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These Peanut Butter Cup Cookies are soft and chewy with a melty peanut butter cup nestled in the center! They’re gooey, rich and absolutely irresistible!
Have you ever had these peanut butter cup cookies?! For me, they’re nostalgic – like a “kid treat” I love just as much (okay probably even more) as an adult! Like my Sugar Cookie Cups and adorable little Brownie Bites, these are a hit with all ages!
I’ve tested these with four different peanut butter dough recipes to ensure that I’m giving you the BEST recipe – no crumbly cookies or lack of peanut butter flavor here! Let’s get to it!!!
Ingredients Needed
- Peanut Butter Cups – The star of the show!! You’ll need the “miniature peanut butter cups” like in the picture above…but not the mini mini’s… One 17.6 ounce package will be plenty.
- Softened Butter – I use salted butter; if using unsalted butter, you’ll want to add an additional 1/4 teaspoon salt.
- Sugars – You need white sugar AND brown sugar for this recipe.
- Large Egg
- Vanilla Extract
- All Purpose Flour
- Baking Soda – If your baking soda looks a little chunky, be sure to sift it.
- Salt
How to Make Peanut Butter Cup Cookies
Start by preheating the oven and greasing your mini muffin pan. I also recommend unwrapping the chocolates so they’re ready to go when the cookies are done baking.
Cream the butter and sugars in a large bowl then add the peanut butter, egg and vanilla. Then you’ll stir in the dry ingredients, making sure to scrape down the sides of the bowl a couple times to ensure all ingredients are incorporated.
Now you can either refrigerate the dough (for up to 48 hours) or continue on! Scoop the dough into 1 inch balls and place them into the prepared mini muffin tin.
Bake until a very light golden brown around the edges of the cookies. Remove from the oven and press a peanut butter cup into the center of each! Let them cool before removing from the pan (they should be easy to remove once cooled, but if needed, run a butter knife around the edges).
Shortcut!
Turn these into a 2-ingredient cookie cup by using a package of refrigerated peanut butter cookie dough. I’ve tried this with two Pillsbury Reese’s Peanut Butter Cookie Dough (16 ounce) 24-count packages and it turned out great!!!
No Mini Muffin Tin? No Problem!
Skip the muffin tin and use a flat cookie sheet instead. Roll the dough into balls and place them on a parchment-lined cookie sheet. Bake for 8-10 minutes then press a peanut butter cup into the center! Let cool then remove from the pan.
Storage Instructions
Let the cookies cool completely. If the chocolate is still soft, pop them into the fridge for 15 minutes to solidify the chocolate so you don’t have a mess!
Then store in a plastic baggie or in an airtight container on the counter for up to 5 days. You can also freeze these for up to 3 months!
Tips for Great Peanut Butter Cookie Cups!
- Use regular (processed) creamy peanut butter. Chunky peanut butter will make the dough crumbly and the “natural” peanut butters are hard to predict!
- Don’t overbake! When overbaked, these will become more crunchy. If you prefer them that way, go for it…but I’m all about that chewy cookie texture!
- Use a silicone mini muffin tin for super easy removal from the pan!
Other Recipes Peanut Butter Lovers LOVE!!
- Frosted Peanut Butter Bars
- No Bake Peanut Butter Pie
- Chocolate Peanut Butter Lasagna
- Scotcheroo Bites
- Peanut Butter Chip Chocolate Cookies
- Chocolate Peanut Butter Cobbler
- Peanut Butter Sheet Cake
Peanut Butter Cookie Cups
Equipment
- Mini Muffin Pan
Ingredients
- 48 peanut butter cups (one 17.6-ounce bag will be plenty)
- 1/2 cup butter softened
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 1/2 cup brown sugar
- 1/2 cup peanut butter
- 1 egg
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 1/2 cups flour
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350℉ and coat a mini muffin pan with cooking spray; set aside.
- Unwrap the candies, so they're ready to use once the cookies are baked. Once unwrapped, I recommend keeping them in the fridge so they are easy to work with.
- Cream the butter and sugars in a large bowl (or in the bowl of a stand mixer).
- Add the peanut butter, egg and vanilla then stir to combine.
- Stir in the flour, baking soda and salt.
- Scoop the dough and roll into 1-inch balls. The dough should be soft, but if it's too sticky to roll, stir in another 2 tablespoons of flour.
- Bake for 8-10 minutes or until the outer edges are a very light golden brown.
- Press the candies into the center of the cookies and let cool completely.
- Carefully remove from the pan and store in an airtight container.
