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If a thumbprint cookie and a peanut butter cookie had a baby, it would be one of these rich and delicious peanut butter and jelly cookies! A salty and sweet peanut butter cookie base is filled with strawberry jam and baked to chewy, gooey perfection to create these flavorful and nostalgic cookies.
There’s no flavor combination quite as comforting and nostalgic as creamy peanut butter and jelly! The sweet and fruity jelly perfectly cuts through the salty richness of creamy peanut butter. Take your classic peanut butter cookie recipe game up a notch by embracing this classic flavor combination and make these cookies instead!
These PB&J cookies are perfect for adding to your kid’s lunchbox, serving as a fun weekend breakfast treat, or taking to your next bridal or baby shower. Trust me, these 20-minute, one-bowl cookies are sure to become a household staple in no time!
Thumbprint cookies are fun to make! Thumbprint just means you create a little indent on the top of the cookie with your thumb (or a spoon) to fill with another flavor. I promise they are easy to make.
Peanut Butter and Jelly Cookies Ingredients
To make this cookie recipe, you will need the following ingredients (go to the recipe below for exact quantities and instructions):
- Unsalted butter: It is important to use unsalted instead of salted butter because the peanut butter will add plenty of saltiness to the cookie dough.
- White granulated sugar
- Brown sugar: A mixture of brown and white sugar give these cookies a subtle caramel-ly sweetness.
- Eggs: Act as the binding agent, holding all the other cookie ingredients together.
- Peanut butter: Use your favorite peanut butter brand. I found that smooth peanut butter works best with this recipe. Crunchy peanut butter can cause the cookies to become a bit crumbly, making them difficult to eat without falling apart. Stick with creamy peanut butter for the perfect cookie.
- Vanilla extract: Just a splash of this extract takes these cookies from good to fantastic!
- White flour: Creates a delightfully chewy base for these cookies. A whole wheat flour or a gluten-free flour blend would also work nicely.
- Baking powder
- Baking soda
- Strawberry jam: You can use any type of jam, jelly, or preserve with this recipe. I enjoy raspberry jam and strawberry preserves. If you’d rather just make easy peanut butter cookies, you can omit the jelly and use a fork to flatten the cookies before they go into the oven.
Equipment You’ll Need
You can make these rich and chewy peanut butter cookies with a few simple pieces of kitchen equipment that you likely already own! You’ll need an electric hand mixer (or stand mixer), a large mixing bowl, some measuring cups and spoons, a cookie scoop, a spoon, parchment paper, and a baking sheet.
How to Make Peanut Butter and Jelly Cookies Recipe
- Preheat your oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit and cream together the butter, white sugar, and brown sugar in a large mixing bowl until smooth.
- Add in the eggs, peanut butter, and vanilla extract. Whisk the mixture together until smooth and homogenous.
- Whisk in the flour, baking powder, and baking soda until no clumps of dry ingredients remain in the cookie dough.
- Place balls of peanut butter cookie dough the size of two tablespoons on parchment paper on a baking sheet and use a spoon to make a small indent in the top of each cookie.
- Place a small spoonful of jam in each indent and bake cookies for 11 minutes.
- Allow the cookies to cool completely before removing them from the baking sheet, serve, and enjoy!
Serving Suggestions
I like to keep things simple and serve these cookies with a tall glass of ice-cold milk. However, these sweet and salty cookies pair well with a wide variety of other sweets. Try topping your PB&J cookies with a scoop of vanilla ice cream, chopped peanuts, or marshmallow fluff. I also find that these cookies make the perfect lunchbox treat!
You can serve these cookies warm, but I find that the peanut butter and jelly flavors taste best when they’ve cooled completely.
Expert Tips and Tricks
- You can use almost any type of jelly, jam, or preserves in these cookies. I recommend making a batch with raspberry or grape jelly!
- For those of you that love crunchy peanut butter, resist the temptation to use it in this recipe! The resulting cookies will be dry and crumbly.
- It is super important that you use unsalted butter in these cookies since the peanut butter already has plenty of added salt.
Storage Instructions
Fridge: You can store these cookies covered in an airtight container at room temperature or in the fridge. They should stay good for up to 4 days.
Freezer: There are also two ways to freeze these cookies: baked or raw. Baked peanut butter and jelly cookies will stay good in the freezer for up to 6 months. Prepared but unbaked cookies will stay good for up to 1 year. When you’re ready to enjoy one of these cookies, simply allow it to thaw on the counter and then bake if necessary.
More Amazing Cookie Recipes
Peanut Butter and Jelly Cookies
Ingredients
- ¾ cup white granulated sugar
- 1 cup brown sugar
- 2 large eggs
- ¾ cup smooth peanut butter
- 1 ½ teaspoons vanilla extract
- 2 ½ cups white flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 ½ teaspoons baking soda
- 1 cup strawberry jam
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit and cream together the butter, white sugar, and brown sugar in a large bowl until smooth.
- Add in the eggs, peanut butter, and vanilla. Whisk the mixture together until smooth and homogenous.
- Whisk in the flour, baking powder, and baking soda until no clumps of dry ingredients remain in the mixture.
- Place balls of cookie dough the size of two tablespoons on parchment paper on a cookie sheet and use a spoon to make a small indent in the top of each cookie.
- Place a small spoonful of jam in each indent and bake the cookies for 11 minutes.
- Allow the cookies to cool before removing them from the pan, serve, and enjoy!
Nutrition
The nutrition information is calculated using online nutrition calculators and may not be accurate. It is provided as a general guide only.
The recipe and photos contained herein are the property of Emily Enchanted© and may not be copied.
Emily Enchanted
Thursday 4th of August 2022
I love this recipe because it turned my favorite childhood lunch into a dessert.