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Peanut Butter Spider Cookies

Name: Peanut Butter Spider Cookies Recipe
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 12 min
Total time: 22 min
Ingredients: 1 cup butter (softened); 1 cup brown sugar; 1 ½ cup sugar (divided); 1 ½ cup peanut butter (creamy); 2 eggs; 3 cup flour; 1 teaspoon baking soda; 1 teaspoon vanilla; 24 Milk Chocolate Lindor Lindt Balls; 48 candy eyes; 1.25 ounce black gel (tube)

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3 Comments

5 from 2 votes

These Peanut Butter Spider Cookies are easy to make, fun for the kids, and taste absolutely amazing for a spooky treat.

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I love creating spooky Halloween treats that the kids can help out with, and that is exactly what these Peanut Butter Spider cookies are.

They are our classic Peanut Butter Cookie recipe, with a fun holiday Halloween twist. They are the perfect activity for the kids, and they taste delicious. They are perfectly soft peanut butter cookies. Add some chocolate and you have peanut butter and chocolate heaven, that melts in your mouth.

Baking ingredients including a bag of Gold Medal flour, a jar of Jif peanut butter, a box of Arm & Hammer baking soda, a stick of butter, two eggs, a cup of brown sugar, and a bowl of granulated sugar.

Recipe Ingredient Notes

Butter
Brown Sugar
Sugar
Creamy Peanut Butter
Eggs
Flour
Baking Soda
Vanilla Extract
Milk Chocolate Lindor Lindt Balls
Candy Eyes
Black Gel

A glass bowl containing a whisk, brown sugar, and a creamy mixture on a light wooden surface.

A glass bowl filled with smooth, creamy peanut butter cookie dough, with a spoon partially visible mixing the dough.

How to Make Peanut Butter Spider Cookies

You can use a standing mixer, hand mixer, or stir by hand. You will want to cream together your butter, brown sugar, sugar, and creamy peanut butter. It’s okay if there are a few lumps from the butter, but try to make it as smooth as possible.
Add eggs, flour, baking soda and vanilla extract and mix until combined. Be sure to scrape the bottom and the sides so you don’t have excess or loose flour that will make the dough dry in some areas.
Roll dough into 1 inch balls, roll in additional sugar, place on ungreased cookie sheet and use a spoon to flatten the top of the cookies. You don’t want them completely flat, but just a little indented.
Bake for about 9-10 minutes or until the edges are puffed and slightly golden.
While the cookies are still warm, press the chocolate balls into the middle, just slightly pressing down.
Once removed from the oven, allow them to cool for 10 minutes. Move the cookies to a cooling rack or paper towel.
While the cookies are still warm, press the chocolate balls into the middle, just slightly pressing down.
While the cookies are still warm, press the chocolate balls into the middle, just slightly pressing down.
Using the black gel, create 4 legs on each side and use small dots of gel to stick the candy eyes on.
Let the cookies cool completely. Enjoy your spooky treat.

A dough ball sits in a bowl filled with white granulated sugar.

Unbaked cookie dough rounds are placed evenly on a grooved baking sheet, ready for baking.

Cooking Tip

You could also use melted milk chocolate chips to stick the eyeballs onto the chocolate ball. They will blend a little easier and they will harden quicker, but I am all about saving time, so I just used the gel.

Several peanut butter cookies topped with chocolate balls cooling on a wire rack.

Close-up of peanut butter cookies topped with chocolate balls and drizzled with black icing in a spider pattern, placed on a cooling rack.

Frequently Asked Questions

Would almond butter work instead of peanut butter?

I often replace peanut butter with almond butter in many of my recipes. However, this is one I would not recommend switching out. The peanut butter texture varies from the almond butter texture. The peanut butter texture is a lot smoother and more creamy, making the cookies more moist. If almond butter were to replace the peanut butter, they would be a little more dry. If you do use almond butter, you will want to add about 2 Tablespoons of milk, or an extra egg yolk, to the dough, to help soften it up.

What could I use in place of the Lindor milk chocolate balls?

I love the Lindor Lindt Balls, but they are a little pricey and can easily be replaced. Here are a few replacements that I recommend: Reese’s Mini Peanut Butter Cups, Rolo’s, Oreo’s, Peppermint Patties, Whoopers, and Bite Size Milky Way Squares.

Three spider-themed cookies with chocolate candy bodies and icing legs are displayed on a white plate. Additional cookies are in the background on a wooden surface.

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Questions & Reviews

Amy Taylor says:

Whoppers would also be a good substitute for the spider’s body!
Jutta Dickenson says:

What a great idea! But could you show the amount of cookies this recipe makes instead of a ‘serves’ number? I could have easily done with half the amount.
Momma Cyd says:

It makes 24. That’s how many chocolate Lindor balls the recipe calls for too. Hope this helps.

About The Author:

Steph Loaiza

Steph is recipe developer and bestselling cookbook author. Her advanced degrees in communication shape how she breaks down cooking techniques into simple, reliable steps for millions of home cooks around the world. Her work has been featured by Costco Connection, Women's Health, Taste of Home, and more.