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These homemade cookies are soft, fluffy and full of creamy peanut butter, and it only takes 3 ingredients to make them! Peanut butter gets mixed together with sugar and a large egg- it’s that simple to whip up a batch!
Cookies are my weakness, especially if you add in peanut butter! Since you all like my peanut butter cookies so much try these Perfectly Soft Peanut Butter Cookies, Amazing Reese’s Peanut Butter Cookies or Peanut Butter Cornflake Cookies (No Bake)!
Quick and Easy Peanut Butter Cookies
These 3 ingredient peanut butter cookies are creamy and dreamy! Just what you are looking for to satisfy your sweet tooth. They are so soft and moist that every bite literally melts in your mouth.
There are seriously only 3 ingredients! Can you believe that?! No flour, (perfect for gluten-free diets!) just sugar and an egg! These cookies are one of my favorites and for good reason. They are so simple to make and bake up perfectly every time. They are thick, rich and chewy. Full of peanut butter flavor and taste SO good with a big glass of milk. I literally make a batch of these and they are gone within minutes.
3 Ingredients to Make Them
Yes! Only 3 ingredients for these peanut butter cookies. They are quick and easy to make and best served warm right out of the oven. Because you only need a few pantry staples to make them, these cookies are ready in minutes and SO delicious. You’re going to want to save the recipe for later.
- Sugar: I used white sugar for this recipe but you can also use brown sugar for a deeper, more caramel-like flavor.
- Peanut Butter: Creamy is my favorite. I love how smooth the cookie dough gets! But you can definitely experiment with using crunchy peanut butter if you wish!
- Egg: Simply whisk a large egg into the dough to give the peanut butter cookies structure.
What Kind of Peanut Butter Works Best?
A creamy peanut butter is best. Natural peanut butter or oil-free peanut butter won’t work as well. To make sure your cookies form properly I recommend using plain JIF, Skippy, Peter Pan, or Trader Joe’s peanut butter.
How to Make 3 Ingredient Peanut Butter Cookies
3 ingredient peanut butter cookies are perfect for a quick and easy treat. They are a light, fluffy and thick cookie that has the perfect peanut butter flavor. Once they are cooked golden brown in the oven, enjoy warm with a cold glass of milk!
- Mix the 3 Ingredients Together: Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. In a medium-sized mixing bowl combine sugar, peanut butter, and egg until smooth.
- Roll the Peanut Butter Dough: Scoop out a tablespoon of dough and roll into a ball. Then using a fork, make a criss cross pattern and lightly press on top of the cookie dough.
- Bake: Bake for 10-12 minutes until lightly golden. Enjoy!
Why Do the Cookies Have Fork Marks in Them?
The fork marks on the peanut butter cookies are there to help flatten them. These 3 ingredient peanut butter cookies are more dense than regular cookies because of all the peanut butter added. With the fork markings pressing down on top of the cookie dough before they are being baked, it helps them bake more evenly.
Tips and Variations
Not only are these 3-ingredient peanut butter cookies easy to make, but easy to customize! Use these simple tips:
- Brown Sugar: Substitute white sugar with the brown sugar or do half and half for added sweetness.
- Egg: Add an extra egg for a lighter texture. Use a cookie scoop to scoop the peanut butter cookie dough since it will be stickier with that extra egg.
- Chill: Place in the refrigerator for about 15 to 20 minutes once the peanut butter cookie dough is mixed together. This will help keep the cookie dough from spreading on the cookie sheet while baking.
- Toppings: Add chocolate chips, chocolate chunks or drizzle warm chocolate frosting over top of the 3 ingredient peanut butter cookies.
- Cookie Sandwich: Spread vanilla frosting or vanilla ice cream on one side of a peanut butter cookie then make a sandwich with another peanut butter cookie on the other side.
- Baking: It’s best not to over-bake these peanut butter cookies. For soft and chewy peanut butter cookies under baking them is best. (They’ll continue to cook for a minute or two on the pan after you pull them out of the oven.)
Storing and Freezing Leftover Cookies
If you have extras, keep them at room temperature in an airtight container for 4-5 days.
These 3 ingredient peanut butter cookies and/or the unbaked dough can also be frozen. Pop it in a freezer bag and store for up to 3 months. Just thaw and enjoy or bake the dough when you’re ready!
More Tried & True Cookie Recipes
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Easy 3-Ingredient Peanut Butter Cookies
Ingredients
- 1 cup sugar
- 1 cup peanut butter
- 1 egg
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a medium sized mixing bowl combine sugar, peanut butter, and egg until smooth.
- Scoop out a tablespoon of dough and roll into a ball. Using a fork, make a criss cross pattern and lightly press on top of the cookie dough.
- Bake for 10-12 minutes until lightly golden. Enjoy!
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
I’m going to try your Peanut Butter Cookies.
I know you’ll love them as much as I do!!
I have a question as I don’t use sugar in baking goods anymore. I mainly use Swerve sweetener. Can I use Swerve in place of sugar for this recipe? Thank you
I have not tried any lighter sugars with this cookie. Let me know how it turns out!
What about using Crunchy Peanut Butter?
That sounds delicious too! Let me know how you like them with the crunchy peanut butter.
Can they be made using truvia in place of sugar?
I have not tried that before, let me know how much you used and how they turned out!
My husband asked for more! 👍🏼👍🏼👍🏼
Delicious and fun to prepare with kids!
Curious how many cookies this makes?
This will make 24 cookies.
Hi Alyssa I have one son who’s peanut allergy so I was wondering can I use wow butter in the recipe? How different would it be for baking the cookies? Longer or shorter time?
I haven’t tried this recipie yet but it sounds delicious! I will definitely try this.
Can I put a small amount of chocolate chips in this?
Yes, that would make for a great combination of peanut butter and chocolate!
I’ve made these DELICIOUS cookies now 3 times and my guy loves them. Can’t believe how easy it is to make next I’ll try with brown sugar then chocolate chips.
To be honest I was skeptical about this recipe, since it’s only three ingredients but my daughter and I decided to make them and they were the best tasting peanut butter cookies I have ever had in my life! The recipe critic wins again! 🤗
I’m a terrible Baker but these actually turned out and my husband and son were so excited to have decent cookies! They’re delicious and they were easy to make. I plan to make these again. It was nice to be successful at cookie baking for a change
While I loved the ease of this recipe and the deliciously strong peanut butter taste, they were too sweet for me.
I have made these 4 times since I found your recipe 3 weeks ago. They are incredibly easy and delicious! I have used all brown sugar, all white sugar and half white- half brown. All ways are great. They baked up beautifully in my toaster oven in 9 minutes.
❤️❤️❤️ this recipe!
I have made this recipe quite often and I enjoy them with a glass of milk