Chocolate-Stuffed Sourdough Peanut Butter Cookies are soft, chewy peanut butter cookies with a rich chocolate ganache center that melts in every bite. They’re the perfect balance of salty, sweet, and fudgy.
The sourdough discard adds a subtle tang that deepens the flavor while keeping the cookies soft for days. These are indulgent, bakery-style cookies you’ll want to make again and again.
These cookies are perfect year-round—because who can resist chocolate and peanut butter? They’re great for holiday cookie boxes, bake sales, or an impressive after-dinner treat.
Serve them warm for melty chocolate centers, or gift them to friends and neighbors—they’re guaranteed to impress.
If you loved these cookies, try my Sourdough Peanut Butter Blossom Cookies for another soft and chewy sourdough treat. You’d also enjoy my Classic Sourdough Peanut Butter Cookies if you are looking for a simple, fool-proof staple.
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Ingredients
Chocolate Ganache Filling
- Semi-sweet or bittersweet chocolate chips
- Heavy cream
- Unsalted butter (optional)
Cookie Dough
- Unsalted butter, softened
- Brown sugar
- White sugar
- Vanilla extract
- Egg
- Egg yolk
- Sourdough discard
- Creamy peanut butter
- All-purpose flour
- Baking soda
- Fine sea salt
- Granulated sugar (for rolling)
See recipe card for quantities.
Note: I bake by weight for accuracy. Cup measurements are approximate and may vary depending on how you scoop.
Four-Step Overview
Step 1: Ganache: Make and chill in the refrigerator ganache until scoopable.
Step 2: Dough: Cream butter + sugars, then mix in wet and dry ingredients.
The picture above shows a double batch.
Step 3: Assemble: Scoop, flatten, stuff with ganache, seal, and roll in sugar.
Step 4: Bake: 10-12 minutes at 350°F. Cool 5 minutes before transferring.
Weigh your ingredients! Using a kitchen scale ensures your measurements are accurate, which is key for getting consistent results in baking. It takes the guesswork out of measuring and helps your recipes turn out exactly as intended every time.
Substitutions
Need to make a swap? Here are some easy options:
- Peanut Butter: Use creamy almond or cashew butter for a different nutty flavor.
- Ganache Shortcut: Use store-bought truffles or chocolate caramels instead of homemade ganache for a quick alternative.
- Flour: A 1:1 gluten-free flour blend works, though cookies may spread slightly more.
Variations
Want to switch things up? Try these fun ideas:
- Nutty Crunch: Roll the dough in crushed peanuts before baking for extra texture.
- Milk Chocolate or Dark Chocolate: Swap the semi-sweet ganache for milk or dark chocolate to suit your taste.
Equipment
- Kitchen scale
- Stand mixer
- Measuring spoons
- Heatproof bowl (for ganache)
- Small saucepan (for heating cream)
- Spatula (for stirring ganache and dough)
- Plastic wrap or lid (to cover and chill ganache)
- Whisk (for dry ingredients)
- 3-tablespoon cookie scoop
- Baking sheet
- Parchment paper
- Large round cookie cutter (at least 6 inches wide) or wide glass for shaping (optional)
- Cooling rack
Storage
Store cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3-5 days.
For longer storage, refrigerate for up to 1 week or freeze baked cookies for up to 6 months. Warm them slightly before eating for gooey centers.
Audrey's Tip
Chill the ganache until firm before stuffing the cookies; it makes assembly much easier and keeps the chocolate perfectly melty after baking. For bakery-perfect edges, use a large round cookie cutter to gently “scoot” the cookies into shape right after baking.
Related
Looking for other recipes like this? Try these:
Chocolate Stuffed Sourdough Peanut Butter Cookies
Equipment
- Kitchen Scale
- Stand Mixer
- Measuring spoons
- Heatproof bowl (for ganache)
- Small saucepan (for heating cream)
- Spatula (for stirring ganache and dough)
- Plastic wrap or lid (to cover and chill ganache)
- Whisk (for dry ingredients)
- 3 Tablespoon cookie scoop
- Baking sheet
- Parchment Paper
- Large round cookie cutter (at least 6 inches wide) or wide glass for shaping (optional)
- Cooling rack
Ingredients
For the cookies
- 170 g unsalted butter ¾ cup, softened
- 150 g brown sugar ¾ cup
- 100 g white sugar ½ cup
- 2 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 large egg
- 1 large egg yolk
- 100 g sourdough discard ⅓ cup
- 250 g creamy peanut butter 1 cup
- 270 g all-purpose flour 2 ¼ cups
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon fine sea salt
- 67 g sugar ⅓ cup, for rolling the dough balls
- ¼ teaspoon instant espresso powder optional
for the ganache
- 4 oz semi-sweet or bittersweet chocolate chips about ¾ cup
- 80 ml heavy cream ⅓ cup
- 14 g unsalted butter 1 tbsp
Instructions
- Make the ganache: Heat the cream until steaming (do not boil). Pour over the chocolate chips and butter in a heatproof bowl. Let sit for 2–3 minutes, then stir until smooth. Cover and refrigerate for 1–2 hours, or until firm enough to scoop. Scoop into 1-teaspoon portions and keep chilled while you prepare the cookie dough. Preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C).
- Cream the butter & sugars: In a large bowl, beat the butter, brown sugar, and white sugar until light and fluffy (2–3 minutes).
- Add wet ingredients: Mix in the vanilla, egg, and egg yolk until smooth. Stir in the sourdough discard and peanut butter until fully combined.
- Add dry ingredients: In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, and salt. Mix into the wet ingredients just until no streaks of flour remain. No need to chill.
- Assemble the cookies: Scoop 3-tablespoon portions of dough (about 60g each). Flatten slightly, place a chilled (1-teaspoon) ganache scoop in the center, and wrap the dough around to seal. Roll each dough ball in granulated sugar.
- Bake: Arrange cookies on a lined baking sheet and gently press them down with a fork to help them flatten while baking. They don't need to be totally flat, just not round as these don't spread much. Bake for 10–12 minutes, until edges are set but centers still look soft.
- Cool: Scoot the hot cookies around with a large round cookie cutter to make them perfectly round if preferred. Let cookies rest on the tray for 5 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
Notes
- NOTE: I bake by weight for accuracy. Cup measurements are approximate and may vary depending on how you scoop.
- I use a 3-tablespoon cookie scoop to portion these, which makes 60g balls of cookie dough. You can also use a 2-tablespoon cookie scoop, which makes 40g dough balls, and this would yield around 30-35 cookies.
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