Get ready to taste the magic of Christmas with these Peanut Butter Reindeer Cookies.
Made with a homemade peanut butter cookie dough recipe then decorated with candy eyes, red M&M noses and pretzel antlers these cookies are perfect for holiday parties!
They're also great for gifting to family, friends and of course neighbors. Pretzel reindeer cookies are easy to make and guaranteed to be a hit!
Check out all the other Reindeer Desserts for even more delicious holiday treats for Santa.
These homemade peanut butter cookies are not only delicious but also cute because they look just like Rudolph!
The tip to making them so cute is to add the pretzel antlers carefully candy eyes and bright red M&M on the cookies to create Rudolph's face.
Looking for more reindeer-inspired Christmas Snacks? Try my Chocolate Reindeer Cookies, Reindeer Hot Chocolate Cone Bags or my Nutter Butter Reindeer Cookies.
Table of Contents
- Recipe Notes
- Looking for MORE treats to make for Santa and his reindeer?
- 🛒Helpful Kitchen Tools
- Main Ingredients Needed
- Substitutions and Variations
- Step-by-Step Instructions
- Quick Tip
- Baking Instructions
- Decorate the Reindeer Cookies
- Before You Begin!
- Storage Instructions
- Top Recipe Tip
- More Recipes You'll Love!
- 📖 Recipe Card
- 💬 Comments
Recipe Notes
- Make sure you cream the butter, peanut butter and sugar well. Making sure the ingredients are light and fluffy is crucial for achieving a soft and tender texture in your cookies.
- Try not to overmix the cookie dough. It can result in tough cookies. Mix just until the flour is incorporated.
- Watch them as they bake. Peanut butter cookies can quickly go from golden brown to overdone. Start checking for doneness around the minimum recommended baking time and remove them from the oven when they are lightly golden around the edges.
- Add the pretzel antlers, candy eyes and red M&Ms as soon as you remove the trays from the oven, then allow them to cool completely before enjoying.
Looking for MORE treats to make for Santa and his reindeer?
Check out my Santa's Treats Digital Cookbook. It's filled with 10 deliciously simple recipes for reindeer treats, cupcakes, pretzels, candies, and hot cocoa. They're perfect for spreading the joy of FOOD this holiday season!
🛒Helpful Kitchen Tools
Child to Cherish Santa's Message Plate Set, Santa Cookie Plate, Santa Milk jar, and Reindeer Treat Bowl
Holiday Magic Gnomes 3-D Cookie Jar, 64 oz,2Pcs Christmas Cookie Tins Round Santa Holiday Vintage Cookie Jar Airtight with LidChristmas Cookies for Santa Plate and Mug Set
Main Ingredients Needed
Here's a quick overview of the ingredients for this recipe. Find the exact amounts and click the Instacart button to easily add them to your cart – all in the printable recipe card below!
Substitutions and Variations
- If you don't have time to bake a homemade peanut butter cookie, try using a refrigerator peanut butter cookie dough or even a boxed mix.
- You can use a sugar cookie mix combined with cocoa powder like I did with my original Reindeer Cookies Recipe.
- And if you don't have candy eyes, chocolate chips work too!
- But you do need the red candies for Rudolph's nose!
Step-by-Step Instructions
Step 1: Combine together the brown sugar, peanut butter and softened butter in a mixing bowl.
Step 2: Add the egg and vanilla. Mix together until combined.
Quick Tip
Cream the butter, peanut butter, and sugar together until light and fluffy. It's crucial for achieving a soft and tender texture in your cookies. Take your time and beat them together until well combined.
Step 3: In a separate bowl, combine the dry ingredients.
Step 4: Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and combine well.
Baking Instructions
Step 5: Roll the dough into 1 ½ inch sized balls and place on a lined baking sheet with parchment paper. Flatten the dough balls slightly. Bake in a preheated 375°F oven for 8-10 minutes.
Decorate the Reindeer Cookies
Step 6: Immediately place the pretzel pieces for antlers, candy eyes and the red M&Ms for Rudolph's nose. Transfer cookies to a baking rack to cool completely.
Before You Begin!
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Storage Instructions
Pantry: Store the cookies at room temperature in an airtight container or zip top plastic bag if you plan to consume them within a few days. They can be kept this way for about 3-5 days.
Freezer: Pretzel sticks usually do not freeze that well, so I don't recommend freezing the baked cookies. However, if you really need to freeze them, allow the freshly baked peanut butter cookies to cool completely at room temperature.
Place the cooled cookies in a single layer in the an airtight container with pieces of parchment paper between the layers to prevent sticking. Freeze for up to two months.
- PRE-CUT PARCHMENT PAPER SHEETS—This package contains 125 pre-cut sheets of Reynolds Kitchens parchment paper, each measuring 10.7 x 13.6 inches, in a easy-dispensing pop-up box
Top Recipe Tip
- Make sure the butter is soft before combining it with the peanut butter and brown sugar.
More Recipes You'll Love!
- Check out my other recipe for Reindeer Cookies in a Jar or my Chocolate Reindeer Cookies.
- Or you might enjoy this recipe for Reindeer Cookies using an upside down gingerbread man cookie cutter.
📖 Recipe Card
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Peanut Butter Reindeer Cookies
Ingredients
- ½ cup butter at room temp.
- ¾ cup creamy Peanut Butter
- ½ cup packed Brown Sugar
- 1 Egg
- 1 teaspoon Vanilla Extract
- 1 ¼ cups Flour
- 1 teaspoon baking Powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 24 Red M&M's for the noses
- 48 Candy Eyes
- 24 Pretzel pieces for the antlers
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375°F. Line baking sheet pans with parchment paper.
- Using an electric mixer, combine together the butter, peanut butter, and brown sugar until fluffy.
- Then add the egg and vanilla extract.
- Mix together until combined.
- In another bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder and salt.
- Add the dry ingredients to the sugar/butter ingredients and combine well. Roll dough into 1 ½" balls and place on lined sheet pan 2" apart. Flatten the balls slightly.
- Bake for 8-10 minutes or until edges are just lightly browned.
- Immediately place eyes, noses, and antlers into cookies.
- Allow to cool for 5 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to finish cooling.
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