Peanut Butter Thumbprint Cookies with Hershey Kisses

Peanut Butter Thumbprint Cookies are easy to make and full of big peanut butter flavor. These Hershey Kiss topped peanut butter cookies (also known as peanut butter blossoms) are is so cute and perfect for Christmastime.

Around here, we firmly believe there is no greater flavor combination than peanut butter and chocolate. If these peanut butter thumbprint cookies with Hershey Kisses aren't proof enough, these chocolate peanut butter brownies most definitely are!

These cookies are so perfect for homemade holiday gift giving! For more Christmas cookie recipes, hop on over here.

Why This Recipe Works

Growing up, my mom was all about the chocolate chip cookies. (I mean, who isn't?) I'm all about the chocolate, but I'm also all about the peanut butter. So, when I set out to make the world's greatest homemade peanut butter cookie for my little at-home bakery, there was no second-guessing that chocolate would most definitely be involved.

As it turned out, I was right to go the chocolate route. Thumbprint Hershey Kiss Cookies became a best-seller year after year. The combination of milk chocolate and peanut butter in a soft Thumbprint Hershey Kiss Cookie is irresistible, and the bites with the chocolate are always the best.

Peanut-Butter-to-Chocolate Ratio | This is the perfect cookie-to-Kiss recipe. These cookies are a touch smaller than most, making them petite, adorably bite-sized, and just right for that Hershey Kiss center.

So Easy | This peanut butter cookie with Hershey Kisses recipe is beyond easy to make. It's a make-and-scoop recipe; no chilling dough needed.

Big Peanut Butter Flavor | We use our classic peanut butter cookie base for this recipe, which adds loads of peanut butter flavor.

Fun Family Recipe | Thumbprint peanut butter cookies are one of my family's favorite Christmas cookie recipes. I put my kids to work unwrapping Hershey Kisses, and as they unwrap, they inevitably reward themselves with said Kisses. It's a super-fun bake for the whole family.

If chocolate and peanut butter are your jam, whip up these simple peanut butter chocolate chip cookies! And feel free to take that recipe a step further by adding chocolate chunks and oats. Dee-lish!

Peanut Butter Thumbprint Cookie Ingredients

Flour | We use only all-purpose flour for this peanut butter thumbprint cookie recipe. Be sure to measure your flour carefully so your cookies don't turn out dry.

Baking Powder | Be sure to use baking powder and not baking soda. Baking powder gives your cookies more "fluff, making these just the right amount of puffy and chewy.

Butter | Use unsalted butter, or your cookies will be too salty.

Sugar | Combining brown sugar and granulated sugar for a touch of molasses flavor makes for perfect texture and spread.

Peanut Butter | For best results, opt for creamy peanut butter with full sugar here (not the healthy stuff!) Brands like Jif or Peter Pan Peanut Butter work best.

Egg | The egg serves as the binder for this recipe.

Hershey Kisses | You literally can't have thumbprint cookies without the Hershey Kisses. This recipe will make about 60 cookies. Remember, they are just a little bigger than bite-size. Pro-tip: have your Kisses unwrapped and ready to go before the cookies come out of the oven.

If you don't feel up to unwrapping the kisses, make our chocolate-dipped peanut butter cookies instead. Same flavors, less shiny foil.

How-To Video

@theanthonykitchen

PEANUT BUTTER BLOSSOMS this was one of my top selling cookies back in my at home bakery days. Now all my cookie recipes are ready for the taking at my food blog theanthonykitchen.com. But if you want to see how they’re made right this second, you can find the recipe below 😘 Ingredients 1 ⅓ cup all-purpose flour 1 tsp baking powder 1 tsp fine sea salt ½ cup + 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted ½ cup light brown sugar, firmly packed ½ cup + 1 tablespoon granulated sugar 1 cup peanut butter 1 large egg 1 teaspoon vanilla extract About 60 unwrapped Chocolate Kisses Instructions Preheat oven to 350° and have ready a cookie sheet lined with a sheet of parchment paper or a Silpat. In a mixing bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, and sea salt. Set aside until ready to use. In the bowl of a stand mixer, mix together butter, brown sugar, granulated sugar and peanut butter on medium-high speed. If you don’t have a stand mixer, use a large mixing bowl and a handheld mixer. Add the egg, followed by the vanilla extract. Add the flour with the mixer on low. Remove bowl from mixer and scrape the dough from the bottom, up and over the top. Return bowl to the mixer and mix on low 30 seconds more. Scoop out a scant tablespoon of dough and form into a ball. Place about 1” apart on parchment paper. Bake 10 minutes, remove from the oven and set atop a cooling rack. Place the chocolate kiss in the center of the cookie and apply gentle pressure to inset. Allow to cool 5-10 minutes, serve and enjoy.

♬ Sleigh Bells (PhatCap! Trap Remix) - Ronettes

How to Make Peanut Butter Cookies with Hershey Kisses

Whisk Together Dry Ingredients | First, mix up your dry ingredients. The dry ingredients for these cookies are a simple mixture of all-purpose flour, baking powder, and fine sea salt.

Mix Wet Ingredients | You can use either a stand mixer, a handheld mixer, or a good old-fashioned whisk to combine your wet ingredients. These cookies call for a combination of both granulated and light brown sugar, peanut butter, egg, and pure vanilla extract.

Combine Wet + Dry Ingredients | The dry ingredients are gently mixed into the wet, taking care not to overmix, which ultimately causes your cookie to be tough. And, come on--we all know cookies were not meant to be tough. Especially these cute, tiny little guys.

Scoop + Bake | After the dough comes together, scoop them onto the baking mat, transfer to the oven, and enjoy one of the greatest scents known to man: freshly baked peanut butter cookies. Swoon.

Note: If you want standard-sized cookies, you can easily do that! Just scoop larger dough balls and add 1-2 minutes to your bake.

Add Hershey Kisses | Immediately after the cookies come out of the oven, the Kiss should be planted firmly in the center.

Take note: have your Kisses ready to go! The cookies are small and set up fast. The quicker you get the Hershey Kisses on the cookies, the less likely you'll end up with broken peanut butter cookies.

Peanut Butter Thumbprint Cookie Variations

To shuffle things up a bit and save yourself the time it takes to unwrap your chocolates, you can also make a ganache or jam recipe variations that are equally delicious.

For a Ganache Center

To easily make a ganache:

1. Combine 4 ounces of chopped chocolate with a ¼ cup of heavy whipping cream in microwave-safe bowl.
2. Heat at 30-second intervals, stirring between each interval, until melted.

And that's all there is to it! Use German, milk, or semi-sweet chocolate bars. The type of chocolate you use will determine how sweet your chocolate center is.

For a Jam Center

Jam and cookies are also a great combo. We love them in our strawberry butter jam cookies and our classic thumbprints.

For peanut butter jam cookies, create a divot in the center of your cookies and using a teaspoon-sized measuring spoon (or your thumb) and fill with grape, strawberry, or even raspberry jam.

How to Store Peanut Butter Kiss Cookies

Store | Store your Hershey Kiss cookies in an airtight container at room temperature. Your cookies will stay fresh tasting for 4-5 days. If you’d like to enjoy your cookies for any time beyond this, you should consider freezing them.

Freeze | Hershey Kiss cookies freeze beautifully, and all you need to do to freeze them is allow them to cool to room temperature, 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.

5 More Christmas Cookie Recipes to Try

• Ginger Molasses Cookies
• Chocolate Crinkle Cookies
• Red Velvet Cookies
• Mexican Wedding Cookies
• Sugar Cookies with Frosting