This Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookie Cake is just a giant format cookie decorated with a chocolate peanut butter buttercream frosting and a smattering of cheerful candy. With a caramelized, crispy edge and a soft, almost gooey interior, this salty-sweet masterpiece is the stuff of dreams.
While I'm a devoted fan of most desserts, I don't love cake. I'd much rather down a bowl of ice cream, a slice of pie or a plateful of cookies than eat regular birthday cake. Weird? Maybe. But I know I'm not alone. This recipe has all the tasty goodness of a cookie, but can handle all the candles and frosting you could possibly want to pile on a celebratory dessert. Problem = solved.
Table of Contents
About This Recipe
Okay, okay. I know I've been on a big dessert kick lately, what with my Peach Crumble Pie and Berry Yogurt Pie. And I know I'm supposed to be offering up recipes that are inexpensive, tasty and HEALTHY to boot. But you know what? Dessert deserves a spot on the table occasionally, even if it hasn't been health-ified. (Plus, a lot of my favorite people were born in July and birthdays call for desserts.)
While this peanut butter chocolate chip cookie cake is decidedly not a diet food, it is incredibly tasty with a lovely balance of salty-sweet (but not too sweet), crispy-chewy yumminess. It is also made with easy to pronounce ingredients, many of which you probably already have on hand.
NOTE: Trying to avoid processed foods? Try making the cake without the candy pieces. Dark chocolate chips have some redeeming health qualities, and are less likely to have a bunch of hydrogenated fats or HFCS than candy. Roasted peanuts offer a pretty color contrast to the chocolate, as well as a nice little dose of protein.
Plus, making your own cookie cake can save you upwards of $30 over purchasing one from one of those mall cookie stores! That right there is nothing to sniff at, if you ask me.
As if that weren't enough reason to try this cookie cake for your next celebration, I should also note that since you're making one GIANT cookie, there's much less fuss than scooping out dozens of individual cookies. Just press the dough into a cake pan and you're good to go!
How to Make Cookie Cake
Making a cookie cake is a heck of a lot like making regular cookies. Here's how it's done.
1 - Ingredients & Prep
First, let's get our ingredients ready. Here's everything you'll need:
Preheat the oven to 350F. Grease a 9" cake pan with non-stick spray, then line the bottom with a round of parchment. Set aside.
2 - Cookie Base
Next, we'll make the cookie dough. Start by creaming the butter, peanut butter and sugars together until light and fluffy. Don't rush this step! The sugars create pockets of air in the butter for a lighter texture and finer crumb.
Add the eggs and vanilla, scraping down the sides. Mix until incorporated.
Add the dry ingredients in stages, mixing until just uniform.
Using a spatula or wooden spoon, mix in about ¾ of the chocolate chips, nuts and candy.
Put the dough into your prepared pan, smoothing the top down using your hands, the back of a spoon or the flat bottom of a drinking glass.
Sprinkle the remaining chips/nuts/candy across the top, then pop the tin into the preheated oven. Bake for 23-25 minutes, or until golden brown with the center mostly set.
Remove the cookie cake to a cooling rack. Allow to cool for about 15 minutes before removing from the tin. Cool to room temperature before attempting to frost.
3 - Chocolate Peanut Butter Frosting
While the cookie cake cools, you can make the buttercream frosting. Grab your ingredients:
Start adding butter and peanut butter to a mixing bowl. Sift in the cacao and powdered sugar to prevent lumps. Add the salt and vanilla. Mix to combine, continuing to beat after scraping down the sides.
Working about a tablespoon at a time, add the milk to the frosting until you reach the right consistency. It should hold its shape, but be thin enough to pipe.
4 - Assembly
Once the giant cookie cake has cooled, you're ready to decorate. Grab any decorating tip that you like - I reached for my trusty star tip.
NOTE: Don't have piping bags on hand? Simply snip the corner off of a disposable zip top bag!
Feel free to get as wild and crazy with the design as you like. I opted for simple rosettes around the edge and a larger one in the center because my piping skills are still pretty rudimentary.
Use chocolate chips, peanut butter chips, roasted peanuts, and/or peanut butter candies to finish the decoration/cover any mistakes.
Serve
When you're ready, slice your giant cookie into wedges like a cake. Serve alone, or with a scoop of ice cream if you're feeling extra indulgent. Enjoy!!
Optional Variations
I adapted this recipe from Baker by Nature, with a few tweaks to make it my own. While baking is more of a precise science than cooking, there are still plenty of ways to customize this cookie cake recipe to fit your lifestyle. Here are some ideas to get you started:
- Swap in a different nut or seed butter in place of the the peanut butter.
- Make it vegan by using plant-based butter/milk and vegan candies/chocolate. Use flax eggs or aquafaba in place of the eggs.
- Trade gluten free all purpose flour mix for the AP flour.
- Use different mix-ins. Opt for different candy bars, use milk or white chocolate instead of dark, use honey roasted nuts for a bit of added sweetness, use dried fruit, or swirl in some jam for a take on PB&J. If you go the PB&J flavor-route, I recommend dried strawberry, raspberry or banana chips, or a strawberry, raspberry or grape jelly. YUM.
- Use powdered peanut butter in place of the cacao for a double peanut butter buttercream.
If you come up with any winning combos that I should know about, holler at me in the comments below!
Frequently Asked Questions
You can go with either natural peanut butter (my preference) or commercial peanut butter like Skippy or Jif. Whichever you opt for, I recommend using smooth peanut butter.
Absolutely! Grab vegan butter and plant-based milk to replace the dairy. Use either 6 tablespoons of aquafaba or 2 flax eggs (2 tablespoon ground flax + 6 tablespoon water) to replace the eggs.
Sure! This recipe works just as well with an all purpose gluten free flour mix. This is the one I use.
Generally speaking, cookies taste better when they are fresh. That said, you can easily make and decorate this cookie cake a day or two ahead of time. It should last for up to 5 days at room temperature.
You can also make the cookie cake and freeze it prior to decorating. It will keep for up to three months in the freezer. Defrost, decorate and enjoy!
More Dessert Ideas
If you tried this easy recipe for my Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookie Cake with Chocolate Peanut Butter Buttercream, please be sure to rate and review it below!
If you'd like more recipe ideas delivered straight to your inbox, sign up for my email newsletter. You'll also get my FREE Grocery Guide as a bonus! You can also follow my kitchen capers on Instagram, Pinterest, Facebook or YouTube.
Chocolate Peanut Butter Cookie Cake
Equipment
- Piping Tip & Bag (Optional)
Ingredients
Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookie Cake
- ½ C Butter room temperature, or sub vegan butter
- ¼ C Creamy Peanut Butter
- ¾ C Brown Sugar
- ¼ C Sugar
- 2 Eggs , or sub 6 tablespoon aquafaba or 2 flax eggs
- 1 teaspoon Vanilla Extract
- 1 ¾ C AP Flour , or sub gluten free
- 1 teaspoon Baking Powder
- 1 teaspoon Salt
- ½ C Semisweet Chocolate Chips
- ½ C Peanut Butter Chips
- ½ C Roasted Peanuts
- ½ C Reeses Pieces
Chocolate Peanut Butter Buttercream Frosting
- ⅓ C Butter room temperature, or sub vegan butter
- ⅓ C Peanut Butter
- ⅓ C Cacao , or sub cocoa powder or peanut butter powder
- 1 ½ teaspoon Vanilla Extract
- 1 tablespoon Powdered Sugar
- ½ teaspoon Salt
- 4-5 tablespoon Milk of Choice
Optional Decorations
- Miniature Reese's Cups
- Reese's Pieces
- Chocolate Chips
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350F. Grease a 9" cake pan with non-stick spray, then line the bottom with a round of parchment. Set aside.
- Start by creaming the butter, peanut butter and sugars together until light and fluffy. Don't rush this step! The sugars create pockets of air in the butter for a lighter texture and finer crumb.Add the eggs and vanilla, scraping down the sides. Mix until incorporated.Add the dry ingredients in stages, mixing until just uniform. Using a spatula or wooden spoon, mix in about ¾ of the chocolate chips, nuts and candy.
- Put the dough into your prepared pan, smoothing the top down using your hands, the back of a spoon or the flat bottom of a drinking glass. Sprinkle the remaining chips/nuts/candy across the top, then pop the tin into the preheated oven. Bake for 23-25 minutes, or until golden brown with the center mostly set.Remove the cookie cake to a cooling rack. Allow to cool for about 15 minutes before removing from the tin. Cool to room temperature before attempting to frost.
- Start by beating the butter and peanut butter together until light and fluffy. Sift in the cacao and powdered sugar to prevent lumps. Add the salt and vanilla. Mix to combine.Working about a tablespoon at a time, add the milk to the frosting until you reach the right consistency. It should hold its shape, but be thin enough to pipe.
- Feel free to get as wild and crazy with the design as you like. I opted for simple rosettes around the edge and a larger one in the center because my piping skills are still pretty rudimentary. Use chocolate chips, peanut butter chips, roasted peanuts, and/or peanut butter candies to finish the decoration/cover any mistakes.
- Slice into wedges and enjoy!
Notes
- Don't have piping bags on hand? Simply snip the corner off of a disposable zip top bag!
- Feel free to swap in any other nut or seed butter that you prefer.
- Trying to avoid processed foods? Try making the cake without the candy pieces. Dark chocolate chips have some redeeming health qualities, and are less likely to have a bunch of hydrogenated fats or HFCS than candy. Roasted peanuts offer a pretty color contrast to the chocolate, as well as a nice little dose of protein.
Let's taco 'bout it.