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20 minute Peanut butter Easter Basket Cookie Cups are filled with homemade buttercream frosting and topped with festive Easter egg candies.
These Easter cookie cups are SO simple and make the perfect Easter dessert. For more Easter cookies, try Carrot Cake Cookies, Bird’s Nest Sugar Cookies, and Easter Cookies.
Easter Basket Cookies
Easter is almost here!! I feel like the holiday just snuck up on me wayyy too fast, and I’m trying to make sure my kids do some fun Easter activities before it comes.
We at least try to do our annual Glow-in-the-Dark Egg Hunt. It has become tradition, and even the hubby and I like taking part in this fun activity.
Something else I love to involve the kids in is making festive Easter treats! This recipe for Easter Basket Cookie Cups is perfect for that!
We make a tasty dessert every year, and the kids especially love these! They enjoy frosting them and placing the M&M’s on top. Not only are these cookie baskets cute and festive, but they’re yummy too!
Whenever we make these for family Easter get togethers, they are one of the first things to disappear!
HOW TO MAKE
What I love about these cookie cups is how EASY they are to make!
No rolling, cutting, or chilling this cookie dough! All you have to do is make the peanut butter cookie dough (or use pre-made cookie dough to simplify even more), scoop into a muffin tin, bake, and decorate!
The presentation looks so fancy that no one will ever know how easy they were to make! So easy that I let all of my littles help count out three Easter egg candies and place them on top of the frosting. It’s a festive activity and a treat all in one – win, win! 😉
COOKIE CUP
BATTER. In a mixing bowl or stand mixer, combine sugars, shortening, peanut butter, salt and vanilla. Mix well. Add eggs and milk, mix until creamy. Fold in flour and baking soda.
SCOOP. With a large cookie scoop, place dough in the cup of a greased muffin tin.
PRESS. Using a tart press or something similar make an indent into each scoop. This will help mold the dough into the muffin cup.
BAKE + COOL. Bake at 350°F for 10-12 minutes. They will rise when baking and will set down once taken out of the oven. Let cool completely.
FROSTING
MIX. Combine butter, milk, vanilla and 2 cups of your powdered sugar in a large bowl. Mix till smooth and creamy, about 5 minutes. Then add the remaining powdered sugar and food coloring of your choice.
PIPE. Pipe your frosting into your cookie cups and top with Peanut Butter M&Ms. ENJOY!
Tips + Variations
Change things up and use your own favorite Peanut Butter Cookie recipe, or ANY cookie dough for that matter!
- regular chocolate chip cookie dough (with or without the chips)
- chocolate cookie dough
- Sugar Cookie dough
- even Snickerdoodle
- for another alternative, try the rice krispies version
- Add shredded coconut to look like grass
- Make a basket handle with licorice, pipe cleaner, or melt chocolate and pipe a handle to place in the frosting once it has hardened.
Muffin tin size: I use a regular sized muffin tin, but you can easily use a mini muffin tin. Just reduce the cooking time to 5-7 minutes. The mini cookie cups work great if trying to feed a large crowd, or if you are trying to minimize how many sweets the kids have on Easter. 😉
Storing Info
STORE in an airtight container for 3 days.
If you want to make them last a little longer, you can FREEZE them for 3-4 months.
It’s best to FREEZE them unfrosted, if you’re making them ahead of time. But if they’re already decorated, you can set them individually on a sheet pan, uncovered, and flash freeze them for a couple hours to harden up the frosting, then stack them in an airtight container or wrap in plastic wrap and foil.
For more yummy Easter treats, check out:
- Carrot Cake Cookies
- Easter Oreo Bark
- Carrot Chocolate Covered Strawberries
- Rice Krispies Easter Cups
- Carrot Cake
- Easter Dirt Cake
Easter Basket Cookies Recipe
Ingredients
Cookie
- 1 cup sugar
- 1 cup brown sugar
- 1 cup shortening
- 1 cup creamy peanut butter
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 eggs
- ¼ cup milk
- 3½ cups all-purpose flour
- 2 teaspoons baking soda
Buttercream Frosting
- ½ cup unsalted butter
- 3-4 cups powdered sugar
- ¼ cup milk
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- food coloring
- peanut butter M&Ms
Instructions
Cookie Cup
- In a mixing bowl, combine sugars, shortening, peanut butter, salt, and vanilla. Mix well. Add eggs and milk, and mix until creamy. Fold in flour and baking soda.
- With a large cookie scoop, place dough in the cup of a greased muffin tin.
- Using a tart press or something similar make an indent into each scoop. This will help mold the dough into the muffin cup.
- Bake at 350°F for 10-12 minutes. They will rise when baking and will set down once taken out of the oven. Let cool completely.
Frosting
- Combine butter, milk, vanilla, and 2 cups powdered sugar in a large bowl. Mix till smooth and creamy, about 5 minutes. Then add the remaining powdered sugar and food coloring of your choice.
- Pipe your frosting into your cookie cups and top with Peanut Butter M&Ms. ENJOY!
Video
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Can butter be used instead of shortening?
Yes, you can. I have not, but you can. It might make it more dense or chewier, but should still taste good.
How much dough is needed in individual cups the mini cupcake pan? Do you prefer the larger pan?
They took longer than expected, but they look great.
I thought these were dry and not as flavorful as others I have made. I like to try new recipes but will go back to my usual . I bake a lot so no concerns I didn’t measure properly or anything.
Thanks for the feedback and giving the recipe a try!
My kids LOVE these!! I love frosting and like to do a lot of piping so I’ll just make more frosting next time; they’re super easy to make. My kids loved putting too many sprinkles on theirs 🙂
Could I use butter instead of shortening in the cookies?
I just made them with butter and they turned out fine!
You could! Jut keep in mind, cookies made with butter may not rise as much and may spread a bit more. But they will have a rich buttery taste. Cookies made with shortening will result in a cookie that bakes higher and holds its shape better during baking. So that may affect the cookie cup slightly in flavor and texture, but should still be delicious!!
These are so cute and the perfect Easter treat. My nieces will love these!
These are not only cute but they are delicious too! So fun to make with the kids.
Thank you so much for sharing this amazing recipe! Will surely have this again! It’s really easy to make and it tasted so delicious! Highly recommended!
Used mini muffin pan, made 48 cookies. Perfect
I bet the mini size cookie cups turned out so cute! Thanks for sharing!
Put in Reese p b chips in dough
That sounds heavenly! I will have to try that out! Thanks for sharing what you do!
Trying to figure out if the easter egg baskets are cooked enough. I made them in to 24 so they were very full cups. The edges look a bit browned but the centers still looks and feel very soft… I put them in for 13 took them out and then put them back in for another 3 minutes… not sure if I should stick them back in… please help ?
How did they turn out? I did 24 as well & in my oven they take about 12 min. Ovens are all different, so they may have needed a little more in yours. Hope they turned out 🙂
So disappointed. These are so cute but just didn’t turn out without major revisions.
First – Although I got 28 out of the recipe, I lost at least 6 because they were severely underdone. I tried putting them back to try and save them but they ended up as a large peanut butter cookie (in pieces.) I baked my second tray for at least 15-20 minutes and they were much better.
The frosting was too soft and too sweet for my taste. I ended up putting a little salt in it to cut the sugar. It was so soft (despite additional sugar) that I had to put it in the fridge before I could even pipe it.
The taste of the basket is very good (when it’s cooked properly.)
lovely recipe
Thank you so much!
What a really fun Easter cookie! I think the peanut butter cookie paIrs well with the sweet topping-So well i always reach for a second. ?
I made these for an easter party and they were a hit! Everyone wanted the recipe! so cute, EAst and tastes good
How cute are these little cookie nests? And Peanut Butter! One of my favorites!
The cutest ever easter dessert! So simple and yet so delICious. I love making something knowing that if I want to change it up i can but this is so adorable!
I will be making these for Easter for sure!! they are amazing! They are soft & that buttercream frosting is to die for! They will be a hit!
How many was this supposed to make?
Also for pregnant forgetful moms, please add food coloring to the grocery list/ingredient list. We had white frosting! Thanks for sharing !
You could get 2-3 dozen 🙂 Happy to share!
How much flour does this call for?
3 1/2 cups 🙂 Hope you like these!
Can these be made without the peanut butter? or is there a replacement for the peanut butter?
I haven’t not tried making them without the peanut butter. Is it for allergies? You could try almond butter or I would just google good substitutes for peanut butter. I hope you find something! They are so good!
Right on the spot before Christmas 🙂 Thank you kristi
These were great! I loved the consistency, it was just like a wanted, similar to a cookie bar. I added dark chocolate chips, which were a hit. The final product turned out just like the photos, so cute! Thanks for the recipe!
I’m glad they were a hit! Great idea about adding dark choc chips! Thank you!
For everyone asking, I just made these, and I got 24 regular muffin tin size AND 24 mini muffin tin size. So…this recipe makes a ton. If you don’t need that many, you can probably easily cut the recipe in half. And they taste great, too!!
Thank you for sharing that, Jessie!!
Could there be a way to make these without the peanut butter – more of a vanilla cookie – for kids who can’t eat nuts?
Did you use a regular muffin tin or a mini muffin tin? And how many does this recipe make? Thanks! These are super cute and look yummy.
I used a regular size one, but could definitely be made in the mini ones. Thank you and hope you’ll give them a try!
How many regular muffin cookies does this make? Please reply, this question has been asked several times. Thanks
I just made these, and I got 24 regular muffin tin size AND 24 mini muffin tin size. Hope this helps!!
I made these today and I got about 22 ice cream scoop size cups. I made them in regular size muffin pans
Thank you for sharing, Marguerite!!
These are TOO cute!
Thank you!! And, they taste delicious! Thanks for stopping by!
Did you use a regular muffin pan or mini muffin pan? Also how many does this make?? Thanks very much
These look amazing! Question. Would it work to substitute butter for the shortening?
I think it would be just fine, and think an equal substitution would work. If you try it, could you let me know how it goes so others who have the same question can do it?
I made them substituting two sticks of butter for the cup of shortening and they were delicious!
We love them!!! I’m glad you like them. Thank you for sharing!!
Are these made in a regular muffin tin or a mini muffin tin?
The Easter Basket Cookie Cups look lovely! How many does this recipe make?
So festive and adorable!!!
These are so cute! I’ve never seen anything like these, I’m gonna have to try them.