These peanut butter filled brownie cookies are soft and fudge-like with a creamy peanut butter ripple swirled throughout. The brownie dough uses melted chocolate AND cocoa powder for extra chocolate flavor and the peanut butter filling requires just 2 ingredients. Warning: these are quite indulgent!
Sometimes you just need a cookie. Last month it was my mission to bake some sort of stuffed peanut butter/chocolate cookie creation. I have recipes for peanut butter stuffed brownies, peanut butter chocolate chip cookies, peanut butter fudge puddles, (and pb cup stuffed chocolate cookies in my cookbook) and questioned if this was really even necessary…
But then I came to my senses because (hello!?) a cookie is always necessary. The test batches garnered rave reviews, so I knew this recipe had to be published ASAP.
These Peanut Butter Filled Brownie Cookies Are:
- Sweet and chewy like a brownie
- Shiny and crackly on top
- Unapologetically rich and indulgent
- Filled and marbled with a soft peanut butter filling like the inside of peanut butter balls and peanut butter Easter eggs (so good!!)
One reader, Nancy, commented: “Wow! These cookies are amazing and totally worth the extra bit of time and effort. My daughter told me they are the best cookies I have ever made, and I may have to agree. They will definitely be on my cookie tray this Christmas. And I will most certainly be making them again before that. ★★★★★“
The full printable dessert recipe is below, but let me point out some things to know before you get started.
Peanut Butter Filling
The first thing you’re going to do is make the peanut butter filling using equal parts confectioners’ sugar and peanut butter. Stir them together (no need for a mixer) until combined and then roll into teaspoon-size balls as best you can. Like the filling from these cream cheese red velvet cookies (what a mouthful), the peanut butter filling must be extremely cold. Chill the peanut butter filling in the freezer for at least 1 hour as you make and chill the cookie dough.
- Can I use natural peanut butter? Yes. It doesn’t spread as much in the oven, so the cookies with natural peanut butter were a bit more lumpy, but still tasted great! I used creamy unsalted natural peanut butter that had been in the fridge, and it took a little bit more arm muscle and time to stir the confectioners’ sugar into it (compared with the conventional peanut butter), but it did smooth out—just keep at it.
- Can I use a peanut butter alternative? Yes. For nut-free alternatives, you can use Biscoff cookie butter or sunflower seed butter spread. My team and I have not tested this recipe with almond butter, but I don’t see any issue using that instead.
Brownie Cookie Dough Ingredients
Now that the peanut butter balls are in the freezer, you can start the brownie cookie dough. Have you ever made my brownie cookies before? They’re a hit whenever I make them and you might love them even more marbled with peanut butter. A few key ingredients you need include cocoa powder, brown & white sugars, eggs, room temperature butter, flour, espresso powder, and chocolate.
Espresso powder is optional for a deeper chocolate flavor. You can find it in the coffee aisle at the grocery store or online. If you don’t have it, just skip it.
Success Tip: Best Chocolate to Use
Since most of the cookie’s chocolate flavor comes from melted chocolate, do not cut corners. Use pure chocolate baking bars such as Ghirardelli (not affiliated, just love their chocolate). You can find them right next to the chocolate chips in the baking aisle. They’re typically sold in 4 ounce bars and you need 8 ounces for this recipe.
- I use and recommend semi-sweet chocolate, but you can use bittersweet or unsweetened chocolate for a much darker flavor. In the pictured cookies, I used 4 ounces semi-sweet and 4 ounces bittersweet.
The cookie dough is practically brownie batter, so it needs to chill in the refrigerator for 1 hour before you can shape it with the peanut butter filling. Very sticky before chilling:
Look how much it solidifies after 1 hour in the refrigerator. This is exactly what you want:
Let’s Shape These Peanut Butter Filled Brownie Cookies
The process starts similar to how we shape Nutella crinkle cookies. Using a Tablespoon measuring spoon, scoop out a heaping mound of the brownie cookie dough. It will be pretty hard after chilling, but will soften up in your hands as you roll it. (I don’t recommend using a cookie scoop for this dough because the dough is too hard and sticky. I tried it and my cookie scoop went on strike.) Now the exact marbling/shaping process:
- Roll the dough in your hands to make a ball and then press your thumb into the ball as if you were making a thumbprint cookie.
- Press a peanut butter ball into the indentation and break off a small piece of the brownie dough.
- Smush (yes, that’s the technical term) the piece of brownie cookie dough you’d taken away back on top of the peanut butter filling.
- Mold it all together as you reroll it into a ball. It will look a little marbled.
YOUR HANDS WILL GET MESSY in this process, fair warning.
Every cookie will look different, which only adds to their alluring charm. And by the way, you could totally use these cookies for cookie ice cream sandwiches!
3 Final Success Tips
- Don’t overthink the shaping step. The marbling/swirling doesn’t have to be perfect. In fact, it’s fun that every single cookie looks different!
- Shape only a few at a time. The peanut butter filling softens up extremely quickly after you take it out of the freezer, and quickly becomes softer than the brownie cookie dough. I recommend taking about 6 peanut butter balls out of the freezer at a time, leaving the rest in the freezer while you’re shaping the first bunch.
- Clean-ish hands. Wipe or wash your hands clean after you shape a few cookies. Once your hands are really messy, the dough becomes unworkable. I usually shape 6, freshen up my hands, shape another 6, etc.
See Your Peanut Butter Filled Brownie Cookies!
Many readers tried this recipe as part of a baking challenge! Feel free to email or share your recipe photos with us on social media. 🙂
Print
Peanut Butter Filled Brownie Cookies
- Prep Time: 1 hour, 40 minutes (includes chilling)
- Cook Time: 13 minutes
- Total Time: 2 hours
- Yield: 24 cookies
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Description
Take rich and chewy brownie cookies to the next level with a creamy peanut butter swirl! Both the peanut butter filling and cookie dough must chill before shaping. Review shaping success tips above the recipe.
Ingredients
Peanut Butter Filling
- 1/2 cup (125g) creamy peanut butter (see Note)
- 1/2 cup (60g) confectioners’ sugar
Cookie Dough
- 8 ounces (226g) semi-sweet chocolate, coarsely chopped (2 standard 4-ounce bars of baking chocolate)
- 3/4 cup (94g) all-purpose flour (spooned & leveled)
- 1/4 cup (21g) natural unsweetened or dutch-process cocoa powder
- 1 teaspoon espresso powder
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 5 Tablespoons (71g) unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
- 3/4 cup (150g) packed light or dark brown sugar
- 1/4 cup (50g) granulated sugar
- 2 large eggs, at room temperature
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
Instructions
- Make the peanut butter filling: In a small bowl, mix the peanut butter and confectioners’ sugar together until combined and smooth. You can just use a spoon for this. Mixture is thick, yet soft. With a teaspoon, scoop out a spoonful of peanut butter mixture (about 6g), and roll into a ball. Place on a parchment paper-lined baking sheet, plate, or tray. Repeat with remaining mixture until you have 24 peanut butter balls. Loosely cover and freeze for at least 1 hour and up to 1 day. (I usually just freeze them for a little over 1 hour, which is the amount of time it takes to make and chill the brownie cookie dough.)
- Make the brownie cookie dough: Melt the chocolate in a double boiler or use the microwave. Microwave in 20-second increments, stirring after each until completely melted. Set aside to slightly cool.
- Meanwhile, whisk the flour, cocoa powder, espresso powder, baking powder, and salt together. Set aside. In a large bowl using a handheld or stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat the butter, brown sugar, and granulated sugar together on medium-high speed until smooth and creamy, about 3 minutes. (Here’s a helpful tutorial if you need guidance on how to cream butter and sugar.) Add the eggs and vanilla extract, and beat on high speed for 2 full minutes. Scrape down the sides and up the bottom of the bowl, then beat on high for 1 more minute. Pour in the slightly cooled melted chocolate and mix on medium-high speed for 2 full minutes. Pour the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients and beat on low speed until combined.
- Cover and chill the dough in the refrigerator for 1 hour. If chilling for longer, allow the cookie dough to sit at room temperature for 10-15 minutes before rolling and shaping in step 6.
- After chilling, preheat oven to 350°F (177°C). Line large baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone baking mats.
- Shape the cookies: The peanut butter filling softens up extremely quickly after you take it out of the freezer. I recommend taking about 6 peanut butter balls out of the freezer at a time, leaving the rest in the freezer while you’re shaping the first bunch. Using a sturdy tablespoon, scoop out a heaping spoonful of the cookie dough and roll into a ball, about 1.5 Tablespoons/30g/1 ounce of dough each. The dough will be quite stiff. Make an indentation with your thumb, and place a frozen peanut butter ball in the indentation. Pinch off a piece of the brownie cookie dough and press it on top of the peanut butter filling, and then roll the whole thing together into a smooth ball. Feel free to pull off pieces of brownie dough to expose more peanut butter and then re-roll together; peanut butter can also be hidden inside the cookie dough if you don’t want a marbled look. Repeat with remaining cookie dough and peanut butter balls. (Warning: your hands get messy in this step!)
- Place dough balls 3 inches apart on the baking sheets and bake for 12-13 minutes or until the edges appear set. The centers will be quite soft, but will set up as the cookies cool.
- Remove from the oven and allow cookies to cool on the baking sheet for 10 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.
- Cookies stay fresh covered at room temperature for up to 1 week.
Notes
- Make Ahead Instructions: Baked cookies freeze well for up to 3 months. Unbaked cookie dough balls freeze well for up to 3 months. Bake frozen cookie dough balls for an extra minute, no need to thaw. Cookies won’t spread as much if dough balls were frozen, so about halfway through bake-time, gently press down on the baking cookies with a spoon to help get them to spread. Learn some of my best practices for How to Freeze Cookie Dough.
- Special Tools (affiliate links): Glass Mixing Bowl | Double Boiler | Whisk | Electric Mixer (Handheld or Stand) | Baking Sheets | Silicone Baking Mats or Parchment Paper | Cooling Rack
- Peanut Butter: At the time of publication, there is a recall on Jif peanut butters. Please consider researching the recall information and use another brand of peanut butter in this recipe. We tested it with Skippy Creamy, Justin’s Natural Creamy, and Wegmans brand Natural Creamy. If using natural and the oil has separated to the top of the jar, make sure you stir it well before measuring. Room temperature peanut butter is easiest to mix. I do not recommend crunchy peanut butter because it doesn’t mix very easily with the confectioners’ sugar.
- Peanut Butter Alternatives: For a nut-free alternative, you can use Biscoff cookie butter or sunflower seed butter spread. My team and I have not tested this recipe with almond butter, but I don’t see any issue using that instead!
- Chocolate: Use pure chocolate baking bars. You can find them right next to the chocolate chips in the baking aisle. They are sold in 4 ounce bars, so you’ll need 2. I use and recommend semi-sweet chocolate, but you can use bittersweet or unsweetened chocolate (or a combination of any) for a darker chocolate flavor.
- Espresso Powder: Espresso powder deepens the chocolate flavor. You can find it in the coffee aisle at the grocery store or online. You can skip it or use 2 teaspoons of instant coffee powder instead.
Reader Comments and Reviews
My 3.5 YO daughter and I made these together. It got messy, for sure, but the end result was worth it. Our cookies didn’t flatten out in the oven, and the texture was off. But they still tasted amazing and were incredibly addictive! I did substitute non- dairy butter due to my milk allergy, so perhaps this affected the outcome.
These cookies were fun to make. I ended up making them twice, as the first time I had over-whipped the batter so it was too loose to roll. I ended up baking them in a cupcake pan instead. They were still yummy. The second time I made the chocolate batter similar to the way I make brownies, by melting the chocolate and butter together first. The batter turned out fine and stiff enough to roll.
In leu of peanut butter I used sunflower butter -the taste profile was quite nice. I also finished them with some Maldon Sea salt.
To me, the chocolate part of the cookie was a bit dry, even though I didn’t over-bake them. Not sure I’ll make them again. I might try again, adding an extra egg yolk to see if that makes them a little richer.
I had a peanut butter ball in the center instead of a swirl but they were incredibly delicious. Maybe the pb balls were too frozen?
They defrost quickly while working with them! Were the peanut butter balls quite hard? Letting them sit out for a couple minutes will soften them up if they were.
Sally’s peanut butter recipes are always guaranteed to be a hit, and this was no exception. I flattened my pb balls a bit to kinda mix them in with the chocolate dough on some of them and I think I prefer that way. Peanut butter in every bite! Will definitely be making these again and again.
These are so yummy! Like a peanut butter cup but cookie form!
This brownie cookie was crafted for the edge-piece brownie lover (which I am). Not my absolute favorite cookie but it was fun to try something new. I added mini chocolate chips to the cookie mix since we like chocolate chips in our brownies. The hardest part is waiting the 10 minutes for them to cool on the pan!
Sally’s instructions were easy to follow (LOVE the grams measurements for the brownie and peanut butter balls!) I came up with 25 cookies with a few peanut butter balls left over.
These are as delicious baked from frozen as they are when baked on the day of mixing shaping. The first few I baked came out shaped like flying saucers- perfect cookies with a pearl of pb filling near the center, but when squished halfway through baking I was able to enjoy the filling throughout the cookie. If you love brownies, you’ll love these cookies.
These were absolutely delicious. I wore gloves when rolling the dough – that helped a lot. Easy and tasty. So good!
Hands down some of the best cookies I’ve ever made! A little more involved than the average cookie, but worth every second of prep! I think next time I may add a pinch of salt to the peanut butter mixture and/or sprinkle some flaky sea salt on the warm cookies out of the oven. Love these!!
these cookies were perfect! very chewy and delicious!
This is an AMAZING recipe. I’m giving it 5 stars because it was a fantastic recipe and it still tastes good almost a week later. BUT if you are making these to have a specific amount, you may want to double the batch. I measured out the cookies and pb balls using a scale and only came out with 20 cookies. The weird thing is that I came out with 30+ peanut butter balls. No issue at all – I’m going to keep them in the freezer for next time, but just wanted to mention it, as I measured out everything with a scale, so not sure what happened. I want to make it again and do some form of cherry mixture in the middle because that sounds amazing to me. SO GOOD. Would 100% recommend. Easier to transport than Sally’s great pb choc cakes and cupcakes too and just as good.
Delicious and rich cookies! Loved the peanut butter swirl contrasting the rich chocolate taste.
Very easy to put together the dough and peanut butter filling, refrigerate, and come back to back when time permitted. Delicious! Definitely want to try again with other types of peanut butter or other peanut butter alternatives.
So yummy on a rainy afternoon!
These were good. I thought the baking chocolate added a depth to these cookies. Time consuming but worth it.
Yes! I always follow all your rules and they usually work like a charm.
I make your cookies all the time and these turned out flat. I was so disappointed. They were flat with a peanut butter ball in the center. Should I chill the brownie dough longer? Maybe the hour wasn’t long enough. I typically chill my cookie dough 3 hours to overnight.
Hi Kristen, Did you start with proper room temperature butter and chill the cookie dough? You can find more tips to keep cookies from spreading here!
These are delicious! We had to use 7 oz dark chocolate and 1 oz unsweetened since we didn’t have semi sweet bars. I feel like they would be too sweet with semi sweet now!
Delicious rich cookies! We love the flavor combinations and texture. I can’t wait to bring them to our son who loves anything with a Reece PB flavor. It was a fun challenge.
It’s a little bit cookie, a little bit brownie and the most delicious mix of peanut butter + chocolate. In short, it’s perfection! Pour a glass of milk & enjoy! I’ll definitely be making these again soon.
These were absolutely incredibly scrumptious. You seriously can not only have one (thank goodness I made a double batch). After reading these comments I adjusted the method a bit – I put both the peanut butter mixture as a full ball and the dough mixture separately into the fridge for one hour. After that I pressed the dough out into a rectangle and then pressed the peanut butter dough on top and then roughly smushed them together. Then I rolled balls from the marbled dough. Worked perfectly and the cookies were such a delicious combination of chocolate and peanut butter.
I am so sad. I can’t get the peanut butter and confectioners sugar to mix together. I am ending up with lots of little clumps of confectioner’s sugar left in the bowl and not and thick, creamy mixture. Help!
Hi Tammy, try warming the mixture for a few seconds in the microwave or on the stove. This will melt down some peanut butter which makes mixing easier.
Super yummy. Chewy and brownie like. But our hands did get rather messy. But we loved making them and eating them.
These are so fudgy rich tasting. Great combo of dark chocolate and PB! Fun to make despite being quite messy.
I used Skippy peanut butter, which is already pretty sweet, so the peanut flavor was a bit too subdued.
But overall a great cookie. My husband is a fan!!!
I had my next-door’s 9 year old daughter over and we baked the Peanut Butter filled Brownie Cookie. It was fun, messy; but definitely delicious. Although our cookies did not quite look like the photo, they tasted decadent and look forward to baking these again to improve my presentation! Many thanks for another delicious and great recipe!
Indulgent, indeed! Sally is the Queen of Cookies!!! Thank you for another fun and delicious recipe!
My family and I loved this recipe! I love the texture of the brownie part. It is nice and soft with a bit of chew to it. You did it again Sally! These are AMAZING!!!!
These are amazing! I love how impressive they look with the peanut butter swirl. Will definitely make them again.
These are time consuming, but so yummy! Everyone loved them!
Very good! Take a look at Sally’s PB stuffed brownies too, loved those and these!