Soft and Chewy (Contest-Winning) Peanut Butter Cookies

🥘 Ingredients

• baking powder
  1/4 teaspoon
• baking soda
  1 teaspoon
• brown sugar (packed light, 300 g, or slightly less, see notes above)
  1 1/2 cups
• butter (unsalted, 225 g, melted and slightly cooled, see notes above)
  1 cup
• eggs (large, cold)
  2
• flaky sea salt for sprinkling (optional)
• flour (all-purpose, 325 g)
  2 1/2 cups
• granulated sugar for rolling (25 to 50 g)
  2-4 tablespoons
• peanut butter (smooth, 255 g, i.e. not all-natural, such as JIF or Skippy)
  1 cup
• salt (kosher, 5 gram)
  1 1/4 teaspoons
• vanilla extract
  1 tablespoon

🍳 Cookware

• bowl
• sheet pan
• pan

1. 1

   Gather flaky sea salt for sprinkling , granulated sugar for rolling , vanilla extract .

   flaky sea salt for sprinkling, granulated sugar for rolling: 2-4 tablespoons (25 to 50 g), vanilla extract: 1 tablespoon
2. 2

   Place the butter in a large bowl . Whisk in the brown sugar and vanilla. Add the eggs , one at a time, whisking after each addition. Whisk in the peanut butter . Add the baking soda , and whisk to combine.  Add the baking powder , and whisk to combine. Add the salt , and whisk to combine. Finally, fold in the flour .

   butter: 1 cup (unsalted, 225 g, melted and slightly cooled, see notes above), brown sugar: 1 1/2 cups (packed light, 300 g, or slightly less, see notes above), eggs: 2 (large, cold), peanut butter: 1 cup (smooth, 255 g, i.e. not all-natural, such as JIF or Skippy), baking soda: 1 teaspoon, baking powder: 1/4 teaspoon, salt: 1 1/4 teaspoons (kosher, 5 gram), flour: 2 1/2 cups (all-purpose, 325 g)
3. 3

   At this point, the batter will be very wet and sticky. You can chill it for one hour before portioning it into smaller balls and then returning to the fridge to rest overnight. Or you can chill the batter overnight or until you are ready to portion it. If you choose to chill the batter for a longer period of time, you may need to let the batter rest at room temperature briefly to allow it to soften before portioning it. When you are ready to portion, use a 2-tablespoon scoop or a scale to portion the batter into 50-gram balls. You should get 23 to 24 portions. Note: Jessie uses a 1/4 cup measure and portions the batter into 16 jumbo balls. Ball up each portion.
4. 4

   Place the granulated sugar in a small bowl. Roll each ball in the sugar. At this point, you can chill the dough balls until you are ready to bake or you can proceed with the recipe.
5. 5

   Heat the oven to 375ºF. Place 8 of the sugar-coated cookie dough balls on a parchment-lined sheet pan . Sprinkle with sea salt, if using. Transfer the pan to the oven and bake for ⏱️ 14-16 minutes or until the tops are slightly puffed and crinkly and the cookies are just beginning to brown at the edges. (I find ⏱️ 15 minutes to be perfect.)
6. 6

   Remove the pan from the oven. Use a spatula to flatten each ball gently. Let the cookies cool completely on the sheet pan before eating or storing — I do prefer the texture and taste of these cookies when they have cooled completely.
7. 7

   Store in an airtight container on the counter for up to 3 days.
8. 📝

   Servings: 24 hours 15 minutes