These are thick, giant peanut butter cookies with a delicious Nutella center and toasted walnut crunch throughout. The dough gets an 8-minute mix with brown sugar and natural peanut butter, which makes the texture chewy-dense instead of crumbly. Each cookie weighs about 135g — bakery-style big (some might say NYC-style?) — and the Nutella stays so gooey inside!
The trick is freezing the Nutella first. You dollop it onto wax paper, freeze it solid, then wrap cookie dough around it like you’re making a dumpling. This keeps the filling from melting into the dough during baking, so you get that lava-centre effect when you break one open. The walnuts add a roasted, slightly bitter edge that keeps these from tipping into too-sweet territory.
Natural peanut butter works better here than the processed stuff. It has a looser texture and more pronounced peanut flavour, which stands up to the Nutella without getting lost.
Tips for making Nutella-Stuffed Peanut Butter Walnut Cookies
- Freeze the Nutella dollops for at least 30 minutes before stuffing. If they’re even slightly soft, they’ll squish out the sides when you try to seal the dough around them.
- Toast the walnuts! This takes about 5-7 minutes over low heat. You’re drawing out their oils and deepening the flavour.
- Whip the butter-sugar-peanut butter mixture for the full 8 minutes. This isn’t just about combining ingredients — you’re aerating the dough, which gives you that thick, chewy texture instead of a flat, dense puck. Don’t skip this step or cut it short.
- Seal the Nutella inside completely, with no gaps. Pinch the dough edges together at the top, then roll the whole thing gently between your palms to smooth out the seams. If there’s a crack, the Nutella will leak out and burn on the pan.
- Bake only 4 cookies per sheet. These are big, and they spread. Give them space or they’ll merge into one giant cookie blob. Cool them on the baking sheet for 10 minutes before moving them — they’re too soft to transfer right out of the oven.
Ingredients
- Nutella
- Walnuts
- Unsalted butter
- Brown sugar
- White sugar
- Natural peanut butter
- Vanilla extract
- Table salt
- Baking powder
- Baking soda
- Nutmeg
- Large eggs
- All-purpose flour
Equipment
- Baking pan
- Parchment paper
- Wax paper
- Small baking sheet or plate (for freezing Nutella)
- Pan (for toasting walnuts)
- Stand mixer with paddle attachment or electric mixer
- Mixing bowls
- Measuring cups and spoons
- Rubber spatula
- Knife and cutting board (for chopping walnuts)
- Kitchen scale (optional, for portioning dough)
- Cooling rack
The first bite cracks through a slightly crisp edge, then hits dense, chewy peanut butter dough studded with toasted walnut pieces. The Nutella center is still warm and loose, almost molten if you time it right.
Happy baking!
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Nutella Stuffed Peanut Butter Cookies
- Total Time: 47 minutes
- Yield: 10 1x
Description
Thick, bakery-style peanut butter cookies with a gooey Nutella center and toasted walnut crunch. The freezer trick keeps the filling molten, and natural peanut butter gives these more flavour depth than standard versions. Makes 10 giant cookies.
Ingredients
- 1 cup (280 grams) Nutella
- 1 3/4 cups (175 grams) walnuts, lightly toasted
- 1/2 cup (113 grams) unsalted butter, softened
- 1/2 cup (100 grams) brown sugar, packed
- 1/2 cup (100 grams) white sugar
- 3/4 cup (190 grams) natural peanut butter
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
- 1 teaspoon table salt
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- Pinch of nutmeg
- 2 large eggs, cold
- 2 1/4 cups (270 grams) all-purpose flour
- Flaky salt for sprinkling (optional)
Instructions
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Preheat your oven to 350°F (180°C) with the rack in the middle position. Line a pan with parchment paper.
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Line a small baking sheet or plate with wax paper. Drop the Nutella by 2-teaspoon dollops onto the wax paper. You need 10 dollops total. Put the whole thing in the freezer to harden while you make the dough.
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Toast the walnuts in a dry frying pan over low heat until they smell nutty and fragrant. Let them cool completely, then chop into small pieces.
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In your stand mixer with the paddle attachment, beat the butter, brown sugar, white sugar, and peanut butter together until smooth and combined.
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Add the vanilla extract, salt, baking powder, baking soda, and nutmeg. Beat on medium speed until the mixture is light and fluffy, about 8 minutes (try not to speed run this!). Scrape down the sides of the bowl a few times as you go.
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With the mixer running on low, add the eggs one at a time. Let each egg fully incorporate before adding the next.
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Still on low speed, add the flour and toasted walnuts. Mix just until everything comes together into a soft dough.
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Divide the dough into 10 equal portions — about 135 grams each if you’re weighing. Roll each portion into a ball, then flatten it into a disc with your palm.
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Pull the frozen Nutella dollops out of the freezer. Place one dollop in the centre of each dough disc, then fold the edges up and around to completely seal the Nutella inside. Roll gently to smooth the seam.
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Place 4 dough balls on your prepared baking sheet, spacing them well apart. Sprinkle with flaky salt if you like.
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Bake for about 22 minutes, until the edges are golden and the tops look set. Let the cookies cool completely on the baking sheet before moving them — they’re fragile when warm.
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Repeat with the remaining dough balls, baking in batches of 4.
Notes
Freezing the Nutella is non-negotiable! It keeps the filling from leaking out everywhere during baking. If you skip this step, you’ll have a melty mess instead of gooey pockets of chocolate.
Natural peanut butter works best here because it’s less sweet and has a stronger peanut flavour that stands up to all that Nutella. If you only have regular sweetened peanut butter, it’ll still work, just taste a bit more one-note.
These cookies are huge and rich. If you want smaller, more reasonable cookies, divide the dough into 15 portions instead of 10 and bake for about 18 minutes. You’ll need to portion the Nutella smaller too.
- Prep Time: 25mins
- Cook Time: 22mins
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