Chocolate Chip Peanut Butter Cup Cookies

These Peanut Butter Cup Cookies are for ultimate peanut butter lovers with so much peanut butter flavor and ultra chewy texture. There are loads of mini peanut butter cups and dark chocolate chips throughout so you get chocolate + peanut butter flavor in every bite. This unique recipe has no eggs so you really taste the peanut butter and they store very well. The cookies bake up with these golden brown edges and soft chewy insides while the peanut butter cups (chocolate, peanut butter filling and all!) melt into these ooey gooey puddles. If you love peanut butter cookies, be sure to try my Bakery-Style Chocolate Chip Peanut Butter Cookies.

WHY THIS RECIPE WORKS

• Chewy texture - these peanut butter cup cookies have the ultimate chewy texture with crisp edges.
• No egg - you'll notice this recipe has no eggs! The protein in the peanut butter combined with the moisture from milk is enough to give these cookies structure without being crumbly so you get this really nice chewiness.
• Rich peanut butter flavor - the peanut butter flavor really come through so well which is in part due to the absence of egg.
• Dark chocolate chip cookies - I use mini dark chocolate chips here so that they distribute evenly for chocolate in every bite.
• Chocolate peanut butter cups - mini peanut butter cups are the perfect size for these cookies and they incorporate evenly into the dough.

INGREDIENTS FOR CHOCOLATE CHIP PEANUT BUTTER COOKIES

Here are some notes on some of the key ingredients for this recipe. For a full list of ingredients and measurements, scroll down to the recipe card at the bottom of this post.

• Unsalted butter - there's no substitute for butter in delicious homemade cookies for me. If you only have salted butter, then reduce the added salt by half.
• Peanut butter - this recipe works best with smooth or creamy peanut butter, and it should be the regular emulsified, no stir type. If you use natural peanut butter they will be more crumbly.
• Milk - it's my (not so) secret ingredient. Why milk? Well, peanut butter is very high in protein and it tends to dry out the cookie dough. So, adding back some moisture will help balance that so you end up with nice soft and chewy cookies. There's so much protein in peanut butter that milk replaces the need for egg here.
• Pure vanilla extract - vanilla is essential to making delicious peanut butter chocolate chip cookies. I like this Madagascar Bourbon Vanilla extract.
• Mini dark chocolate chips - I love to use mini chocolate chips for this recipe because they add some visual contrast in size compared to the peanut butter cups.
• Brown sugar - I like to use some brown sugar for this recipe because I find the molasses complements the nutty peanut butter. You can use light or dark brown sugar.

STEP BY STEP INSTRUCTIONS

• STEP 1). Mix butter and sugar. Combine melted butter, brown sugar, granulated sugar and peanut butter in a large mixing bowl and mix until well combined and smooth.
• STEP 2). Add wet ingredients. Mix in milk and vanilla extract.
• STEP 3). Add dry ingredients. Combine flour, baking soda and salt in a separate bowl and whisk to blend evenly. Add this to the butter mixture and fold it in.
• STEP 4). Mix in chocolate. Before all of the flour is incorporated, add the chocolate chips and mini peanut butter cups and fold them in so they are evenly distributed.
• STEP 5). Bake. Use a 1 ½-oz cookie scoop to portion dough and release the dough onto prepared baking sheets. Press a few extra peanut butter cups on top of each dough ball if desired and bake for 10-12 minutes until the surface is cracked and cookies are lightly golden. Let cookies cool on the baking sheet for 3 minutes to set before transferring individually to a wire rack to finish cooling.

EXPERT BAKING TIPS FOR PEANUT BUTTER CUP COOKIES

• Measure the baking soda accurately. Baking soda is alkaline (basic vs. acidic) and it promotes cookies to spread whereas baking powder causes cookies to puff. While we want thick cookies, we also don't want pale bland ones. Baking soda is crucial to help promote the delicious browning reactions called Maillard Browning. It also helps them spread. Having the right amount (i.e. not too much, not too little) means that you will get flavorful golden cookies that don't spread out into pancakes, yet spread enough to give you the right diameter.
• Measure flour accurately. Adding too much flour will make these cookies dry instead of soft and chewy so if you have a kitchen scale, that is ideal. If you are using measuring cups, then be sure to gently spoon the flour into the cup and level it off with a knife.
• Bake just until they flatten. Because emulsified peanut butter has fats with a high melting point, these cookies will look like they won't spread until close to the end once they get hot enough to melt the fat. Once they spread and flatten out, they will turn lightly golden and that's your cue.

RECIPE FAQ

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