Hershey Kiss Blossom Cookies Recipe

It’s pretty much not even Christmas without Peanut Butter Blossoms, right? I’ve updated this classic recipe (a peanut butter cookie topped with a Hershey’s Kiss) to make these cookies THE BEST. They are super peanut buttery and soft! The dough does not require chilling, so they are quick and easy to make.

So here we are guys, halfway through December, how are we holding up?? Have you lost your ever loving mind yet? Has your to-do list grown actual arms, the better to strangle you with??

I was just telling my best friend Sarah the other day how ironic it is that everybody and their mom gets Christmas day off from work, but not actual Moms. Christmas is not even

Best Chocolate Kiss Cookies (peanut Butter Blossoms)

To a day off for mom’s, are you kidding me? It’s like April 15 for an accountant. The SuperBowl for an NFL player. Walmart on Black Friday. THIS IS OUR MOMENT, the pivotal day that decides whether you are mom enough.

But it doesn’t start Christmas day, oh no. We work up to this glorious “day off” for months. (How many of you moms started collecting stocking stuffers way back in August? *Raises hand*)

Is the house decorated? Has Elfie kept moving, or has he been in the same position for a week and a half? (guilty.) Is the Christmas breakfast glorious beyond all description? Did you put all the right items into the right stockings? Does one kid accidentally not have enough presents because you suck at spreadsheets?? All the things!!

Easter Blossom Cookies

I went to a cute little dinner put on for the ladies at my church, and the theme was Simple Christmas. We learned about how we should be putting our attention toward What Really Matters. We should be focusing on

I mean for sure, Jesus is the reason and all that, but honestly YOU try sitting your 5-year-old down and explaining that Santa’s not coming this year because we’re trying to “Be Peaceful” and “Stress Less.” I know shopping and decorating and baking gets to be kind of a lot, but can we all just think for a second about what would happen if all the Moms went zen about Christmas? My kids would revolt, 100%. We’d have World War III on our hands. How’s that for “being peaceful”??

Honestly though I wouldn’t change a thing. Bring on the joyful stress. I’m sure an NFL player is a nervous wreck on the morning of the super bowl, and that accountant is just so tired on tax day, but the payout is all worth it right? I mean a successful Christmas really does feel like winning the mom SuperBowl, right??

Hershey Blossom Cookies

Let me tell you one cookie that MUST be on your tray if you want a Mom SuperBowl Christmas. Peanut Butter Blossoms are ICONIC. Seriously if you’ve never heard of these cookies you must live under a rock. They are everybody’s favorite! Today I’m giving you all the tips and tricks you need to make the most gorgeous, sparkly, moist and tender Peanut Butter Blossoms. They are super soft and don’t fall apart on you. The secret is MORE PEANUT BUTTER! MORE COWBELL! But first:

Okay so this is the cutest story. Back in the 50s a lady named Freda Gibsonburg was making peanut butter cookies one time and wanted to add chocolate chips but she was all out (story of my life, Freda.) So instead of the chips she topped each peanut butter cookie with an entire Hershey’s kiss. I seriously love that one of the most famous cookie recipes of all time stemmed from a kitchen emergency!! I mean, right??

She called them “Black Eyed Susans” and entered them into the 1957 Pillsbury Bake-Off contest, where she won third place. Pillsbury kept publishing the recipe, changing the name to Peanut Butter Blossoms, and it’s become one of the most famous cookies ever! I mean who hasn’t made and loved these?? We seriously owe you one Freda.

S'mores Hershey Kiss Blossom Cookies

PS, I was curious what recipe beat out pb blossoms in 1957, and they are these totally boring looking cookies called “Accordion Treats” that neither you nor I have ever heard of. Come on judges, what were you thinking?? Freda ftw!!!

Freda started the fire, but we’re gonna keep it burning guys. This ain’t no boring dried out hockey puck peanut butter cookie, it’s the BEST, based on this recipe for the Softest Peanut Butter Cookie of Your Life. I’ll give you all the details below, but here are some quick tips to help you achieve Peanut Butter Blossom nirvana:

Peanut Butter Blossoms are blissfully simple! Other than the Hershey Kisses, you probably already have everything you need in your pantry. Quantities are listed in the recipe card below, but here’s a quick rundown of what you need:

Shortbread Blossoms {easy Holiday Cookie Recipe}

No, don’t even think about it! We need the extra oil that’s in regular peanut butter like Jif or Skippy! Natural peanut butter isn’t as smooth and creamy. It will make your cookies crumbly and dry.

First things first: tossing your whole bag of Hershey’s Kisses into the freezer so they’re super cold when it’s time to press them into the cookies after baking is ESSENTIAL. If you skip this step, your kisses might fall right off once they are cooled, which is super frustrating!

Now it’s time to mix together the dough. Beat the butter with sugars before adding pb, to make it nice and fluffy and avoid chunks.

Hershey Kiss Sugar Cookies No Peanut Butter

Next add a FULL CUP of peanut butter. Yes I said a whole cup! There is twice as much peanut butter than butter in this recipe. And make sure it’s name brand. It really does make a huge difference.

Add all your dry ingredients at the same time! Flour first, then I like to use my teaspoon to mix the salt and baking soda into the flour a bit before starting the mixer again.

Once you’ve got it all together (here’s what the final dough looks like), throw it in the fridge for a quick 15 minute chill.

Best Peanut Butter Blossoms {hershey Kiss Cookies}

I like to shape these cookies into about 1 inch balls. I think technically this scoop is a 1 and 1/4 inch, but 1 inch is even better. You can also just use your hands. Make them about the size of a walnut.

Give ‘em a good roll in some sugar. You want them well dusted to leave that crunchy sugar coating when you bite into them!

A few minutes before the timer goes off, go ahead and get the kisses out of the freezer and start unwrapping them so they’ll be ready once the cookies come out.

Peanut Butter Blossoms {classic}

You can see that these cookies stay a little bit puffy and don’t spread out much. That’s perfect, because we’re now going to press that kiss into the center of the cookies while they are still hot.

Can you see that the frozen kiss is sweatin’ a bit? That’s because it’s a frozen piece of chocolate going onto a hot hot cookie. This condensation is totally normal and will go away once the kiss melts completely. After it melts completely it will maintain its shape (as long as you don’t touch it!) and harden into perfect kiss shape.

But right now it’s time to eat one of these while they are hot. With a glass of milk. You should sit down first. This level of melty peanut butter and chocolate is no joke.

Easy Peanut Butter Blossoms Recipe

Peanut Butter Blossoms should be baked for about 8-10 minutes. The cookies are done baking when the edges are set. You can check by tapping the edge with your finger. The center should be matte, not shiny. These cookies do not spread much – they will be plump little mounds.

Most recipes call for too much flour and not enough peanut butter, which makes them less flavorful AND dry and crumbly. This recipe has MEGA peanut butter, so you will definitely not have this problem! They are based on my recipe for the Best, Softest Peanut Butter Cookies of Your Life, and I stand by that title!

– If the crumbles are dry, it may be the cookies were over baked, have too much flour in them (didn’t spoon and level), or you skimped on the peanut butter by using not enough, a cheap brand, or using natural peanut butter.

Best Peanut Butter Blossoms Ever

– Other common culprits are using a cheap (thin) baking sheet, overworking the dough (making it tough and more likely to crumble), or using an oven that runs hot.

Hershey kisses are definitely the traditional topping for peanut butter blossoms. But you can totally take inspiration from Freda herself and sub with whatever you have on hand! Try with all the various types of kisses: dark chocolate, caramel-filled, hugs, with almonds, etc. They always have great holiday flavors that are fun to experiment with. You could also add Hershey’s bar squares, mini Reese’s cups, Rolos, or basically any chocolate candy!

Another variation to try is to use different colored sugars to roll the dough in. This is especially fun around the holidays. Try red and green for Christmas, orange and purple for Halloween, pastels for Easter, or even red, white and blue for 4th of July!

Hershey Kiss Cookies (peanut Butter Blossoms)