I absolutely love anything with peanut butter flavour, so a chewy peanut butter cookie is right up my street.
Typically made with brown sugar to add both a complexity in flavour and aid in chewiness, I set out to develop a recipe that didn’t use brown sugar (whether you don’t have any in your cabinet or live in a country where it’s hard to come by).
With a few tweaks here and there, I have to say that I’m delighted with the results. The finished cookies have an intense peanut butter flavour, crispy edges and soft, chewy centres. They’re quick to make and also freeze incredibly well – so you can make a big batch even if you’re only baking for a couple of people.
How to Make Peanut Butter Cookies Without Using Brown Sugar
If you’re after a classic, chewy peanut butter cookie, then brown sugar is generally a must. The added molasses content adds moisture to the cookie and aids in the final texture.
Because of this, you can’t simply swap white sugar (or raw sugar) for soft brown sugar and expect to get the same results. Generally, you’ll likely get a flat, brittle cookie with a bit of an off flavour.
Not only does the molasses in brown sugar provide moisture, but is also adds a complexity in flavour so this was something that I had so adjust for, as well.
With all those considerations in mind, the first step to this recipe is to brown the butter. I’m not shy about my love for brown butter as I think it makes just about everything it’s in better – see my brown butter shortbread or sugar cookies.
The brown butter is a great addition in these cookies as it adds a complexity that would otherwise be lacking considering there is no brown sugar.
To brown the butter, simply melt is over medium-high heat. Swirling every so often, you will notice the butter begin to foam and sputter.
As the foam begins to subside, there will be small brown flecks on the pan. Once you’ve reached this step, pour the butter into a small dish and let it come to room temperature.
Meanwhile, you can toast the peanuts. I love the extra crunch that chopped peanuts add to the finished cookies, but this is something you can leave out if it’s not for you. I wouldn’t recommend skipping the toasting step if you do use them, however, as it will seriously amplify the peanut flavour.
All you need to do is add some unsalted peanuts to a rimmed baking tray. Move them to a 180°C/350°F oven for about 5 minutes. Let them cool slightly before giving them a rough chop and set aside to use later.
Now, onto the cookie dough. In a small mixing bowl, go ahead and whisk together some flour, baking soda and salt. Set this aside.
To replace the molasses present in brown sugar, I’ve added a bit of honey to the mixture – this will offer very similar things. Add your sugar and honey to the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment or a large mixing bowl.
Using your stand mixer or a hand mixer, mix on medium until the honey is completely incorporated into the sugar and it has the texture of wet sand. At this point, it should resemble – in feel if not colour – brown sugar.
To the sugar, add in your cooled brown butter and some peanut butter. Use regular, homogenised creamy peanut butter here as the recipe will not turn out with natural peanut butter.
Mix these on medium-high until well combined and fluffy, scraping down the sides of the bowl every so often. Then, add in some vanilla extract along with two whole eggs plus one egg yolk. The addition of the egg yolk aids in the chewiness of the cookies.
Go ahead and mix all of this together until everything is aerated and homogenous – this will take a few minutes.
Once you’re at this stage, scrape down the sides and add in your dry ingredients. Mix on low until the flour is just incorporated and no dry spots remain. Then, add in your chopped peanuts and mix, again, just until they’re incorporated.
If you’d like to make peanut butter chocolate chip cookies, you can also add in an equal amount of chocolate chips or chopped chocolate by weight, along with – or instead of – the peanuts.
Now, scrape the dough from the bowl onto a piece of plastic wrap. Pat it into a rectangle and cover it tightly. Refrigerate the dough for at least an hour and up to 3 days before portioning out the cookies.
When you’re ready to bake, line some baking trays with parchment and preheat your oven to 180°C/350°F. Use a cookie scoop or a 2-tablespoon measure and portion out the dough into balls – you should get about 24.
Arrange the dough over 2 baking sheets, ensuring they’re evenly spaced.
If you want to freeze the cookies, now’s the time to do it. Simply place the formed cookie dough balls on the trays into the freezer and freeze solid.
Once they’re frozen, add them to an airtight container. You can then bake them as you’d like them, directly from frozen. Just make sure to add a couple of minutes to the bake time.
For those baking right away, move the cookies to the oven and bake for 10-12 minutes, just until they’re dry, crisp and browned around the edges but still very soft in the centre.
Let the cookies cool for about 5 minutes on the trays before moving to a wire rack to cool completely.
Chewy Peanut Butter Cookies Without Brown Sugar
Ingredients
- 50 g (4 tbsp) unsalted butter
- 50 g (⅓ cup) unsalted peanuts
- 200 g (1 ½ cups) plain flour/all-purpose flour
- 5 g (¾ tsp) salt (see note 1)
- ¾ tsp bi-carb soda/baking soda
- 250 g (1 ¼ cups) caster sugar (see note 2)
- 35 g (5 tsp) honey
- 250 g (1 cup) creamy peanut butter (see note 3)
- 2 eggs room temperature
- 1 egg yolk
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- Flaky salt optional, for topping
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 180°C/350°F. Add the butter to a small saucepan and set over medium-high heat. Melt the butter, swirling occasionally, and cook until it begins to bubble. Continue cooking until the bubbles subside and you notice brown flecks on the bottom of the pan. Remove from the heat, pour into a bowl and allow it to cool to room temperature.
- Add the peanuts to a rimmed baking tray and move to the oven. Toast for 5 minutes or until lightly golden and fragrant. Allow to cool slightly before lightly chopping and set aside.
- In a medium mixing bowl, add the flour, salt and bi-carb/baking soda. Whisk to combine and set aside.
- Add the sugar and the honey to a large mixing bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Using an electric hand mixer (or stand mixer), mix on medium speed until thoroughly combined.
- To the honey and sugar, add the browned butter and the peanut butter. Mix on medium-high speed, scraping down the sides once or twice, until the mixture is homogenous, pale and aerated – about 1-2 minutes (see note 4). Add the eggs, egg yolk and vanilla and mix on medium-high until incorporated.
- Scrape down the sides of the bowl and add the dry ingredients. Mix on low until just incorporated and no dry spots remain. Add the toasted and chopped peanuts and mix on low until just incorporated.
- Transfer the dough to a large piece of plastic wrap and compact it into a rectangle. Wrap tightly and refrigerate for at least an hour and up to 3 days (see note 5).
- Preheat oven to 180°C/350°F. Line 2 rimmed baking trays with parchment paper. Remove the dough from the refrigerator and unwrap. Use a cookie scoop or a sturdy spoon to portion out roughly 24 2-tbsp-sized (30ml/1oz) balls of dough. Arrange, evenly spaced and dispersed, on the 2 sheets.
- Bake one tray at a time until the cookies are dry and crisp around the edges yet still very soft in the middle – about 10-12 minutes. Allow to cool on the pans for 5 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.
Notes
- Because the volumetric measurement of salt can vary from type to type and brand to brand, I highly recommend using the weight measurement of salt to ensure that the salinity is evenly balanced.
- Caster sugar (aka superfine sugar) is my preferred style of white sugar to use while baking. If you don’t have it, granulated sugar can be swapped measure-for-measure with no ill results.
- Use classic, homogenised creamy peanut butter rather than natural peanut butter (such as Jif or Skippy in the US or Bega in Australia)
- Mixing with a stand mixer will be quicker than mixing with a hand mixer.
- If you would like to freeze the dough, portion it out first. Then, instead of baking, move the cookie dough balls to the freezer on the baking tray. Freeze until solid, then transfer to an airtight container. Bake directly from frozen, adding 2-3 minutes to the usual bake time.
Nutrition
Disclaimer: Nutritional information is automatically generated and provided as guidance only. Accuracy is not guaranteed.
These peanut butter cookies are so nutty, chewy and delicious that they’re sure to become a family favourite any time of year!
Are you after a great recipe for peanut butter cookies? Have any questions? Let me know in the comments!
