I bake the dough balls in a preheated oven at 350°F for about 10 minutes, just until the edges start to lightly puff and the tops look set. The key is removing them before they take on too much color—they firm as they cool. As soon as I pull them from the oven, I gently press a Reese’s Thin into the center of each cookie. The chocolate softens slightly and adheres beautifully without fully melting. This step gives the cookies their signature look.
Once all the cookies are topped, I let them rest on the baking sheet for a few minutes before transferring them to a cooling rack. The aroma of warm peanut butter and melting chocolate is almost impossible to resist. Every time, I tell myself I’ll wait until they’re fully cooled—but let’s be honest, I always end up eating one warm. It’s the best moment of the whole recipe.
Pro Tips for Best Results
I tested this recipe several times before settling on my perfect method, and one of the biggest lessons I learned is that peanut butter temperature matters. Make sure it’s room temperature—not cold from the fridge or overly runny. Room-temperature peanut butter blends smoothly and gives the cookies the ideal soft texture.
Another trick I rely on is pressing the candies into the cookies right away. If you wait too long, the surface of the cookie firms up and the candy won’t sink evenly. If you press too early, though, the cookie may collapse. I usually wait about 30–45 seconds after removing the cookies from the oven, which gives them just enough time to set slightly but stay pliable.
If your dough feels too sticky to roll, resist the urge to add too much extra flour. Instead, chill the dough for about 10 minutes. Chilling maintains the cookie’s soft texture while preventing spreading in the oven. I’ve found that adding too much flour makes the cookies dry, crumbly, and less flavorful.
Finally, for the softest cookies possible, do not overbake. The cookies will look slightly underdone when you remove them from the oven, but they firm up perfectly as they cool. Overbaking is the quickest way to ruin their soft, chewy texture.
Common Mistakes to Avoid
One mistake I made early on was melting the butter instead of simply softening it. Melted butter makes the dough too loose and causes the cookies to spread too much in the oven. Softened butter gives the cookies their signature thick, puffed shape.
Another easy mistake is pressing the Reese’s cups too hard into the cookies. This can cause the cookie to crack deeply or even flatten out. A gentle, even press is all you need. Remember, the candy will naturally melt slightly and adhere to the cookie without force.(See the next page below to continue…)