Classic Peanut Butter Kiss Cookies Recipe

Whether you need a cookie recipe for a picnic or holiday tray, Peanut Butter Hershey Kiss Cookies fit the bill. They are perfectly soft, packed with peanut butter flavor, and so pretty with a sparkly sugar coating.

 

PERFECT PEANUT BUTTER CHOCOLATE KISS COOKIES

Who can resist a soft peanut butter cookie cradling a milk chocolate kiss? I know that anywhere I take these cookies, they are gobbled up in a flash!

I made these peanut butter kisses often when I was growing up, so when I left for college I made sure to get the recipe from my mom. I’ve tried a few variations over the years, but none of them beat this recipe!

You don’t need to chill the dough, so they are hot and fresh out of the oven in under 30 minutes. The hardest part is waiting for them to cool off enough that you don’t burn your tongue. 🙂

They always turn out soft and tender, and they taste amazing both warm and after they have cooled. Every bite is a perfect balance of salty peanut butter and sweet milk chocolate. 

 

HOW TO MAKE PEANUT BUTTER KISS COOKIES

Ingredients needed:

• butter (I use salted butter.)
• creamy peanut butter
• granulated sugar (some for the dough, some for rolling the cookie dough balls)
• brown sugar
• eggs (I use large eggs.)
• vanilla extract
• all purpose flour
• baking powder
• baking soda
• salt
• milk chocolate Hershey kisses

1. PREP WORK: Let your butter soften to room temperature. Unwrap the kisses. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. MAKE THE DOUGH: Beat the butter and peanut butter till smooth, then beat in the sugars. Add the eggs and vanilla and beat till combined. Stir in the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. 
3. FORM COOKIES: Roll dough into balls that are about 1″. Roll the balls in sugar. Place on silpat lined or lightly greased baking sheets about two inches apart.
   
4. BAKE: Bake the cookies at 350° for 9-10 minutes, or just until they look set. They will not brown.
5. ADD KISSES : As soon as you remove cookies from the oven, place an unwrapped kiss in the middle of each cookie.
   
6. COOL: Carefully remove cookies to wire racks to cool. Be gentle so that the kisses don’t collapse as they are melting.

VARIATIONS:

• Milk chocolate kisses are the standard for peanut blossom cookies, but feel free to experiment. I personally think that the caramel filled kisses would be amazing!
• For extra sparkle, roll the cookie dough balls in coarse sugar instead of plain white sugar. It looks beautiful, and adds a nice crunch.
• Using about tablespoon of dough, you get approximately 4 dozen cookies. But truth be told, I like to make the cookies smaller so the chocolate ratio is higher. Try making 5-6 dozen cookies and decrease the baking time to about 8 minutes.

PRO TIPS:

• Don’t use natural or low fat peanut butter for this recipe. I get the best results with Jif and Skippy peanut butter. 
• Creamy peanut butter works best. If you have to use chunky, use an extra 1/4 cup of peanut butter.
• Stir, whisk, or sift your flour before measuring to make sure you don’t pack the measuring cup. If your flour is packed in the measuring cup, your cookies will be dry.
• Don’t over bake! The key to soft cookies is to remove them as soon as they are set. The cookies continue to cook after you remove them from the oven, so err on the side of underbaking them if you aren’t sure.
• Make sure the kisses are unwrapped before you bake the cookies. You want to press them firmly into the cookies when they are hot. If they are too cool, the kisses can fall off.

HOW TO STORE PEANUT BUTTER COOKIES WITH HERSHEY KISSES

These cookies store really well. They will keep for 3-5 days at room temperature if stored in an airtight container. To keep the kisses pretty and intact, I like to use waxed paper between layers if I need to stack the cookies. 

CAN I FREEZE PEANUT BUTTER KISS COOKIES?

Yes, you can freeze them. I like to place mine in heavy duty ziplock storage bags. They will keep in the freezer for 4-5 months. The kisses will get crumbs on them, so if you want to avoid that, store them in containers with waxed paper between the layers.

When you are ready to serve the cookies, it is best to let them thaw. If heated in the microwave, the chocolate and cookies don’t heat at the same rate, so it doesn’t work as well.

 

 TRY THESE COOKIE RECIPES WITH HERSHEY KISSES:

• Chocolate Kiss Cookies
• Macaroon Kiss Cookies
• Hershey Cookies and Cream Cookies
• Peppermint Kiss Cookies
• Pistachio Cookies
• Red Velvet Kiss Cookies
• Candy Cane Hershey Kisses Cookies

MORE AMAZING HOMEMADE COOKIES:

• Cream Cheese Chocolate Chip Cookies
• Peanut Butter Chip Cookies
• Easy Snickerdoodle Recipe
• Easy Shortbread Cookies
• Coconut Chocolate Chip Cookies
• Apple Cookies
• Strawberry Cookies

PEANUT BUTTER BLOSSOMS RECIPE

(originally posted Sep 3, 2010, updated December 2020)

Everyone loves these peanut butter hershey kiss cookies, so if you’re feeding a crowd, you may want to double the recipe. They really are irresistible!