3-Ingredient Peanut Butter Cookies are perfect for young and not-so-young alike. If you’re learning how to bake, this an ideal place to start.
Or maybe you’re just learning how to dunk cookies, which comes more naturally to some than others. Remember: Practice makes perfect!
About these
I’m declaring this easy peanut butter cookie recipe to be a miracle. They are simple enough for a kid to make and as good as any cookie you will every dunk. And all they take are three ingredients!
Make these three ingredient cookies in just 20 minutes!
Ingredients and notes
For the Peanut Butter – Creamy or crunchy both work for this easy cookie recipe.
Do not use natural natural peanut butter for these. This makes the cookies crumbly and they won’t turn out well.
For the Sugar Use white or turbinado sugar like we do in this version. Many readers have reported using ½ the sugar in these cookies with great results.
For the Egg: When baking cookies, it’s always best to use eggs that are at room temperature. This will allow them to bake more evenly. Follow this link to learn how to quickly get eggs to room temperature!
How to make them
1. Start by mixing all three ingredients in a medium-sized mixing bowl.
- Stir until smooth.
2. Use a cookie scoop to place 1-inch balls of dough onto a parchment paper-lined baking sheet.
3. Use a drinking glass to flatten the unbaked dough a bit and then make a hashtag pattern with a table fork.
4. Bake at 350°F in a pre-heated oven for 12 minutes.
5. After 12 minutes, remove the cookies from the oven and let them rest on a baking sheet for at least two more minutes.
6. Transfer the cookies to a cooling rack and allow them to cool completely.
Variations and Substitutions
To Make These Crispy – Follow the directions and baking times as shown in the recipe below.
To Make Them Soft – Reduce baking time to 9 or 10 minutes. Press them only lightly with the drinking glass, before marking them with a fork (they will be thicker).
To Make Them Chewy – Press them a little thinner with the drinking glass, before marking them with the fork.
This peanut butter cookie recipe can make crispy, chewy, or soft cookies.
As with all recipes, make this one your own!
- Add some chocolate chips to the mix.
- Frost these with some decadent Nutella.
- Take a small scoop of vanilla ice cream and make a sandwich cookie.
- We like to add a little vanilla, as shown in the recipe video.
An easy cookie recipe for kids
With just three ingredients, these peanut butter cookies are a good way to teach kids how to bake. We’ve featured our boys in many recipes for kids in the past. Some of them include:
They are great cooks and bakers, and two of our six boys are thinking they want to go into the culinary field. No big surprise here.
This is such an easy cookie recipe for kids; it seems like a natural choice for whenever they are in the mood to bake, which is pretty often!
Similar recipes
Here are a few of our other favorite easy cookies recipes that our kids love:
Common recipe questions
Yes, these are great make-ahead cookies. Keeping in line with the “3” theme going on here, you can put make this recipe up to 3 days ahead of time and store in an airtight container until ready to dunk.
You can freeze these cookies for up to 3 months. Just thaw them out to room temperature before serving.
These easy peanut butter cookies are naturally gluten-free! Be sure and see all of our grain-free recipes.
Be sure and try this cookie recipe for kids today!
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📖 Recipe
3 Ingredient Peanut Butter Cookies
Ingredients
- 1 cup sugar
- 1 cup peanut butter
- 1 egg
- ½ teaspoon vanilla optional
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
- Stir the ingredients together until smooth.
- Scoop onto a parchment or silpat lined baking sheet. (Roll into 1″ balls with your hands, if you do not have a scoop.)
- Press down with the back of a fork and then press again from the opposite direction, to form the criss-cross pattern on top
- Bake for 12 minutes and allow to rest on baking sheet, 1 to 2 minutes before transferring to cooling rack.
Video
Notes
- Follow the directions and baking times as we outline above.
- Reduce baking time to 9 or 10 minutes.
- Press them only lightly with the drinking glass, before marking them with a fork (they will be thicker).
- Press them a little thinner with the drinking glass, before marking them with the fork.
Lynda says
I have a three year old that is always helping me cook, and has helped before he could talk. We may have to try this one.
Lynda says
My three year old loved this. It was too sticky to mush with a fork, so I gave him a lid and he had so much fun. Eating from the peanut butter jar is a bonus in his book.
Margie says
I have made these for years. They are delicious and make great gifts. I make these exactly as the recipe says. But I make them into 1 inch balls and bake for 15 minutes. When they come out of the oven I immediately gently push an unwrapped hersheys kiss into the middle. I wait about 5 minutes after that before I transfer to a flat plate. Cool and enjoy!
Dan from Platter Talk says
Everything is better with a Hershey’s kiss! Sounds like you took this easy cookie recipe and brought it to an even higher level; thanks so much for the great feedback.
Merry says
I’ve been making these fo a couple of years. Always very easy. I put thumbprint in the middle and put a little jelly in when they come out.
Dan from Platter Talk says
Mary, what a fun and delicious addition to these easy peanut butter cookies! Do you deliver?
Kirsten Steele says
I made these tonight and they’re a huge hit! I’ve made many peanut butter cookie recipes, these are by far the winners! I changed the recipe a little however, given that many people said they were sweet enough.
1/2 cup of granulated sugar
1/4 cup of brown sugar
1/4 cup of flour
Thank you for the fantastic recipe.
Dan from Platter Talk says
Thank you for the fantastic comments and feedback! I love your incorporation of brown sugar; a perfect match for this easy peanut butter recipe.
Latasha Brackett says
I just tried it. Absolutely Amazing!!! Thank you❤
Dan from Platter Talk says
We’re so happy that you loved this easy peanut butter cookie recipe. Thank for the feedback and thank you for reading Platter Talk!
Vanessa says
OMG…. these are SO incredibly easy, and aaaabsolutely delicious!! I doubled the recipe, but only used 1/3 cup sugar, total. And that was more than sufficient! *2 eggs, 2 cups PB, 1/3C sugar*… also decided to add dark chocolate chunks to the batter… WOW!! I’ve also added Nutella in the bbn past, drizzled on top. It’s a hit EVERY time!!!
Dan from Platter Talk says
Thanks for the great comments, Vanessa! We love the idea of Nutella in this easy peanut butter cookie recipe!
Jeanne Olea says
Sounds so good. Thank you.
Catherine says
Oh my gosh!!! I just made these and they are amazing! Mine came out a little flatter and chewy with crispy edges but I love them. And so easy!
Dan from Platter Talk says
Catherine, thanks for the comments and we are thrilled to hear that you enjoyed this easy recipe for peanut butter cookies! Sounds like they turned out great!
Margaret says
I commented on these when I made them in April. Easy recipe and tastes great. My son was over and craving something sweet like a cookie. I suggested these and once he checked the traffic for him to go home, he decided he would wait for the cookies. He, my husband and my daughter-in-law just consumed 12 cookies between the 3 of them! This time I added mini chocolate chips to 1/2 the batter. Thanks for a great recipe.
Dan from Platter Talk says
Awesome additions, Margaret; chocolate chips sound amazing with these cookies!
Averil says
I started to make these cookies, I added an egg and a cup of sugar, then I l left it like that overnight. The egg whites and the sugar hardened, so I had to heat it up. I heated it up too much and the sugar boiled up and KABOOM, it exploded. I added the peanut butter and mixed it up, but it didn’t look right so I added chocolate chips. The chocolate melted in and I tasted a bit of the batter and it was AMAZING! I’m letting it cool a bit right now before I put it in the oven. I can’t wait for the results!
Myra says
😆 😆 too funny. Something simple, so complicated
Catherine says
I just love how simple these are to make and I’ve been craving these for some time now. I think I will whip up a batch this evening!
Marisa Franca says
I used to make these cookies years ago! I completely forgot about them. My kids loved them and I know the grandsons would too. Thank you for reminding me about them. I can’t wait to make them.
Leslie Gallardo says
This 🍪 are so easy ti make and delicious!
Am not a big fan of PB…but oh my this cookies!!
Love’em😊
The only thing i change was Instead of one whole cup of sugar i did 1/4 of brown and 1/4 regular sugar with some choco chips
I will definitely make again
Thanks!
Veena Azmanov says
I’ve made so many different types of peanut butter cookies but I tell you this classic version is still the top three for me. Just three ingredients! Can’t beat it.
Jyothi (Jo) says
Everything about this cookie is amazing! These looks so good, and I love how very easy they are.
Lauren Vavala @ DeliciousLittleBites says
SO easy, so delicious! I love that these are gluten free and low in carbs too!
Claudia Lamascolo says
I just love easy recipes like this one and peanut butter is a favorite cookie for both my sons they will love them!
joyce says
I’ve been making these for the last three years, since finding them on a different blog in 2015. They’re SOOOO good, and I love how very easy they are. I share them with my minister’s family, and four of his eight (all bio) children are gluten intolerant, so this recipe is perfect for all of us to enjoy without having to get expensive GF flour. His wife is terribly allergic to MSG, too, so having something so simple that his family can see is safe for them means a lot to all of us…as well as letting his 11 year old daughter make them (she loves to bake!)
Dan from Platter Talk says
Thanks for the great feedback, Joyce! We love this easy cookie recipe as well!
Eldaka says
I found this recipe on Pinterest. I had all the ingredients already on hand, so easy to make and mist importantly, Delicious!
Dan from Platter Talk says
Wonderful, Eldaka!!!
Kate says
I must’ve done something seriously wrong. I doubled the recipe so it ended up being 2 cups of sugar, 2 cups of peanut butter, two eggs. It became a very hard greasy mess that did not bake well at all. Did I miss something in the recipe?
Dan from Platter Talk says
Hi Kate, Thanks for the question. I’ve never made a double batch of this 3 ingredient peanut butter cookie recipe but I can’t imagine what went wrong with your version. Since there are only 3 ingredients, I’m thinking it was the peanut butter that did you wrong. Both eggs and granulated sugar are pretty consistent variables, but peanut butter can vary from brand to brand and wheter it’s natural with the oil well incorporated throughout etc. If you take a look at the recipe video, you will see exactly how this simple recipe should look throught the brief preparation process. We hope you find success making these easy cookies and please let us know if and howe you resolve this issue. Thanks again for reading Platter Talk!
Dixie Honzell says
I have the same problem. No way can you scoop these out onto the parchment paper. More like pour them out. So what happened. And I didn’t double the recipe.
Dan from Platter Talk says
Hi Dixie, I can’t for the life of me imagine what the issue is that’s causing you to have problems with this simple recipe. I wish I could be there while you are making them. If any of our other readers have thoughts on this, please help us out here.
Cookymomster says
Low fat and/or some generic brands don’t work well in this recipe because the fat and moisture contents are not consistent. That might be the problem, especially because there are only three ingredients.
Lauren says
So easy md right in your kitchen! I added chocolate chips
Dan from Platter Talk says
Fantastic addition! Thanks for the great feedback!
michele says
There is absolutely no excuse for me not to have the ingredients to make these! So few of them and so easy! The dough tastes great…. and they are in the oven now! If they are even half as good as they smell Im going to be so happy!
[email protected]'s Dinnertime Dish says
These cookies look delicious and I can’t believe how easy they are!
Dan from Platter Talk says
Thanks, Lisa. They have (for good or bad) become a standard at our house!
Madi says
Three ingredients cookies? Count me in! These sound so good!
Ashlyn says
There is nothing better than a simple and delicious PB cookie! Three ingredients just can’t be beat!
Dan from Platter Talk says
Our kids make these about once a week, they truly are simple and delish!
Margaret says
I made these last Sunday night since hubby wanted something sweet at 7:30 and loves peanut butter cookies. These were in the oven 10 minutes later and he was enjoying them a few minutes later. A great recipe, requiring just a few ingredients, which I always have on hand. I did add the vanilla. They are sweet so next time I will cut down the sugar just a bit and see how they come out. Definitely a go-to recipe and I like that they don’t make a big batch.
Dan from Platter Talk says
Thanks for the great comments, Margaret. You’re right, they are sweet and cutting back on the sugar is a very good idea. Thanks a million for taking the time to send us a comment and especially for reading Platter Talk. We hope you will come back often and please share the love with your friends!
Annette Wilbanks says
What about brown sugar instead of regular sugar and would it be the same amount? Also why no butter or flour ?
Dan from Platter Talk says
We’ve never tried brown sugar but I think it would work (and taste great). There is no butter and no flour in this recipe because neither are needed, making this a great dessert for people who can’t eat flour and keeping it simple at the same time. Give them a try, you’ll be amazed at how great they taste! Thank you very much for the great questions and we appreciate having you as one of our readers.
Sue Leahy says
Can a flax egg be substituted for the egg?
Dan from Platter Talk says
Great question, Sue. I would give it a try; please let us know the results.
Cindy says
I only have crunchy peanut butter.. will that work?
Dan from Platter Talk says
Crunchy peanut butter is always my first choice. I’m sure it would work well!
Dawn says
Just found this easy almost too good to be true recipe…lol..can’t wait to try it so I’m doing it now for my guy whose fave cookie is the peanut butter kiss cookie….his mom always made them …sadly she’s passed ….and now that tradition falls on me….mama raised such a wonderful man and I’m blessed to have him so I wNt to take good care and make his mama in heaven happy..I’ll let u know…happy holidays…
Dan from Platter Talk says
We’re happy that you found this recipe and our food site! Please let us know how these turn out!
Brenda says
Can you use natural peanut butter with the same results?
Dan from Platter Talk says
I’m sure you can, Brenda, and that sounds like a wonderful hack! Let us know how they turn out.
MELISA says
I love that these are gluten free, easy to make and delicious.
Dan from Platter Talk says
Thanks, Melisa!
Yolanda says
We baked these last night,they were delicious but too sweet. I would definitely cut back on the sugar the next time. Great recipe though.
Dan from Platter Talk says
Thanks for the great feedback!
Sarah says
So yummy!!
Deborah says
The best peanut butter cookie I have ever had! I substituted with brown sugar for a more chewy experience.
Dan from Platter Talk says
Thanks so much for the feedback! We hope you find many more enjoyable recipes here on Platter Talk!
Kelly @ Trial and Eater says
Love simple desserts like these! And peanut butter cookies are always a winner.
Tina Dawson | Love is in my Tummy says
What sorcery is this!!!! That’s all you need to make cookies???? What a fun project this would be with kids!!! Brilliant!
Liz @ I Heart Vegetables says
I’ve made cookies like this before and I’m always amazed at how easy they are! This is my go-to when I don’t have a lot in the pantry but I’m craving fresh cookies!
[email protected] says
These might just be the ultimate cookie, one of my favorites.
Silvia @ Garden in the Kitchen says
Haha, I know exactly what you mean. I have four kids and they loooooove cookies and to make them too! This recipe will be perfect for them, easy tasty and only 3 ingredients!!
Sharon says
I just made these, and they are yummy. But my husband is diabetic so I’m wondering if I could use Stevia instead of sugar.
Dan from Platter Talk says
Hi Sharon, we have not tried this. But generally, you need 18-24 packets of Stevia for one cup of sugar. Let us know how this works for you.
Marie says
How long to bake this, I don’t want to mess these up. Thanks , Marie Goodson
Dan from Platter Talk says
Thanks for this important question! Bake for about 12 minutes and then allow to rest for a minute or two on the baking sheet, before transferring to cooling rack. These peanut butter cookies will not spread and in the unlikely case of any leftovers, be sure to store them in an air-tight container.
Amanda | Chew Town says
I love a good 3 ingredient recipe, but I would never have guessed you could make cookies from peanut butter, sugar and just one egg! I’m definitely trying this… at least I always have the ingredients at home.
Derek | Dad With A Pan says
These are my favorite cookies, just in time for fall!
Dan from Platter Talk says
Thanks, Derek. We hope you’ll give them a try and sure appreciate you stopping by Platter Talk!
Kylee from Kylee Cooks says
THREE ingredients?! that’s amazing! they came out so perfect. Could be seriously dangerous at my house.
Dan from Platter Talk says
Live dangerously, Kylee! You can’t go wrong with this cookie recipe. Thanks so much for dropping by Platter Talk.
Cheryl says
By far my favorite pb cookie recipe!
I make them into PB sandwich cookies!! They don’t last long in this house.
Dan from Platter Talk says
What a delicious and decadent idea, Cheryl! Thanks for commenting and thanks for reading Platter Talk.
Julie | Bunsen Burner Bakery says
I can’t wait until my little guy is able to help in the kitchen – these are perfect easy, beginner cookies.
Dan from Platter Talk says
I can’t wait for him to be old enough either, Julie! You two will have such a great time together in the kitchen; I promise. Thanks so much for stopping by Platter Talk.
Helen @ Fuss Free Flavours says
How simple is that recipe to a) have the ingredients and b) to remember! I must make a batch, although we never have enough PB as I have a habit of spooning it directly from the jar!
Dan from Platter Talk says
I have the same habit, Helen. Which is one of the reasons we usually have at least three jars of the stuff in our pantry! Thank you for commenting on this Platter Talk recipe!
April @ Girl Gone Gourmet says
Peanut butter cookies are one of my favorites – I love this 3 ingredient version, but I could seriously get into trouble with these. I wouldn’t want to share because I’d eat them all with a tall glass of cold milk 🙂
Yaisha says
Lol
Kevin | Keviniscooking says
Strange, but when I try to Pin I get 3 other recipe pics?
Kevin | Keviniscooking says
This short list of ingredients is crazy. I want to make them too! Dave is a HUGE peanut butter cookie monster so this has been Pinned. Great pics of the kids too. 🙂
Jeff the Chef says
My cousin-in-law, whose culinary judgements I regard as second only to The Barefoot Contessa, recommended these to me. I haven’t yet tried them, but clearly I should!
Cheryl says
Do it!! They are amazing!
Dan from Platter Talk says
I’ve got to agree with her on this one!