Air Fryer Soft Peanut Butter Cookies

These air fryer soft peanut butter cookies are one of my favorite things to make when I want something sweet without a lot of effort.

They come out perfectly soft in the middle with lightly crisp edges. And they only take about 8 minutes to cook in the air fryer.

The dough is simple to put together with basic ingredients you probably already have at home. Nothing fancy, nothing hard to find.

If you love peanut butter, you are going to really enjoy these. The peanut butter flavor comes through in every bite without being too heavy.

I have made these dozens of times and they always turn out great. Let me show you how to make them.

Why You’ll Love This Recipe

Ready in Under 15 Minutes – From mixing the dough to pulling warm cookies out of the air fryer, you can have fresh peanut butter cookies in about 15 minutes, which is way faster than heating up a full-size oven.

Perfectly Soft and Chewy – The combo of creamy peanut butter, brown sugar, and a slightly underdone center means these cookies stay incredibly soft and chewy instead of turning out dry and crunchy like so many peanut butter cookies do.

Simple Pantry Ingredients – You only need basic stuff like peanut butter, flour, sugar, butter, and an egg, so there is a really good chance you already have everything you need to make these right now.

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup Creamy Peanut Butter
• 1/4 cup Unsalted Butter, softened
• 1/3 cup Granulated Sugar
• 1/3 cup Packed Brown Sugar
• 1 large Egg
• 1 tsp Vanilla Extract
• 1 1/4 cups All-Purpose Flour
• 1/2 tsp Baking Soda
• 1/4 tsp Salt

How to Make

Step 1

In a large bowl, beat the peanut butter and softened butter together until smooth and creamy, about 1 minute.

Step 2

Add the granulated sugar and brown sugar and beat until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Mix in the egg and vanilla extract until well combined.

Step 3

In a separate bowl, whisk together the all-purpose flour, baking soda, and salt. Add the dry ingredients to the wet mixture and stir until just combined into a soft dough.

Step 4

Scoop tablespoon-sized balls of dough and roll them between your hands. Press each ball gently with the back of a fork in a criss-cross pattern to flatten slightly.

Step 5

Place the cookies in the air fryer basket in a single layer, leaving about 1 inch of space between each cookie. You will need to work in batches.

Step 6

Air fry at 325°F (165°C) for 7-8 minutes, until the edges are set but the centers still look slightly soft and underdone.

Step 7

Let the cookies cool in the basket for 3 minutes before carefully transferring them to a wire rack to cool completely. They will firm up as they cool.

Tips

Soften Your Butter the Right Way

Your butter needs to be truly softened before you start, not melted and not still cold. Leave it on the counter for about 30-45 minutes before you begin. It should be easy to press your finger into it and leave a dent, but it shouldn’t be greasy or squishy.

If your butter is too cold, it won’t blend smoothly with the peanut butter and you’ll end up with a lumpy mixture. If it’s melted, the dough will be too loose and your cookies will spread out way too much in the air fryer and turn flat and greasy.

If you forgot to take it out ahead of time, cut it into small cubes and let it sit for about 15 minutes. That speeds things up without needing to microwave it.

Don’t Overmix the Dough

When you add the flour, baking soda, and salt to the wet ingredients, stir just until everything comes together into a soft dough. You should stop as soon as you don’t see any dry flour streaks left.

If you keep mixing past that point, you activate too much gluten in the flour and that makes the cookies tough and dense instead of soft and tender. This is the number one reason people end up with hard peanut butter cookies.

A spatula or wooden spoon works better than an electric mixer for this step. It gives you more control so you can stop right when the dough is ready.

Give Your Cookies Enough Space

Leave at least 1 inch of space between each cookie in the air fryer basket. The air fryer works by circulating hot air around the food, and if the cookies are too close together they won’t cook evenly. The edges touching each other will also cause them to merge into one big cookie blob.

Depending on the size of your air fryer, you’ll probably fit about 4-6 cookies per batch. Don’t try to cram more in just to save time because it’s not worth it.

Also, try to keep the cookies toward the center of the basket if possible. Cookies placed right at the edges tend to brown faster because they’re closer to the heating element.

Related Recipes

• Air Fryer Brown Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies
• Air Fryer Chocolate Chip Cookie Cups
• Air Fryer Peanut Butter Cup Brownies
• Air Fryer Pecan Pie Bites
• Air Fryer Salted Caramel Brownie Bites

Frequently Asked Questions

Do I need to preheat the air fryer before baking these cookies?

Yes, it’s a good idea to preheat your air fryer at 325°F for about 2-3 minutes before putting the cookies in. This helps the cookies bake more evenly and gives you consistent results from the first batch to the last.

If you skip preheating, your first batch might take a minute or two longer than expected, and the texture could end up slightly different from later batches.