3 Ingredient Peanut Butter Cookies Recipe
Save RecipeWhip up my 3 Ingredient Peanut Butter Cookies recipe in no time. My easy Peanut Butter Cookies taste as good as a classic recipe without all the fuss.
Hi Bold Bakers!
If you’re like me, you’re also an avid peanut butter lover! One of my favorite ways to enjoy the nutty flavor and creamy texture of peanut butter is with a classic homemade peanut butter cookies recipe.
Who doesn’t have happy childhood memories of making or eating peanut butter cookies, with that cross hatch patter on top, chewy bite and nutty sweet taste! Since Bold Baking is all about giving you the confidence to bake anytime, anywhere — behold my 3 Ingredient Cookies and this easy peanut butter cookies recipe.
How to Make 3 Ingredient Peanut Butter Cookies
My 3 Ingredient Peanut Butter Cookie recipe is truly as easy as 1, 2, 3, meaning you can whip up some happiness on any old day. This recipe is pretty much magic, made with just 1 cup of peanut butter, 1 cup of sugar, and 1 egg. The 1 to 1 to 1 ratio really makes this recipe easy to remember.
After mixing all 3 ingredients together in a bowl, you roll the dough into balls and press them down and flatten them with the back of a fork. This gives them them the peanut butter cookie look we all know and love. Bake these 3 ingredient cookies for 15 minutes into impressively thick and decadent cookies. While this recipe really cuts down on prep time, none of the flavor or texture is lost in the process.
Can I make these cookies vegan and substitute the eggs?
Yes you can replace the eggs, but just note you might not get thee EXACT same result as I did. You can replace the eggs in this recipe by following my Egg Substitutes Chart for cookies. Flax egg will be the best substitute.
3 Ingredient Peanut Butter Cookies Ideas
While these are perfection all on their own, I love the idea of these being filled with my creamy 2 Ingredient Ice Cream to make some homemade ice cream sandwiches. You could absolutely cover these peanut butter cookies in rich Chocolate Frosting, or dip them in melted chocolate! All you Bold Bakers must give these a try.
I promise you, they will be an instant hit!
What is the best peanut butter to use when making peanut butter cookies?
Ok, #realtalk time! If you tell anyone I said this, I will deny it and say that you are lying… The best peanut butter to use in this recipe is cheap, smooth peanut butter. You know the brand that you don’t buy in the supermarket, but it’s what you grew up on? That’s the brand you want to use.
Nothing against my Homemade Peanut Butter recipe, but it just doesn’t yield you the best cookie. If you find your cookies are too crumbly, it can be a result of a more quality peanut butter.
Try More of My Cookie Recipes:
- More 3 Ingredient Cookies
- Crazy Cookie Dough: One Cookie Dough with Endless Flavor Variations
- Gemma’s Best-Ever Chocolate Chip Cookies
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Whip up my 3 Ingredient Peanut Butter Cookies recipe in no time. My easy Peanut Butter Cookies taste as good as a classic recipe without all the fuss.
- 1 cup (8oz/225g) sugar
- 1 cup (8oz/225g) peanut butter
- 1 egg*
Preheat your oven to 350oF (180oC) and line a large cookie sheet with parchment paper.
- In a large bowl stir all three ingredients together until smooth.
- Using a tablespoon measure scoop out 2 tablespoon of cookie dough and roll into a smooth ball.
- Place pre-rolled cookies on your cookie sheet about one inch apart, no need to worry about these spreading.
- Press down with the back of a fork and then press again from the opposite direction to form that classic criss-cross pattern.
- Bake these 3 ingredient cookies for 15-20 minutes. Remove from the oven and let cool on the tray for 1-2 minutes before removing to a wire rack to finish cooling.
- Store your peanut butter cookies in an air tight container for up to 3 days.
Watch the Recipe Video!
Replacing Eggs: You can replace the eggs in this recipe by following my Egg Substitutes Chart for cookies. Flax egg will work well.
Meet Gemma
Hi Bold Bakers! I’m Gemma Stafford, a professional chef originally from Ireland, and I’m passionate about sharing my years of experience to show you how to make game-changing baking recipes with over-the-top results! Join more than 1 Million other Bold Bakers in the community for new video recipes every week!
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This is a good cookie. Has been since 1979
I agree 😀
They came out great but a bit sweet for me. Can you reduce the amount of sugar? Or use pure unsweetened peanut butter please?
Hi Shirley,
yes, that will work well. You can make your own peanut butter too (https://www.biggerbolderbaking.com/how-to-make-homemade-peanut-butter/).
Do try these again, you will get them to your taste,
Gemma 🙂
My daughter made these cookies in middle School Home Ec Cycles. They are the best Peanut Butter Cookies, I don’t really like PB cookies but love these.
😀 i am delighted to hear that, enjoy!
Hi, I looked through comments to see if anyone also asked this but there were too many so could not check all of them. Is it okay If i want to use coconut sugar? Also Is it possible me to adjust the ratio to my taste, hope cookies wont be effected by this.
Lastly I bought a pumpkin peanut butter slightly sweetend with carob extrat (like molasses slightly different) and thats why I want to use less sugar (refined sugar free if it is possible ) do you think is it ok me to use that and maybe even add some nuts to give festive flavors? Sorry for long question(s)
Hi Nisa,
I am not sure what this peanut butter is? I think that you will be reinventing this recipe, and that is ok, but it will be an experiment.
to break it down:
Yes, you can always swap out sugar in a recipe, and to your taste. Coconut sugar is a great choice. Yes, you can adjust to your own taste.
I do not understand what the pumpkin peanut butter is, the texture etc, and that is what will have the most marked affect on the recipe.
You can of course add nuts, but really by now this is a totally different cookie, an experiment if you will. I will leave you to decide if it was a good experiment, I would have to try it to be sure.
If this works for you, then that will be great. Try a little sample, that is what I would do,
Gemma 🙂
These cookies were super simple & quick! Next time I make them, I will bake for a shorter time as 15 minutes was a bit too long for my oven. Thanks for sharing this easy recipe!!
Hi Melissa,
Yes! Thank you for this kind comment.
You make a good point, ovens vary, and we need to monitor baking for best results. I always leave things alone until the bake has set up, usually this will be about 1/2 way through the indicated time, this will give you the idea of the remaining time.
Thank you for this valuable contribution,
Gemma 🙂
Can I use cane sugar?
Yes Kari you can use cane sugar 🙂
Best,
Gemma.
These are very good cookies and I want to make more. My only complaint is they were very dry. I did not overcook and I followed the receipt to a tee. I did not have parchment paper and baked the cookies on a cookie sheet. Is that what I did wrong? Can someone tell me how I can get a more moist cookie. I also only baked for 8 minutes as I like a softer cookie.
Hi Michael,
You did not do anything wrong, this is a crisp cookie. You will need a few more ingredients to get the result you want.
Here is a more suitable one for you:
175g/6oz Self Raising Flour
125g/4oz Butter (room temperature)
175g/6oz Light brown Sugar
125g/4oz Crunchy Peanut Butter
1 Egg, beaten
Cream the butter and sugar, then beat in the peanut butter and egg with a little of the flour. Fold in the remainder of the flour and bake! 180C/350F for 15 – 20 mins. These should have a soft center and slightly crisp edge. The flour and egg give the texture change here. I hope it helps,
Gemma 🙂
Hi Gemma:
I just saw a recipe that would make a hit with Kevin. Add 3/4 chopped crisp bacon to your peanut butter cookies then ice with a maple/vanilla frosting. Who’s going to make them first?
Hi Karen,
Haha! You are, as we say in Ireland. a divil!
I am not sure if he would like them, but you are tempting me to try it!
I will run it when I get a moment, unless you get there first!
Happy house move, it is stressful,
Gemma 🙂
Hi Gemma,
The Peanut butter cookies came out wonderful. Thank you! I baked it for 20 mins but I think 15 mins would have done the job with only a slight browning.
I’m delighted to hear you liked them!
Was wondering if I could use Adams peanut butter. An I will also use coconut sugar. Will this work. Thank you these look delish.
I’m not sure what adam’s peanut butter is but I don’t see why not if it’s like regular peanut butter.
Gemma 🙂
Adam’s Peanut Butter is an all natural peanut butter. Sort of like Kelkin’s Peanut Butter.
Hi!
Can I use your the peanut butter from the bigger bolder basics series for this recipe?
Thanks
Hi there,
Yes, certainly, that is peanut butter, it is what it is!
Gemma 🙂
Hi, Gemma: I’ve been watching you for awhile and enjoy your videos very much. Never commented before, but I wanted to ask about these 3 ingredient PB cookies. I can’t have sugar or flour but made these substituting Swerve for sugar. The cookies did not crisp at all. They were very dense and the taste was acceptable but really missed some crunchiness. Any ideas of how to improve that? Thank you
Hi Diane,
Swerve is a good sugar substitute, and its main ingredient is erythritol, an alcohol sugar, which should caramelize.
It is the caramelization which creates the crunch, and the browning too in a recipe.
We like this one (https://amzn.to/2vj4Uih) this is a mix of monk fruit and erythritol, and we find it works well for us, though we have no vested interest in this. Truvia, which is a CocoCola brand, is a blend of stevia and erythritol, and claims to caramelize too. I am wondering what you used for flour?
Olivia, who is my wonderful assistant, made this great cookie using LAKANTO sugar sub, and we found this excellent. (https://www.biggerbolderbaking.com/oatmeal-cookies-best-ever/). I hope this is of help to you.
Olivia is passionate about this area of baking, and quite the expert, we will be developing more recipes over the next short time, we understand how important this is to so many people.
Thank you for being here with us, carry on baking,
Gemma 🙂
I was concerned about just three ingredients however they are delicious. They are too sweet however and I will reduce the sugar next time to 3/4 cup and see if they still work. I was going to initially as it looked like a lot of sugar but lost my nerve at the last minute and went with the recipe as written. I added chopped pecans which is also delicious. Has anyone else tried reducing the sugar to 3/4 cup?
Hi Amanda,
Yes, I think you can adjust the sugar in this recipe, others have done that too.
This is a matter of taste, and many cookie recipes will take the change. Where there are two sugars reduce the white.
Many of the new age sweeteners will work well too, choose one which can caramelize, as this is important for cookies.
I hope this helps, thank you for trying the recipe, and taking the trouble to let us know,
Gemma 🙂
I made these yesterday using Wowbutter since we can’t have peanut butter in the house. They were amazing! Thank you so much for the easy and yummy recipe!
So glad to hear you enjoyed it!
Yes please Gemma a best ever pb cookie recipe would be lovely! It’s my uncle’s favorite!
Ok, I hear you, so kind to be thinking about your uncle,
Gemma 🙂
I must have done something wrong. I substituted baking powder, water, and oil for the egg, but the cookies turned out sandy and gritty. They looked beautiful but crumbled into sand when I tried to pick one up. Must have needed the egg.
Hi Jane,
The fewer the ingredients the harder it is to substitute an element.
(https://www.biggerbolderbaking.com/category/recipes/dietary-preferences/vegetarian-baking/) here there are a number of egg free recipes. We will add more to this section as the year goes on. You will find a no bake peanut butter cookie here, I hope you enjoy it,
Gemma 🙂
Easy and the best PB cookies ever! They never make it off the cooling rack everyone gobbles them down warm with milk. Thank you for sharing this.
Delighted to hear that, Aradia 🙂
Best,
Gemma.
Dear Gemma,
Is this a best ever recipe? Or is it just a convenient 3 ingredient recipe?
It’s just a convenient cookie recipe. Are you looking for a best ever Peanut butter recipe? I can add it to my list 🙂
Gemma.
Gemma i love your videos especially
your accent . Where were you born ?
I could listen to you for hours .
Thank You .
Lila
lol, thanks so much, Lila.
I’m form Ireland. I moved to the U.S ten years ago. I refuse to loose my accent 🙂
Best,
Gemma.
These were really delicious!! I will be making again
I saw this recipe about a month ago tried it Great but I thought this can’t be right I can’t bake so I did it 4 more times every bake was as good as before thank you for sharing this recipe and giving me confidence to bake
Yay!!!!! I’m delighted you liked this recipe, Rose. Thank you for your kind comment 🙂
Best,
Gemma.
not to bad but don’t put them in for 20 mins I do mine about 10 mins 12 mins are almost to crunchy
taste like cooked peanuts crunchy outside a little chewy on inside doesn’t taste like normal sweet peanutbutter cookies just a peanut taste but is good enough for me because I’m always limited on ingredients and it fixes my cravings
Hi there,
Good, I am really happy that you like this little cookie. Yes, it will fix the cravings, and it is quick and easy to put together.
Thank you for being in touch,
Gemma 🙂
Hi Gemma, just came across your site and just loving the recipes I see, especially the homemade brown sugar, condensed milk, peanut butter just to name a few. Then the 3 ingredients peanut butter cookies yum yum. I can’t wait to try these out. Thank you, you’ve just got yourself a new fan!!!!!
Welcome to the BBB community!! Delighted you found my site.
Let me know if you need help with anything,
Gemma.
I was just wondering if I could add a little flour to this recipe just to fluff them up a bit?
Hum, Christy I’m not sure if that would give you a good result. I would suggest maybe looking for a peanut butter cookie that has a rising agent and flour already in it.
Best,
Gemma.
I just made your 3 ingredient peanut butter cookies. Everyone loves them. I’m a diabetic and will try again with 1/2 splenda as others have suggested by other fans of this recipe. A trick I use to bake all cookies is to pre-heat 25 degrees hotter prior to putting mycookies in the oven. Then as the oven door opens and heat escapes you turn the temperature back down to the called for temp. Works for me! Thank you for this amazing recipe. ~ Susan
Hi Susan,
Great tip, thank you for sharing this. It makes perfect sense too, we do not always consider this when baking. Opening the oven too many times through thr bake can cause things to fail too, good job you!
Gemma 🙂
Yummy!! My daughter and I just made these did little less sugar and halved it with Splenda I’m on high protein diet so this works wonderful!!
Great for bariatric patients!!
Thanks so much ❤️
Hi Wendy,
You make a great point here. A lot of sugar substitutes can be combined with sugar to allow for the caramelizing of the ingredients, which gives the bake color, crispness and flavor. It is a good choice. Caramelizing is an important part of a successful bake. Some alternative sugars will caramelize, others not. Splenda will not, Swerve will, Stevia will not etc. It is important to get this figured out, and google will help.
Well done, thank you for letting us know,
Gemma 🙂
I’ve never made peanut butter cookies and the fact that these were only 3 ingredients, they were so appealing! So they just came out of he overnight and they are now husband and kid approved!
Thank you for the simplicity of the recipe!
Hi there,
Thank you, that is the objective, keep things simple, I am happy your family liked these cookies,
Gemma 🙂
I just made these with half sugar and half Splenda to reduce the carbs. They turned out great! 15 minutes in my oven was perfect for a tender cookie. I dipped my fork in sugar to do the criss cross and prevent sticking and it gave just the slightest sugar crispness on the top.
Hi Beth,
The mixing of the splenda with sugar is a great idea. Splenda will not caramelize to set the cookie, but the sugar clearly did this job for you. Well done you, and thank you for sharing this with us,
Gemma 🙂
Burned. They came out flat. What kind of peanut butter did you use? Jiffy doesnt work
Hi Corey,
I am thinking what oven did Corey use?
It is unlikely to be a peanut butter problem. Are you using an OTG?
An OTG oven is a little different to a large oven, and each one seems to have its’ own personality. Read the instruction book carefully, to learn how to control the temperature in your one for baking. Am I right? let me know,
Gemma 🙂
I used our GE oven. I put the setting to 350 degrees per the recipe. Not sure what else went wrong
Hi Corey,
I really do not understand this, unless the oven thermostat is not right, and this can happen. The bake time too is short 15 – 20 minutes, would not burn anything really. I am not sure what the issue is here, but I am really sorry you had this problem. Try another recipe, just a test, see what happens, you may need a repair.
Gemma 🙂
Making these cookies right now and I’m excited
Good for you Tori, let us see the results,
Gemma 🙂
Tried with half Dark chocolate creamy peanut butter and half Crunchy peanut butter. Looks delicious
They are great tasting. Quick and easy. Not quite Mamas pb cookies I grew up on but still very satisfying. Thanks so much.
Hi there,
Good, but you are right, mamma’s cookies were always the best, taste of home, nothing better!
Gemma 🙂
We just tried it. My boys loved it but it was a little to sweet. Next time I’m using 3/ 4 of sugar instead of a cup
Hi Jennifer,
Yes, I am happy to hear this. I think you can reduce the sugar in this recipe. It has the purpose of holding the cookie together, as much as to add sweetness, but I think it will be ok.
Thank you for your kind comment,
Gemma 🙂
Thanks, these are great! I just made a quick batch of these and added chopped walnuts to half the cookies, and the addition was tasty, too.
Hi Greta,
Thank you for telling us this. It will be a great help to other Bold Bakers, great to have your suggestions,
Gemma 🙂
The flavor was on point but they were to dry for my taste but with milk they are pretty bomb. Great little : oops I have no butter recipe.
Hi Anna,
Good! I am happy you liked this little cookie. If you bake these for a little shorter time they may suit you better. Ovens vary! Milk and peanut butter cookies are a marriage made in heaven. Thank you for this knid review,
Gemma 🙂
I like hard cookies not soft and mushy. Can’t these cookies be made or bake as to that consistency?
Hi Lucille,
You could bake them for longer just note they might become dry.
Best,
Gemma.
Loved this recipe. Easy to do!
I have been using this recipe a long time. I doubled it tonight and used 1 c white sugar 1 c brown sugar. I also added some honey and vanilla extract. They came out very tasty!
I’m thrilled to hear that. Thanks for trying out my recipe.
Best,
Gemma.
I tried this recipe with Sugar in the Raw. It turned out a lot better than regular sugar the texture was better and the flavor was better.
I tried these out with a friend because we wanted to bake but weren’t bothered to go shopping and they worked really well! The consistency was very different to what i was expecting (not in a bad way) and they werent overly sweet at all (which we feared). Thank you so much!
I’m thrilled to hear that!!! Thanks so much for trying it out.
Best,
Gemma.
Have you done any vegan baking? I was wondering if I substituted the egg for a flax egg (1 tablespoon ground flax and 3 tablespoons water) if they would still turn out.
Hi,
Yes I think that will work out. You won’t get the exact same result as me but it still should work out. I have an egg sub chart if you want to check the out.
Best,
Gemma.
I loved the cookies I was so surprised they taste great 5 stars
Thrilled to hear that. If you haven’t yet try the no bake chocolate cookies (with coconut) . They are INSANE!!!
best,
Gemma.
Mine turned out pretty chewy..I don’t know what wnt wrong…..plz help
Hi there,
I think this sounds like you over baked! If you do this the sugars will caramelize, and it will be chewy! It should also taste good!
Next time monitor the bake, when they are feeling firm they are ready. Different ovens cak give different results. This is particularly true of OTGa.
Gemma 😉
Omg!!!! These cookies were amazing. My mother even enjoyed them ( she’s not even a peanut butter fan )
These are the perfect sweetness. I used my Vita Mix, worked perfectly for grounding the oats.
Thank you!!!
Oats?
Hi Lynnie,
Thanks for the help today! I needed a dig out 😉
Gemma 🙂
Hi Gemma! I love this recipe! It’s yummy! My mom, sister, and I love these cookies. In fact, my mom told me not to make them again, least she eat them all in one night. Anyway, my father has been left out of this fun because he is allergic to peanuts. So, I was wondering if I could make this recipe with almond butter, instead. Do you think that would work?
For sure Erica, almond butter will work really well.
Really glad you like this recipe.
Best,
Gemma.
Like many, I was looking for something sweet for movie night without going out for supplies. Found this recipe. I have to say, if it werent for all the rave reviews I dont know if I would have “wasted” my last cup of peanut butter on this recipe for fear they wouldnt turn out. So glad I decided to go ahead!!! I substituted brown sugar for the white and while I was stirring I kept thinking “no way” ….Im really gonna be mad when these dont work out. I couldnt have been more wrong. They came out PERFECT!!! I froze what I didnt eat but couldnt help myself eating ’em right out the freezer today!!!
Thank you so much for this recipe!!!
hi Holly,
This is why I depend on your guys so much! I love that you encourage each other to bake, to try things, and let us know how things worked for you, changes made to suit your own taste etc! that is what makes our community here work so well, well done you,
Gemma 🙂
I dont have any parchment paper . Will greasing the cookie sheet work?
yes greasing a cookie sheet will work.
Best,
Gemma.
Hi Gemma,
I was wondering with your three ingredient coconut cookies, is canned coconut milk used or can it be coconut milk from a box? I have both on hand, I was just wondering which is preferable. Thank you!
Hi Donna,
I used canned coconut milk but if the milk form a box is similar in consistency I think that would work. I have never used boxed before so I’m not sure.
Hope it works out,
Gemma.