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Buckeye Cookies

These Slice and Bake Buckeye Cookies have a rich chocolate outside and a tender, melt-in-your-mouth peanut butter filling. They are a fantastic make ahead cookie that will please any chocolate peanut butter lover!

Cookies on a white plate on a white surface


 

I have so many delicious buckeye inspired desserts! You have to check out my Buckeye Brownie Bites that have a brownie baked in a muffin pan and a delicious peanut butter ball in the center or my Buckeye Thumbprint Cookies that are a chocolate thumbprint cookie with a peanut butter baked in it and a drizzle of peanut butter on top.

If you’re looking for the Original Buckeye Recipe, I have that too!

Buckeye Cookie Ingredients

This cookie has the basic cookie ingredients that you likely have in your pantry or can easily run to the grocery store to grab.

Butter - I used salted butter in my recipe, but you can use unsalted butter. You may need to bump the salt up to ½ teaspoon for each of the doughs if you’re using unsalted butter.

Peanut butter - I like the smoothness of the peanut butter filling with the creamy peanut butter, but you can definitely try the chunky peanut butter if you would like. Make sure the nuts aren’t creating air bubbles in the filling.

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Milk Chocolate Chips - Milk chocolate chips add a nice sweetness to the cookies. You can also use semi-sweet or dark chocolate chips if you would like.

Sugar - both granulated sugar and light brown sugar are needed.

Vanilla - Rodelle vanilla is my favorite extract to use!

Egg - Always check for the size of egg that was used because using a different size can add more or less liquid to the dough. I always stick with large eggs.

Cocoa Powder - You can use Hershey’s dark cocoa powder for a darker chocolate around the peanut butter or a regular unsweetened cocoa.

Flour - Use all-purpose flour. I always use King Arthur all-purpose flour.

Cornstarch - This helps create a softer chocolate cookie.

Salt - This helps balance out all of the sweetness in the cookie.

Overhead image of stacked buckeye cookies on a white plate on a white surface

How to make Slice and Bake Buckeye Cookies

Start by mixing the peanut butter dough and setting it aside.

To make the peanut butter cookie dough, beat the butter and peanut butter together until smooth.

Next you’ll mix in the vanilla, granulated sugar, and brown sugar.

Last Step is to beat in the flour and salt. Once it’s incorporated, set it aside. It’s okay that the dough is quite sticky.

Now you need to make the chocolate cookie dough.

Start by beating the melted chocolate chips that have been cooled with the butter until creamy. No lumps of butter should be in the mixture!

Beat in the granulated sugar and brown sugar until combined.

Add in the egg and vanilla extract. Beat until the egg is worked into the dough.

Add all of the dry ingredients into the mixture and beat just until everything is incorporated and a sticky chocolate dough comes together.

Roll the chocolate dough out into a rectangle between two pieces of parchment paper or wax paper. Try to keep the rectangle around 11x15 inches.

Scoop the peanut butter cookie dough down the center of the chocolate dough the long ways and form into a log shape.

PRO TIP: You can use the parchment paper or wax paper to help form the peanut butter dough since it’s so sticky.

Wrap the chocolate dough around the peanut butter cookie dough. Roll the dough back and forth to help smooth out the cookie dough and remove any air bubbles.

Place the cookie dough log in the fridge to firm up, preferably overnight.

Log of cookie dough on wax paper with a slice cut

Slice the cookies from the log to about ¼ inch thickness with a sharp knife.

Overhead photo of slices of cookies on a parchment lined cookie sheet

Place the cookies on a parchment lined cookie sheet about 2 inches apart. They will spread while they bake.

Once the cookies are baked, remove from the oven. Leave them on the hot cookie sheet for about 10 minutes before moving them over to a paper towel or wire rack to cool completely.

The centers will be very tender so don’t move them before the 10 minutes.

Stack of cookies on a white plate with a bite taken out of the top cookie

How to Store Buckeye Cookies

To get maximum freshness out of these buckeye cookies, store them in a storage bag or an airtight container at room temperature. They will last 5 days when stored properly.

Can I Freeze Buckeye Cookies

Yes! This is actually what some people call an icebox cookie and are perfect for freezing.

Once you roll the cookie dough up into a slice-and-bake log with the parchment paper, you can wrap the parchment paper log in two layers of heavy duty tin foil and throw in a freezer container. You can also chill until it’s firm and cut the log in half and place each half in a freezer bag.

The cookie dough will last up to 3 months in the freezer when stored properly.

To bake the cookies, remove them from the freezer, allow them to soften for about 5 to 10 minutes so they’re slightly easier to slice and slice them into ¼ inch thick slices.

Place them on a parchment lined cookie sheet and bake as directed.

To freeze baked buckeye cookies, bake them off and allow them to cool completely. Stack them in a freezer container and pop them in the freezer for up to 1 month.

To thaw, remove from the freezer and sit out at room temperature for 10 to 20 minutes.

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 This post was originally published November 19, 2013, but updated in December 2021 with recipe tweaks and additional information.

A white plate with two Buckeye Cookies on it.

Buckeye Cookies

These buckeye cookies are a perfect make ahead holiday cookie. They have a soft, creamy, peanut butter cookie inside and a crunchy, milk chocolate cookie shell. A perfect dessert to treat your family and friends.
5 from 1 vote
Prep Time 1 hour
Cook Time 15 minutes
Chill Time 8 hours
Total Time 9 hours 15 minutes
Course Dessert
Cuisine American
Servings 32 cookies
Calories 226 kcal

Ingredients
  

Peanut butter dough

  • ½ cup butter room temperature
  • 1 cup creamy peanut butter
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • ½ cup granulated sugar
  • ¼ cup light brown sugar packed
  • 1 ½ cups all-purpose flour
  • ¼ teaspoon salt

Chocolate dough

Instructions

Peanut Butter Dough

  • In a medium mixing bowl, add butter and peanut butter. Using a hand mixer on medium speed, beat until fully combined and creamy.
  • Add vanilla, light brown sugar, and granulated sugar to the peanut butter mixture. Beat until the sugars are incorporated.
  • Add in the flour and salt. Mix on low just until most of the flour is incorporated and then turn mixer to medium and beat until the flour is completely combined. The dough will be sticky. Set aside.

Chocolate Dough

  • In a microwave-safe bowl, add in the chocolate chips. Melt in the microwave in 30-second increments and stir after each increment until the chocolate is completely melted. Let cool for 10 minutes.
  • Add the butter to the melted chocolate. Beat with a hand mixer on medium until combined. If you have small lumps of butter, continue to beat until the mixture is smooth.
  • Add in the granulated sugar and light brown sugar. Beat until the sugar is incorporated.
  • Add in the egg and vanilla. Mix just until the egg is worked into the dough.
  • Add in the cocoa powder, flour, cornstarch, and salt. Beat on low just until most of the flour and cocoa powder is incorporated and then turn the mixer to medium. Beat just until the flour is worked in and a chocolate dough has formed. It will be sticky, but workable.

Assemble Buckeye Cookies

  • Place a piece of parchment paper on your counter. Scoop the chocolate dough out onto the parchment paper. Place a second piece of parchment paper on top of the dough. Roll the chocolates dough out into a 11x15 inch rectangle. You can trim the edges as you go and place it in spots that need to be more even.
  • Once the dough is rolled out into the rectangle, remove the top piece of parchment paper. Scoop the peanut butter dough out onto the chocolate dough stretching it the entire 15 inches. Form the peanut butter dough into a nice mound the entire length.
  • Starting from the 11 inch side, begin rolling the chocolate dough up around the peanut butter log using the parchment paper to move the dough. The log should be wrapped in the parchment paper at this point. Once the log is formed and the chocolate is completely wrapped around the peanut butter, roll the log back and fort
  • Once a log has formed, leave the parchment paper on it and roll the dough back and forth to smooth out the chocolate dough, to help remove any air bubbles in the peanut butter dough, and help attach the two doughs together.
  • Slide a cookie sheet under the dough log and place in the fridge to firm up, I recommend overnight. *see notes
  • Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper.
  • Remove the dough from the fridge and unwrap it. Using a sharp knife, cut the dough in ¼ inch thick slices.
  • Place the slices of cookie on the prepared cookie sheet about 2 inches apart.
  • Place in the preheated oven and bake for 14 to 15 minutes until the edges are set. You can check them by gently poking the edges of the cookie. They will hold its shape when the edges are set.
  • Remove from the oven and let cool on the cookie sheet for about 10 minutes before transferring to a cooling rack to cool completely.
  • Store in an airtight container at room temperature.

Notes

You can speed up the process of chilling the dough by wrapping the parchment wrapped dough log in foil and placing it in the freezer for at least 2 ½ hours to 3 hours. 

Nutrition

Calories: 226kcalCarbohydrates: 27gProtein: 4gFat: 12gSaturated Fat: 6gPolyunsaturated Fat: 1gMonounsaturated Fat: 4gTrans Fat: 1gCholesterol: 23mgSodium: 137mgPotassium: 85mgFiber: 1gSugar: 15gVitamin A: 218IUVitamin C: 1mgCalcium: 18mgIron: 1mg

(Nutrition facts are an estimate and not guaranteed to be accurate. Please see a registered dietitian for special diet advice.)

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15 Comments

  1. I love these cookies and am pinning to make. Mind you as a diehard Michigan fan I might call them something else. 😉

  2. Chocolate and peanut butter...where can you go wrong? I looove these. Definitely going to have to make a batch soon! 😀

    1. Exactly! You can't go wrong with chocolate and peanut butter. I know you'll love them when you make them! 😀

    1. haha! This is actually my first buckeye experience. I'll go out of my way to try anything to get my peanut butter fix.

  3. I have never tried a buckeye cookie, but your photos have me running to the pantry to check if I have what I need to make them. I have loved our theme this month and I look forward to having a freezer full of everyone's cookie dough to enjoy through the holiday season.

  4. Mmmm peanut butter, these cookies look amazing I'm always on the look out for a peanut butter cookie recipe I have tried a few and even created a few but have never truly captured the full flavour. I shall be giving these a go. I agree about the light fading with the season change, where I live the light starts to fade around 2pm-ish and I find I have to bake the night before just so I can try and capture an image in the morning and if its a dull day I have no luck I am now constantly watching the weather looking for a good bright morning! Oh well what us food bloggers must do 🙂

  5. Yum! Great job Miranda. Looks like your efforts turned into perfectly scrumptious cookies. Love treats with a soft / crunch contrast!

  6. Peanut butter and chocolate are a great combination. I know what you mean about the light (or lack of it) in the afternoons. I battled it all last winter and just gave in and purchased a Lowel Ego light-- I'm hoping for great photos all winter long!

    1. I've looked into those lights too! You'll have to let me know how your pictures turn out. I put it on my amazon wishlist for the husband to check out for Christmas. 😀

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