For those who love peanut butter (who’s not raising their hand?), get ready for a cookie evolution. Introducing cayenne pepper to the ever-popular peanut butter cookie will make your taste buds scream and shout. It’s earth and fire, sweet and spice, nutty and naughty all in one.
🌶️ Quick recipe snapshot
| Flavor profile | Nutty brown-sugar peanut butter with salty chopped peanuts, and a warm cayenne kick that shows up after the first bite. |
| Primary heat source | One teaspoon of cayenne pepper powder across the whole batch. 30,000 to 50,000 SHU. |
| Heat level | Mild to medium. The peanut butter comes first, and the warmth builds as you eat. |
| Texture | Classic fork-pressed cookies with lightly browned edges and bits of crunchy peanut throughout. |
| Best uses | The cookie jar, lunchboxes and holiday cookie trays, ideally with a cold glass of milk. |
| Customization ideas | Chipotle or ancho powder for a milder, smoky cookie, or habanero powder if you want it fierce. |
| Before you start | About 25 minutes, plus cooling time. Let the butter soften to room temperature first. |
Flavor notes
Cayenne runs 30,000 to 50,000 Scoville heat units, but a single teaspoon is spread across the whole batch. So each cookie tastes like a peanut butter cookie first, and then a gentle warmth builds at the back of your throat.
Use smooth natural peanut butter, and give the jar a good stir before you measure. The oil in natural peanut butter separates and rises to the top, and if you scoop from the top or the bottom you’ll end up with dough that’s too oily or too stiff.
Room-temperature butter is what lets it stir smoothly into the peanut butter in the first step. Cold butter stays in lumps, and those lumps don’t fully disappear once the sugar and flour go in.
The crisscross pattern isn’t only for looks. Pressing each ball with a fork flattens it so the cookies bake evenly. Dip the fork in a little flour between cookies, and it won’t stick to the dough.
Pull the cookies when the edges are lightly browned, right around 10 minutes. They’ll look soft in the middle, but they firm up as they cool on the rack, and if you wait for the centers to look done, they’ll bake up dry and crumbly.
Adaptation ideas
But cayenne pepper is only one direction you can turn. This is one versatile cookie when it comes to spicy seasonings, and the traditional peanut butter cookie is a great canvas to play with.
- Want it fiercer? Go to the extreme with habanero powder. It’s much hotter than cayenne, so start with a quarter teaspoon and taste the dough before adding more. It also adds some sweetness from the habanero’s naturally sweet flavor.
- Want it milder and smoky? Turn things down a notch or three with chipotle or ancho powder. Both add a hint of smoke, with chipotle a little hotter than ancho.
- Want more salty-sweet? Sprinkle a few flakes of sea salt on each cookie right after you press it with the fork.
- Want chocolate in the mix? Fold in half a cup of dark chocolate chips along with the chopped peanuts.
- Baking ahead? Freeze the rolled dough balls on a sheet, then bag them. Bake them straight from the freezer, adding a minute or two.
Serving ideas
They’re cookie jar cookies first, but they go a few other places, too.
- With a glass of milk. The classic pairing, and a good way to cool the cayenne.
- As ice cream sandwiches. Vanilla or chocolate ice cream between two cookies, frozen until firm.
- On a holiday cookie tray. As the one with a surprise kick.
- Crumbled over dessert. On ice cream, yogurt or a bowl of sliced bananas.
Storage notes
Let the cookies cool completely on the rack, then keep them in an airtight container at room temperature and eat them within about five days.
They freeze well, too. Freeze the baked cookies for up to three months, and let them thaw at room temperature before you serve them.
Like this recipe? You’ll love these too:
- Chipotle Chocolate Chip Cookies: The mix of earthy sweet chocolate and smoky chipotle is so good.
- Spicy Ginger Snap Cookies: An excellent fiery option for the holidays.
- Spiced Salted Caramel Sauce: Serve this over ice cream or even simply over sliced apples. Yum.
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Spicy Peanut Butter Cookies
Ingredients
- 1 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
- 1 1/4 cup natural peanut butter smooth not chunky
- 1 1/4 cup light brown sugar packed
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter room temperature
- 1/2 cup salted peanuts chopped
- 1 large egg
- 3 tablespoons milk
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper powder
- 3/4 teaspoon fine sea salt
- 3/4 teaspoon baking soda
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit and line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
- In a mixing bowl, combine the softened butter and peanut butter. Stir well until smooth.
- Add the egg, light brown sugar, cayenne pepper, vanilla, and milk. Stir to combine.
- Separately combine the all-purpose flour, sea salt, and baking soda. Then pour the flour mix into the peanut butter mix. Stir until fully combined.
- Add the chopped salted peanuts to the peanut butter mix. Stir to combine.
- Roll the dough into balls (about 2 tablespoons of dough per ball), then place the cookie dough balls onto the parchment lined baking sheets. The dough balls should be approximately two inches apart.
- Using a fork to create a crisscross pattern, flatten the tops of the cookies. Slightly coat the fork with flour each time to keep the dough from sticking to the fork.
- Put the baking sheets in the oven and bake the cookies for 10 minutes (the cookie edges should be lightly brown).
- Remove the cookies from the oven and transfer them to a wire rack to allow them to cool.
Hi! Planning on trying this, but I don’t see a yield anywhere? I’m assuming 24, cause that’s what most recipes come out to. I prefer to measure out my dough, so it would be great if I could be sure! Recipe looks great, can’t wait to try!