Old fashioned criss cross peanut butter cookies, one you remember from your childhood. Filled with that rich peanut butter flavor. These are soft cookies on the inside with a crunchy exterior. Drizzled with warmed peanut butter and perfect with a cold glass of milk
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Mix it, Bake it, & Eat Criss Cross Peanut Butter Cookies
Soft peanut butter cookies are a weakness of mine. I think peanut butter, in general, is a comfort food for me, and probably many of you too. I’m sure we’ve all had our fair share of pb&j sandwiches in our time. I enjoy mine with grape jam and creamy peanut butter on toasted bread. I may throw in some sliced bananas from time to time.
I hope you enjoy this peanut butter cookie recipe as much as I do. This one, in particular, is special as it’s been adapted from my best friend’s Great Great Grandma Arlie Mae. Don’t be too upset if it becomes a favorite cookie of yours.
Why You’ll Love Chewy Peanut Butter Cookies
- Delicious and full of that PB flavor!
- Another great addition to your family’s holiday dessert table.
- Enjoy as a snack with a cold glass of milk.
- You can get away with having some for breakfast, and i bet no one would question it!
Gathering your ingredients
Shortening- This recipe does call for shortening, if you don’t have shortening then unsalted butter or salted butter will work great as well. Want that butter flavor, use 1/2 shortening and 1/2 butter.
White Granulated Sugar– Save some extra granulated sugar to roll the cookie dough in before baking.
Creamy peanut butter– Any brand of creamy peanut butter works. And YES you can use crunchy peanut butter!
Eggs– Room temperature eggs
Vanilla– A pure vanilla extract will result in the best vanilla flavor.
All-purpose flour– To help avoid a crumbly cookie, be sure to weigh out your flour. Seriously, using a kitchen scale is ideal when measuring ingredients for baked goods.
Brown sugar– I enjoy using a mix of light and dark brown sugar.
Salt– For flavor and balance.
Baking soda & baking powder
*see recipe card for detailed measurements
Kitchen supplies you’ll need
- Large and small mixing bowl
- Measuring cups and spoons
- Hand mixer or Stand mixer
- Sifter
- Rubber spatula
- One or two baking sheets
- Fork
- Parchment paper or silicone baking mats
How To Make Criss Cross Peanut Butter Cookies
- In a stand mixer, cream together the shortening, eggs, vanilla, and peanut butter.
- In a large bowl sift together the dry ingredients. Sugar, flour, brown sugar, salt, baking powder, and baking soda.
- Once the wet ingredients are creamed well together, add the dry ingredients 1/3 at a time and mix slowly until fully combined.
- Pour the dough out onto plastic wrap or in a bowl. Wrap tightly and chill for at least 1 hour. Can chill for up to two days if necessary.
- Remove from the fridge and allow the dough to come to room temp for 10-15 minutes.
- While waiting preheat oven to 350 F. Prepare large baking sheets with parchment paper.
- Shape dough into 2 tbsp balls and place them on your prepared baking sheets. (For more or less cookies, change the size of the dough ball.) For the sake of spreading, place no more than 15 cookies on a large tray.
- With a fork dipped in flour, flatten each cookie with a crisscross pattern.
- Bake for 8-10 minutes until light golden brown.
- Remove from the oven and cool completely on a wire rack.
Recipe FAQs
Can you add chocolate chips to peanut butter cookies?
Of course! Add semi-sweet chocolate chips for another layer of flavor, or peanut butter chips for extra peanut butter flavor. Instead of a peanut butter drizzle, use melted milk chocolate chips.
Why do my peanut butter cookies get hard?
It’s truly essential to not overbake your cookies. Peanut butter cookies are brown so it may be difficult to tell when they’ve “browned” enough. Bake for 8 minutes, then allow to cool before handling. Make sure you store your cookies in an airtight container, this will help your cookies to retain their moisture.
Can I use natural peanut butter for peanut butter cookies?
Yes you can, the texture may not turn out the same. Stir thoroughly if your peanut butter is separated. Salt may need to be added since some natural peanut butter just contains peanuts and no salt.
Peanut Butter Cookie Variations
Other designs! – Try using other kitchen tools to create fun lines and patterns on your cookies
Crunchy – While regular peanut butter is amazing, don’t underestimate chunky peanut butter.
PB&J – Instead of a criss cross pattern, create a small dip in the center to fill with your favorite jam.
Use as a topping! – Break up baked cookies and top your favorite custard or ice cream.
Expert Tips
- For extra peanut butter taste, warm peanut butter and drizzle across your baked cookies.
- Feel free to experiment with other kitchen tools! I have used a fork, potato masher, and pastry cutter.
- Chill your dough. This important step will make sure your cookies hold their shape and not spread too much.
- Optional – Roll your cookies in sugar before baking for extra crunch and sweetness.
Storage Suggestions
- Store fresh baked cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for up to a week. If you prefer crunchy peanut butter cookies, you can store them in the fridge or at room temperature not in an airtight container.
- Can I freeze peanut butter cookies? Roll in premade cookie dough balls (criss-cross first if you want to, but not necessary) and freeze on a baking sheet for roughly an hour. Place in a Ziploc freezer bag for 3-4 months.
Tools I use
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Try these other cookie recipes!
- Chex Mix Cookies For Christmas
- Easy Nutella No-Bake Cookies
- Tasty Chocolate Chip Mint Cookies
- Easy Cranberry White Chocolate Chip Cookies
- Easy Nutella No-Bake Cookies
- Chewy Blueberry Chocolate Chip Cookies
Criss Cross Peanut Butter Cookies
Peanut Butter lovers unite! This recipe yields many cookies. Great for sharing or gifting!
- Total Time: 10 minutes
- Yield: 25 1x
Ingredients
1 cup shortening ( sub. unsalted butter)
1 cup sugar
1 cup creamy peanut butter (sub. for crunchy!)
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
2 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup light brown sugar
1/4 tsp salt
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp baking powder
Instructions
- In a stand mixer, cream together the shortening, eggs, vanilla, and peanut butter.
- In a large bowl sift together the dry ingredients. Sugar, flour, brown sugar, salt, baking powder, and soda.
- Once the wet ingredients are creamed well together, add the dry ingredients 1/3 at a time and mix slowly until fully combined.
- After combined, pour out onto plastic wrap, Ziploc, or covered bowl. Wrap tightly and chill for at least 1 hour. Can chill for up to two days if necessary.
- Remove from fridge and allow to come to room temp for 10-15 minutes.
- Preheat oven to 350 F. Prepare large baking sheets with parchment paper.
- Form 2 tbsp balls and place them on your baking sheet. (For more or less cookies, change the size of the dough ball.) For the sake of spreading, place no more than 15 cookies on a large tray.
- Flatten each cookie with a fork dipped in flour.
- Bake 10 minutes for a chewy cookie, 12 minutes for a crunchier cookie.
- Cool on a wire rack.
- Cook Time: 10 minutes
- Category: Cookies
- Method: Baked
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 cookie
- Calories: 248
- Sugar: 16.9 g
- Sodium: 126.5 mg
- Fat: 14 g
- Carbohydrates: 27.9 g
- Fiber: 0.9 g
- Protein: 4.1 g
- Cholesterol: 14.9 mg
Keywords: criss cross peanut butter cookies
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Aww, well thank you. Glad you’re here!