Fun & Festive Peanut Butter Cup Cookies and Other Treats

Peanut butter cups often top lists of popular types of candy, especially at Halloween. In addition to being delicious just as they are, they are also consumed as part of many other preparations, like the frozen custard treats at your local Freddy’s, and throughout the year. In fact, peanut butter cup cookies in particular are a celebrated choice for many festive occasions and because they are just so yummy! Peanut butter cup fans may have the following questions about these cookies and other treats:

● What types of peanut butter cup cookies can I make?

● What are some decorating tips for peanut butter cup cookies for different occasions?

● What are some other treats that can incorporate peanut butter cups?

Keep reading to learn more about making different types of peanut butter cup cookies, decorating tips for these sweets, and frozen custard creations with peanut butter cups to try at Freddy’s!

6 Different Ways to Make Peanut Butter Cup Cookies

Whether you make homemade peanut butter cups as per this recipe from Cookie and Kate or generally have a package of your favorites on hand, these yummy peanut butter and chocolate bites are quick to be consumed as soon as they are available. However, incorporating them into various cookie forms can make them even more scrumptiously irresistible! Below, explore 6 different options for making peanut butter cup cookies, as well as some recipes for each one.

Cookie Cups: For this style of peanut butter cup cookies, the cookie component becomes a cup for the peanut butter cup through the use of a mini (or sometimes standard) muffin tin, as in this recipe from Allrecipes. One frequent tip for making this type of peanut butter cup cookie is to freeze the peanut butter cups in advance, which helps make it easier to push them into the cookie cup. In addition to the familiar chocolate-coated bites with the peanut butter centers, you might also experiment with specialty types of peanut butter cups, such as the ones with strawberry or grape jelly or caramel made by REESE’S. For an alternate baked outer cup, this recipe (also from Allrecipes) encases the peanut butter cups in rich chocolate brownie cups instead of ones made from cookie dough. With just 5 ingredients including prepared brownie mix and a 3-step process, the hardest part of making these treats will likely be waiting for them to finish cooking.

Stuffed Cookies: The peanut butter cup cookies at Sugar Spun Run don’t use mini peanut butter cups or chunks. Instead, a peanut butter and chocolate chip cookie dough wraps around the entirety of a regular-sized peanut butter cup. For large cookies that are packed with chocolate and peanut butter flavor, these cookies may be just the wow-worthy treat you’ve been looking for!

Cookie Bars: Move over chocolate chips, the cookie bars from Inquiring Chef have peanut butter cups in them! These bars also use peanut butter cookie dough. So, if you like extra peanut butter flavor and the ease of this type of cookie preparation, you may want to try this recipe out. For a treat that includes cookies, your favorite candy and brownies too, check out these bars from Pillsbury in which a layer of peanut butter cups is placed between one of cookie dough and one of brownie batter!

Cookie Sandwiches: In addition to peanut butter cup cookies in cup or bar form, Life, Love and Sugar shares a recipe for making peanut butter cup cookie sandwiches. For these treats, chewy chocolate cookies with chopped peanut butter cups form the sandwich layers, and peanut butter cream cheese icing serves as the sandwich filling. One recipe commentator noted sweet success in swapping ice cream for the provided frosting. If you want to really turn up the peanut butter cup prominence in trying this suggestion, you might want to make your own peanut butter cup ice cream. This recipe from Allrecipes explains how!

More Peanut Butter: In this recipe from Brown Eyed Baker, a mini muffin pan is again used to make cookie cups for the chocolate candy bites. Here, the cookie dough is a peanut butter cookie dough, which further enhances the peanut butter flavor in this treat! Similarly, in the cookie bars from Crazy for Crust, peanut butter filling and peanut butter cups serve as the middle layer between two layers of chocolate chip cookie dough. If you are looking for a gooey, chocolatey, peanut buttery mouthful, these bars might be right for you.

More Chocolate: Chocolate lovers in particular may like the approach to peanut butter cup cookies shared at Love from the Oven. In addition to mini peanut butter cups or chopped peanut butter cups, these cookies feature a chocolate cookie base into which chocolate chips and the peanut butter cup pieces are incorporated. In this recipe from Smitten Kitchen, the cookie is the peanut butter cup. So, there are no actual peanut butter cups in this cookie. Instead, a soft chocolate cookie dough is prepared and then wrapped around peanut butter filling. Once you take a bite into these cookies, you may see the familiar chocolate outline around the peanut butter but in a much fluffier form.

Looking for even more ways to use peanut butter cups in various desserts? Beyond incorporating them into ice cream or frozen custard, as we do at Freddy’s, peanut butter cups often appear in other cold desserts like frozen pie and cheesecake, as well as warmer preparations such as cakes and cupcakes. As shared in this recipe guide, you might also try a fried preparation or using them in layered desserts. Whether making peanut butter cup cookies or any other peanut butter cup treat, the challenge of using peanut butter cups in recipes is trying to keep them around long enough to do so!

Decorating Ideas for Peanut Butter Cup Cookies

Peanut butter cup cookies are a popular choice for both everyday enjoyment and special occasions. Helpfully, there are many quick recipes for these cookies. Additionally, many preparations can be frozen for later consumption, as often highlighted in the recipe notes. To bring a little extra boost to a busy week or for various holidays and other celebrations, here are some decorating ideas you might use to further enhance your peanut butter cup cookies!

Chopped Nuts: In the cup approach to peanut butter cup cookies at Food Network, the final presentation is further enhanced by a little extra sugar around the cookie border and the placement of chopped peanuts on the melty chocolate center. Although subtle enough for extra flair appropriate to any season or occasion, the little sugar crystals may also give a snowy look to these cookies, which may be a nice touch for winter events.

Sprinkles and Other Designs: Inside BruCrew Life offers a number of seasonal sprinkle customizations for the provided peanut butter cup cookie recipe. There is also a note about using white chocolate peanut butter cups for winter season designs. To ensure that the sprinkles or any other edible decor adheres to the cookies, this recipe and others recommend letting the chocolate on the peanut butter cup melt a bit prior to putting on these finishing touches. Taste of Home also illustrates how specialty decor like candy eyes and a little extra chocolate can be used to make peanut butter cups into not-so-spooky spiders.

Seasonal Peanut Butter Cups: During holiday seasons, peanut butter cups are sometimes offered in shapes like hearts, eggs or trees. Taste Better From Scratch™ illustrates how to create cookies using heart-shaped peanut butter cups. If you can’t find these cups but want to create a similar look to your cookies, Design Eat Repeat uses heart-shaped sprinkles for the cookies. Munchies by Mallory puts peanut butter cup eggs on a peanut butter cookie base, while also noting that a similar approach could be used with the tree-shaped peanut butter cups. For another springtime design, colorful M&M’s® can become bunnies on top of white chocolate peanut butter cups, as explained at Gluesticks Blog.

Transformation: These peanut butter cup cookies from Taste of Home show what’s possible with creativity and a few ingredients, including cookies and peanut butter cups. If you’ve got an upcoming graduation to celebrate, these little peanut butter cup cookies are a no-bake preparation that results in edible graduation hats! In addition to the available seasonal peanut butter cups or sprinkles, you can also use other ingredients to create festive peanut butter cup cookies. At Semi Homemade Kitchen, pretzels and other candies are used to create peanut butter cup cookies with reindeer faces.

Frequently Asked Questions about Peanut Butter Cup Cookies

Are peanut butter cup cookies easy to make?

They absolutely can be! Using premade cookie dough is one way to simplify the process. In addition to the preparation and cooking times, the type of peanut butter cup cookies that you plan to make may also impact the length of the ingredient list.

Can these cookies be made ahead of time?

There are many different peanut butter cup cookie recipes to choose from. In some of these recipes, you may find notes about making the dough ahead of time or even how to freeze it for later use. Also, freezing the completed cookies for future enjoyment may be suitable for some types of peanut butter cup cookies.

Do these cookies travel well?

As with any cookies, they need to be packaged correctly, and weather conditions need consideration. For example, the cup-style peanut butter cup cookies are generally a sturdy choice but will melt if sent during hotter weather. Including extra padding, not just sending a plastic bag of cookies, may further help reduce breakage during transit. UPS provides additional guidance and tips for shipping cookies.

Peanut Butter Cup Frozen Custard Treats at Freddy’s

Our current list of toppings may not include any of the peanut butter cup cookies and other goodies above. Fortunately, it does include various cookie components and other baked goods, as well as the chocolate and peanut butter magic of REESE’S Peanut Butter Cups. If you are looking for a mouthwatering peanut butter cup and frozen custard treat, here are three popular options to try on the Freddy’s menu:

Peanut Butter Bananza: To add a little lightness to the richness of chocolate, peanut butter and frozen custard, the Peanut Butter Bananza combines fresh banana pieces with chopped REESE’S Peanut Butter Cups and frozen vanilla custard. For another fresh and fruity variation, swap out the banana in this dish for strawberries to echo another classic peanut butter pairing.

REESE’S Royale: Peanut butter fans can enjoy both REESE’S Peanut Butter Cups and Peanut Butter Sauce in this tasty treat. Vanilla frozen custard, whipped cream and a cherry on top are also standard in the preparation of the REESE’S Royale. However, Freddy’s guests are always welcome to customize their dishes to order, whether that means choosing a different frozen custard, omitting the whipped cream or adding a cookie component to this treat!

Create Your Own: As you may already know, there are many ways to customize your frozen custard treat at Freddy’s. From the type of treat to the toppings, it’s easy to create the frozen custard treat you are craving on any given day. If you have peanut butter cups and cookies on your mind, consider choosing cookie dough or chopped OREO® cookies for your sundae, shake or concrete, as well as REESE’S Peanut Butter Cups and peanut butter sauce.

Homemade peanut butter cup cookies are sure to be a crowd-pleaser, whether you serve them at a holiday party, send them in a care package or make them just because. When you are looking to enjoy frozen custard treats with peanut butter cups, cookies and more, just find a Freddy’s near you! Then, the team at Freddy's will carefully prepare your treat and ensure that it is ready for carry-out, delivery or dine-in. Make sure you have the Freddy’s app for easy ordering, reordering and tracking the points you are earning, once you are a Freddy’s Rewards participant!