Peanut Butter Cookies with Chocolate | The Ultimate Guide to Dipping Cookies in Chocolate

Nothing beats a perfectly baked, soft and chewy peanut butter cookie...that is unless you dip it in chocolate. Peanut butter and chocolate are a classic and beloved combination, and those who love it, tend to really, really love it. These Peanut Butter Cookies with Chocolate not only make for a decadent snack, they are the all-time, ultimate homemade gift for the peanut butter lover!

Today, we'll cover how to make a perfect batch of chocolate-dipped peanut butter cookies,  the difference between working with real chocolate and candy melting wafers (and why candy wafers just might be a better option for you), helpful tips for dipping cookies in chocolate, how to store and freeze chocolate-dipped cookies, plus, tons more chocolate-dipped cookie combinations to try! 

Need more dipped cookies in your life? Try our Red Velvet Cookies dipped in white chocolate and our chocolate-dipped Coconut Macaroon Cookies!

HOW TO MAKE PEANUT BUTTER COOKIES WITH CHOCOLATE

Peanut Butter Cookies with Chocolate are easy and simple to make. Actually, you have a few options as to just how easy and simple they'll be when it comes to both the cookies and the chocolate

YOU'VE GOT OPTIONS:

• Homemade or Store-Bought Cookie Dough
• Melting Chocolate Wafers or Real Chocolate

Regardless of the choices you make, the overall gist of preparations for Peanut Butter Cookies with Chocolate stay the same: Bake a batch of peanut butter cookies and allow them to cool to room temperature. Then, prepare your chocolate, and dip away! See? Easy.

For an extra special, beautiful touch, sprinkle the chocolate with chopped, salted peanuts. This gives the cookie an addictively delicious salty-sweet combo and a pleasing contrast in texture as well! You get the crunch from the peanuts, a smooth mouthfeel from the chocolate, and a chewy, buttery texture from the cookie itself -- a heavenly combination.

STORE-BOUGHT OR HOMEMADE COOKIES -- YOUR CHOICE

You can use either a made from scratch Peanut Butter Cookie recipe or purchase the store-bought dough, and bake them at home. However, if you've never made Peanut Butter Cookies from scratch, I highly recommend you try it at least once. I've been baking up my Easy Chewy Peanut Butter Cookies for years, and they always turn out perfect.

HOMEMADE PEANUT BUTTER COOKIE RECIPE OVERVIEW

1. Mix dry ingredients: Flour, baking powder, and salt.
2. Mix wet ingredients: Melted butter, brown and white sugar, peanut butter, egg, and vanilla.
3. Combine the two.
4. Scoop, make tine marks, and bake.

Once your cookies are baked, they must cool to room temperature before dipping in the chocolate.

MELTING WAFERS VS. REAL CHOCOLATE FOR DIPPING

When it comes to dipping cookies in chocolate, I recommend using chocolate melting candy wafers over working with actual chocolate. There's far less that can go wrong with this product, and if you use good quality wafers, the results do not disappoint.

However, if you are well-versed in working with real chocolate and the process of tempering, as well as avoiding problematic issues like blooms and over-heating, then, by all means, feel free to substitute chopped semi-sweet chocolate in place of melting wafers for this recipe.

If you need further instruction on working with and melting down real chocolate properly, you can find thorough instructions from a professional chocolatier in my Peppermint Bark guide.

HOW TO DIP COOKIES IN CHOCOLATE

Dipping cookies in chocolate is certainly not rocket science, but there a few are key things to keep in mind for success! And, while the tips below may seem like small things, they will make your cookie dipping process streamlined and easy.

1. CHOOSE THE RIGHT-SIZED BOWL

Dipping cookies in chocolate is really a breeze. The first thing you'll want to keep in mind is the depth of the chocolate in the bowl you'll be dipping in. If the bowl is too large or too wide, then you won't be able to easily cover your cookie in chocolate. Choose a bowl just large enough to house your melted chocolate wafers.

For these Peanut Butter Cookies with Chocolate, they only need to be half-dipped. However, if you'd like to fully submerge your chocolate-dipped cookie, simply drop it in and carefully, fish it out with a fork.

2. PREPARE THE WORK SURFACE

Whether you half or fully dip your cookie in chocolate, you'll want to be sure you have your work surface prepared and ready to go before you begin dipping. This is as simple as laying out a few sheets of parchment or wax paper down on the counter. While this step is extremely basic, it is not one to skip. Both wax paper and parchment paper are nonstick surfaces, and they will ensure you can remove your cookies with the chocolate coating completely intact.

3. ALLOWING THE EXCESS TO DRIP AWAY IS A MUST!

Once you've dipped your cookie in chocolate, allow the excess chocolate to drip back into the bowl. Placing the cookies on the work surface before the excess has dripped awaywill cause puddles of chocolate to ooze from the base of your cookie. As delicious as that sounds, it's not very attractive, so taking a few extra seconds to this is truly worth it.

CHOCOLATE-DIPPED COOKIES AND SET TIME

The hardest part is always the waiting. If you choose to use chocolate melting wafers, your cookies will set fairly quickly at room temperature -- about 45 minutes or so. To speed along this process, you can prepare your wax or parchment paper on rimmed baking sheets (the rim will keep the cookies from accidentally sliding off during transport) and store them in the refrigerator. Your cookies will be ready after 20-30 minutes in the refrigerator.

If you choose to work with real chocolate, however, you could not let them set in the refrigerator. It will affect both the snap and the shine. Real chocolate-dipped cookies could take up to 2 hours to fully set, depending on the temperature and humidity level in the room.

STORING CHOCOLATE-DIPPED COOKIES

If you somehow end up with extra Peanut Butter Cookies with Chocolate, you'll need to know how to store them. The good news is, again, you have options!

The shelf life of chocolate-dipped cookies is as long as the shelf life of the cookies themselves. You can store most homemade cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for 3-4 days without losing too much quality.

HOW TO FREEZE CHOCOLATE-DIPPED COOKIES

If you’d like to enjoy your chocolate-dipped cookies for any length of time beyond this, you should consider freezing them! All cookies freeze beautifully, and you can keep them in the freezer for up to 2 months. To freeze them, allow the chocolate to set completely, then transfer them to an airtight, freezer-safe container or a freezer-safe zip-top, gallon-sized bag.

If using a container, try to use one that houses the cookies snugly, but not such a tight fit that they are crammed to the point of breaking. If using a zip-top bag, be sure to remove as much air as possible before sealing.

MORE CHOCOLATE DIPPED COOKIE IDEAS

While Peanut Butter Cookies with Chocolate are a tough combination to beat, the possibilities are almost endless when it comes to chocolate-dipped confections. Use the chart below to find more classic chocolate-dipped cookie combinations to try!

6 MORE COOKIE RECIPES YOU’LL LOVE

• Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies feature everything you know and love about classic, bakery-style peanut butter cookies, only made better thanks to the addition of melty chocolate chips. 
• Easy Chocolate-Dipped Coconut Macaroons are the perfect gluten-free cookie for entertaining! They’re easy to make and freeze beautifully!
• Thumbprint Hershey Kiss Cookies are miniature, bite-sized cookies with the perfect cookie-to-kiss ratio!
• S’mores Cookies are wonderful for the holidays, with a cookie base made to emulate the flavors of a graham cracker, topped with a gooey marshmallow and a chocolate kiss!
• Chocolate Drop Cookies are every chocoholic’s dream: Full of chocolate, soft, gooey, and easy to make!
• Chocolate Crinkles have a fudgy interior, speckled with chocolate chips and dusted with a beautiful coating of powdered sugar!

Print Recipe

5 from 16 votes

Peanut Butter Cookies with Chocolate and Peanuts

Perfectly chewy and soft, homemade peanut butter cookies with chocolate and peanuts!

Prep Time35 minutes mins

Cook Time12 minutes mins

Cool and Set Time2 hours hrs 20 minutes mins

Total Time47 minutes mins

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: American

Keyword: Peanut Butter Cookies with Chocolate

Servings: 24

Calories: 205kcal

Author: Kelly Anthony

Ingredients

• 1 ⅓ cup all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon fine sea salt
• ⅔ cup unsalted butter melted
• ½ cup + 1 tablespoons light brown sugar packed
• ½ cup granulated sugar plus ¼ cup extra for rolling
• 1 cup creamy peanut butter
• 1 Large egg
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 1 ½ packages (15 ounces) chocolate candy wafers, preferably Ghirardelli or 15 ounces semi-sweet chocolate, chopped, melted and tempered
• 1 cup salted, dry-roasted peanuts, chopped

Instructions

For the Cookie Dough:

• Preheat the oven to 350° and have ready a baking sheet lined with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat. Also, have ready a small bowl with about a ¼ cup of sugar for coating the cookie dough balls.
• In a medium-sized mixing bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt.
• In a large mixing bowl, combine butter, light brown sugar, granulated sugar, peanut butter, egg, and vanilla. With a handheld mixer on medium-high speed, mix until smooth.
• Add the dry ingredients and mix on low speed until combined. Do not overmix.
• Scoop out heaping tablespoons of dough, and roll into a ball. Roll in the granulated sugar, and transfer to the baking sheet spacing them 1 ½"-2" apart.
• Make crosshatch lines across the tops of the cookies using the tines of a fork, and bake for 12-14 minutes, just until the edges are a deeper brown. Set aside and allow to cool completely, about 20 minutes or so.
• Have ready a large work surface lined with wax paper. Prepare the chocolate wafers as directed on the package, or melt and  temper if using real chocolate. 
• Dip the cooled cookies half-way in the melted chocolate, and allow the excess to drip away. Place on the wax paper and sprinkle with a generous pinch of chopped peanuts. Repeat until all the cookies have been dipped.
• Allow to set completely (1-4 hours depending on your environment and which kind of chocolate you used), serve and enjoy!

Notes

Makes 20-24 cookies.

Nutrition

Calories: 205kcal | Carbohydrates: 17g | Protein: 5g | Fat: 13g | Saturated Fat: 4g | Cholesterol: 20mg | Sodium: 152mg | Potassium: 149mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 9g | Vitamin A: 165IU | Calcium: 26mg | Iron: 0.8mg

Source: Chocolate and Confections at Home with The Culinary Institute of America.