Tessa’s Recipe Rundown
Taste: Peanut butter and cinnamon work so perfectly together! I also love the dark brown sugar in this recipe, which gives it a rich, complex sweetness.
Texture: Ultra soft and thick, with that crunchy cinnamon sugar coating.
Ease: Super easy!
Pros: Fun twist on a classic cookie recipe.
Cons: None!
I make this again? Oh yeah.
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Peanut Butter Snickerdoodles are the most delicious, nutty twist on the classic Snickerdoodle cookie.
I am completely obsessed with peanut butter. I have hundreds of PB recipes on my site, like my outrageously good Peanut Butter Pie, my decadent Peanut Butter Stuffed Brownies, and my crazy-popular Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies.
I love playing with recipes utilizing different peanut butter flavor combinations. Through experimenting with countless recipes, I’ve found that I love PB and cinnamon together. You might not expect that to be such a great flavor combination, but it really works!
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These Peanut Butter Snickerdoodles allow that flavor combo to shine. A thick, chewy snickerdoodle made with plenty of peanut butter, rolled in cinnamon sugar, creates an utterly delicious cookie that no one will be able to resist.
Sprinkle of Science
How to Make Peanut Butter Snickerdoodles
Can I Make Peanut Butter Snickerdoodles Without Cream of Tartar?
- Traditionally, Snickerdoodle cookie recipes always contain cream of tartar, to bring a slightly tangy flavor and create that classic crinkly top.
- When developing my Classic Snickerdoodle Cookies, we experimented with Snickerdoodles made with and without cream of tartar. We found that using cream of tartar created cookies that were chewier, and crinkled more on top to look prettier.
- I recommend using cream of tartar for the best texture possible.
- Be sure to use fresh cream of tartar, to help to create those crinkly tops.
- If you don’t have it on hand, simply omit it! Your cookies will still taste great.
How to Make Soft, Chewy Cookies
- Measure your flour correctly. Be sure to measure your flour correctly by weighing with a digital scale or with the spoon and level method to avoid cakey, dense, or tough Peanut Butter Snickerdoodles cookies that don’t spread. Learn more about how to measure flour correctly here.
- Don’t overbake. Take these cookies out of the oven when the cookies are just set and beginning to brown. Overbaking will make these Peanut Butter Snickerdoodles hard and dry.
- Don’t reduce the sugar. Reducing the sugar will ruin the texture of these Peanut Butter Snickerdoodles. Sugar does so much more in baking beyond sweetening. Learn more about sugar’s role in baking here.
Why Did My Peanut Butter Snickerdoodles Spread?
We want these cookies to spread just a bit, so we’ll press the dough down a little before baking – but if your cookies are spreading into flat cookie puddles, it could be due to warm butter. It’s important to make sure your butter is at a COOL room temperature. Your stick of butter should give slightly when pressed with your finger but still hold its shape. Around 67°F is perfect. Learn more about why butter temperature in baking is important here.
Can I Make These Cookies With a Hand Mixer?
Yes! A hand mixer will work just as well as a stand mixer – just be sure to use a deep enough bowl to prevent splatter.
What’s the Best Baking Pan for Peanut Butter Snickerdoodles?
Use light-colored aluminum half-sheet pans lined with parchment paper. Avoid dark nonstick pans as they brown too much and may burn the bottoms of your cookies. Learn more about the best (and worst!) baking pans here.
Use a Cookie Scoop to Make These Even Faster!
Using a stainless steel spring-loaded cookie scoop when portioning out cookie dough is one of the KEYS to beautiful, uniform, evenly-shaped, and evenly-baked cookies – and it saves you so much time in forming the balls of dough. When using a scoop, you ensure each ball is evenly sized so the cookies bake evenly, meaning you don’t have any small overbaked cookies or large underbaked cookies. Learn more about Cookie Scoops and how to use them here!
How to Store Peanut Butter Snickerdoodles
Peanut Butter Snickerdoodle cookies can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days. Store cookies with a tortilla to keep them soft for longer.
Can You Freeze Peanut Butter Snickerdoodles?
Yes – freeze Peanut Butter Snickerdoodle cookie dough for up to six weeks. Roll the cookie dough balls in cinnamon sugar and lightly flatten them before placing in a freezer-safe container or in a Ziptop bag. Bake from frozen at 350°F for 13 minutes, or until the cookies are set and begin to brown. Learn more about how to freeze cookie dough, and bake from frozen, here.
More Recipes You’ll Love:
- Classic Snickerdoodle Recipe
- Soft and Chewy Sugar Cookies
- Peanut Butter Cookies
- Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies
- Peanut Butter & Jelly Cookies
Peanut Butter Snickerdoodles
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Ingredients
- 2 cups (254 grams) all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon cream of tartar
- 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1 stick (113 grams) unsalted butter, at cool room temperature
- 1/2 cup (135 grams) smooth peanut butter
- 1/2 cup (100 grams) granulated sugar, plus 1/4 cup (50 grams) for rolling
- 1/4 cup (50 grams) packed dark brown sugar
- 1 large egg, at cool room temperature
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line large baking sheets with parchment paper.
- In a medium bowl, combine the flour, cream of tartar, baking soda, and salt. Set aside.
- In the bowl of an electric mixer, beat the butter, peanut butter, 1/2 cup granulated sugar, and brown sugar on medium-high speed until well combined and smooth, about 3 minutes. Add the egg and vanilla and beat until combined. On low speed, gradually add the flour mixture and beat until incorporated.
- Place the remaining 1/4 cup of sugar with the cinnamon in a shallow dish. Using a medium spring-loaded cookie scoop, shape the dough into 1 1/2 tablespoon balls, then roll in cinnamon sugar to coat evenly. Place the dough balls on the prepared baking sheets and flatten with the bottom of a measuring cup or glass.
- Bake for 10 to 12 minutes, or until the cookies are set and begin to brown. Let the cookies cool for 5 minutes before removing to a wire rack to cool completely.
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This post was originally published in 2016 and has been updated with weight measurements and additional baking tips.
Made these yesterday. I was a bit skeptical but they turned out great! Peanut butter is subtle, texture is perfect! Thank you. This is a keeper!
So happy you love them!