Peanut Butter Cookie Dough

This food-safe Peanut Butter Cookie Dough is creamy, rich, and indulgent! It’s easy to make and perfectly safe to consume  (heat-treated flour and no eggs!).

Peanut butter cookie dough

Anyone who’s ever been warned not to eat raw cookie dough–but sneaks it anyway–will love this recipe. In fact, it’s blown up on my site! It’s become the most popular recipe this last month, and so many of you have tried and loved it.

More and more of you are baking from home, trying new recipes, and enjoying comfort food — I know we are! I completely subscribe to the idea that having a good treat can fix a lot of problems. Edible cookie dough is also a recipe that you likely have all or most of the ingredients for at home already, so it’s a perfect dessert candidate when you haven’t been to the store.

This last week I worked hard on creating not just one more edible cookie dough recipe, but three — this Peanut Butter Cookie Dough, Edible Brownie Batter, and Edible Cake Batter. I hope these recipes bring some joy to you– they have certainly made my boys’ days!

This Peanut Butter Cookie Dough version has been voted the favorite by the family, so I had to share it first. (Brownie Batter is my personal favorite, but are you surprised?!)

Eating raw cookie dough

Regular (raw) cookie dough isn’t considered safe to eat because of health concerns revolving around both the flour and uncooked eggs. Here’s an article that explains the issues.

So this Peanut Butter Cookie Dough recipe is specially formulated to be safe while also tasting just like regular cookie dough. There are no eggs in this recipe and we heat treat the flour to ensure everything is up to safety standards for consumption.

Heat treating flour

A lot of people are surprised to find flour a culprit for sickness in unbaked cookie dough. Flour doesn’t look like raw food, but it actually is. This means it hasn’t been treated to kill germs (think e. coli) which can cause food poisoning (source). So, when making cookie dough that is edible, we need to first cook the flour (or heat treat it) to ensure we kill any potential bacteria. There are three ways to heat treat your flour.

1. Purchase flour that has already been heat treated. You’ll see this noted on the label.
2. Heat treat it in the microwave: Add the flour to a microwave-safe bowl. I recommend heat treating more than the recipe calls for (1/2 to 1 cup extra) just to ensure you have enough. Microwave on high in bursts of 30 seconds, stirring in between each burst. Take your time, stirring well, to make sure none of the flour burns. Use a thermometer to test the flour in a few places to make sure it has reached 165 degrees F throughout all the flour. (If you get less than 165 degrees, return the flour for one more burst of 30 seconds). 
3. Heat treat it in the oven: Preheat the oven to 300 degrees F. Line a large sheet pan (with sides) with a nonstick liner or parchment paper. Spread the flour on the pan (treat more than you’ll use; 1/2 to 1 cup extra). Bake the flour, removing and stirring it, every 1 and 1/2 minutes. Every time you remove the flour to stir, test it with the thermometer. As soon as it reaches 165 degrees F, it’s safe.

Why treat so much extra flour? Read on!

Tips for heat treating flour

• Let the flour cool completely before using. If you use hot flour, this cookie dough won’t turn out right. Let the flour cool completely at room temperature, or speed up the process by placing the tray in the fridge or freezer.
• If baking or microwaving left your flour with any clumps, break up those clumps with your fingers. Discard any clumps that won’t break up easily. If flour sticks to the sides or bottom of the pan, don’t scrape it up for the dough.
• If there are discolored sections (brown or light brown flour) discard that flour; it will make the dough taste like burnt popcorn! 

This is why we heat treat a bit more flour than we’ll need! You want the heat-treated flour to look just like regular flour (light, fluffy, and white) — discard parts that don’t look like this. 

Peanut Butter Cookie Dough tips

• Use room temperature (not melted) butter: For this dough to come together beautifully and not be grainy, we want the perfect temperature of the butter. For best results, leave your butter out at room temperature an hour before using. To speed up the process of getting room-temperature butter, use this great hack.
• Take time mixing the dough: To avoid grainy cookie dough or dough that will separate, take your time beating the ingredients until they’re well incorporated, light, and fluffy.
• Keep the dough in the fridge or freezer (more on this below)– this dough is so delicious eaten after being chilled or straight out of the freezer!
• Here’s perhaps an annoying tip, but just because I’ve been here (a time too many), don’t eat a ton of this dough in one sitting. While it’s safe to eat the entire batch (and you do you), this dough is extremely sweet and large quantities consumed will likely give you a pretty good stomach ache. (I’m speaking from too much experience here haha!)

Storage

While you can reduce the amount of each of the ingredients called for in this recipe to make a smaller batch of dough, I recommend skipping the trouble, making this recipe as is, and then dividing it into portions, and freezing. In fact, this peanut butter cookie dough is divine straight out of the freezer!

Divide the dough into portions (an ice cube tray makes this easy for smaller portions!), wrap portions tightly with plastic wrap, and place them in an airtight bag or container. Label the bag and freeze until you are ready to eat it. This way you have edible Peanut Butter Cookie Dough on hand whenever you need it! 

When wrapped and stored correctly, this cookie dough will stay fresh in the fridge for up to five days, or in the freezer for up to 3 months. 

Personalize this Peanut Butter Cookie Dough

I made a few different versions of Peanut Butter Cookie Dough to give flavor suggestions, but feel free to get creative with your favorite add-ins!

• Regular Peanut Butter Cookie Dough: The base recipe doesn’t have any additions– it’s plain peanut butter cookie dough and a great canvas for add-ins.
• Peanut lovers’ cookie dough: We take the base and add coarsely chopped Reese’s Pieces® and coarsely chopped Reese’s minis.
• Fluffernutter Peanut Butter Dough: We take the base recipe and add marshmallow fluff, mini chocolate chips, and coarsely chopped Nutter Butter® cookies.
• Other mix-in ideas: Milk chocolate chips, dark chocolate chips, white chocolate chips, peanut butter chips, M&Ms, chopped Oreos®, brownie bits, chopped cheesecake bites

More peanut butter treats:

• Peanut Butter Granola delicious snack or breakfast!
• Peanut Butter Blossoms peanut butter cookies with chocolate kisses
• The BEST Chewy Peanut Butter Cookies (reader favorite recipe!)
• Peanut Butter Rice Krispies Treats with chocolate topping
• No-Bake Peanut Butter Cheesecake

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Peanut Butter Cookie Dough

5 from 5 votes

- Review this recipe

This food-safe (edible) Peanut Butter Cookie Dough is creamy, rich, and indulgent tasting! It's easy to make and perfectly safe to consume (heat-treated flour and no eggs!).

SAVE TO RECIPE BOX

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Peanut Butter Cookie Dough

5 from 5 votes

- Review this recipe

SAVE TO RECIPE BOX

Print Recipe

This food-safe (edible) Peanut Butter Cookie Dough is creamy, rich, and indulgent tasting! It's easy to make and perfectly safe to consume (heat-treated flour and no eggs!).

Course Dessert, Snack

Cuisine American

Keyword peanut butter cookie dough

Prep Time 25 minutes

Total Time 25 minutes

Servings 6 servings

Calories 437kcal

Author Chelsea Lords

Cost $3.26

Ingredients

• ▢ 1 and 1/4 cups white flour
• ▢ 8 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature
• ▢ 3/4 cup creamy peanut butter
• ▢ 1/4 cup white sugar
• ▢ 1/2 cup + 2 tablespoons light brown sugar, packed
• ▢ 2 tablespoons heavy cream
• ▢ 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract, optional
• ▢ 1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt AND baking soda
• ▢ Optional add-in suggestions: coarsely chopped chocolate or chocolate chips, chopped mini Reeses, coarsely chopped Reese's pieces, coarsely chopped Nutter Butters, swirl of marshmallow fluff

US - Metric

USMetric

Instructions

• HEAT TREAT FLOUR: You can heat treat flour in the microwave or in the oven. Test the flour to ensure it's reached a safe temperature of 165 degrees F. Let flour cool COMPLETELY to room temperature before using. Don't use any burnt or clumpy flour (if it's off-color or smells burnt, it is burnt). The flour should be light, white, and fluffy. Spoon the cooled flour into a measuring cup and level the top of the measuring cup with the back of a table knife. (See note 1.)
• DRY INGREDIENTS: Add the spooned and leveled 1 and 1/4 cups flour, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1/2 teaspoon baking soda to a medium-size bowl and stir. (While we aren't baking this dough, the baking soda gives it an authentic cookie dough flavor; leave it out if desired, just don't forget the salt!)
• WET INGREDIENTS: In a large bowl with a stand mixer (or use a hand mixer), add beat 8 tablespoons room temperature (not melted) butter and 3/4 cup peanut butter. Beat until very smooth and creamy, about 2-3 minutes. Add the 1/4 cup white sugar and 1/2 cup + 2 tablespoons brown sugar and beat to combine. Beat for an additional 3-4 minutes or until mixture becomes light, smooth, and fluffy. Add the 2 tablespoons heavy cream and 1 teaspoon vanilla and mix until combined.
• COMBINE: Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients. Beat until just combined; do not over-mix. Use a spatula to scrape the sides of the bowl as needed. If the dough is at all dry, add in a bit more heavy cream; if it is wet, add in a tablespoon or two more of the heat-treated flour.
• ENJOY: Stir in any of desired mix-ins and enjoy! We love this dough freshly made, chilled, or even frozen!

Recipe Notes

Note 1: Heat treat the flour in the microwave: add the flour to a microwave-safe bowl. I recommend heat treating more than the recipe calls for (1/2 to 1 cup extra) just to ensure you have enough. Microwave on high in bursts of 30 seconds, stirring in between each burst. Take your time to make sure none of the flour burns or clumps. Use a thermometer to test the flour in a few places to make sure it has reached 165 degrees F throughout all the flour. (If you get less than 165 degrees, return the flour for one more burst of 30 seconds.) 

Heat treat it in the oven: Preheat the oven to 300 degrees F. Line a large sheet pan (with sides) with a nonstick liner or parchment paper. Spread the flour on the pan (treat 1/2 to 1 cup more than you'll use). Bake the flour, removing and stirring it, every 1 and 1/2 minutes. Every time you remove the flour to stir, test it with the thermometer. As soon as it reaches 165 degrees F, it's safe. (This takes about 3-6 minutes in my oven.)

Nutrition Facts

Serving: 6servings | Calories: 437kcal | Carbohydrates: 31.5g | Protein: 9.5g | Fat: 33g | Cholesterol: 43.5mg | Sodium: 140.6mg | Fiber: 2.2g | Sugar: 11.8g

We do our best to provide accurate nutritional analysis for our recipes. Our nutritional data is calculated using a third-party algorithm and may vary, based on individual cooking styles, measurements, and ingredient sizes. Please use this information for comparison purposes and consult a health professional for nutrition guidance as needed.

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