Love them in the morning, snack, and dessert!
★★★★★
Dee says
Yes, please. PB&J and Cookies. Two of my faves in one. I'll take a dozen!
★★★★★
Krysten says
These peanut butter and jelly cookies are like a childhood dream come true! The sweet nostalgia of PB&J in cookie form is just perfection. They're so easy to make and remind me of these peanut butter waffles with jam recipe I tried recently. A must-try for cookie lovers!
★★★★★
Indya | The Small Adventurer says
I went far too long in my life believing that the whole PB&J craze had to be overhyped, and I still remember to this day when I decided to try it, and boy was I proven wrong! They are MEANT to be together, in any way possible, and I bet these cookies are just another recipe where this match made in heaven proves how right for each other these two ingredients are 😋🙌 They certainly look super delicious!