Buttery peanut butter oatmeal cookies are absolutely irresistible! They have a soft and chewy texture with just the right amount of oats. Recipe includes a how-to video!
Why You’ll Love My Recipe
- No shortening! While some recipes use shortening instead of butter, my peanut butter oatmeal cookies are butter-based. It shines through so nicely in this recipe and really complements the peanut butter (it does the same thing in my peanut butter frosting recipe!).
- Soft and chewy texture. There are several factors that contribute this, but the most important one is to properly bake the cookies; more specifically, to slightly underbake them.
- Can handle add-ins like chocolate chips, peanut butter chips, or butterscotch chips, if you want to add a bit more indulgence!
These soft and chewy cookies combine two favorites: oatmeal cookies and peanut butter cookies. They have a buttery peanut butter flavor with the hearty, chewy texture of classic oatmeal cookies. You can scoop them larger to make them big and thick–bakery-style, just like my chocolate chip muffins!
Ingredients
Just pantry staples today! I know you might have questions about a few, so let’s review them first.
- Peanut butter. You can use creamy or crunchy peanut butter, but I don’t recommend using natural peanut butter. I haven’t tried this recipe with my homemade peanut butter yet–will report back on that once I do! Cookie butter would also be tasty here 😋
- Oats. While I typically use old-fashioned oats in oatmeal cookies, I recommend you stick with quick or instant oats today. I talk more about this in the FAQ section below.
- Flour. Make sure you know how to measure flour, or your cookies may not spread properly in the oven. Over-measuring flour is an easy mistake to make and will lead to an overly dry, stiff dough and cookies that stay in a ball shape even after baking.
- Brown sugar. You can use either light or dark brown sugar. Personally, I like to use a blend of the two!
- Cornstarch. A favorite ingredient in many of my cookie recipes, cornstarch encourages a soft and chewy texture. While you could leave this out in a pinch, I really recommend adding it for the best results.
SAM’S TIP: This recipe makes a fairly small batch of cookies (about 15, depending on how large you scoop them). It can be doubled, or even tripled if needed.
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 Them
Cream the butters and sugars together, then stir in the peanut butter until well combined. Add the egg and vanilla and stir well to combine, then set the bowl aside while you grab a second bowl for your dry ingredients.
Whisk the dry ingredients together in a separate bowl, then add to the butter mixture. Keep your mixer on low speed during this process and work slowly so the flour has time to absorb. Scrape the bowl with a spatula to check for any dry pockets, then fold in the oats.
Cover and chill the dough for at least 30 minutes. If it’s still sticky after that, give it another 30 minutes or so until it can be rolled in your palms without making a sticky mess.
Scoop and roll your dough into smooth 2-tablespoon balls, then bake. Remove when the edges start to turn a very, very light golden brown. The centers should still look a tad undercooked–this is intentional! They will finish cooking on the hot baking sheet outside the oven for perfectly soft and chewy results!
SAM’S TIP: Do not over-bake these cookies, or they will be dry and crumbly (I actually made this mistake in my video below!). It’s totally fine if they are slightly underbaked; in fact, that’s ideal! I do this with many of my cookie recipes, but especially peanut butter cookies.
Frequently Asked Questions
You can freeze this dough! To do so, you will first chill the dough 30 minutes as instructed, then scoop and roll the dough into balls, wrap each individual cookie dough ball tightly in plastic wrap, place each of those in an airtight container (I use a Ziploc freezer bag), and freeze for up to 3 months. You may need to bake your cookies a minute or two longer when cooking from frozen, and they may not spread as much.
I talk about how to freeze any type of cookie in my post on how to freeze cookie dough, if you like having ready-to-bake cookie dough on hand.
I prefer instant oats in this recipe, as they tend to blend nicely into the batter and maintain that perfect balance between classic peanut butter cookies and oatmeal cookies. If you only have rolled oats on hand, you can of course use them, but your cookies will be heartier and more “oaty” with even more texture to them.
Yes! I recommend adding no more than 1 cup of add-ins for a single batch of this recipe (double this amount if you double the recipe). You can stir them in with the oats.
My monster cookies are very similar to this recipe, but they have lots of fun add-ins. Give them a try next!
Enjoy!
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Peanut Butter Oatmeal Cookies
Ingredients
- 10 Tablespoons (141 g) unsalted butter softened to room temperature
- ⅔ cup (135 g) light or dark brown sugar tightly packed
- ¼ cup (50 g) sugar
- ½ cup (140 g) creamy peanut butter I don't recommend using natural peanut butter
- 1 large egg
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 cup (125 g) all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon cornstarch
- ¾ teaspoon baking soda
- ¾ teaspoon salt
- 1 cup (115 g) quick oats
Instructions
- Combine butter and sugars in a large bowl and use an electric mixer to beat until creamy and well-combined.10 Tablespoons (141 g) unsalted butter, ⅔ cup (135 g) light or dark brown sugar, ¼ cup (50 g) sugar
- Add peanut butter and stir again until smooth.½ cup (140 g) creamy peanut butter
- Add eggs and vanilla extract and stir until well-combined.1 large egg, 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- In a separate bowl, whisk together flour, cornstarch, baking soda, and salt.1 cup (125 g) all-purpose flour, 1 teaspoon cornstarch, ¾ teaspoon baking soda, ¾ teaspoon salt
- Add your flour mixture to your wet ingredients and stir (with mixer on low speed so that you don’t send flour flying everywhere!) until flour is completely incorporated into the batter. Be sure to scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl so that ingredients are well-combined.
- Add oats and stir well.1 cup (115 g) quick oats
- Cover your cookie dough with plastic wrap and transfer to the refrigerator. Allow dough to chill for at least 30 minutes (this dough may be chilled overnight if needed).
- While dough is chilling, preheat your oven to 375F (190C) and line cookie sheets with parchment paper.
- Once dough has chilled, remove from the refrigerator and roll into 2 Tablespoon-sized balls (38g) and place on prepared cookie sheet, spacing cookie dough at least 2" apart.
- Bake on 375F (190C) for 8-10 minutes or until edges are just beginning to turn light golden brown around the edges (centers may still appear slightly underdone). Allow cookie dough to cool completely on cookie sheet before enjoying (the centers will continue to bake as they cool).
Notes
Storing
Store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days.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.
Candy G
I made these cookies, out of all the thousands of recipes on the internet and this will now be my go to oatmeal recipe…I added some dried cranberries, and that made them even better! Oh and my little dog 🐕 loves them too…When I’m looking for a good recipe, I always come back to your site and I’m satisfied!
Sam
I am so glad you enjoyed the cookies, Candy! The cranberries sound like an excellent addition. 🙂
Terri Nadeau
Can I use Old Fashioned oats instead of Quick oats?
Sam
Hi Terri! I think it will work, but the texture will be a little different. Enjoy! 🙂
Johanna
Hi Sam,
Thanks for the recipe. I have never been able to bake soft cookies before so I very much appreciate your recipe. I had never heard that cookies are baked from dough balls, why is it not recommended to shape the dough in cookie shape and after that put it in the oven? After I made the dough I realized that weighing the ingredients would be the best way to make the dough, my dough balls did not flatten in the oven, so I made them in cookie shape and baked them. Worked like a charm. Cookie novices can succeed with this recipe 🙂
Sam
Hi Johanna! I always roll the dough into balls because it spreads nicely for me into a cookie shape in the oven while baking. I am glad this still worked out for you, though! 🙂
elle
your recipe looks so good that i immediately tried it..the only problem is my cookies didnt flatten..i dont understand why but i followed the recipe to point..what could i have done wrong?
Sam
Hi Elle! Could the flour have been over-measured? If you use cups, I recommend gently spooning the flour into the measuring cups and then leveling it off rather than scooping the flour directly into the cup, which can actually pack it in and keep your cookies from spreading (and can also dry them out, unfortunately!).
Gene
I’m more of a candy make than a cookie maker… so why they were chilling, I made up a fresh batch of homemade caramel… and as soon as the cookies were finished in the oven, guess what went on them…
Great Recipe
Gene
Sam
Hi, Gene! I love that idea! I will definitely try that out. I am so glad you enjoyed the cookies. 🙂
Catherine
Just made a batch of these cookies. They are light, crisp and soft with just the perfect amount of sweetness. I skipped the chilling step and used a cookie scoop. They came out perfect.
Thanks for posting. 🙂
Sam
Thanks for the feedback. I am so glad everyone enjoyed them! ☺️
Ann
can you substitutes arrow root for the cornstarch
Sam
I have never used arrow root so I am not sure how it would turn out. Sorry
Nena
What results from using natural PB as opposed to the regular stuff?
Sam
I don’t recommend using it. It could make them come out too dry and crumbly!
Lia
Hi Sam,
Do you think the peanut butter can be substituted with almond butter?
Sam
Hi Lia! Unfortunately I’m not sure. In my experience, almond butter usually has a similar texture to natural peanut butter and I’m worried that it may make them a bit dry. I’m hoping someone else who has tried this can chime in on whether it has worked for them, and if you do try it out please let me know how the cookies turn out for you.
Phyllis
Hi Sam,
I just found your website and noticed that you put cornstarch in all of the cookie recipes that I have looked at. I have never seen that before. What does the cornstarch do in the recipe? I will be trying this recipe soon.
Sam
Hi Phyllis! Cornstarch is my favorite secret ingredient, I put it in just about everything. It helps to make the baked good softer and more chewy without drying it out. I hope you enjoy the cookies!
Mary M from PA
I made these cookies over the weekend. They are delicious! Of course, I added chocolate chips. These are definitely ones that will be added to the list of “must bake” cookies. Thanks for another great recipe, Sam!
Lisa
Hi Sam…
Have you ever tried butterscotch chips in this recipe?
Would you use the same amount as the chocolate chips?
I love the idea of this recipe being a small batch for it’s just hubby and I and this would be perfect for us..
Mary M
Made these today, and they are terrific! Of course, I had to add chocolate chips. Thanks for another great recipe!
Sam
I’m so glad to hear you enjoyed them, Mary!! Definitely think the chocolate chips were a good idea! Thank you for commenting 🙂
Nancy
Hi, Sam, I am really going to love these cookies, especially with my grandson. He loves alm types of cookies, but his favorites are peanut butter & oatmeal chocolate chip, so i will be adding chocolate chips. I will leave you a reply when ever I make these, so thank you very much .
Sam
Oh I bet he will LOVE these then! Please do let me know how they turn out for you (and how he likes them!). Thank you for commenting, Nancy! 🙂
Patsy Janik
Hi my name is Patsy and these cookies look great and i will be adding Chocolate chips. I like this recipe because it only makes 15 cookies. there is only my husband and me and if it made a lot we would eat them all, this way I will have to make a new batch when we want more. thank you
Sam
I hope you love them, Patsy!! Thank you for commenting, please let me know how you like them!! 🙂