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This recipe for Peanut Butter Blossoms (Chocolate Kiss Cookies) has been a family favorite for more than 50 years. The holidays wouldn’t be the same without these amazing cookies!
Peanut Butter Blossoms with a milk chocolate kiss on top.
These peanut butter cookies are crisp on the edges and chewy in the middle. While the cookies are still warm a rich milk chocolate kiss is pressed into the center creating those classic little cracks around the edges.
Peanut Butter Blossoms are absolutely scrumptious, and easy to make too. And they’re made with simple ingredients you probably already have right in your pantry.
PRO TIPS: Never make these Peanut Butter Blossoms when you’re hungry
There’s something about that smell of warm peanut butter cookies and a soft, creamy, milk chocolate kiss that make these irresistible. I’m starting to drool just writing about them so I better get on with it!
Be prepared by unwrapping most of the chocolate kisses ahead of time.
Once removed from the oven immediately top each cookie with a Milk Chocolate Kiss, pressing down firmly so cookie cracks slightly around the edge. This is the exact moment trouble begins (the kind of trouble I get into with warm peanut butter cookies and melty milk chocolate sitting in front of me.)
Cool on a wire rack until set. When the chocolate kisses get glossy and soft, and the cookies cool slightly, grab the milk and enjoy.
Be sure to share with your loved ones. Kisses are best when shared!
Overview of ingredients
- all-purpose flour
- salt
- baking powder
- unsalted butter
- solid vegetable shortening (like Crisco)
- smooth creamy peanut butter (like Jif, Skippy or Peter Pan) not natural peanut butter
- light brown sugar
- vanilla extract
- one large egg
- milk chocolate kisses
- granulated sugar for rolling
How to make Peanut Butter Blossoms Cookies
1. Prep the oven and baking pan
First heat oven to 375 degrees F and line an ungreased cookie sheet with parchment paper.
2. Make the cookie dough
In a small bowl whisk together the flour, salt and baking powder. Set aside.
In a large bowl combine the butter, shortening and peanut butter and beat on medium speed with an electric hand mixer or stand mixer until smooth. Add the brown sugar and mix until smooth. Stir in the egg and vanilla and blend until combined.
Slowly add the flour mixture and blend on low until a dough forms.
3. Shape and bake the cookies
Roll the dough into small 1-inch balls (about 12g each). Roll the balls in granulated sugar and place on the prepared cookie sheet about 1-inch apart.
Bake for 9 to 12 minutes or until light golden brown on the bottom.
4. Top with a kiss
Remove from the oven and immediately press a milk chocolate candy kiss in the center of each cookie. Press firmly so the cookie lightly cracks around the edges.
Allow the cookies to rest on the pan for 5 minutes then remove to a wire rack to cool completely. Be sure to wait until the chocolate is firm before storing.
Thanks for PINNING!
Peanut Butter Blossoms
Ingredients
- 1 ½ cups all-purpose flour (196g)
- ¾ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- 5 tablespoons unsalted butter room temperature (65g)
- ⅓ cup solid shortening (64g or 2 ¼oz)
- ½ cup peanut butter like Jiff (110g or 4 oz)
- 1 cup light brown sugar packed (226g)
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 large egg room temperature
- 12 ounces milk chocolate kisses most unwrapped (SEE NOTES BELOW)
- ⅓ cup granulated sugar for rolling (80g)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375°F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour salt and baking powder.
- In large bowl mixing bowl combine the butter, shortening and peanut butter and beat until smooth. Pour in the brown sugar and mix until smooth. Scrape down sides and bottom of the bowl. Blend again
- Add the egg and vanilla and blend until the yolk disappears. Slowly add the flour mixture and blend on low until incorporated. Scrape down the sides of the bowl and blend another 30 seconds.
- Shape dough into small 1-inch balls (about 12g each); roll in granulated sugar and place on the prepared cookie sheet at least 1-inch apart.
- Bake 9 to 12 minutes until light golden brown on the bottom.
- Remove from oven; immediately top each cookie with a milk chocolate candy kiss, pressing down firmly so the cookie lightly cracks around edge.
- Allow the cookies to sit on the pan or parchment for 5 minutes then remove to a wire rack to cool completely.
- Wait until the chocolate kisses have hardened before storing in an airtight container.
Recipe Notes
- I have not tested this recipe using all butter. Please let me know if you do and how it turns out – thanks!
- Depending on the size you roll your cookies, this recipe will make anywhere between 56 and 68 cookies. You may not need the entire package of milk chocolate kisses so to be safe do not unwrap all the kisses at one time.
- A 12-ounce package of Hershey’s Kisses holds approximately 65 kisses. I like more chocolate to the peanut butter so I make the cookies a little small. Each dough ball is about 1-inch in diameter before baking. I use a small cookie scoop almost full, but not rounded.
Nutrition
Looking for a few more great holiday recipes?
Check out our Russian Tea Cakes, these grown-up, no-bake Bourbon Balls (always a favorite) and these delicious Italian Fig Cookies a welcome addition to the cookie tray!
Originally posted December 2010, updated November 2018
Karri
Excellent recipe – these are my favorite christmas cookies. I wish I knew the origin of them. Thank you for sharing!
Tricia Buice
Hi Karri. Thanks for the feedback! Have a blessed holiday season.
Katie
This recipe is fantastic. Rolled them in red and green sugar sprinkles for a little Christmas flair 🙂
Tricia Buice
How pretty Katie! I bet they are very festive. Thanks for the feedback.
Meredith
I rolled mine pretty small – made 36 cookies. But these are DELICIOUS! Husband loved them.
Tricia Buice
Thanks for trying the recipe Meredith. So glad they were a hit! You can’t go wrong with chocolate and peanut butter 😉
Pris
Love these cookies! Thanks for a great recipe! I need to figure it out for high altitude, though. Can you help?
Tricia Buice
Hi Pris – here is a link to an article on King Arthur Flour about standard adjustments for high-altitude baking. Hope this helps! Click HERE
Pris
Thanks, Tricia! I’ll give this a try on my visit!
Janel
Does anyone know how to make these without the egg??? My daughter would love these cookies but she has an egg allergy
Tricia Buice
Hi Janel. I think you can try substituting apple sauce for the egg, or an egg substitute. Hopefully our readers can help! Thanks for the great question.
Gerlinde
Tricia, what cute cookies! I wouldn’t mind having one with my tea right now.
Tricia Buice
Thanks Gerlinde. These are great with tea, and milk!
Susan
Had some great friends in town and got way behind in my comments! Here is another great favorite that my MIL always made for Christmas. Everyone loves them! I’m a Skippy girl 🙂
Tricia Buice
Hope you enjoyed your visit with friends, it’s always great to catch up in person. These have been a staple in our house for as long as I can remember. Love these cookies!
Pam
They look delicious and I just wish you could send one through here to me to go with my coffee. I’ve made them many times and my recipe is similar to this. Maybe if “all butter” they would spread too much and not keep their shape as they do when Crisco is added. Have a wonderful rest of the week!
Tricia Buice
I don’t love Crisco Pam, but know it makes a big difference in this recipe. Thank you!
Jennifer @ Seasons and Suppers
Love these for the holidays! It’s always hard to beat the peanut butter/chocolate combination 🙂 Beautiful!
Tricia Buice
Thanks Jennifer – always a favorite!
Liz
Your peanut blossoms are perfect!! I usually put a chocolate star in the middle instead of a kiss. My kids love them 🙂
Tricia Buice
I bet the chocolate stars are so cute! Love that idea Liz, thank you!
Chris Scheuer
I think these are a favorite with everyone and your’s look so good! They also look like they should be on the cover of a cookie magazine 🙂
Tricia Buice
Thanks Chris!
Paula Wilson
I used a melon ball scoop to do this to make sure I got all the same size. I came out with 29 cookies. Not sure how you got so many??? These aren’t huge cookies by any means.
Tricia Buice
Not sure how you got so few Paula – I’ve made this recipe for about 30 years – and always make the dough balls 1-inch. I like a lot of chocolate to the peanut butter cookie ratio. I have no idea what size your melon ball scoop is or if you rounded out the cookie dough, or level the scoop, etc. I am very sure this makes a lot more cookies than 29. Hope you enjoyed them anyway.
Jennie
Paula,
I used a small cookie scoop to keep mine uniform and I only got 21 cookies and they’re only 1” wide when cooked. It’s not just you.
Tricia Buice
Thanks for the feedback Jennie. However, I made these cookies again today and the quantity is correct. This recipes yields at least 56 cookies. From one side to the other the cookie dough ball should not be larger than 1-inch in diameter. I use a small cookie scoop that is about 3/4 full. Each dough balls weighs about 12 to 14 grams. It doesn’t really matter what size you make the cookies, but if you want at least four + dozen, go with my size ratio listed in the instructions. I personally like a good ratio of chocolate to peanut butter so the size is perfect for me!
Cristi
I accidentally bought salted butter 🙁 would I completely leave out the salt if I use it in this recipe?
Tricia Buice
Yes you can Cristi – that will work! Thanks for the great question and happy holidays 🙂
Allie
I tried the original recipe first and found that the cookies were so dry that when I placed a Hershey Kiss in the middle the entire cookie fell apart. Upon tasting the batter after adding the Crisco I noticed that the Crisco takes away from the peanut butter flavor of the dough and it does after the bake as well. I did a little research and found that dry cookies need a little more moisture in them. So I decided to make the cookie with all unsalted butter since the water content is higher than Crisco. In my research I noticed that people mentioned all butter cookies will spread and flatten while cookies with Crisco maintain their shape since Crisco has a higher melting point. I decided to add 1/2 a teaspoon extra of baking powder to maintain the shape of the peanut butter blossom. I also put 1/2 a cup of flour in extra because the dough was extremely wet. So in conclusion, I replaced Crisco with Unsalted Butter in equal proportion, added a 1/2 teaspoon extra of baking powder and a 1/2 cup extra of flour. The results were delicious because the butter really enhances the flavor of the peanut butter. Think of a peanut butter short bread cookie with chocolate in the middle!
Tricia Buice
Hi Allie – thanks for the feedback. However, I must say that I’ve been making these cookies for about 30 years and have never had the problem you described. Thanks for the experimentation and for giving us your solution. I LOVE these cookies, and my family would probably disown me if I changed the recipe now. They turn out perfect every time for me. Have a wonderful holiday season and thanks for trying our recipe!
Kelly
Christmas gift
Carri
I used all unsalted butter! Came out perfect.
Tricia Buice
Yeah! I LOVE these cookies – and since the peanut butter usually has salt in it already, I always think it’s a good idea to use less 🙂 So happy they turned out great for you~ Thanks for letting us know and happy holidays!
J Mcquade
I make these every year. I like to dip the tops of the cookies in red and green sugar before baking. Just makes them a bit more festive.
Tricia Buice
Thanks for the great idea – I bet they are pretty. These Peanut Butter Blossoms are my favorite! Thanks for commenting and for stopping by!
SuzieQ
I made the recipe on the back of the Sweetened Condensed Milk can – Magic Bars- for Steve to take to his work thing. He said that they were great. You may want to try them sometime. I used 1/2 chocolate chips and 1/2 peanut butter chips. I doubled the recipe and baked in a 1/2 sheet pan. I don't eat chocolate or nuts – so I try to make lots of things with those ingredients so I don't