Honey-Peanut Butter Cup Cookies

These cookies go all in on the chocolate and peanut butter combination. Chopped peanut butter cups AND chocolate chips get folded into a cocoa-based dough that’s sweetened with both honey and brown sugar. Every bite hits you with melty chocolate and a peanut butter crunch.

The honey does something special here that sugar alone can’t. It keeps the cookies soft and chewy for days by pulling moisture from the air. Combined with brown sugar and cocoa powder, the dough bakes up rich and fudgy with a slight sheen on top. The dough will feel softer than a typical cookie dough, which is exactly right.

Chilling for two hours is a must. The dough is too soft to scoop and bake right away. It would spread into flat puddles on the sheet. Cold dough holds its shape and bakes into thicker, chewier cookies. Baking at a low 325°F (163°C) prevents the chocolate from scorching and gives the peanut butter cups time to get gooey without burning.

Pro Tips

• Chop the peanut butter cups by hand into rough, uneven pieces. Some big chunks and some small bits give the best texture variety
• Don’t overbake. Pull them at 10 minutes when they still look slightly underdone. They firm up on the sheet
• Chill the chopped peanut butter cups in the freezer before folding them in so they don’t melt into the dough
• Store in an airtight container. The honey keeps these soft, but exposed air will dry them out

Variations

• Use white chocolate chips instead of semi-sweet for a sweeter, creamier contrast
• Add a cup of chopped roasted peanuts for extra crunch
• Roll the dough balls in cocoa powder before baking for a crinkle cookie look