Peanut Butter Blossoms
This post may contain affiliate links. Read the full disclosure here.
These tender peanut butter blossoms are an absolute favorite! They feature a melt-in-your-mouth peanut butter cookie rolled in sugar and topped with a chocolate kiss. This is one cookie you’ll want to make over and over again!
Want To Save This?
Enter your email below and we'll send the link straight to your inbox.
Peanut butter blossoms
This time of year, it’s all about cookies. I just love the smell of cookies baking in the oven these peanut butter blossoms are no exception.
Classic recipes are just so comforting. Chocolate chip cookies, sugar cookies, classic snickerdoodle cookies, Russian tea cakes, and butter cookies are some of the most well-loved classics on the blog.
To add to those, I’m bringing peanut butter blossom cookies to the forefront. And if you’re a chocolate and peanut butter fan, I’m certain you will love these cookies.
I adapted them from my soft peanut butter cookies which have been adored by so many of you. I made just a few small changes so the cookies wouldn’t spread so much. The end result is a puffy peanut butter cookie with crackly tops.
A single milk chocolate kiss is pressed right on the center of the warm cookie. The bottom of the kiss will melt slightly then harden as the cookie cools, adhering the kiss to the cookie.
This classic Christmas cookie is one you must make this year along with peanut butter cup cookies!
How to make peanut butter blossom cookies?
Peanut butter blossoms are some of the easiest cookies you can make!
The dough is made with both butter and shortening. I’m a huge fan of using shortening in cookies when you want them to spread less and stay soft.
But I love to add butter also so you get that rich buttery flavor in addition to a soft cookie. So for the cookies, I used half butter and half shortening.
I also opted to use both white and brown sugar. This is something I do quite a bit in my cookie recipes and knew it was a must for sweet and flavorful peanut butter blossoms.
My recipe calls for significantly less sugar than most other peanut butter blossom recipes. The chocolate kiss is already extremely sweet so I cut back on the sugar in the cookie. This way, you can enjoy more than one cookie without getting a toothache.
The dough is quite soft so be sure to refrigerate it for 30 minutes to an hour before you begin rolling the cookies.
I tested this recipe with different size cookies and found that smaller cookies work best. I used a 1 tablespoon size cookie scoop to portion out the dough.
This gave me the perfect size cookie to “hug” around the chocolate kisses.
Before baking the cookies, roll them in sugar. I went with regular white sugar but you could use sanding sugar if you wish. And if you want to be extra festive choose colored sanding sugar!
Once the cookies have finished baking, press a milk chocolate kiss into the center of the cookie. You want to do this while the cookies are warm!
The melty bottoms of the kisses will harden as the cookies cool. This acts as a “glue” to hold the kisses in place.
Feel free to use different varieties of kisses too. Reeses’ peanut butter cups are also great toppers.
How long will peanut butter blossoms stay fresh?
Peanut butter blossom cookies will stay fresh for up to 3 days at room temperature, 1 week in the refrigerator, or 3 months in the freezer.
How to store peanut butter blossoms?
Always store peanut butter blossoms in an airtight container to prevent them from drying out. You can keep them at room temperature, in the refrigerator, or in the freezer.
Tips for making this recipe
- Pay attention to how you are measuring flour. Lightly spoon the flour into a measuring cup then level it off with the back of a knife or simply weigh the flour. Refrain from scooping the flour out with the measuring cup. You’ll end up with too much flour.
- The recipe calls for creamy peanut butter but crunchy peanut butter will also work if you want to add some texture to the cookies. But, avoid natural peanut butter where the oil separates after sitting.
More cookie recipes you’ll love
Peanut Butter Blossoms
Ingredients
- ¼ cup (46 g) vegetable shortening, room temperature
- ¼ cup (56 g) unsalted butter, room temperature
- ¾ cup (180 g) creamy peanut butter
- ¾ cup (150 g) granulated sugar, divided
- ¼ cup (52 g) light brown sugar, packed
- 1 large egg
- 2 tablespoons milk
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 1 ⅔ cups (216 g) all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon baking soda
- 36 milk chocolate kisses, unwrapped
Instructions
- Using a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment or with a handheld electric mixer, beat the shortening, butter, peanut butter, ½ cup of granulated sugar, and brown sugar on medium-high speed for 1 minute, until well combined.
- Add the egg, milk, and vanilla. Beat until fully incorporated.
- Sift in the flour, baking powder, and baking soda then beat on low speed just until no visible streaks of flour remain.
- Cover and refrigerate for 30-60 minutes; until the dough is firm enough to roll into balls.
- Preheat the oven to 375°F. Line 3 baking sheets with parchment paper or a silicone mat.
- Shape the dough into 1-tablespoon size balls. Roll each dough ball into the remaining ¼ cup granulated sugar and place them 2 inches apart on the prepared baking sheets.
- Bake for 8-10 minutes or until the edges are firm and the bottoms are lightly brown. Immediately press a chocolate kiss into the center of each cookie.
- Transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
Notes
- Store baked and cooled cookies in an airtight container for 3 days at room temperature or 1 week in the refrigerator.
- The baked cookies can also be frozen for up to 3 months. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator.
Nutrition
The nutrition information provided is for convenience and as a courtesy only. It is not guaranteed to be accurate because nutrition information can vary for a variety of reasons. For precise nutritional data use your preferred nutrition calculator and input the exact ingredients and brands you used in the recipe.
These are just right, sweetness wise. Many of these recipes for blossoms are so sugary that they are more like candy. However, I have trouble with the chocolates melting into a puddle even if I take them off the cookie sheet in minutes. I used Hershey’s dark chocolates, maybe they melt more? Comments on this are welcome.
I’m not too sure why the chocolate is melting into puddles. I’ve never experienced this before. You can pop the entire tray into the refrigerator once you top the cookies. Leave them in there for about 10-15 minutes then remove them and let them sit at room temperature before serving. This will quickly set the chocolate and hopefully prevent them from melting.
Dark chocolate contains considerably less cocoa butter than milk chocolate. Since cocoa butter is a fat that is solid at room temperature, it is the cocoa butter that allows chocolate to keep its shape even when transitioning from a solid to a liquid when heated. Because dark chocolate has less cocoa butter in it to keep its shape, dark chocolate liquefies much faster than milk chocolate. That’s why your dark chocolate kisses melted into puddles on your cookies.
That’s fantastic, Stella! I’m thrilled to hear the recipe was a success!
I’m not familiar with gas ovens so I can’t say if that was the issue or not. But I do know that improperly measuring the flour will affect the texture of baked goods. Don’t scoop the flour out with the measuring cup! Instead, lightly spoon it into the cup then level it off with the back of a knife. I have an entire post about this –> How to properly measure flour.
I decided to try this variation instead of the original on the chocolate kisses package. It’s the best – moist yet crunchy and cookie doesn’t fall apart. I love it and so did my husband, son and granddaughter. I’ll have to make another recipe soon as they are going fast. Thanks.
That’s fantastic, Stella! I’m thrilled to hear the recipe was a success!
I decided to try this variation instead of the original on the chocolate kisses package. It’s the best – moist yet crunchy and cookie doesn’t fall apart. I love it and so did my husband, son and granddaughter. I’ll have to make another recipe soon as they are going fast. Thanks.
Baked the peanut blossom cookies. Not sure what I did wrong but very crumbly and very dry. I cooked them the 10 mins in gas oven which may have been too long. Should I have added a little more more like to batter. The batter was crumbling also forming the balls
I’m not familiar with gas ovens so I can’t say if that was the issue or not. But I do know that improperly measuring the flour will affect the texture of baked goods. Don’t scoop the flour out with the measuring cup! Instead, lightly spoon it into the cup then level it off with the back of a knife. I have an entire post about this –> How to properly measure flour.
If you used a different kind of peanut butter, such as a natural peanut butter, they may be dryer and crumble.
Baked the peanut blossom cookies. Not sure what I did wrong but very crumbly and very dry. I cooked them the 10 mins in gas oven which may have been too long. Should I have added a little more more like to batter. The batter was crumbling also forming the balls
Peanut butter blossoms are such a classic recipe! I can’t wait to try your version. They look perfect.
Peanut butter blossoms are such a classic recipe! I can’t wait to try your version. They look perfect.