Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Bar Cookies

These Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Bar Cookies are a mashup of two favorite cookies in one! Golden peanut butter cookies are dotted with chocolate chips, uniting the unique tastes of both cookies into one. Bar cookies are a shortcut to satisfying your cookie cravings with less work, and this easy bar cookie recipe yields 16 traditionally cut bars. You can create larger bars by making less cuts, or smaller bars with more. But no matter how you slice them, they’ll be gone in no time!

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What Are Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Bar Cookies?

Bar Cookies are one of six types of cookies and are considered the easiest to make. Instead of cutting, dropping, or forming individual cookies, the dough is pressed into a pan and baked like a cake. The difference between bar cookies and cakes or brownies is the dough. Bar cookie dough is thick and unpourable, and it yields a denser product than cake or brownie batter.

Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Bar Cookies combine the strong peanut flavor of a traditional peanut butter cookie with the buttery crunch of a chocolate chip cookie. Together they create a robust bar cookie that hosts the best of both worlds when it comes to flavor!

How Can I Vary This Recipe?

As with any recipe, you can vary ingredients in this cookie recipe to suit your family’s preferences or incorporate what you have on hand. Here are some ideas:

• Use a different variety of peanut butter. I like using Peanut Butter & Co’s Crunch Time variety because it’s extra nutty, but they also offer interesting varieties like dark chocolate, white chocolate, maple, and cinnamon, to name a few. You might see them in stores, but be sure to check their website to see their full line of products. Let them know you heard about them on Chicken Soup with Dumplings by using code WITHDUMPLINGS at checkout and you’ll score 10% off your order!
• Throw in a different type of chocolate chips. The recipe calls for semisweet chocolate chips, but I personally love to use dark chocolate chunks in these cookies. When my children were young, we would use M&Ms instead of chocolate chips for a little pop of color. If you want to double down on the peanutty goodness, try using PB chips.
• Add more nuts. Peanut lovers may crave even more nuttiness in these cookies. Add in 1/4 – 1/2 cup chopped roasted peanuts to feed that craving! I prefer using salted peanuts for more depth of flavor, but unsalted gives a nice texture without the extra dose of sodium.

Do You Have Any Tips or Tricks?

• Don’t skip preheating the oven. Preheating allows these cookies to rise as they should; baking in a cold oven will create flat, unappealing bar cookies.
• Ensure the butter is at room temperature before creaming with the peanut butter and sugar. This results in a lighter, less dense texture.
• Don’t overmix! This leads to tough cookies. No one wants a tough cookie.
• For easier cutting, line the pan with parchment paper or foil, leaving about 2 inches extra at each end. This allows you to lift the cookies from the pan after cooling to cut more easily.
• You can freeze this bar cookie dough before baking! Prepare dough and press into pan using the foil tip above. Freeze until solid, then remove dough from pan. Wrap it well, first in plastic wrap, then foil. Label with date and freeze for up to 6 months. When you’re ready to bake, unwrap dough, place in pan, and thaw in fridge 4 to 6 hours. Resume baking as usual.
• These cookies freeze well. Allow cookies to cool completely. Then you can choose to remove from pan and freeze as one unit to slice later, or to slice and freeze in bars. Wrap the full unit in plastic wrap then foil, or use tightly sealed containers or freezer bags to freeze bars. Properly sealed cookies can last up to 6 months in the freezer.

Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Bar Cookies

Recipe by Chicken Soup with DumplingsDifficulty: Easy

Yield

16

bars

Prep time

15

minutes

Baking time

30

minutes

Total time

45

minutes

These easy-to-make Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Bar Cookies are a mashup of two favorite cookies in one!

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup peanut butter (I use Crunch Time by Peanut Butter & Co)

• 1/4 cup butter, softened

• 1 cup sugar

• 2 eggs

• 1 teaspoon vanilla

• 1 cup all-purpose flour

• 6 oz semi-sweet chocolate chips

Directions

• Preheat oven to 350F. Lightly grease the bottom and sides of a 9×9″ baking pan, or line with parchment paper.
• In a large bowl, use an electric mixer to cream together peanut butter, butter, and sugar until fluffy.
• Add eggs one at a time, beating after each addition. Stir in vanilla.
• Slowly add flour, and mix until incorporated. Fold in chocolate chips.
• Spread cookie dough evenly in prepared pan.
• Bake in preheated oven for 30 minutes, or until set and golden.
• Cool completely before cutting into 16 bars.

Looking for More Cookie Recipes?

• If you love chocolate and everything sweet, our Frosted Chocolate Marshmallow Cookies will tickle your sweet tooth
• Our Peanut Butter & Jelly Cookies put a fun twist on the classic sandwich
• If bar cookies are your thing, we recommend Hershey’s S’mores Skillet Dessert for a unique cookie you’ll love

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