Chocolate peanut butter Ritz cookies are a simple holiday dessert that require just three simple ingredients. A sweet and salty treat best enjoyed frozen.
The first Christmas Burken and I spent together with our respective families, his mom made these chocolate covered Ritz peanut butter crackers.
I quickly found out that they were one of Burken’s all time favorite holiday sweets. He’s not a huge sweets person, so when I find something he really enjoys, I tend to glom onto it.
Case-in-point, these super soft pudding cookies. A classic Burken family recipe that I make on the reg now.
But back to these sweet, salty, crunchy and creamy Ritz cracker cookies.
They’re extremely simple to make. Only require three ingredients, and are definitely best enjoyed straight from the freezer.
They actually almost taste just like a Reese’s peanut butter cup, but add a crunchy element with the crackers.
I won’t take up too much of your time with describing this “recipe”, because once you get a taste, you’re going to be running to the kitchen to make these a family staple too.
How to make Chocolate Peanut Butter Ritz Cookies
Three simple ingredients
It’s probably pretty easy to guess by the name what the three ingredients are in chocolate peanut butter Ritz cookies, but if you need me to spell it out, here they are.
- Chocolate chips
- Peanut butter
- Ritz crackers
Okay, here’s the thing with these ingredients though…the chocolate chips and the peanut butter are very specific.
What I mean is that to make this a true Burken recipe, you have to use semi-sweet chocolate chips and regular peanut butter.
I tried recreating these once as a healthier treat, but failed when I used dark chocolate and natural peanut butter.
While I love dark chocolate, it apparently doesn’t do the original recipe justice. So stick with the semi-sweet chocolate.
On the topic of natural peanut butter. It’s too runny to properly make Ritz chocolate sandwich crackers. Best to stick with the JIF style, thick and creamy peanut butter here.
Quick Tips to Assembling Chocolate covered peanut butter Ritz cookies
There’s very little prep required here, but there are a few things to call out to make the process even smoother.
- Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper
- Melt the chocolate chips with coconut oil
- Sandwich all cookies prior to dipping
Make sure your baking sheet can fit in the fridge or freezer. At the very end of this process doing so is going to help the chocolate set faster.
Melting the chocolate chips with coconut oil will make for much smoother, easier to dunk chocolate.
Having all of your cookies sandwiched prior to dipping in the chocolate will ensure the chocolate doesn’t seize as you’re sandwiching the cookies.
Okay, now on to the real ‘how to’.
How to sandwich Chocolate covered Ritz Cookies
I wish I would have gotten a picture of this, but Winston (our dog) decided to help me with the process of making these Ritz cookies.
Lay out all your Ritz crackers so that each one has a pair.
Then place a hefty schmear of peanut butter on one cracker and sandwich with another.
Pretty simple, right?
Place them on your parchment-lined pan so as to ensure your dog does not try to steal a sandwich cracker. (Does it sound like I’m speaking from experience?).
Tips for chocolate dunking
If you want to ensure a super smooth gloss and no finger prints on your chocolate covered peanut butter Ritz crackers, then a fork is going to be your best friend.
Drop your sandwich crackers in the melted chocolate and either spoon the chocolate over the top, or flip the cracker sandwich.
Then slide a fork under the cracker, lift up and let the chocolate cascade over the sides. Lightly shake the fork to get any excess chocolate off.
Also make sure to check all sides have been properly covered before placing onto your parchment-lined pan.
Once you’ve coated all cracker sandwiches, pop those babies in the fridge or freezer to set the chocolate.
Proper storage of chocolate peanut butter Ritz cookies
According to Burken, the only way to properly store these salty/sweet cookie sandwiches is in the freezer.
I do have to agree with this point.
The crackers stay crunchy and crumbly. While the chocolate and peanut butter hold everything together.
If you’re a fan of putting Reese’s peanut butter cups in the freezer, then you’re going to love these cracker sandwiches the same way.
Make a giant batch of these for the upcoming Christmas holiday and watch them disappear!
Looking for more holiday-ready desserts? Check these out:
Gluten Free Maple Pecan Cookies
Cranberry Orange Shortbread Cookies
- 50 Ritz crackers
- 1 ¼ cup peanut butter*
- 1 {12 oz} bag semi-sweet chocolate chips
- 1-2 Tbsp. coconut oil
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Spread peanut butter onto one cracker.
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Top with an additional cracker to make a sandwich.
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In a medium bowl, melt the chocolate chips and coconut oil.
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Dip the peanut butter cracker sandwich in the melted chocolate, spooning melted chocolate over to coat the entire cracker.
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Using a fork, pick up the coated sandwich from the bottom. Shake off any excess chocolate and place on a parchment paper lined baking sheet.
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Repeat for all remaining crackers.
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Place in the refrigerator for about 5-10 minutes, until chocolate is set. Store in an airtight container on the counter {or even better, in the freezer}.
*Note: do not use natural peanut butter. It’s too runny and makes the sandwiches harder to set up.
