Peanut Butter Oatmeal Cookies are thick, soft, chewy, cookies! Add chocolate chips if you want to make them extra sweet, or enjoy them without. Easily add in nuts too!
If you like these cookies, I think you will LOVE my Monster Cookies too!
Table of Contents
Oh friends, these Peanut Butter Oatmeal Cookies are going to be a new favorite! I love the combination of oatmeal and peanut butter…and throw in some chocolate chips (optional of course) and you have one of my favorite cookies ever. I would even add in raisins to these too, but I know the raisin police might come at me.
These are actually a pretty filling cookie…the oats, the peanut butter…so good! And I’ve been known to enjoy these for breakfast. I mean, with a cup of coffee or a cup of tea? Seriously good.
Recipe Ingredients:
- Butter. I use salted butter in this recipe, but you can use unsalted butter if that’s what you prefer.
- Peanut butter. I recommend using a creamy peanut butter like Jif or Skippy. Using a natural peanut butter in this recipe will result in a more crumbly cookie.
- Granulated sugar
- Light brown sugar. You can also use dark brown sugar as well.
- Eggs. I always use large eggs in my baking recipes. Using extra large eggs will alter the result.
- Vanilla extract
- Kosher salt
- Baking soda
- All purpose flour
- Old fashioned oats. These are also know as “rolled oats”. You can use Quick Oats in this recipe if that’s all you have on hand, just reduce the amount of oats by 1/4 cup. Quick oats are simply old fashioned oats cut into pieces for faster cooking!
Optional Add-Ins:
As you can see in the pictures I added in chocolate chips to my cookies. I love the combination of peanut butter and chocolate. BUT these are delicious plain as well! Here are a few more add-in options to get creative:
- Semi-sweet chocolate chips
- White chocolate chips
- Chopped Walnuts
- Pistachios
- Chopped candy like peanut butter cups or snickers
- Dried cherries or dried cranberries
These are super easy cookies to make and really don’t differ greatly than any other drop cookie recipe. Here are the steps, but make sure to read the full recipe in the recipe card for all the instructions.
- Mix the butter and peanut butter together with your mixer until creamy and then mix in both the sugars until light and fluffy!
- Next add in the eggs, vanilla, salt, and baking soda and mix until combined making sure to scrape the sides of the bowl to get everything mixed in evenly.
- Add in the flour and oats and mix until combined and then stir in the chocolate chips if you’re adding those!
- Chill the dough for at least an hour and then bake at 350°F for 12-ish minutes.
- This cookie dough needs to chill for at least an hour, but you can chill the dough for up to 3 days before baking. I like to chill oatmeal cookie dough because I feel like it gives the oats a chance to soften a bit. This will ensure your cookies aren’t dry, and will give you a chewy result!
- As soon as your cookies come out of the oven you can shape them with your spatula if they are misshapen. DO this immediately because cookies cool quickly! You can also press a few extra chocolate chips on top (if you’re using chocolate chips) to make them look pretty!
- These cookies aren’t dry or crumbly at all, BUT if you notice (with this recipe or really most cookie recipes) that your dough is dry or crumbly you can add in 1 tablespoon of milk and mix it up and see if that helps. Add a little more at a time if necessary until you get the texture you want.
- Measure your flour by spooning it into the measuring cup instead of scooping. Scooping can lead to packed flour, which will essentially be adding more flour than needed, resulting in a dry or crumbly cookie dough, or leaving your cookie too puffy!
These cookies are best stored at room temperature in an airtight container. I like to enjoy cookies up to 3 days after they’re baked for best freshness. They will be FINE up to 5 days (some may say longer), but I really don’t like to eat cookies more than a few days old. That’s just me being a cookie snob! BUT I also stand behind 3 days. They just lose a little magic after 3 days.
Can I Freeze the Dough and Bake Later?
Oh yes, absolutely you can freeze this dough. Check out all my tips for Freezing Cookie Dough. The method I outline in that post works perfectly for these cookies.
You can also bake these cookies and freeze them after they’re baked. Just make sure to freeze them in an airtight container. I recommend up to 30 days for best freshness, and then thaw at room temperature.
- The BEST Oatmeal Raisin Cookies Ever!
- Oatmeal Cream Pies
- Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies
- Crispy Chewy Oatmeal Cookies
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 12 minutes
- Total Time: 22 minutes + chill time
- Yield: 30 cookies 1x
- Category: Cookies
- Method: Oven
- Cuisine: Dessert
Description
These peanut butter oatmeal cookies are soft, thick and perfect with or without chocolate chips…although I always think chocolate it a good idea!
Ingredients
- 1 cup butter, room temperature
- 1 cup creamy peanut butter
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 1/2 cup light brown sugar
- 2 large eggs
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
- 2 cups old fashioned (rolled) oats
- optional – 2 cups chocolate chips
Instructions
- In the bowl of your stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment mix the butter and peanut butter together on medium speed until creamy. Add in the granulated and brown sugar and mix for 2 minutes, scraping the sides of the bowl as necessary.
- Add in the eggs, vanilla, salt, and baking soda and mix for 1 minute until smooth and combined.
- Turn the mixer to low and add in the flour, mixing until just combined. With the mixer still on low add in the oats, mixing until incorporated. Don’t over-mix.
- Stir in the chocolate chips, if using.
- Cover the dough and refrigerate for at least an hour, or up to 3 days.
- Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Using a medium (2- tablespoon) cookie scoop, drop the dough onto the prepared baking sheet 3- inches apart. Bake for 11 – 13 minutes, until lightly golden at the edges and set on top.
- Transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
Notes
Store airtight at room temperature for up t0 5 days.
Freeze baked cookies for up to a month.
How to freeze unbaked cookie dough
Nutrition info given without the addition of chocolate chips.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 cookie
- Calories: 193
- Sugar: 11.2 g
- Sodium: 106.1 mg
- Fat: 10.9 g
- Carbohydrates: 20.6 g
- Protein: 3.7 g
- Cholesterol: 28.7 mg
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These were very good. I did put semi sweet chocolate chips in them. They are really sweet so I’m thinking I might use a little less sugar next time to see if that tamps it down a bit. I did refrigerate the dough as instructed, even in between batches. Don’t have a cookie scoop, but my pampered chef ice cream scoop worked great. Cookies are much bigger than I usually make so I may use a teaspoon next time. Anyway, thanks for another great recipe, Shelly!!
Loved this cookie recipe. I did use Kirkland creamy natural peanut butter and increased salt to 1 tsp regular salt plus used salted butter. I also smashed the dough ball down a little with my hand. This recipe is so good and soft in the middle.
Perfecto!
If being locked down has any silver lining whatsoever (and no, it doesn’t) it is that I keep discovering some great cookie recipes on the internet. And this is one fantastic cookie. I’ve always been a little leery when it comes to peanut butter cookies. But after looking up some peanut butter measuring hacks, I’m a convert. I was little nervous when they came out of the oven, but after five minutes or so on the cookie rack they set perfectly. Pulling them out of the oven a little early and letting them set on the cookie sheet for another minute before transferring worked just as well. Not sure why but my yield was more like 45 cookies using a 2 tbsp. cookie scoop. Not that that’s a bad thing, mind you. Thanks, you made my day (literally).
Love hearing this and SO glad you enjoyed them!
I made these yesterday and added raisins for my husband. I have to admit that I didn’t chill the dough and I still got nice, thick, chewy cookies. However, I suggest you chill the dough like the recipe asks.
This is a lovely, hearty cookie which I will definitely snack on all day.
My question, can l use Stevia instead of the two sugars you recommended. I have a diabetic 2 in my family and it’s ever so hard to find recipes to use without using sugar. MOST people in the world use too much sugar anyway. And to more problems the use of corn syrup.
How much Stevia would l use instead of the sugars..?
OMG…the minute I saw these I knew I had to make them. They were easy to make and so delicious! I cut the ingredients in half so I didn’t have so many cookies. My hubs and I ate so many already! Soft with a slight crisp, such a great cookie. This is definitely a new fave!
Oh i’m s glad you made them and enjoyed! I feel like they are the perfect balance of peanut butter and oats!
I only have Jumbo eggs. How will this alter the recipe? After cracking the eggs, can I measure the eggs by weight and remove some to equal a large egg? Oh, and chocolate chips are essential, not optional (in my house at least!).
I use jumbo eggs in most of my cookie recipes (and I make a LOT of cookies) and do not make any alternations.
A jumbo or extra large egg just simply adds more moisture to the cookie. So while it will still “work” it result will be slightly different than the way the recipe was written and tested.
Perhaps leave out the white of one if using jumbos…