Search Results for “peanut butter”

Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Bars

Posted on August 13, 2023February 27, 2026 by Mari Vasseur

The combination of peanut butter and chocolate feels so nostalgic to me. This is a beloved recipe from my childhood with those comforting flavors. We used to make these delicious Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Bars with melted chocolate chips on top, but I upgraded them with a silky chocolate glaze. My family always devours these easy-to-make, customizable bars. Feel free to add chopped peanuts, peanut butter chips or even a sprinkle of sea salt on top.

Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Bars

by Mari Vasseur

Print Recipe

Course Dessert

Servings 16 2-inch bars

Ingredients

Bars

1 cup (128g) all purpose flour, sifted plus 1 teaspoon for the chocolate chips
2 tablespoons (18g) cornstarch
1 teaspoon baking powder
¼ teaspoon fine sea salt
¼ cup (57g) unsalted butter, room temperature
½ cup (128g) creamy peanut butter
¾ cup (150g) packed brown sugar
¼ cup (50g) granulated sugar
2 large eggs, room temperature
1 ½ teaspoons pure vanilla extract
1 cup (170g) semisweet chocolate chips

Glaze

½ cup (71g) semisweet chocolate, chopped
2 tablespoons (28g) unsalted butter
1 teaspoon light corn syrup

Instructions

Bars

Preheat the oven to 350ºF (180ºC). Line the bottom of an 8-inch square baking pan with parchment paper. Grease and flour the insides.
In a medium-sized bowl, whisk together the flour, cornstarch, baking powder, and salt until well combined.
In a large bowl, beat the butter and peanut butter together, with an electric mixer, until smooth and well blended. Add the brown sugar and granulated sugar. Beat until light and fluffy. Beat in the eggs and vanilla extract in 3 separate additions, making sure each one is incorporated before adding the next. Stir in the flour mixture just until combined.
In a small bowl, toss the chocolate chips with 1 teaspoon of flour then stir them into the batter. Transfer the batter to the baking pan. Smooth the top with a spatula. Bake until the top is golden brown and a toothpick inserted into the center of the bars comes out with a few moist crumbs on it, about 20-25 minutes. Do not over bake. Let cool in the pan. Spread the chocolate glaze over the cooled bars.

Glaze

Combine the glaze ingredients in a heat-safe bowl set over a pan of gently simmering water, making sure the water doesn't touch the bottom of the bowl. Stir occasionally until melted and smooth.

Keyword bars, peanut butter chocolate chip

Melt-in-Your-Mouth Peanut Butter Cookie Sandwiches

Posted on November 5, 2022February 12, 2026 by Mari Vasseur

I never imagined that I’d ever be posting a peanut butter cookie recipe. There are already crunchy peanut butter cookies, soft ones, chewy ones, and those peanut shaped store bought ones out there. I mean, do we even need another peanut butter cookie recipe? After I tasted this one, it’s a resounding YES! These soft, tender cookies combined with a silky, smooth filling are a new peanut butter experience that I had to share.

The key to getting the soft texture in the cookie, without being dry, is cake flour. So don’t substitute it, because it’s vital to achieve the correct texture. Make sure to weigh your flour for the most accurate results. The second important ingredient is heavy whipping cream. Just a little added to the filling gives it a luxurious, silky texture.

This recipe makes sixteen medium size peanut butter cookies, which will give you eight sandwiches. If you want more, you can double the recipe or make the cookies smaller. Smaller cookies will have a shorter baking time.

Melt-in-Your-Mouth Peanut Butter Cookie Sandwiches

Print Recipe

Course Dessert

Servings 8 cookie sandwiches

Ingredients

Peanut Butter Cookies

1 cup (4 1/2 oz or 128g) all purpose flour, sifted
½ cup (2 oz or (57g) cake flour, sifted
½ teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon fine sea salt
¾ cup (6 3/4 oz or 191g) creamy peanut butter
¼ cup (2 oz or 57g) unsalted butter, softened
¼ cup (1 5/8 or 47g) vegetable shortening
½ cup (3 1/2 oz or 100g) packed brown sugar
½ cup (3 1/2 oz or 100g) granulated sugar, divided
1 large egg
½ teaspoon pure vanilla extract

Peanut Butter Filling

½ cup (4 1/2 oz or 128g) creamy peanut butter, room temperature
2 tablespoons (1 oz or 28g) unsalted butter, softened
½ cup (2 oz or 57g) powdered sugar, sifted
2 ½ tablespoons (1 1/4 oz or 37ml) heavy whipping cream, room temperature
¼ teaspoon pure vanilla extract
Pinch fine sea salt

Instructions

Peanut Butter Cookies

Preheat oven to 350ºF (180ºC). Line two large baking sheets with parchment paper.
In a medium bowl, whisk together the all purpose flour, cake flour, baking soda and salt. Set aside.
In a large bowl, beat the peanut butter, butter and shortening until smooth.
Beat in the egg and vanilla until well combined.
Set aside 1/4 cup (50g) of the granulated sugar. Beat the peanut butter mixture with brown sugar and remaining granulated sugar, with an electric mixer at medium speed, until light and fluffy.
Add the flour mixture and beat just until combined.
Roll the dough into 1 1/2-inch (3.8cm) diameter balls (about 1 1/4 oz or 35g each). Roll the dough balls in the reserved granulated sugar.
Place the dough balls 3 inches apart onto the prepared baking sheets. Flatten with a fork, making a criss cross pattern.
Bake until the cookies are puffy and start to crack around the edges, about 9-11 minutes.
Let the cookies cool on baking sheet for 1 minute, then carefully transfer them to a cooling rack. The cookies will be fragile, but they will firm up as they cool.
Place a spoonful of filling on the bottoms of half of the cooled cookies. Top with remaining the remaining cookies.

Peanut Butter Filling

In medium bowl, beat the peanut butter and butter together until smooth.
Beat in the powdered sugar, heavy cream, vanilla and salt until smooth.

Notes

To find my favorite cookie sheet, click here.

Keyword cookies, peanut butter

Chocolate Peanut Butter Tarts

Posted on January 28, 2022February 16, 2026 by Mari Vasseur

Does anyone else remember those old peanut butter cup commercials where two people on the street would collide and a chocolate bar would miraculously end up inside of a jar of peanut butter? Then the person carrying the open jar of peanut butter would say, “Hey you got chocolate in my peanut butter!” and they would suddenly discover it’s a delicious combination. The real question is, why was anyone walking around outside with an open jar of peanut butter? I miss those silly commercials.

If you love chocolate and peanut butter together, you’ll absolutely love these tarts. The creamy peanut butter filling and the silky chocolate ganache topping are perfect together. The chocolate cookie crust adds a nice crunch. I used heart shaped tart pans to make the tarts a little more special for Valentine’s Day. To find the tart pans I used, click here. You can also use round tart pans if you prefer.

Chocolate Peanut Butter Tarts

Mari Vasseur

Personal peanut butter tarts with chocolate cookie crusts and chocolate ganache topping

Print Recipe

Course Dessert

Servings 4 tarts

Ingredients

Crust

14 chocolate sandwich cookies, crushed including filling
2 tablespoons (28g) unsalted butter, melted

Filling

½ cup (128g) creamy peanut butter, room temperature
2 tablespoons (28g) unsalted butter, softened
½ cup (60g) powdered sugar, sifted
2 tablespoons (30ml) heavy cream, room temperature
¼ teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 Pinch fine sea salt

Topping

3 ounces (85g) bittersweet or semi-sweet chocolate, finely chopped
¼ cup plus 2 tablespoons (88ml) heavy cream
Chopped peanuts optional
Mini peanut butter cups optional

Instructions

Crust

Preheat the oven to 350ºF. (180ºC). Place four 4-inch tart pans with removable bottoms* on a baking sheet.
In a medium-sized bowl, mix the crushed sandwich cookies with the melted butter until well combined. Press the crumb mixture into the tart pans.
Bake for 8 minutes. Let cool completely.

Filling

In a medium-sized bowl, beat the peanut butter and softened butter until smooth. Add the remaining filling ingredients and beat until smooth and well blended.
Fill the cooled tart shells with the filling. Refrigerate the tarts until set, at least 2 hours.

Topping

Place the chopped chocolate in a small bowl.
In a small saucepan, heat the heavy cream over medium-low heat just until bubbles form around the edges. Do not boil. Pour the hot cream over the chocolate. Let sit two minutes then stir until smooth.
Spoon over the peanut butter filling. Add toppings if desired. Refrigerate until chocolate is set. Carefully remove tarts from pans.

Notes

To find the tart pans I used, click here.

Keyword chocolate peanut butter, tarts

Bakery-Style PB & J Cookies

Posted on August 23, 2025February 12, 2026 by Mari Vasseur

Many of us think of peanut butter & jelly as nostalgic comfort food. It brings back happy memories of childhood. A peanut butter & jelly sandwich in my school lunch box was a welcome favorite in the sandwich rotation. I created my ideal PB & J cookies with those nostalgic flavors in mind. These deluxe jumbo peanut butter cookies are worthy of packing in a grown-up lunch or enjoying as a comforting snack with a tall glass of ice-cold milk or with your favorite coffee drink.

These cookies are a generous 3-inch size, but you can make them smaller if you wish. Keep in mind that the baking time will be shorter for smaller cookies. My favorite way to make these cookies is with blueberry jam and fresh blueberries. The strawberry ones took a few attempts to get right due to the juiciness of the strawberries. The instructions for the strawberry version of these cookies are in the notes below. Feel free to use your favorite jam flavor and have fun experimenting with different fruits or berries.

Bakery-Style PB & J Cookies

Jumbo bakery-style peanut butter cookies filled with jam & fresh fruit

Print Recipe

Course Dessert

Cuisine American

Servings 12 3-inch cookies

Ingredients

1 cup (128g) all purpose flour, sifted
½ cup (57g) cake flour, sifted
½ teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon fine sea salt
½ cup (113g) unsalted butter, room temperature
¾ cup (191g) creamy peanut butter
½ cup (100g) granulated sugar, divided
½ cup (100g) packed brown sugar
1 large egg, room temperature
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
¼ cup (76g) blueberry jam or preserves
35-45 fresh blueberries

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 350ºF. Line 2 large cookie sheets with parchment paper.
In a medium-sized bowl, whisk together the all purpose flour, cake flour, baking powder and salt until well blended.
In a large bowl, beat the butter and peanut butter together, with an electric mixer on medium speed, until smooth. Place 2 tablespoons (25g) of the granulated sugar in a small, shallow bowl and set aside. Beat the remaining granulated sugar and the brown sugar into the butter mixture until light and fluffy. Beat in the egg, then the vanilla extract until well incorporated. On low speed, beat in the flour mixture just until combined.
Chill the cookie dough in the refrigerator, just until easier to work with, about 15 minutes. Divide the dough into 12 equal portions, (about 60g each). Form the portions into balls, then roll them in the reserved granulated sugar. Place them about 2 inches apart onto the cookie sheets. Make indentations in each ball using a 1-inch pastry tamper or use your thumbs. Fill each indentation with about a teaspoon of jam, then top with blueberries.
Bake the cookies until the edges start to turn golden brown and the jam begins to bubble, about 14-15 minutes. (The cookies will spread, but if your cookies spread too much, you can shape the hot cookies when they come out of the oven by immediately placing a large round cookie cutter onto the cookie sheet over each cookie and slide it around in a circular motion a couple of times. (Or you can refrigerate the dough balls until firm prior to baking to help reduce spreading.) Let the cookies cool on the cookie sheets for 1 minute, then transfer them to a cooling rack.

Notes

To make the strawberry version of these cookies, replace the blueberry jam with strawberry jam. Optional: Cut out 12 strawberry hearts (as shown in the photo). Place the strawberries in a small bowl. Sprinkle with 1 teaspoon of sugar and let macerate for 20-30 minutes to draw out the excess juices. If you skip this step, the juice from the strawberries may make the centers of your cookies soggy. Drain the strawberries, pat dry, then place them on the cookies with the jam before baking.

Keyword cookies, jam, peanut butter

Soot Sprite Treats

Posted on October 29, 2024February 27, 2026 by Mari Vasseur

If you’re a fan of Ghibli movies, you may remember the cute Susuwatari or Soot Sprites from Spirited Away and My Neighbor Totoro. These easy-to-make chocolate covered treats are also known as haystacks or tumbleweeds. They’re often made with shredded coconut or chow main noodles. I love using potato stick snacks for a delicious, crunchy salty-sweet snack.

In Spirited Away, the cute sprites are fed handfuls of Japanese konpietō candy. If you aren’t able to find it, candy star sprinkles are a nice substitute for decorating your Soot Sprites. (See the links below.)

Soot Sprite Treats

by Mari Vasseur

Chocolate covered potato stick snacks shaped like the beloved Spirited Away Soot Sprites

Print Recipe

Course Dessert

Servings 24 treats

Ingredients

5 cups (210g) potato stick snacks
⅔ cup (65g) chopped toasted salted cashews or peanuts (optional but recommended)
2 cups (340g) semisweet chocolate chips
1 cup (170g) butterscotch chips
1 tablespoon (15ml) vegetable oil or neutral oil of your choice
A few drops black oil based food coloring (optional)
48 Candy eyes
Konpeitō candy or pastel star candy sprinkles

Instructions

Line 2 large baking sheets with parchment paper or wax paper. In an extra-large bowl, combine the potato sticks and nuts.
In a medium-sized microwave-safe bowl, combine the chocolate chips, butterscotch chips and the oil. Heat in the microwave for 20 second bursts, stirring gently between each burst, until melted and smooth. Stir in the food coloring if using.
Pour the melted chocolate mixture over the potato stick mixture. Stir gently with a spatula until the mix is completely coated with the melted chocolate.
Scoop or spoon rounded 2-tbs-size portions of the mixture onto the baking sheets. Add candy eyes and stars. Refrigerate until set, about 20 minutes.

Notes

*To find black oil based food coloring, click here.

**To find candy eyes, click here.

***To find Konpieto candy, click here.

****To find pastel star candy sprinkles, click here.

Keyword candy, snacks, soot sprite treats, tumbleweeds

Chocolate Trail Mix Oatmeal Cookies

Posted on October 28, 2022February 12, 2026 by Mari Vasseur

Chocolate Trail Mix Cookies — Many people think of trail mix as a dry, chewy form of nourishment nibbled on during hiking or camping. Let me say that I think of trail mix as a highly customizable luxurious snack. That’s because I love to make my own delicious, personalized trail mixes by choosing my favorite additions. No hate to raisins and peanuts, but gorp is not allowed here. Chocolate covered nuts and fruit, step forward. Almonds, pecans, macadamias, pistachios, and cashews, please enter. Dried cherries and blueberries, welcome friends. White chocolate chips and caramel chips, you made it. Chocolate espresso beans, we’ve been waiting for you.

I took my love of personalized trail mixes to the next level by creating these Chocolate Trail Mix Oatmeal Cookies. Everything I love about those wonderful add-ins is combined in cookie form, then dunked in melted chocolate. They become beautiful when you decorate the tops with the add-ins. I used freeze-dried raspberries for my cookie tops because of the tartness and vibrant red color. Feel free to choose your favorite combination of add-ins and get creative when decorating the tops. Your additions combined, minus the oats, should be about two cups.

Chocolate Trail Mix Oatmeal Cookies

Print Recipe

Course Dessert

Servings 24 cookies

Ingredients

1 ¾ cups (7 7/8 oz or 223g) all purpose flour, sifted
⅓ cup (1 oz or 30g) unsweetened cocoa powder, sifted
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon fine sea salt
½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 cup (8 oz or 227g) unsalted butter, softened
2 large eggs
1 ½ teaspoons pure vanilla extract
1 cup (2 3/4 or 78g) quick oats (not instant)
½ cup (2 oz or 57g) coarsely chopped almonds, preferably toasted
½ cup (1 oz or 28g) unsweetened coconut chips
½ cup (2 oz or 57g) dried cranberries or cherries
¼ cup (1 oz or 28g) pistachios, preferably toasted
¼ cup (1 oz or 28g) shelled pumpkin seeds (pepitas)
8 ounces (227g) melted semisweet or dark chocolate
1 tablespoon melted coconut oil or vegetable shortening
A few handfuls of freeze-dried raspberries, whole almonds, pistachios, coconut and pumpkin seeds to decorate tops

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 350ºF (180ºC). Line two large baking sheets with parchment paper.
In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, salt and cinnamon.
In a large bowl, cream the butter, brown sugar, and sugar together with an electric mixer until light and fluffy.
Beat in the eggs and vanilla in three separate additions, making sure each one is incorporated before adding the next.
On low speed, beat in the flour mixture just until combined.
Fold in the oats, almonds, coconut, cranberries, pistachios and pumpkin seeds.
Place 1 1/4 ounce round portions (about 2 tablespoons) three inches apart on the prepared baking sheets.
Bake until the tops are set and no longer shiny, about 10-12 minutes.
Transfer the cookies to a cooling rack to cool completely.
Combine the melted chocolate and coconut oil in a small deep container, wide enough to fit the width of your widest cookie. Dunk cookies about halfway into chocolate. Top with nuts and seeds.

Keyword chocolate oatmeal, cookies

Chocolate Snack Attack Cookies

Posted on June 10, 2017February 20, 2026 by Mari Vasseur

I’ve seen some cookies loaded with add-ins out there, but these extreme cookies just won the title! They’ve got enough chunky, chocolatey, sweet and saltiness to satisfy the most ravenous cookie craving! But, before we even go one step further, I must mention a few disclaimers. I strongly urge you to make sure your fridge is stocked with milk. Please change into your comfiest pants before attempting this recipe. Canceling all plans for the rest of the day is recommended, as a nap may ensue immediately following consumption of these cookies. OK, now that we got that out of the way, let’s jump in with both feet!

First we need a moody photo that looks like it was taken in a rustic cabin to emphasize the seriousness of these chocolate cookies. It’s no coincidence that I’m sharing this recipe with you right before Father’s Day. Every Dad I know is an accomplished snacker. Dad will love these cookies for his personal snack stash! Package them up and deliver them to your Pop with a jug of milk or a thermos of coffee. You can probably skip the straw. We all know that Dad is going to chug his milk, but every respectable blog photo of milk must contain a pretty straw.

These cookies make amazing ice cream sandwiches, too. Press a scoop of softened vanilla ice cream between two cookies and pop it in the freezer. If you want to make these cookies picture perfect, use a scoop to portion out your dough. This will make them uniform in size and they’ll bake more evenly. Click here to find the scoop I used. For even more visual appeal, don’t crush the pretzels before adding to the cookie dough. Some of them will break when you are mixing them into the dough and this is fine, because the large pieces help make these cookies chunky. This recipe makes eighteen large cookies. That’s one dozen for Dad plus six for you to snack on, because when these babies come out of the oven with their melted chocolate chunks and little pools of caramel, resisting will be impossible! Now it’s cookie time…you’ve got this!

Fully Loaded Chocolate Snack Attack Cookies

Large chunky, sweet and salty chocolate cookies loaded with chocolate chunks, pretzels, caramel, rice cereal and nuts.

Print Recipe

Prep Time 15

Cook Time 15

Total Time 30

Course Dessert

Servings 18 cookies

Ingredients

2 ⅛ cups (270g) all purpose flour, sifted
½ cup (45g) dark cocoa powder, sifted
½ teaspoon baking powder
¼ teaspoon baking soda
¼ teaspoon fine sea salt
1 cup (227g) unsalted butter, softened
1 cup (200g) granulated sugar
¼ cup (50g) brown sugar
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 ½ cups (213g) semisweet chocolate chunks
1 ½ cup (43g) mini pretzel twists
1 cup (170g) caramel baking bits
1 cup (43g) chocolate rice cereal (I used Cocoa Pebbles)
¾ cup (92g) honey roasted peanuts (or roasted mixed nuts)

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 350º F (180ºC). Line 2 large baking sheets with parchment paper.
In a medium-sized bowl, whisk together the flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda and salt until well blended.
In a large bowl, beat the butter, granulated sugar, and brown sugar together, with an electric mixer at medium speed until pale and fluffy. Add eggs, one at a time, beating until incorporated. Add vanilla and beat until combined. On low speed, mix in the flour mixture just until combined. Stir in the chocolate chunks, pretzels, caramel bits, chocolate rice cereal and peanuts.
Scoop 1/4 cup portions of cookie dough and place them about 2 inches apart onto the prepared baking sheets. Bake until set, about 13-15 minutes. Let the cookies cool on cookie sheets for 1 minute before transferring to a cooling rack.

Notes

To find 1/4 cup portion scoop, click here.

To find blue baker's twine, click here.