Peanut Butter-Miso Cookies Recipe (2024)

By Krysten Chambrot

Peanut Butter-Miso Cookies Recipe (1)

Total Time
30 minutes, plus chilling
Rating
5(6,863)
Notes
Read community notes

These cookies were the result of a happy accident. (The best things always are, aren’t they?) When the peanut butter ran out, similarly creamy white miso stepped in. The other ingredients were tweaked to offset the miso’s savory character, and what came out of the oven was salty and sweet, crunchy and chewy. A brief stint in the fridge helps mellow the miso’s bracing brackishness, and a roll in Demerara sugar adds a subtle crunch that pairs well with the tender cookie.

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Ingredients

Yield:About 18 cookies

  • cups/225 grams all-purpose flour
  • ¾teaspoon baking soda
  • ½teaspoon baking powder
  • ½cup/115 grams unsalted butter (1 stick), at room temperature
  • 1cup/220 grams light brown sugar
  • ½cup/100 grams granulated sugar
  • cup/80 milliliters white miso paste
  • ¼cup/60 milliliters chunky peanut butter
  • 1large egg
  • teaspoons vanilla extract
  • ½cup/105 grams Demerara sugar, plus more as needed

Ingredient Substitution Guide

Nutritional analysis per serving (18 servings)

218 calories; 8 grams fat; 4 grams saturated fat; 0 grams trans fat; 2 grams monounsaturated fat; 1 gram polyunsaturated fat; 35 grams carbohydrates; 1 gram dietary fiber; 24 grams sugars; 3 grams protein; 266 milligrams sodium

Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.

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Peanut Butter-Miso Cookies Recipe (2)

Preparation

  1. Step

    1

    In a medium bowl, combine flour, baking soda and baking powder, and whisk until incorporated. Set aside.

  2. Step

    2

    In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, mix butter, light brown sugar and granulated sugar at medium speed until light and fluffy, about 5 minutes.

  3. Step

    3

    Add miso and peanut butter to the mixing bowl, and continue to mix at medium speed, about 1 minute. Scrape down sides of the bowl to make sure all of the ingredients are evenly incorporated, and mix a bit more if needed. Add egg and vanilla extract, and mix until just combined.

  4. Step

    4

    Add ⅓ of the flour mixture to the mixing bowl, and mix on low speed until flour mixture is incorporated. Repeat with remaining flour mixture in two batches until all of it is incorporated.

  5. Step

    5

    Place ½ cup Demerara sugar into a small bowl. Working with one piece at a time, scoop out about 2 heaping tablespoons of dough (about 50 grams per cookie), and roll each portion between your hands until it is nice and round. (If the dough is too soft to roll, you can pop the mixing bowl in the refrigerator for 5 to 10 minutes to firm the dough up slightly.) Drop the piece of dough into the bowl of Demerara sugar and turn to coat. Transfer each ball to a parchment-lined baking sheet, arranging them about 3 inches apart. Repeat with all of the dough.

  6. Step

    6

    Refrigerate for 2 hours and up to overnight. (Even 15 minutes of refrigerator time will help the dough firm up, and the flavors meld. The longer the dough is refrigerated, the more mellow the flavors will be.)

  7. Step

    7

    When ready to bake, heat oven to 350 degrees. Bake cookies for about 15 minutes, until crisp at the edges and slightly puffed in the middle. They should still be a bit underdone in the center. Pull out the baking sheet and hit it against a counter. Place back into the oven to finish for about 3 to 4 minutes. When cookies are firm at the edges and slightly puffed in the center, pull them out and again hit the baking sheet against the counter. The cookies should appear flat and crinkly at the center.

  8. Step

    8

    Let the cookies cool on a baking sheet for a few minutes, then transfer to a cooling rack. Store fully cooled cookies in an airtight container; they should retain their chewy texture for a few days.

Ratings

5

out of 5

6,863

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Cooking Notes

patty

Delicious! I would also cut back just a bit with the sugar. Flattening cookie with spatula ( done with 2nd batch) is easier than banging on the counter and scaring the dog to death....

Alexa Weibel, Senior Staff Editor, NYT Cooking

I can vouch for this cookie — it's truly the perfect cookie, in my book: It's super easy to make and it achieves that perfect crisp-tender texture. The miso flavor adds complexity without overwhelming the cookie, which is the perfect balance of salty and sweet. I love this cookie exactly as it is!

Stacie

Used natural peanut butter. Added black sesame seeds to sugar. Topped with a bit of flaked salt. Best Cookie EVER!!!!

Susan B. A.

Love peanut butter and love miso! A great combo. I made 3 tweaks I believe made these cookies even better.Added 1/4 tsp vanilla salt (I make my own with spent, dried van. beans. Sugar, too). Yes, miso can be salty, but this was needed. Used just a bit over HALF the sugar, and used vanilla sugar for the granulated. Chilled bowl in fridge overnight, set out 2 hours - *then* scooped. No room in my fridge for cookie sheets.Yummy - and now I can eat two if I want - and I do!

Annabelle

I've made this four or five times before, always with white miso, but the store was out of white miso and so today I made them with red miso! Followed exactly as written otherwise, and didn't modify anything about the quantity of miso used. They tasted just as delicious as they always do!

Kelly

Not a huge fan of peanut butter, so subbed tahini instead. SO GOOD. The sesame/miso mixture was delicious and the texture is chewy and perfect. Will make again and again.

Charlotte Cant

I modified this recipe for a vegan friend-1/4 cup applesauce instead of egg and 1/2 cup coconut oil instead of butter. Delicious!

Stephanie

I agree with everyone who cut the sugar! I reduced the sugar by about half. I also added a splash of soy sauce, an about a teaspoon of fresh grated ginger. These cookies are incredible.

Su

This idea appeals enormously, but the recipe calls for a full 1/2 c more sugar than my standard peanut-butter cookie recipe. I'm assuming that the developer thought that more sugar was better to balance the miso, but this sounds too sweet (and miso has its own sweetness). Anyone know if the extra sugar has a structural role here? And if you try reducing it, let us know how it works!

Deejay

Could someone please explain the purpose of whacking the cookie sheet against the counter? I’m unfamiliar with this technique. Thanks so much!

Annabelle

I just made these and they are absolutely delicious. The only changes I made were hand-mixing everything (I don't have a stand mixer), and rolling the dough in granulated sugar instead of Demerara. These look so impressive but were so easy to make. I'd highly recommend!

the certifiable foodie

I just made these cookies, but substituted the wheat flour for America’s Test Kitchen gluten free flour blend and then added a few teaspoons of whole milk.This recipe totally works gluten free as well!Cookies are perfect, chewy and crispy with so much depth of flavor.

ginger

I made it as written and found it to be a littIe boring (missing some oomph) ...so the next time I cut the sugar by about 20%, added a little cayenne and powdered ginger to the batter, and rolled in a mixture of demerara sugar, cayenne, and powdered ginger. I half dipped the cooled cookies in dark chocolate and dusted them with sesame seeds, sea salt, cayenne, and powdered ginger. My boyfriend is a big complex/savory dessert fan and loved these so much! These are very versatile.

JB

Pushes out the air pockets and makes them chewier in the middle

Alli

I had on hand only peanut butter called Creamunchy by the manufacturer (in between creamy and crunchy), but otherwise followed the recipe. I make a lot of cookies, and will be adding this recipe to the rotation. My own cookie (eaten before dinner in the name of science) was just stolen by my four year old, so indications are good that the cookies will be also popular with youngsters.

emily r.

I’ve made these a few times, and I make them gluten free. They are my favorite!! I use natural creamy peanut butter, half the amount of both sugars, and make the cookies about 40g in size. I don’t have a sweet tooth, but I crave these. Delicious.

Diana

Note for future lots of folks recommend cutting sugar in half. And see measurements for ml to gms.

Hannah

I love these cookies so much. They are fantastic every time. I think using red miso makes them a bit more interesting and I've never gotten feedback that they were too funky that way. Turbinado sugar is another substitute that I think makes them more interesting. But they are also great when made exactly by the recipe. If you're on the fence at all MAKE THEM!! You won't regret it.

Courtney

To prevent the bottom of the cookies from burning, allow the dough to return to room temperature after removing it from the refrigerator.

JP

Not sure what all the hype is about. I felt like there was no distinct flavor in these cookies: not peanut butter and not miso. Just didn't WOW me. IF there's a next time, I'd cut back on sugar and add more peanut butter. I actually think it needs something else, but I'm not sure what: heat, spice, chocolate? Also, these are LARGE cookies. I prefer them half size and would do so next time.

Laura T

Wholeheartedly agree that this is a delightful cookie. Perfect blend of salty and sweet. I did cut back on the sugar, as others suggested.

Margaret

I made these with the unmodified sugar amounts and didn’t find the cookies too sweet at all. I did use slightly more peanut butter and correspondingly less miso, and reduced the cooking time by a few minutes (peek at the bottom of the cookies to see if they’re getting too brown). So addictive and good.

Hg

Has anyone tried freezing the after refrigerating for a few hours?

Alma

Don’t reduce sugar, messes with texture but be sure to use light brown not dark brown

siri

These are my favorite cookies to make! I have probably made them 5-7x now, so I think people should heed my advice. I follow the recipe to a T with one change: cut the white sugar. The cup of brown sugar is enough and the subtraction does not mess up the recipe. They end up perfectly sweet, salty, moist and amazing. Also, red miso, white miso, crunchy PB, smooth PB - all end results have been perfection.

Deb Lowry

So good! I don't think they need rolling in sugar. I made some that way but preferred the ones I sprinkled some tiny maldon salt flakes on. The dropping of the cookie sheet on the counter is how you get that crackled look but you must wait until there is a little browning on top. I dropped one batch too early and so they had a more uniform color. Regardless, can't stop eating these.

caits

I love this recipe. The flavor is amazing. BUT the bottoms burn every time. I keep trying to modify the cooking time / temp to avoid burning while still setting the cookies and haven’t cracked it. Most recent attempt was 300 degrees for 12 min plus 3 min. Any suggestions?

Alice

Per America’s Test Kitchen, use no more miso than 300 mg worth! This greatly reduces how much of my brand, Miso Master, to use in recipe to a mere 2 tsp

Yoon

There are many kinds of miso paste. There is white, red and Korean miso paste that are all different. Which one should i use?

has potential

I cut the sugar in half per the comments but may have misread and cut too much, bc there wasn’t enough of a chewy texture or caramelized taste. Need to try this recipe again, user error!

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Peanut Butter-Miso Cookies Recipe (2024)
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