Have a sweet tooth? This is the dessert for you! This warm and gooey-centered Peanut Butter Skillet Cookie recipe is studded with peanut butter cups for a sweet and decadent treat. Great for celebrating Halloween, or using up a haul of miniature peanut butter cups! Don’t forget the ice cream on top!
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Sometimes, you just need a decadent dessert, am I right? These Peanut Butter Cup Cookie Skillets are a recipe that we used to make around Halloween when I was a kid. They were fun to make as a family and always a favorite.
As an adult, I’ve discovered that I have much less of a sweet tooth than when I was younger. But, from time to time, I still love a taste of something utterly sinful.
Diving into these Peanut Butter Cookie Skillets spoon-first hits all the marks: soft peanut butter cookie dough, warm and melty chocolate, and creamy pools of vanilla ice cream to bring it all together. They take me right back to the simpler times of childhood and all the fun we had on Halloween night.
What You’ll Need to Make Peanut Butter Cup Skillet Cookies
The base for these cookie skillets is a pretty standard peanut butter dough. You’ll need pantry and fridge staples: all purpose flour, brown and granulated sugars, baking soda, kosher salt (I use Diamond Crystal), vanilla, and an egg.
For the peanut butter, I like to use creamy or smooth style. I recommend using a conventional peanut butter, such as Skippy. Natural peanut butters, particularly those that require stirring to recombine oil separation in the jar, don’t work well here.
Wondering the difference between types of peanut butter available at the grocery store? Check out The Difference Between Natural and Conventional Peanut Butter from Food & Wine.
To the peanut butter cookie dough, I add two chocolate sources: a.) chocolate chips, and b.) mini peanut butter cups.
I prefer to use semisweet chips in this recipe to add a little depth of flavor and temper some of the sweetness, but if you prefer a sweeter dessert, feel free to go with milk chocolate chips. Substituting Reese’s Pieces is also a fun twist, especially for Halloween.
I find that Reese’s “unwrapped minis” variety work best in this recipe. They’re smaller than the “miniature peanut butter cups” and distribute well into the dough. If you’re using the larger “miniature,” variety, it’s best to cut them in half.
The Skillets
We love to make our peanut butter skillet cookies in small, 6-1/2-inch cast iron skillets. They’re the perfect size for two people to share.
You can also make this recipe as one large skillet cookie using a 10- or 12-inch cast iron skillet. The baking time will just be slightly longer than for the smaller portions.
Peanut Butter Skillet Cookie Recipe Tips
- This recipe can be made in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment or in a bowl with an electric hand mixer. While I like to stir in the chocolate by hand, the cooking dough itself should be made with a mixer for proper creaming of the butter and sugar.
- The dough will puff and rise in the oven. I’ve never had any spillover in the Lodge skillets shown, but in the sprit of full disclosure: I haven’t tested other brands. The first time you make them, you might want to place the 6-1/2 inch skillets on a preheated baking sheet to err on the side of caution.
- When the skillets are finished baking, the cookie dough will be golden and crisp around the edges. The centers should be just set and ever so slightly wobbly for a warm, gooey-centered cookie.
- Let the peanut butter skillet cookies cool for 10 minutes before serving. Without cooling, the centers will be too gooey.
- We like to top our skillet cookies with vanilla ice cream, and a drizzle of peanut butter and chocolate sauces. Reese’s makes a convenient Peanut Butter Topping (shown), available at most grocery stores. You can also gently melt a few spoonfuls of peanut butter in a small bowl in the microwave and drizzle it over the ice cream with a spoon. Another favorite topping in our house is Stonewall Kitchen’s Chocolate Peanut Butter Sauce.
More Nostalgic Dessert Recipes:
- Peanut Butter Blossom Cookies
- Bourbon Apple Crisp
- Slow Cooker Hot Chocolate
- Jam Bars with Oat Crumble Topping
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Peanut Butter Skillet Cookie
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter , softened (plus additional for buttering pans)
- 1/2 cup light brown sugar , lightly packed (99 g)
- 1/4 cup granulated sugar (49.5 g)
- 1/3 cup creamy peanut butter (not "natural" peanut butter; 88 g)
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 large egg , room temperature
- 1 cup all purpose flour (126 g)
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda (2.5 g)
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt (I use Diamond Crystal; 1.7 g)
- 3/4 cup Reese's "unwrapped minis" peanut butter cups * (126 g); plus additional, if desired
- 1/2 cup semisweet chocolate chips (96 g); plus additional, if desired
- ice cream, peanut butter sauce, and/or chocolate sauce for serving, optional
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F with rack in the middle position. Lightly butter 2, 6-1/2 inch cast iron pans.**
- In a bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, and salt. Set aside.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, or a large bowl with an electric hand mixer, cream butter, brown sugar, and granulated sugar until light and fluffy, about 3-4 minutes.
- Beat in peanut butter. Scrape the bowl and add egg and vanilla extract. Mix to combine on medium-low speed.
- Scrape the bowl and add the flour mixture. Mix on low speed to combine.
- Use a spatula or wooden spoon to gently stir in the chocolate chips and peanut butter cups until distributed throughout the cookie dough.
- Divide the mixture between the two buttered pans, spreading the dough evenly with a spoon or spatula. If desired, sprinkle a few extra chocolate chips and/or peanut butter cups over the top. If adding extra peanut butter cups, press them into the dough just slightly.
- Bake 20-25 minutes (mine are usually done to our liking in the 24-25 minute range), until the skillets are puffed, golden, and the centers are just set (and still slightly wobbly). (Or, to your desired doneness; increase baking time for a firmer-centered cookie.) Cool 10 minutes before serving with ice cream and drizzles of peanut butter sauce and/or chocolate sauce, if desired.
Video
Notes
Nutrition Estimate
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
About our recipes
Please note that our recipes have been developed using the US Customary measurement system and have not been tested for high altitude/elevation cooking and baking.
