Peanut Butter Cookies Sourdough Recipe

Peanut Butter Cookies are a delicious twist on an old American Favorite cookie. Including sourdough starter adds a deeper flavor with a bit of tang. 

Sourdough Peanut Butter cookies are easy to make and provide a great way to use up sourdough discard. These cookies combine tangy sourdough starter with the sweet taste of peanut butter cookies.

You can add chocolate chips to these cookies for a third flavor profile. Sourdough cookies are easy to make. Swap out ingredients for dietary needs and taste preference.

Should the starter be fed or unfed for discard cookies?

When you feed sourdough it goes through stages. So does the discard. Always check and see if your recipe requires an inactive or active starter for best results. These cookies have the advantage of using starter fed or unfed.

Are Sourdough Cookies better for you?

Sourdough can be digested easier than plain white wheat flour. Many people believe that sourdough baked goods and breads are healthier than white wheat products. Sourdough is nutrient rich and can ease digestion and absorption of certain nutrients. The Lactic Acid that is present in sourdough helps aid in the breakdown of bacteria. Here is a great article on health pros and cons of sourdough.

The health benefits of sourdough is a vast subject. There are new studies being done all the time and new research on gut health. Sourdough can be beneficial to some individuals and detrimental to others.

Is Levain the same as Sourdough?

Levain is a subset of sourdough. Levain is a French term meaning leaven or yeast. It refers to the active culture of yeasts used in baking, such as bread dough, sourdough starter, and beers. Levain (pronounced luhv-YAN) is French for “dough.” It is a starter or sourdough culture used with bread baking. Yeast cultures are made up of live organisms that start fermenting dough, causing it to rise. A leavened loaf of bread contains yeast cells; they help make bread rise.

What can I do with Discarded Sourdough Starter?

Sourdough discard is the leftover starter that remains after feeding the starter. Discard is inevitable when it comes to sourdough baking. You can either give the discard to others as a sourdough starter, or bake with it. Here are a few of our favorite options to use up sourdough discard:

1. Sourdough Waffles
2. Sourdough Pancakes
3. Sourdough Banana Bread
4. Sourdough Cinnamon Rolls
5. Sourdough Molasses Cookies
6. Sourdough Pretzels
7. Sourdough Bagels
8. Sourdough English Muffins
9. Sourdough Pie Crust
10. Sourdough Muffins

Can you Freeze Sourdough Cookie dough?

Sourdough cookie dough can be frozen. Sourdough freezes really well and can be baked from from a frozen state. Freezing sourdough cookie dough can be accomplished in a few simple steps.

• Portion out dough
• Roll dough into cookie sized balls
• Place dough on parchment paper on a cookie sheet
• Place in freezer and flash freeze for 1-2 hours until frozen solid
• Remove dough balls from the freezer
• Place dough balls in airtight freezer container or bag
• Ensure all air is out of the container
• Label date on container
• Place in freezer and freeze up to 3 months.
• Bake according to baking instructions straight from the freezer

Looking for more sourdough recipe inspiration? Check out all of our sourdough breads and sourdough discard recipes Here.

I  made sourdough White Chocolate Cookies. They were a huge win. The family and office friends were all about those cookies. Our Soft Sourdough Molasses cookies are an AMAZINGLY flavorful sourdough discard cookie recipe. And just recently I created Peanut Butter OATMEAL cookies with sourdough discard.

Sourdough discard dessert recipes are very popular. The sourdough adds an intensity of flavor and a touch of tanginess that benefits sweet recipes.

These easy peanut butter cookies with sourdough are a big hit. I’ve made them in a couple of different ways now. So far they are good in all the variations I’ve tried.

Stay tuned. I have my eye on several more sourdough recipes for dessert. I need to use up that constantly growing sourdough discard.

Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies With Sourdough Recipe:

This is an easy dessert recipe. That’s why I enjoy these cookies so much. This recipe is easy for me and popular with the family. 

And I can use up sourdough starter in almost any stage. That said. Your starter stage of development will affect the flavor of these cookies.

NOTES:

1. Fully active starter will certainly puff the cookies up more. If your using starter that’s been unfed in your fridge several weeks don’t expect much puffing up. But you WILL have a lot of strong tangy sourdough flavor in your cookies. So if you want more flavor use an older unfed starter.
2. That’s where the baking chips come in. HINT: They work really well with tangy flavored starter.
3. However, This is a basic recipe that you can choose to tweak if you prefer. Use the baking chips. Or not. Your choice.
4. I use creamy peanut butter. You can use chunky peanut butter if you love it. I do recommend a sweet peanut butter. If you don’t use sweet peanut butter the cookies may taste bland. Try adding more sugar to your recipe.
5. I do use granulated sugar in this recipe. For the dipping of the dough balls and criss cross pattern dipping in sugar works best for me.

Tips for evenly baked cookies:

Cookie dough bakes best when it is evenly sized and placed evenly apart on your baking sheet. I recommend these steps to control the size and separation of your cookies.

1. line your baking sheets. I use silicone matts. I really like the ones with the cookie spacing marked on them. My cookies are much more evenly baked now. I can easily see if the cookie size and spacing are correct.
2. Use the correct sized cookie scoop. Using a spoon or other utensil may work to make cookies. But for the BEST cookies that are evenly baked. Please use a cookie dough scoop. they are SO worth it.

Other versions of this peanut butter cookie recipe you may want to try:

I chose to make these without the chocolate chips this time. That’s why your not seeing any chips in the cookies. The chocolate chips are optional.

These cookies are great plain or with chocolate chips. They are ALSO good with white chocolate chips or peanut butter chips. And they may taste great with other chips as well.

Please let us know how you make this recipe. Comment in the comment section and rate this recipe. How did it go for you? What did you do with it?

Yield: This cookie recipe makes about 50 cookies. UNLESS you add the chocolate chips. Then add another dozen cookies to the count. If you don’t need that many you can divide the recipe in half.

Stored in an airtight jar these cookies will stay fresh several days to up to a week.

Freeze these peanut butter cookies. Here’s How:

1. Place your extra COOLED and set cookies into a heavy duty freezer ziplock bag.
2. SUCK out all the air with a straw. Or suck it out through the uncompleted seal and then seal it fast.
3. Label the bag with the recipe name and date.
4. Freeze for up to two months.

Your Printable Recipe:

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Yield: 50 cookies

Peanut Butter cookies With Sourdough Starter

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Cook Time: 10 minutes

Total Time: 25 minutes

Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies are a delicious twist on an old American Favorite cookie. Including sourdough starter adds a deeper flavor with a bit of tang.  Bursts of sweet chocolate in these flavorful peanut butter cookies make a good cookie great.

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Ingredients

• 1 cup sourdough starter -240 grams
• 1 cup peanut butter - 255 grams
• 1/2 cup organic coconut oil (or butter)-softened - 112 grams
• 1 cup brown sugar (firmly packed)- 175 grams
• 2 eggs - 103 grams
• 1 tsp. vanilla extract - 4 grams
• 2 cups flour 256 grams
• 1 tsp. baking powder - 5 grams
• 1 tsp. baking soda- 6 grams
• 1/2 tsp. salt -3 grams

OPTIONAL:

• 1 cup (165 grams)to 2 cups (315 grams) flavored baking chips (optional-choose any kind you like)

Instructions

Preheat Oven to 350 Degrees F.

In a large mixing bowl: Mix together the brown sugar, peanut butter, vanilla and softened coconut oil.

Add in the sourdough starter, and eggs. Mix Gently until combined.

In a smaller mixing bowl Sift together the dry ingredients (except the chips).

Add the dry ingredients into the wet in thirds, mixing after each addition.

Finally add the baking chips (if using) and mix by hand until dispersed into the dough.

Roll the dough into one inch balls.

OPTIONAL: For more sweet roll the cookie balls in sugar now.

Place each ball 2 to three inches apart on your lined baking sheet. They will expand and need room on the sheet.

Using a fork dipped in sugar gently press the fork into the dough balls and criss cross the dough balls as shown.

Bake 9 to 10 minutes until the cookies are LIGHTLY browned. Notice the increase in cookie size when baked.

Remove from oven and let sit 5 minutes.

Remove to cooling racks. Serve.

Notes

The stage of your starter Matters:

• A fully fed and active starter with a mild fruity smell will offer a less intensely flavored cookie that puff more.
• An unfed or tangy starter will enhance the flavor of these cookies but the cookies will not be as cake like.

The AMOUNT of your starter matters too.

I've made this recipe with only half the starter amount called for and the cookies turned out great. They DO have less puff and a bit more peanut butter flavor if that is what your after.

I have yet to make these (and I make them all the time) and turn out what WE think is a bad cookie.

That's why you see so many notes. Sourdough personalizes this and other recipes. Your starter is different than mine. Do what works for you.

For flatter cookies:

Eliminate the baking powder and baking soda. The starter will still give some leavening.

For puffy cookies that are sweeter:

1. Use a freshly fed or recently fed starter
2. Add 1/4 to 1/2 Cup granulated sugar to taste
3. Use a sweetened peanut butter

The chocolate chips are optional.

They may be omitted or replaced with other baking chips you may prefer. Some good choices are white chocolate chips and peanut butter chips.

Recommended Products

As an Amazon Associate and member of other affiliate programs, I earn from qualifying purchases.

• 
  Silpat Perfect Cookie Baking Mat
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  Jenaluca Cookie Scoop - Mini Cupcake Scoop - 18/8 Stainless Steel - Medium
• 
  KITCHENATICS Baking Sheet with Cooling Rack: Half Aluminum Cookie Pan Tray with Stainless Steel Wire and Roasting Rack - 13.1" x 17.9", Heavy Duty Commercial Quality

Nutrition Information

Yield

50

Serving Size

1
Amount Per Serving Calories 106Total Fat 6gSaturated Fat 2gTrans Fat 0gUnsaturated Fat 3gCholesterol 7mgSodium 99mgCarbohydrates 12gFiber 1gSugar 4gProtein 2g

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