My peanut butter blossoms are made with the softest, butteriest peanut butter cookie base and topped off with a sweet milk chocolate kiss! They’re a classic holiday cookie that’s both fun and easy to make! Recipe includes a how-to video!
Homemade Peanut Butter Kiss Cookies
Peanut butter blossoms have always been my favorite cookie on the holiday cookie tray. They’re the perfect combination chocolate and peanut butter (like my peanut butter chocolate cake!), and they are so easy to make. Plus, they’re just so pretty with their sparkly exteriors!
My recipe is made without shortening and instead uses butter for super soft, and, well, buttery results. You’ll love this swap (I do the same in my peanut butter oatmeal cookies!) and how nice the results are!
Today’s recipe is adapted from my favorite peanut butter cookies. You’ll simply prepare the dough, let it chill for 30 agonizing short minutes, roll the cookies in sugar, and bake. Once they’re out of the oven, top them off with a Hershey kiss (a fun task for the kids), and you’re done. So simple!
Serve these alongside sugar cookies and your other favorite holiday cookies and they’ll be a guaranteed hit!
What You Need
Here are the key ingredients in my super soft peanut butter blossoms:
- Butter. Rather than using shortening (which many recipes call for) I use all butter in this recipe. The butter makes the flavor deeper, richer, and just all around much better than a shortening-based cookie. Made this way, the interiors are much softer and more melt-in-your-mouth than ones made with shortening.
- Peanut butter. Do not use the natural/sugar-free peanut butter that separates. Unfortunately, the cookies just won’t bake up the same and tend to become dry and crumbly. Stick with classic peanut butter (Skippy, Jiff, store brand, etc.).
- Sugar. These cookies wouldn’t be complete without a sparkly sugar coating. I personally like to use an organic cane sugar (the granules are more coarse), but regular granulated sugar would work too. Inside the cookies we’ll use a combination of granulated and light brown sugar for depth of flavor and a nice chewy texture.
- Cornstarch. Cornstarch is my secret weapon for soft cookies that hold their shape! I use it in my M&M cookies, whipped shortbread, thumbprint cookies, and so many others.
- Hershey kisses. Milk chocolate Hershey’s kisses are traditional, but you can use dark chocolate or pretty much any other flavor you like.
SAM’S TIP: I’ve also made these cookies with mini peanut butter cups instead of kisses. Use whichever you prefer here–both work great!
Remember, this is just an overview of the ingredients I used and why. For the full recipe please scroll down to the bottom of the post!
How to Make Peanut Butter Blossoms
- Combine the wet ingredients – Cream together the butter and sugars, then stir in the peanut butter. Mix in the eggs and vanilla until well combined.
- Add the dry – Combine the dry ingredients in a separate bowl, then gradually add them to the wet ingredients. Scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl as needed.
- Chill and roll – Cover and chill the dough in the fridge for at least 30 minutes, then scoop into 2 teaspoon-sized balls. Roll the dough through sugar before placing on a parchment-lined cookie sheet.
- Bake, top, and enjoy! Bake the cookies for 8 minutes at 375F. Remove from oven and add Hershey kisses to the centers. Let cool completely on the baking sheet before enjoying!
SAM’S TIP: Your cookies may look slightly underdone when they come out of the oven–that’s okay (ideal, actually!)! Letting the cookies finish baking on their sheets makes for super soft, tender results. If you were to bake them completely in the oven, they would be hard and crumbly once cooled.
Frequently Asked Questions
The most likely reason for this is not measuring flour properly or over-baking. Make sure you either spoon and level (no scooping!) or use a kitchen scale to measure your flour, and let your cookies finish baking outside the oven on their cookie sheets.
Yes! Just let them cool completely before storing in an airtight container in the freezer. They should last about three months stored this way. See also my post on how to freeze cookie dough.
I do not recommend using natural peanut butter (the kind that separates) here or in any of my other recipes. Use normal, creamy peanut butter for best results.
I hope you love my version of this classic cookie ❤️
Enjoy!
Let’s bake together! I’ll be walking you through all the steps in my written recipe and video below! If you try this recipe, be sure to tag me on Instagram, and you can also find me on YouTube and Facebook
Peanut Butter Blossoms
Ingredients
- 10 Tablespoons (141 g) unsalted butter softened to room temperature
- ⅔ cup (135 g) light brown sugar tightly packed
- ¼ cup (50 g) granulated sugar
- ½ cup (140 g) creamy peanut butter
- 1 large egg room temperature preferred
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 ½ cups (188 g) all-purpose flour
- 1 Tablespoon cornstarch
- ¾ teaspoon baking soda
- ¾ teaspoon salt
- ½ cup granulated sugar for rolling
- 24 Milk Chocolate Kisses unwrapped
Recommended Equipment
Instructions
- Combine butter and sugars in the bowl of a stand mixer (or you may use a large bowl and an electric mixer) and beat until well combined (about 1 minute).10 Tablespoons (141 g) unsalted butter, ⅔ cup (135 g) light brown sugar, ¼ cup (50 g) granulated sugar
- Add peanut butter and stir well.½ cup (140 g) creamy peanut butter
- Add eggs and vanilla extract and stir until well-combined.1 large egg, ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- In a separate, medium-sized bowl, whisk together flour, cornstarch, baking soda, and salt.1 ½ cups (188 g) all-purpose flour, 1 Tablespoon cornstarch, ¾ teaspoon baking soda, ¾ teaspoon salt
- Gradually add flour mixture into the peanut butter batter, pausing occasionally to scrape down sides and bottom of bowl so that all ingredients are well-combined.
- Cover dough with plastic wrap and Place in the refrigerator and chill for 30 minutes to one hour*
- Preheat oven to 375F (190C) and line cookie sheets with parchment paper. Pour remaining ½ cup of sugar into a small bowl and set aside.½ cup granulated sugar for rolling
- Once dough has chilled, remove from refrigerator and roll into 2-teaspoon-sized balls. Roll completely in sugar and place on prepared cookie sheet at least 2″ apart.
- Bake on 375F (190C) for 8 minutes.
- Within a minute or so of removing cookies from oven, gently but firmly press a Hershey Kiss into the center of each cookie. Allow to cool completely on cookie sheet.24 Milk Chocolate Kisses
Notes
*Chilling
Start with 30 minutes, if the dough is too sticky or cookies come out too flat, return for another half an hour. This dough may be chilled overnight if needed.Storing
Store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to one week.Nutrition
Nutritional information is based on third-party calculations and should be considered an estimate only. Actual nutritional content will vary based upon brands used, measuring methods, cooking method, portion sizes, and more.
I originally shared this recipe 12/04/2017, post updated to include more tips and information 12/01/2018
Jeff Winett
Add me to the fan club please! I had my way yesterday with your ummmazing cookies. Admittedly I was a little snarky prepping the easy dough, due to the fact that I am exclusively a “crispy” cookie lover. I’ve heard of Peanut Blossom cookies forever, and figured that one day I would have to give them a try. SO glad that I did that, and that it was YOUR recipe….I love the science behind it all, because of your inclusion of explicit weight numbers. The first bite of this soft cookie changed my cookie loving life. Slightly crunchy exterior from using coarse sugar crystals, and then that peanut butter flavor, with a texture that reminded me of biting into a truffle. I went crazy over these, and my thanks are yours hugely. I don’t know how many you would recommend at a sitting, but I opted for “3” 🙂
Shelia
These are melt in your mouth deliciousnesses
Megan
I followed the recipe and they’re exactly as I hoped, delicious!
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
Great to hear, Megan! Enjoy 😊
LO
The best! Have made them twice in one week. We used hot cocoa kisses and it makes them even better.
Nancy Walker
I would definitely leave the sugar off the outside, that’s way too much sugar!
Sam
I would definitely not leave the sugar off the outside, it’s such a sweet addition <3
Joe McNeil
This was SO DELICIOUS! Thank you! We didn’t have kisses, so we made them with m&m’s. This was the first time I’ve tried one of your pb cookies, most pb cookie recipes we are disappointed with, but this on was so good! We will be making these again, thank you!
Cassie Scott
Would “natural” separated peanut butter work? It is all I have on hand and I don’t want to have to buy more just for this recipe. Thanks!
Sam
Hi Cassie! I’m worried it wouldn’t work. 🙁
Cassie
I actually went ahead and tried them like that and they ended up working beautifully, still very delicious! Thank you for the recipe
Christina
I made them AND your thumb print cookies with my 8 and 5 year old granddaughters today! Perfect! They loved them!
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
Wonderful! Sounds like you made some good memories with our recipes, Christina 🙂 Enjoy!
Juice
This is my far the BEST recipe that I’ve ever made – and I’ve tried several! These cookies actually stay soft which is what I was looking for. I will say that using the exact ingredients my batch made about 40 cookies and I use the little cookie scoop. For me this is not a negative comment because I was happy to have more than 24 without doubling the recipe. Just more of an FYI that I feel like only making 24 would result in huge cookies. Thanks so much for the great recipe!
Sam
I am so glad you enjoyed them so much! 🙂
WKB
Better than I remember from my childhood! I made these and the chocolate lovers blossoms for Christmas. I added peppermint kisses instead of just the plain chocolate. I got rave reviews from everyone. I’ve seen recipes for a cherry chip version. I’d love to get your take on those! No other cookie recipe even measures close to yours!!
Sam
I am so glad you enjoyed them so much! 🙂
Franny
How long will these cookies stay fresh for ?
Sam
They should be good for about a week at room temperature in an air tight container. 🙂
Jessica Byard
I absolutely love the peanut butter version! I would like to make another batch without PB. Should I increase the amount of butter used? Also will allowing the dough to sit over night affect the flavor? Thank you for this fabulous recipe!!!
Sam
Hi Jessica! Unfortunately I haven’t tried removing the peanut butter from these cookies. Letting them rest longer won’t change the flavor much. I’m glad you enjoyed them though.
Mary K
Can you freeze these cookies
Sam
Hi Mary! You shouldn’t have any issues freezing these. 🙂
Emily
These are SO delicious! I’ve made different peanut butter blossom recipes before and these are by far the best! Thanks for another great recipe. I did half the batch with Hersey kisses and other half with mini Resses peanut butter cups. Family loved them all!
Sam
I’m so glad everyone enjoyed them so much, Emily! 🙂
Ren Cayce
I made mine with Dove because I had a bunch of extra ones sitting around and they’re amazing. Thank you for another easy to follow and hard to mess up recipe!
CburgMike
Boom! If you need a PB Blossom recipe stop looking. Just follow the directions without modifying anything for soft cookies with enough peanut butter flavor that stay soft. Slightly heaped #40 scoop made exactly 24 cookies. Thanks
Sam
Yay! So happy to hear it was such a hit for you, thank you so much for letting me know how it turned out! 🙂
Sammi
Thanks so much for this recipe! I made them last night, but I left out the peanut butter and also used hot cocoa Hershey kisses. So good! Have to avoid nuts/pb because of my boyfriend’s allergies but he loved these!
Sam
I am so glad you enjoyed them Sammi! 🙂
Rosanna Tice
I used a different recipe and baked them in a mini muffin pan with a Brach’s chocolate star instead of a Hershey Kiss and put a gold edible pearl on top. I made the dough balls in advance and froze them. I baked them as needed in an ungreased mini muffin pan on the middle oven rack, then added the chocolate stars and baked another minute. Took them out of the oven and used a tweezers to put the gold pearls on top.
Sugar Spun Run
Thanks for sharing, Rosanna! 🙂
Jan
When you used the mini muffin pan, did you have any trouble getting them out after baking?