Description
Soft, cinnamon-sugar-coated peanut butter snickerdoodles are in your future! Chilling the cookie dough for at least 3 hours is imperative. It may seem like an odd amount of flour in the dough, but 1 cup + 2 Tablespoons (142g) makes for a tender peanut butter cookie that still holds shape. For best results, use creamy peanut butter.
Ingredients
- 1 cup + 2 Tablespoons (142g) all-purpose flour (spooned & leveled)
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon cream of tartar
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 cup (8 Tbsp; 113g) unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
- 3/4 cup (150g) packed light or dark brown sugar
- 1/4 cup (50g) granulated sugar
- 1 large egg, at room temperature
- 1/2 cup (135g) creamy peanut butter*
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 3/4 cup (110g) chopped peanuts*
Topping
- 1/3 cup (70g) granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
Instructions
- Make the dough: Whisk the flour, baking soda, cream of tartar, and salt together in a medium bowl. Set aside.
- In a large bowl using a hand mixer or a stand mixer fitted with paddle attachment, beat the butter, brown sugar, and granulated sugar together until completely creamed and smooth, about 2 minutes. Add the egg and beat until combined, about 1 minute. Scrape down the sides and up the bottom of the bowl as needed. Add the peanut butter and vanilla extract and beat until combined.
- Add the flour mixture to the wet ingredients and beat on low speed until combined. Add the chopped peanuts and beat until just incorporated. The dough will be very creamy and soft. Cover and chill the cookie dough in the refrigerator for at least 3 hours, and up to 3–4 days.
- Preheat oven to 350°F (177°C). Line large baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone baking mats. Set aside.
- Roll & coat the dough: Place remaining 1/3 cup (70g) of sugar into a bowl, and mix in the cinnamon. Roll chilled cookie dough into balls, about 1 heaping Tablespoon (25g) of dough each. Roll each ball generously in the cinnamon sugar and arrange on baking sheets about 3 inches apart.
- Bake for 11–12 minutes or until the edges appear set and are very lightly browned. The centers will still look very soft.
- Remove from the oven. Cool cookies on the baking sheets for 10 minutes before transferring to a cooling rack to cool completely. Cookies puff up in the oven, but slightly deflate as they cool.
- Cover and store leftover cookies at room temperature for up to 1 week. Their flavor is even better on day 2!
Notes
- Make Ahead Instructions: You can make the cookie dough and chill it in the refrigerator for up to 3–4 days. You can also freeze the cookie dough balls. Roll the dough into balls then freeze the balls for up to 2–3 months. You can freeze the cookie dough balls with the cinnamon sugar topping or without, but I recommend freezing without the topping. When you are ready to bake, remove the dough balls from the freezer, let sit for 20 minutes, preheat the oven, and then roll into topping. You can also freeze the baked cookies for up to 3 months. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator before serving.
- Special Tools (affiliate links): Glass Mixing Bowl | Whisk | Electric Mixer (Handheld or Stand) | Baking Sheets | Silicone Baking Mats or Parchment Paper | Cooling Rack
- Cream of Tartar: You can skip the cream of tartar if desired, but you will lose some flavor. Cream of tartar adds a unique tangy flavor to the cookie, which sets it apart from sugar cookies and makes it a classic snickerdoodle.
- Peanut Butter: It’s best to use a processed peanut butter like Jif creamy or Skippy creamy. I do not suggest using natural-style, oily peanut butter. Crunchy peanut butter adds peanut chunks, but also makes for a crumblier texture. I strongly recommend using creamy in this recipe.
- Peanuts: For a salty/sweet cookie, I recommend using roasted salted peanuts. If desired, you can use unsalted or raw (not roasted) peanuts. I don’t recommend leaving these out because they add a lot of flavor (and structure!) to the cookies. You could also use the same amount of peanut butter chips or chocolate chips.