Sourdough Peanut Butter Cookies

You know you’re on to something when your teenager tastes a fresh from the oven sourdough peanut butter cookie and instead of saying anything just gives you a hug before snatching another couple of cookies from the baking tray and scampering off to do teenager things.

Truly, I should have known it was coming. I swear both of my kids have a sixth sense for when I’m using brown butter! At least I know they love this recipe as much as I do!

This brown butter sourdough peanut butter cookie recipe is dedicated to the sixth sense.

Jump to:

• Expert Tips
• Key Ingredients
• How To Make Sourdough Peanut Butter Cookies
• Long Fermented Cookies
• More Sweet Recipes
• Batch + Storage Information
• Recommended Equipment
• 📖 Printable Recipe

Key Ingredients

Brown Butter: There is something magical about cooking butter until the milk solids brown and take on a sweet, nutty fragrance and amber color. You’re going to be making a bit more browned butter than required for the recipe because the rendering process can be a bit unpredictable based on your butter, but don’t despair, you can use the leftovers on your toasted sourdough bread!

Peanut Butter: We always buy Kraft Creamy peanut butter so that's what I used for this recipe. Other peanut butters should work, but avoid the natural kinds – they can behave differently in baked goods.

Sourdough Discard: The sourdough discard in this recipe, while not in the active stage, is still sourdough, it will naturally ferment your cookies and condition the dough, making the baked goods more tender and flavorful.

Sugar: This recipe combines both granulated and brown sugar. The granulated sugar helps to make the cookies cripsy on the outsides while brown sugar helps keep the cookies softer in the middle.

Psst.. Want to know more about feeding your starter, storing sourdough starter, how to use discard, or even which is the best jar for your starter? I've got tons of guides to help you!

How To Make Sourdough Peanut Butter Cookies

Brown The Butter:

1. In a medium-sized sauce pan, over medium-low heat, melt 1 cup unsalted butter and simmer, stirring regularly, until it takes on an amber color, the milk solids have browned, and it smells nutty. This will take between 3-5 minutes of simmering, but do watch it closely because the butter can burn quickly.
2. Transfer the brown butter to a heat proof container and place in the fridge to cool for at least 30 minutes. I like to wait till it’s nearly opaque and a soft spreadable consistency.

Note: You’ll only be using 110g of the browned butter. Unfortunately, each brick of butter is slightly different when it comes to how much it reduces during the browning process so we have to brown more butter than required. The good news is that the leftovers are delicious spread on toast!

Make The Cookie Batter:

1. In the bowl of a stand mixer, add 110g brown butter, 100g granulated sugar, 140g brown sugar and cream together on medium speed until fully combined. I use my Ankarsrum mixer, so I use the scraper and roller, but if you’re using a standard stand mixer, use the paddle attachment.
2. Add 170g creamy peanut butter, 100g sourdough discard, 5g vanilla paste, and 1 large egg. Mix on low speed until completely combined, then beat together on medium high speed until airy and creamy in color.
3. In a medium sized bowl, add 220g all purpose flour, 4g salt, 1/2 teaspoon baking powder, and 3/4 teaspoon of baking soda. Whisk together dry ingredients before adding to the wet ingredients.
4. Stir the flour into the peanut butter mixture on low speed until just combined and all flour is incorporated, making sure to scrape the sides of the bowl at least once. This only takes about 60 seconds.
5. Cover the bowl and rest at room temperature while preheating the oven to 350f degrees Fahrenheit.

Bake The Cookies:

1. Prepare a baking sheet by lining with parchment paper or a silicone baking liner, set aside. Add about 1/2 cup of decorative or granulated sugar to a saucer or shallow bowl.
2. Using a #40 cookie scooper (about 2 tablespoons) scoop cookie dough into your hands and roll gently to form into a ball – the dough is really soft and fluffy at this point.
3. Roll each ball into the sugar then place onto the prepared baking sheet spaced a couple of inches apart – I usually bake 12 cookie per baking sheet.
4. Bake at 350f for 12 -14 minutes, or until the edges are set and the bottoms are just barely golden brown.
5. Allow peanut butter sourdough cookies to cool on baking sheet for 4-5 minutes before transferring to a cooling rack.

Long Fermented Cookies

You’re a fan of a chewy cookie and who isn’t? Aging the dough in the fridge changes the texture in a delightful way – the whole cookie is chewier and the flavor is a little bit deeper. Here’s how to do it:

• scoop your cookie dough,
• form it into dough balls,
• roll them in sugar,
• then place in a covered container in the fridge for up to 36 hours
• place chilled cookie dough balls on parchment lined baking sheet while the oven preheats and bake as per the recipe

I personally prefer to long ferment my cookie dough for around 18 hours, especially if using active starter!

More Sweet Recipes

Batch + Storage Information

Batch:

This recipe makes about 26 (2+ dozen) cookies when using a #40 cookie scoop. If you're rolling balls by hand, this may be less accurate.

Storage:

Once baked, your sourdough peanut butter cookies can be kept in a cookie jar with a tight-fitting lid for up to 5 days.

If you don't want to bake all the cookies at once, you can scoop them all into cookie dough balls and place them on a parchment-lined cookie sheet. Pop the cookie sheet into the freezer for 2-3 hours, or until frozen completely, then transfer to a freezer ziplock bag. Frozen cookie balls will keep for 2-3 months in the freezer without any problem!

To bake frozen cookie balls, remove them from the freezer, place on a parchment lined baking sheet to thaw while preheating the oven to 350f, once the oven reaches temperature, bake for 14 minutes.

Recommended Equipment

Ankarsrum Mixer: I splurged on an Ankarsrum mixer almost 2 years ago, and I cannot even begin to describe how much I love this machine. If you’re someone who spends a lot of time in the kitchen, I would not hesitate to recommend this mixer.

Heavy Baking Sheet: I believe that one of the most important parts of baking a good cookie is a good baking sheet. Heavy trays heat more slowly helping to resist burning the bottoms of your cookies and they emit heat more evenly across their surface ensuring more even cooking.

📖 Printable Recipe