Easy, rich, irresistible vegan peanut butter cookies that are FREE from added oil, refined sugar, and gluten. But they're so good no one will guess!
Somehow, a sunbutter cookie recipe made it onto this blog before a peanut butter cookie did. As much as we LOVE peanut butter in this house, I can't really explain this oddity. So today I'm finally giving this vegan recipe collection the peanut butter cookie it deserves!
Considering there are about 101 ways to make a peanut butter cookie, I wanted to do one that best reflects my cookie philosophy - secretly healthier than most cookies but so tasty no one will even mind!
I think these are the perfect peanut butter cookies because they're:
- oil-free and suitable for those following a whole-food, plant-based diet (WFPB)
- gluten-free but versatile; if you don't need GF, a variety of other flours also work!
- deliciously sweetened with a combination of maple syrup and coconut sugar (other granulated sweeteners work, too)
- sweet, salty, and perfectly peanutty
- soft and chewy with a lightly crisp exterior
- made in 1 bowl
- super quick
- ridiculously easy!
How to Make 1-Bowl Vegan Peanut Butter Cookies
Okay, I've promised you these are ridiculously easy to make, so now I'll prove it! Be sure to check out the video for a quick glimpse of the process.
- In a mixing bowl cream together the peanut butter, maple syrup, coconut sugar, and vanilla.
- Add the flour, salt, and baking soda to the bowl, and stir until everything is fully mixed.
- Use a cookie scoop or tablespoon to scoop up about 1.5 tablespoons of dough per cookie. Roll the dough between your palms, and place each ball of dough on a parchment-lined baking sheet.
- Use a fork to make a criss-cross pattern on each cookie, which also flattens them a bit (dip the underside of the fork tines in a small amount of sugar to keep it from sticking to the dough).
- Bake the cookies for 10 to 12 minutes or until lightly brown on the bottoms.
Since cookies are very soft straight out of the oven, it can be tricky to check the bottoms. But just do you best!
Let the cookies cookies cool on the pan for 5 minutes, then transfer them to a cooling rack.
The recipe makes exactly twelve cookies, and I'm gonna be honest with you... they disappear quickly! So depending on the number of people in your household, you may want to double the recipe right off the bat.
Pair these vegan peanut butter cookies with a cold glass of almond milk, a scoop of vanilla-maple oat ice cream, or a bowl-full of creamy banana nice cream!
Notes and Tips for the Best Cookies
I tested these peanut butter cookies five times just to play around with different flours and levels of sweetness. The cookies you see in the video and photos had a touch more maple syrup than I decided on for the final recipe. So what that means is that your dough may not look quite as sticky as the dough in the video. Also, your cookies will spread a bit less and be thicker.
All of the testing showed me that this recipe is actually pretty foolproof. No matter which flour I tested and how sweet (or not sweet) they were, they were always delicious. So just know that a little bit of variance in flour/moisture doesn't make or break the results. If you want a sweeter cookie, add another tablespoon of maple syrup.
For a softer cookie, err on the side of a shorter bake time. For a crispier cookie, just 1 to 2 minutes more does the trick.
Keep in mind that oven temperatures can vary quite a bit. If you often have trouble with consistency, or baked goods don't turn out as expected (require significantly more or less time in the oven), your oven temp might not be accurate. It's easy to test this with an inexpensive oven thermometer, and then your bakes will be much more successful!
Can these cookies be frozen?
You bet! You can freeze the baked cookies or the unbaked dough. Just make sure they're well-protected from air.
To freeze the cookie dough:
After rolling the dough into individual balls, place them on a baking sheet and freeze for about 30 minutes. Then transfer the dough to an airtight container and keep frozen until ready to use. Bake the cookies from frozen, adding 1 or 2 minutes to the total bake time.
I hope you enjoy these Oil-Free, Gluten-Free, Vegan Peanut Butter Cookies! Be sure to drop a comment and a star rating below if you give them a try.
And if you’re on instagram tag a photo of your dish with @myquietkitchen. I love to see what you’re baking!
More vegan cookie recipes:
Double Chocolate Cookies
Vegan Protein Cookies
Spelt Cookies with Peanuts and Chocolate
Almond Flour Thumbprint Cookies
Rosemary Tahini Cookies
Cashew Butter Cookies
1-Bowl Sunbutter Cookies
Vegan Peanut Butter Cookies (Gluten-Free, Oil-Free)
Ingredients
- ½ cup unsalted natural peanut butter, creamy If using salted peanut butter omit the salt listed below.
- ¼ cup maple syrup
- ¼ cup coconut sugar plus 2 tsp, divided Sub brown sugar or cane sugar, if desired.
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ⅔ cup oat flour (60 g) OR ½ cup 1:1 gluten-free flour blend (70 g) If not using a scale, whisk flour before measuring. Then spoon into measuring cup and level off the top.
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ⅛ teaspoon fine sea salt If you like a saltier cookie, use a scant ¼ tsp.
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees F and line a large baking sheet with parchment.
- In a large bowl, stir together the peanut butter, maple syrup, ¼ cup coconut sugar, and vanilla.
- Add the flour, baking soda, and salt (if using), and stir until fully combined. Use a cookie scoop or a tablespoon to scoop 1.5 Tbsp dough into your hand. Roll the dough betwen your palms to smooth it out, and place on cookie sheet 2 to 3 inches apart.
- Place the 2 tsp sugar in a small bowl. Use the underside of a fork to create a criss-cross pattern on top of one ball of dough, gently pressing down to flatten it into a cookie shape. Now dip the underside of the fork tines in coconut sugar (this will help it not stick to the dough). Repeat with the remaining cookies.
- Bake 10 to 12 minutes. The cookies will be very soft when removed from the oven. Allow cookies to cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes, then transfer to a rack to cool completely.
Notes
Estimated Nutrition (per serving)
Nutrition information is an estimate and will vary depending on the exact amounts and specific products and ingredients used. We calculate this information using the online calculator cronometer.com. For the most accurate nutrition information we recommend calculating it yourself to reflect the specific ingredients used in your dish.
Steve
Lori,
Forgot to leave my rating
Steve
Here’s a hint!
If you don’t have a cookie scoop, just roll the dough into a long log and cut the pieces off then roll into a ball.
Joy Patras
Hi Lori! My daughter and I have made this recipe twice so far and we really think the cookies tasted delicious. It is such an easy recipe to follow and a short time later, we were snacking on delicious cookies and oat milk. Thanks for sharing the recipe!
Lori
So happy you and your daughter enjoy the cookies, Joy. Thank you!
Lita
We're big peanut butter lovers - the type of folks that eat it by the spoonful out of the container 🙂 and I was excited to try this simple recipe. I substituted unbleached spelt flour that I had purchased when the stores were out of all purpose wheat flour and they turned out fabulously if not a touch dry (I whisked the flour - thanks for the tip) and a bit too sweet for us. The next time I make these cookies I will omit the coconut sugar and might try using whole wheat flour (reducing the amount a tad) to make them a super-healthy treat. Thank you Lori!
Lori
That sounds great, Lita. Glad you liked them! Thank you for the comment/feedback.
Karen Ricketts
These do disappear quick, just like you said! We love these and they are so quick and easy to make. Thanks for this wonderful recipe!
Lori
Thanks for the review, Karen. Glad you enjoyed them!
Tracy
These cookies are amazing! They are super easy to make which means I can get the urge and be eating a cookie in no time - love that. But even better, they taste amazing!!! I'm so happy to have found this recipe, it's my new favorite cookie!!
Lori
Tracy, I'm so glad you loved them! And thank you for the feedback! 😀
daisy
I want to make these for one of my clients, but he is nut-allergic, so he can't have the coconut sugar. I will try to add more maple syrup instead. Thanks! We love easy!
Lori
Hi Daisy,
Since coconut isn’t technically a nut, it might be okay, unless you know he’s specifically allergic to coconut. ?
The easiest swap would be another granulated sweetener, like brown sugar, since maple syrup will also add moisture. But since maple is so sweet you might be able to just add 1 or 2 Tbsp, then increase the flour just a touch.
So I guess he’s only allergic to tree nuts, not peanuts? For a seed-based cookie, check out the Sunbutter cookie recipe, too!
Let me know how they turn out!
Teresa Sklenicka
Wow! These cookies are amazing! The best peanut butter cookies I've eaten. I was so happy to see a cookie recipe with oat flour. We're rationing our wheat flour because we can't seem to find any anywhere. I'll be making lot of these!
Lori
Thanks so much, Teresa! I just love baking with oat flour. Enjoy! 😀