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!
Let’s bake together! Subscribe to my newsletter to be notified of all the newest recipes, and find my free recipe tutorials on YouTube 💜
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.
JENNIFER JONES
Tasty, but mine fell apart. Do they need two eggs? Not sure what went wrong
Sam
I’m so sorry this happened, Jennifer! Did you make any substitutions? If not there may have been a bit too much flour in the dough. 🙁 I’m glad you were still able to enjoy them. 🙂
Melissa
I thought your peanut butter cookie recipe was the best. The texture of these is so perfect these are definitely my favorite PB cookie!
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
We’re so happy you found your new favorite, Melissa! Thanks for commenting ☺️
Erin
My hubby is a PB fanatic, especially in his cookies. Made these now twice in the last week with chocolate chips- the first batch was supposed to be for him but I ended up eating most of them, haha. Definitely a winner!
Sam
I’m so glad everyone enjoyed them so much, Erin! 🙂
Maria
I made 3 trays with the same batch, testing each batch for goodness. 1st batch: exact recipe but to half I added a cross-cross with a fork and to half not. 2nd batch: I added chocolate chips. 3rd batch: I added chocolate chips and craisins. They were all quite delicious!
Those with the cross-cross in the 1st batch were flatter so therefore drier. You would need to bake less.
I also placed cookies on a rack after 5 minutes of cooling. I would highly recommend these, and also trying different combos. Just don’t overbake or they will be hard and dry. I placed a small slice of bread in the container with the 1st batch, which came out a bit dry. Voilà, problem solved! Love these!
Sam
I am so glad you enjoyed them all so much, Maria! Thank you for your feedback. That’s a lot of cookies. 🙂
Maria R
Also…Should I place cookies on rack, after sitting on tray for 5 minutes (out of the oven)?
Sam
Hi Maria! Please refer to step 10 for cooling instructions on the cookies. 🙂
Jen
Family and friends love this cookie!! Can I add swirls of Nutella or will it ruin the texture? Thanks!
Sam
Hi Jen! I’m not sure how you would get the nutella just swirled in the dough, but you could try replacing a little bit of peanut butter with the nutella. I haven’t tried it so I can’t say for sure how it would turn out.
Sarah
Just made these exactly by recipe..they are just perfect..this is definitely a keeper
Sam
I’m so glad you enjoyed them so much, Sarah! 🙂
Pam
These are great! I can’t wait to make another batch. I added pb chips cuz why not?! Thx for the tasty recipe.
Sam
I am so glad you enjoyed them so much, Pam! 🙂
Harry
I tried this recipe and it’s just melt in the mouth one, thanks alot for putting up this cool recipe, loved it🙂
Sam
I am so glad you enjoyed them so much, Harry! 🙂
Vicki
These were chewy and delicious! Someone had gotten into the peanut butter and there wasn’t quite enough to top off the measuring cup, so I substituted almond butter for that little bit of pb, maybe a couple of tablespoons. It didn’t affect the flavor at all. Love the texture the oatmeal gives them. Yummy!
Sam
I’m so glad you enjoyed them so much, Vicki! 🙂
Elle
Hi, these look delicious. Can you add chocolate chunks to these or will they affect the texture?
Sam
Hi Elle! Adding chunks of chocolate will definitely change the texture but that’s not necessarily a bad thing here. 🙂
Sabrina
I just got done baking these and I have to say that they are amazing!! I am in love with the texture. I added about 1/2 a cup of dark chocolate chips and sprinkled some sea salt on the top before baking and these cookies are definitely hands down some of the best cookies I’ve baked.
Sugar Spun Run
I am so glad that you enjoyed them, Sabrina! Thanks for trying my recipe. I love the additional sea salt. I will have to try that the next time I bake them. 🙂
Murielle
Hello! I really love your cookie recipes!! About this, what will happen if I use a natural peanut butter? A friend gave us her homemade butter and I want to use it so it won’t go to waste. Can’t wait to try these!
Sam
Honestly I am not 100% sure how it would turn out. A lot of times the natural peanut butter will really change the consistency of the cookies so I don’t really recommend using it. If you try it I would love to know how it turns out. 🙂
Denise
Is it ok to replace the quick oats with old fashioned? I only have those on hand. Thank you.
Sugar Spun Run
Hi, Denise! I think it will work, but the texture will be a little different. Enjoy! 🙂
charles g bungard
I am hooked on your cookie recipes darling ! Thank you for sharing now I am a subscriber
Sugar Spun Run
Thank you so much, Charles! I appreciate your kind words and can’t wait for you to try more of my recipes. Thanks for commenting and for subscribing. 🙂
Maria R
Can I add the cross-cross shape on top, with a fork? Like is done on pb cookies?
Sam
Hi Maria! You can add the marks with the fork. The marks won’t be quite as pronounced when they are finished baking though. 🙂
Megan
Once again another great recipe! I do enjoy your recipes and especially since all the cookies come out amazingly chewy! I don’t know if it did anything to the flavor, but for the 2/3 cup of brown sugar, I did 1/3 cup light and 1/3 cup dark since I happened to have both on hand. Again, don’t think it changed anything in terms of flavor, but was curious. Either way these are soo good and already being asked for another batch. 🙂
Sugar Spun Run
Thank you so much! I am so glad you enjoyed the peanut butter oatmeal cookies, Megan! If I have light and dark brown sugar on hand I usually do a combo myself. Depending on the cookie, It usually enriches the favor. Enjoy! 🙂
Sarah Rivers
These cookies turned turned out amazing! The flavor and texture are perfect! My Dad tried them and said they were the best cookies hes ever had! I did the recipe exactly as stated, except I’m not patient enough to cook 6 cookies at a time, so I made all 15 cookies at once and added 2 extra minutes. Thank you so much for the recipe! Sugar Spun Run has become my go-to!
Sam
Yay! I’m so happy to hear this, Sarah! Thank you so much for commenting and letting me know how they turned out for you, I appreciate it! 🙂 <3
Candy G
I added dried cranberries to mine and baked 9 at a time, for 12 min… So good… My neighbors love them! Bake something good for your neighbors!
Alavi Anan Meem
The cookies taste amazing but they are so crumbly. Wish they were a little more solid (for appearance’s sake)… but YUM. Made a batch for my boyfriend. He wanted peanut butter cookies but I didn’t have too much peanut butter left. This calls for only half a cup but the peanut butter taste is definitely present!
Sam
O no I’m so sorry they were crumbly! They can usually become crumbly if there is a little too much flour in the batter. I usually recommend spooning the flour into the measuring cup and then leveling it off. For even better results, you can weigh the flour. I hope you will give them another shot. 🙂