Peanut Butter Sandwich Cookies with Maple Buttercream

Soft-baked peanut butter cookies filled with fluffy maple buttercream!

Now that it’s officially November and Thanksgiving is basically right around the corner, I think it’s important for us to talk about the things we are most thankful for…family…friends…health…peanut butter and maple syrup…

What? Don’t look at me like that. Peanut butter and maple syrup is probably one of the best combos ever discovered on this planet. I’m not exaggerating. 

Exhibit A: Pancakes slathered with creamy peanut butter and drenched in a golden pond of sweet nectary maple syrup.

Exhibit B: THIS.

I rest my case.

Two super soft, yet chewy peanut butter cookies filled with the decadence of fluffy maple-sweetened buttercream. Could life get any better than this? Although some might argue that you’re pretty much begging for a diabetic coma when you combine the sugary golden sweetness of maple syrup and the nutty richness of peanut butter…

And your point is?

The peanut butter cookies should be reason enough to make these sweet cookie sandwiches of the Gods. They are soft-baked with slightly chewy edges and soft, thick, pillowy centers. You won’t have to worry about these cookies turning hard or crunchy since they remain soft for days and days. That is, if you have enough self-discipline not to gobble down an entire batch within the first 10 minutes…

These cookies are filled with that pure peanut butter richness, yet not overly sweet, which was especially important since I planned on pairing them with the indulgence of maple buttercream. All I really wanted was that pure peanut butter flavor and that’s exactly what you get with these cookies.

As for the maple buttercream? Well, you can’t really go wrong when you combine butter, powdered sugar, and maple syrup, can you? So simple to make, yet unbelievably addictive. This buttercream is brimming with that wonderfully warm maple flavor that reminds us all why we love Fall. (Even when it rains a torrential downpour, like today.)

It’s definitely a good thing that the peanut butter cookies had cooled off by the time I finished the buttercream, or this post would’ve gone from Peanut Butter Cookie Sandwiches with Maple Buttercream to just Peanut Butter Cookies.

One of the things I love about cookie sandwiches is that it’s a terrific excuse to eat two cookies at once. Plus, there’s the added bonus of creamy frosting sandwiched in the middle. 

Could life be any sweeter?

Peanut Butter Sandwich Cookies w/Maple Buttercream

Soft-baked peanut butter cookies filled with fluffy maple buttercream!

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Prep Time 1 hour hr 15 minutes mins

Cook Time 10 minutes mins

Total Time 1 hour hr 25 minutes mins

Course Dessert

Cuisine American

Servings 16 Cookie Sandwiches

Ingredients

  

For the Peanut Butter Cookies

• ½ cup unsalted butter softened
• ¾ cup creamy peanut butter
• ¾ cup brown sugar packed
• ¼ cup granulated sugar
• 1 whole egg
• 1 egg yolk
• 2 teaspoons vanilla
• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• ⅛ teaspoon salt

For the Maple Buttercream

• 1 cup unsalted butter softened
• 3 ½ cup powdered sugar
• 4 Tablespoons pure maple syrup
• ⅛ teaspoon salt

Instructions

 

• Preheat oven to 350ºF and line a baking sheet with a parchment paper, or spray with cooking spray.
• In the bowl of an electric stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream together the butter, peanut butter and both sugars on medium-high speed until light and fluffy. Add the egg, egg yolk, and vanilla and continue beating until combined.
• Stop the mixer and scrape down the sides of the bowl. Add the flour, baking soda, and salt, and mix on low speed until just incorporated, about 1 minute.
• Using a small cookie scoop, or two spoons, form mounds about the size of golfballs and place them on the prepared baking sheet. Slightly flatten the mounds with your hand to allow them to bake more evenly.
• Bake for 8 to 10 minutes, or until edges have set and tops look slightly underbaked, pale and glossy in the center. Allow cookies to cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes before transferring them to a wire rack to cool completely.
• While cookies are cooling, prepare the buttercream. To the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat the butter on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes.
• Reduce the speed to low and add the powdered sugar, a half cup at a time, mixing well after each addition. Scrape down the sides of the bowl, as needed. Add the maple syrup and salt and beat on high until light and creamy, about 3-4 minutes. Transfer buttercream to a pastry bag fitted with desired tip*.
• To assemble the cookies, pipe the frosting on one side of the cookie. Place a second cookie on top and gently press down.

Notes

*Alternatively, you could use a large zip-top bag with the tip of the corner cut off.
*Recipe yields about 32 peanut butter cookies, making 16 cookie sandwiches.