Peanut butter flowers will make all your chocolate, peanut-y Christmas dreams come true! These classic cookies are delicious and easy to make.
Who else loves peanut butter blossoms?! If I see these happy treats on a cookie plate during the holidays, I immediately grab one. I think they are kind of genius. Peanut butter cookies are great on their own. So is the chocolate kiss. But together, this pair is absolutely irresistible. I love how the rich chocolate candy blends into the soft, sugar-crusted cookie. And I mean, nothing bad happens when peanut butter and chocolate go together. It’s no wonder that peanut butter blossoms are a Christmas classic.
If you’re planning on making a batch this holiday season, check out my favorite peanut butter blossoms recipe below. It’s not too far from the original recipe, that Ohio resident Freda Smith entered in the Pillsbury Bake-Off in 1957, but I go a little heavier on the peanut butter and a little lighter on the sugar. We love these cookies. Hope you love them too!
Peanut Butter Blossoms Recipe Ingredients
Here’s what you need to make this peanut butter blossoms recipe:
- Peanut butter, of course! i use naturally creamy peanut butter to make this recipe. Make sure it is smooth and well mixed. Avoid the dry and hard stuff you may find at the bottom of the jar.
- All-purpose flour – Scoop and level it to avoid over-packing your measuring cup.
- Baking soda – It helps cookies increase.
- Unsalted butter – It should be soft, but not melting. I let a stick sit at room temperature for about an hour before making this recipe.
- Light brown sugar and granulated sugar – Mix the brown sugar and some of the granulated sugar into the cookie dough for sweetness. Then, you roll the dough in the remaining granulated sugar to create a shiny crust on the outside of the cookies.
- An egg – This binds the cookie dough together and helps the cookies pop while baking.
- Milk – For moisture. Use whatever kind you have on hand! Choose and oats are my go-tos.
- Vanilla extract – For warm depth of flavor.
- Hershey’s kisses – I personally like dark chocolates, but milk chocolate kisses (or even small peanut butter cups!) are great too.
- And sea salt – To make sweet, nutty flavors pop!
Find the complete recipe with measurements below.
How to Make Peanut Butter Blossoms
This peanut butter blossoms recipe is so easy to make! Here’s how it goes:
First, make the cookie dough. Combine the dry ingredients in a medium bowl and set aside.
Then, in the bowl of a stand mixer, or using an electric hand mixer, beat the butter, brown sugar, and granulated sugar until light and fluffy. Add the peanut butter, eggs, milk, and vanilla and mix until smooth. Slowly add the dry ingredients and mix until just combined.
Next, shape the cookies. Use a small cookie scoop or 1-teaspoon measuring spoon to scoop heaping tablespoons of dough. Use your hands to roll it into balls. Roll dough balls in 1/2 cup granulated sugar and arrange them on parchment-lined baking sheets, leaving at least an inch between balls.
Then, bake cookies, one sheet at a time, in a 375°F oven, until fine cracks begin to form on the top of the cookies. In my oven, it takes about 8 minutes.
Finally, add the kisses. As soon as you remove the cookies from the oven, gently press a kiss on the top of each one, stopping when the edges of the cookies start to crack. Use a spatula to immediately transfer the cookies to a wire rack to cool.
Repeat with remaining cookies, and enjoy!
Peanut Butter Blossoms Recipe Tips
- Unwrap the kisses before you bake the cookies. In order for the chocolate kisses to stick to the cookies, the cookies must be 1) warm and 2) very soft. This means you have to add the kisses as soon as the cookies come out of the oven. Unwrapping the kisses one at a time will slow this process down considerably, and the cookies may start setting up before you can apply each kiss. For a quick meeting, be sure to unwrap the kisses early!
- Bake one sheet at a time. I suggest baking one sheet at a time for all of mine cookie recipes, but I think it’s especially important for this one. When the peanut butter blossoms come out of the oven, you must first press a kiss into the center of each cookie and then immediately remove the cookies from the baking sheet. It’s easier to do one sheet at a time than to frantically add kisses to several baking sheets of cookies at once.
- Immediately remove the cookies from the baking sheet. If you don’t, the heat from the hot cookie sheet will start to melt the kisses! Just use a spatula to transfer the cookies to the wire cooling rack.
- Give them plenty of time to cool. Peanut butter blossom cookies need to chill for a few hours to allow the kisses to harden. If you want to speed up this process, you can place the cookies in a single layer on a large plate or rack in the refrigerator to chill for about 30 minutes. Once the kisses are firm, store the cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 4 days.
More Favorite Cookie Recipes
If you love these peanut butter blossoms, try one of these delicious cookie recipes next:
Want more easy cookie recipes? Find 17 of our favorites here!
Blooming Peanut Butters
Serving 36
These peanut butter blossoms are perfect for the holidays! I like to top these soft peanut butter cookies with dark chocolate Hershey’s kisses, but if you prefer, use milk chocolate candy (or even peanut butter cups!) instead.
- 1½ cups all-purpose flour, scooped and flattened
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon sea salt
- ½ cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
- ½ cup packed light brown sugar
- ¼ cup granulated sugar, plus ½ cup for rolling
- ¾ cup creamy peanut butter*
- 1 big egg
- 2 spoon milk, almond milk, or oat milk
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 36 Hershey’s kiss candies, not wrapped
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Preheat oven to 375°F and line two large baking sheets with parchment paper.
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In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, and salt.
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In the bowl of a stand mixer, beat the butter, brown sugar, and ¼ cup granulated sugar until light and fluffy. Add the peanut butter, eggs, milk, and vanilla and mix until smooth. Gradually add the dry ingredients and mix on low speed until just combined.
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Scoop spoonfuls of the dough, then use your hands to roll it into balls. Roll the dough balls in the remaining ½ cup granulated sugar and arrange them on the prepared baking sheet, leaving at least 1 inch between the balls.
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Bake, one sheet at a time, for 8 minutes, or until fine cracks begin to form on top of balls. Remove from the oven and press a chocolate kiss onto the top of each cookie until the edges begin to crack. Use a spatula to immediately transfer the cookies to a wire rack to cool completely.
*Look for creamy peanut butter with a smooth consistency to make this recipe. Avoid the dry, hard stuff you might find at the bottom of a jar of natural peanut butter.
