I’m going to set the record straight for a moment because I get this question a lot. I am not Amish and I have no designs to become Amiish. I like my complicated plumbing and the internet and I’m a food photographer. None of those things would be, er, kosher (totally mixing my religious metaphors) if I were Amish.
It’s true, I live in a formerly Amish farm (the family moved to be more remote. MORE REMOTE! Says the girl who can’t see her neighbors.) It’s also true that I speak of the Amish often. That’s because I live in an area where quite a few Amish families have settled and I have some dear Amish friends named Henry, Ada, and Anna. What do we talk about? We talk about what all people talk about; weather, family, gardens, health, and food. Okay, we mostly talk food. It’s inevitable really. I buy fifty pound bags of flour from them. It’s a natural conversation starter. Them: “You ran out again? What are you waiting to make with this?” Me: “Oh! This new bread I’ve been thinking about. It has…” You see how it goes.
When they stop by to visit or use our phone (because they can’t have one of their own), I shove bites of food into their hands. When I stop by their place to pick up dry goods or see if they’ve heard where I can get some piglets or good deals on something or other, they shove food into my hands. We have a mutually broadening relationship. And by broadening, I mean all of our backsides.
Ada and Anna know what I do for a living and keep their eyes open for new recipes for me. The Amish have enormous community meals after church with all members bringing their best food to share. When they taste something especially delicious, they ask the bringer to share the recipe with them and pass it along to me. Such is the case with the recipe (OH THIS RECIPE) that I’m sharing with you today. Anna started writing out a copy of the recipe for me as soon as she saw the look on my face while Ada told me about it. Perfect peanut butter cookies with a miniature Snickers bar* baked inside. “Did the Snickers dissolve in the cookie?” I asked? “No!” they assured me, “It melted a little but you could still see it was a Snickers.” “Could you tell from the outside there were Snickers in there?” I asked again? “No. It’s like a fun surprise when you bite into it or break it open.” they said.
You KNOW I was all in.
*Another point of clarification: Yes. The Amish eat candy bars. They also drink soda and eat pizza and burgers and tacos and fries. Once, when I posted another of their recipes, someone wrote back to me convinced I was trying to pull a fast one because they had a romantic notion of Amish eating a completely idyllic and organic diet. When I told Ada and Anna this, they looked at me like I’d grown a second head and turned neon orange, laughed and said, “Why wouldn’t we eat candy bars? They’re good!”
I went straight home and made a double batch. A word to the wise. Don’t double Amish recipes. They cook for families as big or bigger than mine on a daily basis. I looked at the three and a half cups of flour called for and thought “Now come on. If I’m going to stuff cookies with Snickers, I want enough of these to last a few days.” What I failed to factor in was the full pound of butter, two cups of peanut butter, and four cups of sugar that was going to mean. As a result of this little, er, miscalculation on my part, I am, however, quite capable of telling you that these cookies last BEAUTIFULLY at room temperature for a full week after being baked. If you were going to store them longer than that, I’d highly recommend freezing them when they’re just a day or less old.
But the cookies. In a word, they’re perfect. Peanut butter cookies stuffed with peanut, caramel, and nougat stuffed chocolate bars. It’s like the turducken of the cookie world, but better! If you eat one while it’s still warm, the caramel and nougat are melted and gooey. But if you eat one while they’re cold, just the caramel is gooey while the nougat is chewy and soft and the peanuts are crunchy. The great debate of our household right now is which one is superior. We have some pretty passionate people on both sides of the argument. Which way do you think you’ll like them best?
Cook’s Notes:
- The temperature at which these cookies are baked is no typo. They ARE indeed baked at 300°F. This was new to me, as almost every cookie I’ve ever made has been cooked at 350°F or 375°F, but I followed Anna and Ada’s instructions to a ‘T’, and found that the recipe yielded beautiful and utterly perfect peanut butter cookies with no burned bottoms or over-cooked edges. I’m going to be playing with my other cookie recipes and seeing how they do at this temperature, too.
- As a result of this lower cooking temperature, the cookies need to be in the oven for a correspondingly longer amount of time. Don’t rush them.
- Also as a result of this lower cooking temperature, they won’t brown as much as you may be accustomed to seeing. Use your fingers to touch the edges of the cookies. Are they set up? they’re done.
- I ended up using a combination of creamy and crunchy peanut butters because I ran out of creamy in the process of doubling (Yeesh) the recipe. The finished cookies were, as I’ve said, perfection. If you have to use a combination, I think you’ll be a-okay. I think using all crunchy might make them harder to wrap around the Snickers bars, though.
Snickers Stuffed Peanut Butter Cookies {Amish Recipe}
Rate RecipeIngredients
- 2 sticks butter 1 cup, softened
- 1 cup creamy peanut butter
- 1 cup brown sugar
- 1 cup white sugar
- 2 eggs
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 3 1/2 cups all purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 13-16 ounces miniature Snickers bars NOT fun size!, unwrapped
Instructions
- In a stand mixer fitted with a batter blade (or in a large mixing bowl with a hand mixer or sturdy spoon), cream together the butter and sugars until smooth. Add the eggs in, one at a time, until well combined, then beat in the peanut butter and vanilla until smooth and creamy and lighter in texture. In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, and salt until well combined. Add the flour mixture into the butter mixture and beat on medium speed until evenly mixed. Cover the dough and chill for 2 to 3 hours.
- Preheat the oven to 300°F. Portion the dough into generous 1 tablespoon balls. Flatten each ball, put a Snickers miniature into the center of the flattened dough, and wrap the sides up around the bar. Squish the dough so it is sealed all around the Snickers bar, making sure the bottom has no cracks. Place the ball on a parchment or silpat lined (or generously greased) baking sheet. Repeat with the remaining dough and Snickers, making sure to leave 2-inches between the dough balls.
- Bake for 12-18 minutes, rotating the pan halfway through the baking time, or until the edges are set and the cookie looks puffy. Let the cookies cool on the pan for 3 to 5 minutes (they will deflate and crack a bit as they cool. This is good!) before using a spatula to transfer them to a cooling rack. Let them cool completely before transferring to a cookie jar or other air tight, room temperature storage.
Nutritional information is an estimate and provided to you as a courtesy. You should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients used in your recipe using your preferred nutrition calculator.
did you make this recipe?
Make sure to tag @foodiewithfam on Instagram and #hashtag it #foodiewithfamily so I can check it out!
I just got some news that made my day. Foodie with Family is a finalist in the “Favorite Family-Friendly Cooking Blog” category of The Homies sponsored by TheKitchn!
I’m ridiculously excited to be a finalist. I feel a little Sally Fields-esque here since I was nominated by enough people to get even this far! The prize is roughly a metric ton of traffic and eyeballs directed at the winning blog. I could SO handle that. I feel dorky to ask, but if you appreciate what I’m doing here at Foodie with Family, would you mind throwing a vote my way?
Reader's Thoughts...
Michelle Copley says
grown a second head and turned neon orange!
Ha ha! Thank you for that! Our best friends are Amish and the misconceptions are just unbelievable some times! And they love these cookies when I make them!
Rebecca says
It’s the truth! I think the funniest thing is when I tell people who don’t live anywhere near the Amish that I live in Amish country and they respond with “Oh! Are you Amish?” HAHAHAHAHA. No. The fact that I’m wearing jeans, makeup, driving a Honda CR-V, and you can see my hair should be the first clues. 🙂
Beth A Gainer says
Some very kind individual brought some cookies similar to the above recipe from an Amish stand, into our Hospice Unit. They were delicious, which is why I sought out a recipe and decided to use yours.
They turned out quite well and the group I met with a few hours ago this evening asked to take another along with them. Removing the temptation of too many around the house tomorrow, I let them!
I did sprinkle them with a mixture of 10 x sugar and powdered peanut butter drizzle some melted choc. wafers on top like the ones brought into the unit. It wasn’t necessary as they are good just like the recipe dictates, but the toppings did boost the eye appeal.
Rebecca says
Thanks so much, Beth! I’m so glad you liked them and they went well for you!
Roxanne Alley says
I would like to know if they would post their raisin filled cookies online so I could try to make them. I am in Pa. this summer and we stopped and got some and they are to die for. In fact we ordered some online and had them shipped to us in Fl. I have looked everywhere to get the recipe. Also I am going to try these but my question is do you bake them on the lower rake of your oven or in the middle?
Brenda Clayton says
These sound delicious and I’m hoping to make them but I have a question. Is the brown sugar packed or just spooned into the measuring cup? Thanks in advance.
Rebecca says
Hi Brenda- It’s lightly packed in this case. 🙂
Carrie says
I made a terrible mistake in that I made these and took them to the office. Since then, I’ve been blackmailed more than once. No one wants to lend me a hand unless I stuff one of these cookies in it first. They are SPECTACULAR, Rebecca. I love them and I’m not a sweets fan in the least. When something is this good, such silly rules do not apply. Thank you!
P.S. I get back at management, though. I weekly spend inappropriate amounts of time on FWF when I should be paper-shuffling or number-crunching. Take THAT, cookie junkies.
Denise says
Apparently I’m the only goofball who doesn’t understand the candy bar part. (I don’t think I’ve ever bought minis or fun size or anything.) Is it 13 mini candy bars, or 13oz-16oz of candy bars weighed out? Does it only make 13 cookies? Help!!
Rebecca says
The bags come in 13 to 16 ounce bags, Denise, so it’s that amount unwrapped. No worries! That’s a great question!
Renee @ Awesome on $20 says
These sound absolutely outstanding! I’m so grateful for your Amish friends!
Nutmeg Nanny says
Oh my goodness, I am in trouble with this recipe! These look like heaven!