Peanut Butter Toffee Cookies

These Peanut Butter Toffee Cookies are soft, chewy, and packed with peanut butter flavor, crunchy toffee bits, and little hints of chocolate. They’re a great addition to a holiday cookie tray and easy to make for sharing with family and friends. After testing this recipe several times, I found the right balance for soft cookies with plenty of toffee in every bite.

Ingredient Notes

• Butter – This provides fat and flavor to these cookies. This ingredient also helps with texture, be sure to use softened, room temperature butter, not melted.
• Natural Peanut Butter – I used chunky because I love the extra crunch from the peanuts, but feel free to use smooth pb if desired.
• Granulated Sugar + Brown Sugar – Both are used to sweeten but brown sugar specifically aids in keeping these cookies soft.
• Large egg – For texture and structure.
• Vanilla extract – A little vanilla adds extra flavor and rounds out the peanut butter and toffee.
• Baking Soda – This is the leavening agent, aka the ingredient that makes them rise.
• All-purpose Flour – This fills out the cookies and prevents them from spreading too much.
• Toffee Bits – These are mixed in by hand and provide amazing toffee flavor as well as bits of crunchiness. I used Heath Toffee Bits in this recipe. Butterscotch chips or peanut butter chips would also be really good in this recipe if you didn’t want the hints of chocolate!

How to Make Peanut Butter Toffee Cookies

This is definitely a recipe for peanut butter lovers! For full details on how to make these chewy peanut butter cookies, including ingredients and measurements, see the printable recipe card down below:

Step 1: Preheat + Prep

Preheat oven to 350° F. Line 2 baking sheets with silicone baking mats or parchment paper and set aside.

Step 2: Make the Dough

In the bowl of a stand mixer or a large bowl, cream softened butter, peanut butter, brown sugar and white sugar together on medium speed until light and fluffy. Stir in egg and vanilla. Scrape the sides of the bowl and mix again. Incorporate the rest of the dry ingredients- baking soda and flour until just combined. Stir in toffee chips by hand.

Step 3: Scoop + Flatten

Scoop 8 dough balls onto the prepared cookie sheet leaving lots of room around each cookie to expand. Press down cookie dough balls using a fork.

Step 4: Bake + Cool

Bake 7-8 minutes. Cool on baking sheet 3 minutes and then remove to a wire rack to cool. Serve immediately or store!

Pro Tip: These cookies spread as they bake, so only place 8 cookies on each baking sheet. This recipe makes 16 cookies.

Tips for Success

A few small details can make a big difference with these peanut butter toffee cookies, especially for texture and spread.

• Use well-stirred peanut butter. Natural peanut butter can separate in the jar, so mix it thoroughly before measuring to keep the dough from becoming too oily or dry.
• Watch the butter temperature. Softened butter should be easy to press but still cool to the touch. Butter that is too warm can make the dough overly soft and cause the cookies to spread more than expected.
• Don’t overmix after adding the flour. Mix just until the flour disappears so the cookies stay soft and tender instead of turning dense.
• Chill the dough if it feels too soft. If the dough seems greasy or difficult to scoop, refrigerate it for 15 to 20 minutes before baking to help the cookies hold their shape.
• Use the center of the cookie as your guide. Take the cookies out when the edges look set, but the centers still look slightly soft. They will continue cooking on the hot baking sheet as they cool.
• Watch the toffee on later batches. Melted toffee can spread onto the pan and become very crisp around the edges. Let the baking sheet cool between batches or use a clean lined sheet for more consistent results.

What to Serve With Peanut Butter Toffee Cookies

These cookies pair well with creamy, chocolatey, and warm desserts that complement the peanut butter and toffee flavors.

• Hot Chocolate – The warm chocolate flavor goes well with the peanut butter and toffee in the cookies.
• Homemade Brownie – Fudgy brownies pair nicely with the soft peanut butter cookies for a rich dessert combination.
• Peanut Butter Sauce – Extra peanut butter flavor makes this a natural pairing with the cookies.
• Caramel Apple Crumble – The warm apple and caramel flavors complement the toffee in the cookies.
• Homemade Apple Cider – The spiced apple flavor balances the rich, buttery cookies.

The best part of these chewy cookies is the little bit of crunch in each bite! Go grab a cold glass of milk and cozy up with a plate of these cookies right away! These are always a huge hit when I make them. Enjoy friends

Variations

There are a few easy ways to change up these peanut butter toffee cookies depending on the flavors you like.

• Smooth Peanut Butter – Use smooth peanut butter instead of chunky for a softer texture without the extra peanut pieces.
• Butterscotch Chips – Swap the toffee bits for butterscotch chips for a sweet, buttery flavor.
• Peanut Butter Chips – Use peanut butter chips for even more peanut butter flavor in every bite.
• Chocolate Chips – Replace the toffee bits with chocolate chips for a classic peanut butter and chocolate cookie.

More Peanut Butter Cookies to Try!

• Peanut Butter Blossoms
• Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Bars
• Peanut Butter Thumbprint Cookies
• Peanut Butter Cookies
• Peanut Butter Caramel Cookies
• Peanut Butter and Jelly Bars
• Reese’s Pieces Cookies

Storing Directions

Allow cookies to cool to room temperature before storing in an airtight container for up to 3 days.

To keep cookies soft, store with a slice of white bread in the container (the bread regulates the moisture content in the cookies).

Freezing Directions: If you want to bake this cookie dough later, you can freeze it! Fill a cookie sheet with dough balls, cover with plastic wrap, and freeze for about an hour. Then you can place the frozen dough balls in a bag or airtight container for up to 3 months in the freezer.

To Bake From Frozen: Let the cookie dough balls thaw a bit while the oven preheats. Bake as the recipe card indicates. You may need to add a couple of minutes to the baking time.

If you make this recipe, I would really appreciate it if you would give it a star rating and leave your review in the comments! If you have a picture of your finished dish, post it on Instagram using the hashtag #laurenslatest and tag me @laurens_latest.