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These big Peanut Butter cookies are crisp around the edges, tender in the middle, and packed with rich peanut butter flavor. The shortening gives them that delicate, almost sandy crispness that butter-only peanut butter cookies just don’t have. You’re going to love how easy they are to make—and how quickly they disappear.
Why You’ll Love It
- Big bakery-style cookies — you get about 16 large, satisfying cookies instead of a mountain of little ones.
- Crisp, melt-away texture — butter-flavored shortening gives these cookies their delicate, sandy crispness.
- Deep peanut butter flavor — a full cup of Jif peanut butter keeps the flavor front and center.
- Easy to make — the mixer does most of the work, and the thick dough scoops easily.
Ingredient Notes
I use butter-flavored Crisco shortening here, and I would not swap it out unless you’re prepared for a different cookie. Butter has its place—on toast, in mashed potatoes, in about ninety percent of life—but shortening is what gives these their particular crisp, melt-away texture.
For the peanut butter, use Jif. I know that sounds bossy. It is a little bossy. But I’ve tried other brands, including the natural kind that separates into a jar of oil and stubborn paste, and the flavor and texture just weren’t the same. Edible isn’t the goal. Plenty of things are edible.
The vanilla measurement is intentionally relaxed: a teaspoon, just poured in. I never level vanilla. Nobody does, do they? Maybe somebody does. That person probably folds their fitted sheets, too.
Make sure your brown sugar is firmly packed. Not crushed into a brick like you’re building a retaining wall, but packed. And beat the eggs first before they go in. I have tossed them in whole before because I was in a hurry, and it still worked, but the dough mixes more evenly when they’re beaten. So I do it properly now. Usually.
Ingredients
- 1 cup butter-flavored Crisco shortening
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 1 cup firmly packed brown sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract, or just pour in a good teaspoon
- 2 large eggs, beaten
- 1 cup Jif peanut butter, plus an extra little hunk if you’re feeling generous
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 2 teaspoons baking soda
- 1 teaspoon salt
- A little milk for dipping the fork
- Granulated sugar for a very light dusting before baking, optional—I don’t do it every time
Instructions
Preheat the oven to 350°F. Get out ungreased air-bake cookie sheets if you have them. Regular cookie sheets lined with parchment will work too, but don’t grease them. These cookies already have plenty going on in the fat department; they do not need a slip-and-slide underneath.
Put the butter-flavored shortening, granulated sugar, brown sugar, and vanilla in the bowl of a stand mixer. Cream it all together. I leave my mixer running while I get things together, which probably makes the kitchen sound like a small aircraft is taking off, but it works for me. Just don’t walk away and start watching an old episode of Dateline or you’ll forget where you are. Ask me how I know.
Add the beaten eggs and beat thoroughly. Yes, beat them first in a little bowl, then add them. If you crack them directly into the mixer bowl, you are braver than I am. One stray shell fragment and suddenly you’re fishing around in sweet shortening with your fingers. Not my favorite moment.
Stir in the Jif peanut butter. I usually add a small extra scoop—an extra hunk—because peanut butter is the whole point. Mix until it looks smooth and thick and smells so good you’ll be tempted to eat it with a spoon. Don’t eat too much, though. You need the dough for the actual cookies, honey.
In another bowl, combine the flour, baking soda, and salt. Give it a quick stir with a fork or whisk. Nothing elaborate. I’ve used the same old wire whisk for years, though one of its loops is bent sideways from some long-ago incident involving gravy. It still does the job.
Gradually add the dry ingredients to the creamed mixture, mixing until everything is combined. The dough will be thick. That is exactly what you want. Scrape the sides of the bowl if needed, especially down at the bottom where flour likes to hide out and act innocent.
Use a large spring-loaded scoop or a big ice cream scoop to portion the dough. Place 6 level scoops on each ungreased cookie sheet, giving them room to spread. These are not dainty little tea cookies. They are substantial.
Dip the back of a fork in milk and press each dough ball into a crisscross design. You need to flatten them some—don’t just tap them politely. They should look noticeably pressed down, because that helps them bake into those wide, crisp cookies instead of staying too thick in the center. Dip the fork in milk again as needed so it doesn’t drag through the dough.
If you want, sprinkle the tiniest bit of granulated sugar over the tops. Not a snowfall. Just a hint. I do this sometimes when I’m feeling like I’ve got my act together, which is not every day.
Bake at 350°F for exactly 14 minutes. Set a timer. Really set it. These cookies are the sort that can go from beautifully crisp to “well, that’s unfortunate” if you decide to answer a phone call at minute twelve. They may not look dramatically brown when they come out, but don’t second-guess them.
Let the cookies cool on the baking sheet for at least 5 minutes before moving them. They’re large and need that time to settle. Then transfer them to a wire rack and let them cool completely. Completely means completely, even if somebody is hovering nearby with the patience of a gnat.
Variations
Chocolate chips are perfectly fine, I guess. Peanut butter and chocolate are a classic for a reason. But I’m partial to these plain, with nothing interfering with that salty-sweet peanut butter flavor.
I have tried making them smaller, and yes, they worked. Of course they worked. But they didn’t have quite the same feel. You lose some of that crisp edge-to-tender-center situation when you make them little. If you do make smaller cookies, keep an eye on them because they will need less baking time than the full 14 minutes.
I also tried using a different peanut butter once because it was on sale. That was a foolish economy. The cookies were fine—fine!—but I don’t bake cookies for “fine.” I make them for the moment somebody takes a bite, pauses, and says, “Oh, these are good.” There’s a difference.
Storage & Reheating
Once the cookies are fully cool, store them in a large airtight container. I stack them standing up on their edges rather than piling them flat, because these are big cookies and I don’t like them sitting heavily on one another. Maybe that’s overly particular. At my age, you earn the right to be particular about cookies and thermostat settings.
They’ll keep nicely at room temperature for several days, though around here that is mostly theoretical. If you want to freeze them, put parchment between the cookies and tuck them into a freezer-safe container. Let them thaw on the counter when you’re ready.
I don’t usually reheat these because the crispness is part of their charm. But if you want one warm, give it just a few seconds in the microwave—not too long, or it turns soft in a way I don’t care for.
Final Notes
There’s something comforting about a big cookie. Maybe it’s silly to say that. The world has enough serious things without assigning emotional weight to baked goods, but there it is. A cookie this size feels generous. It says stay awhile, have another cup of coffee, don’t worry about the crumbs.
Make these when you need something dependable. Make a double batch if you’ve got people coming around, because one batch goes quick.
Gigantic Melt in Your Mouth Crispy Peanut Butter Cookies
Ingredients
- 1 cup butter-flavored Crisco shortening
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 1 cup firmly packed brown sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract or just pour in a good teaspoon
- 2 large eggs beaten
- 1 cup Jif peanut butter plus an extra little hunk if desired
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 2 teaspoons baking soda
- 1 teaspoon salt
- milk a little, for dipping the fork
- granulated sugar for a very light dusting before baking, optional
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F and set out ungreased air-bake cookie sheets, or use regular cookie sheets lined with parchment without greasing them.
- Add the butter-flavored shortening, granulated sugar, brown sugar, and vanilla to the bowl of a stand mixer and cream them together until combined.
- Add the beaten eggs and beat thoroughly so the mixture blends evenly.
- Stir in the Jif peanut butter, adding a small extra scoop if desired, and mix until the dough looks smooth, thick, and well combined.
- In another bowl, combine the all-purpose flour, baking soda, and salt, and give them a quick stir with a fork or whisk.
- Gradually add the dry ingredients to the creamed mixture, mixing until everything is combined and scraping the sides and bottom of the bowl as needed.
- Use a large spring-loaded scoop or big ice cream scoop to portion the thick dough, placing 6 level scoops on each ungreased cookie sheet with room to spread.
- Dip the back of a fork in milk and press each dough ball into a noticeable crisscross design, dipping the fork again as needed so it does not drag through the dough.
- If desired, sprinkle the tiniest bit of granulated sugar over the tops before baking.
- Bake at 350°F for exactly 14 minutes, using a timer and not second-guessing them if they are not dramatically brown when they come out.
- Let the cookies cool on the baking sheet for at least 5 minutes, then transfer them to a wire rack and let them cool completely.