Soft peanut butter cookies with a Hershey’s kiss in the center? Yes please! These Peanut Butter Blossoms are a classic cookie perfect any peanut butter + chocolate lover.
- Fills that chocolate-peanut butter craving. I love any dessert that combines chocolate and peanut butter, but these classic cookies hold a special place in my heart. Topped with a milk chocolate kiss or a peanut butter cup, they’re the kind of cookies that will make everyone (including Santa) come back for seconds!
- Perfect texture. They’re soft and chewy on the inside with a crackly exterior. Add the Hershey’s kiss to the center and enjoy while it’s still melty and you have an irresistible cookie!
- Easy to make. These Hershey peanut butter blossoms are made with less than 20 minutes of hands-on time! The dough is so simple to prepare, then all you have to do is chill and bake.
Looking for more cookie recipes? Try my Easy Sugar Cookies and Gingersnap Cookies!
What Are Peanut Butter Blossoms?
A peanut butter blossom is an iconic cookie that is especially popular around the holidays. The cookies feature a soft and moist peanut butter cookie topped with a chocolate kiss. They’re known for the crackly texture and are surprisingly easy to make!
What You’ll Need
You don’t need anything special for this peanut butter blossoms recipe – just pantry staples like peanut butter and Hershey’s kisses. Here’s a quick look at what you’ll need along with my notes. Don’t forget to scroll down to the recipe card for a printable list.
- Creamy Peanut Butter: I don’t recommend natural peanut butter, as it doesn’t have the necessary consistency and can dry out the cookies. I recommend using Jiffy peanut butter.
- Butter: Bring your butter to room temperature so that is blends more easily with the other ingredients.
- Sugar: You’ll need both granulated sugar and brown sugar for the cookie dough, plus extra granulated sugar for rolling the dough. Don’t substitute the brown sugar for more white sugar. The brown sugar helps keep the peanut butter cookie base tender and chewy.
- Egg
- Vanilla Extract
- Baking Soda
- Kosher Salt: To balance out the sweetness.
- All-Purpose Flour: Be sure to measure properly to avoid dry cookies.
- Hershey’s Kiss Candies: You could also use miniature peanut butter cups or another little chocolate!
Variation Ideas
One of the best things about simple cookie recipes is how easy they are to customize. Here are some ways you could mix things up when making these peanut butter blossoms:
- Candy options: You can also use mini Reeses peanut butter cups, marshmallows, jam, caramels or even Rolo candies instead of Hershey Kisses. Really whatever you would enjoy eating with a peanut butter cookie base will work.
- Sugar options: You can also roll these in brown sugar, or turbinado sugar instead of granulated white sugar.
This recipe is very straightforward. The dough is chilled for a couple hours, rolled in sugar and baked. Then comes the Hershey’s kiss! Scroll down to the recipe card below for more detailed instructions.
- Make the dough. Mix the peanut butter, butter, and sugars on medium speed until creamy. Add in the egg, vanilla, baking soda, and salt for 30 seconds. Turn the mixer to low and add in the flour, mixing until just combined.
- Chill. Cover the dough and chill in the fridge for 2 hours.
- Bake. Roll the dough into 1 1/2-inch balls and roll each one in granulated sugar. Place on the bakings heet and bake for 8-9 minutes, until the cookies are just set.
- Add the Hershey’s Kiss. Gently press a Hershey’s Kiss into the center of the warm cookies. Transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
Helpful Tips
- Chill the Dough: Make sure you let your dough chill in the fridge for a couple of hours, otherwise your cookies will spread too much during baking.
- Refrigerate Kisses Before Use: If you don’t want your kisses to get melty, pop them in the fridge while you chill your dough. They’ll still get soft after they’re pressed into the warm cookies, but this will help the chocolate hold its shape.
- Keep An Eye on the Time: Avoid under baking or over baking your cookies – as soon as you notice them getting crackly on top, remove them from the oven. They should be lightly golden on the edges.
- Flat Peanut Butter Cookies? If this happens your dough is probably too warm. As mentioned above, this will make the dough spread too much during baking, leading to flat cookies.
How to Store
- Store on the counter: Store your cooled peanut butter blossoms in an airtight container for up to 3 days. To keep them extra moist, add a piece of bread to your storage container, followed by a layer of parchment paper, and the cookies. You may also want to stack the cookies in alternating layers of the kisses up and down, so they don’t get mushed.
- Or in the fridge: You can also store these in the fridge for about 5 days.
Can You Freeze Peanut Butter Blossoms?
Yes, you can freeze both the baked cookies and the dough.
- To freeze the baked cookies: Peanut butter blossom cookies will last for up to 3 months in the freezer. Once cooled, transfer the cookies to an airtight freezer-safe container. Thaw on the counter before enjoying.
- To freeze the dough: You can also freeze the balls of dough ahead of time. I like to flash freeze the balls on a baking sheet, then transfer to an airtight container. Thaw them in the fridge, roll them in the sugar and bake them as usual.
Peanut Butter Blossoms
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 9 minutes
- Total Time: 2 hours 19 minutes
- Yield: 30 1x
- Category: Cookies
- Method: Oven
- Cuisine: American
Description
Soft peanut butter cookies with a warm Hershey’s kiss in the center – these Peanut Butter Blossoms are a Christmas classic! And they’re easy enough to enjoy year-round.
Ingredients
- 1 cup creamy peanut butter
- 1/2 cup butter, room temperature
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar, divided
- 3/4 cup light brown sugar
- 1 large egg
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
- 24–30 unwrapped Hershey’s Kiss candies or miniature peanut butter cups
Instructions
- In the bowl of your stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, mix the peanut butter, butter, 1/4 cup granulated sugar and brown sugar on medium speed for 2 minutes until creamy.
- Add in the egg, vanilla, baking soda and salt and mix for 30 seconds until combined, scraping the sides of the bowl as necessary.
- Turn the mixer to low and add in the flour. Mix until just combined.
- Cover the dough and chill the dough for 2 hours.
- Preheat the oven to 350° F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside. Place the reserved 1/4 cup of granulated sugar in a bowl.
- Roll the dough into 1 1/2-inch balls and then roll them into the remaining 1/4 cup granulated sugar.
- Place the balls onto the prepared baking sheet and bake for 8-9 minutes, until the cookies are just set.
- Gently press a Hershey’s Kiss into the center of the warm cookies.
- Transfer the cookies to a wire rack to cool completely.
Notes
Store airtight for up to 3 days.
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Just made this delicious peanut butter cookie blossom again one of our family favorites and we love your recipe I use it all the time it’s so easy