Cooking and Serving: 20 minutes | 12 cookies
Ingredients
Nicole’s Recipe Notes | How to make flourless peanut butter cookies | Ingredient substitutions
Description
Prep Time: 10 minutes | Cook Time: 10 minutes | Total Time: 20 minutes | Servings: 12 cookies
Ingredients
Nicole’s Recipe Notes
How to make flourless peanut butter cookies
Ingredient substitutions
Expert tips
Flourless Peanut Butter Cookies Recipe
Notes
* How to make flourless peanut butter cookies
* Ingredient substitutions
* Flourless Peanut Butter Cookies Recipe
* Storage instructions
These are not your “regular” flourless peanut butter cookies. They’re better in
taste, texture, and even appearance.
The most classic recipe you’ve no doubt seen before is simply 1 egg + 1 cup
peanut butter + 1 cup granulated sugar. But that makes a cookie that’s much more
fragile, more crunchy than chewy and has those jagged, cracked edges.
So I cut back on the sugar and added some baking powder to create a classic
“3-ingredient” peanut butter cookie that holds together so well. I was even able
to create the classic crosshatch pattern of our classic gluten free peanut
without flour, and without getting those broken edges.
ingredients for flourless peanut butter cookies in small bowls with white block
writing with names of ingredients
for flourless peanut butter cookies in small bowls with white block writing with
* Peanut butter: creamy, no-stir peanut butter (the oil doesn’t separate in the
jar) provides the flavor and much of the support for the cookies.
* Egg: provides structure and binds the cookie dough together
* Sugar: adds sweetness and tenderness to the cookies
* Baking powder: helps provide a slight rise in the cookies and create a more
* Salt: balances and brightens the flavors
Hand pressing a fork into flourless peanut butter cookie dough on white paper on
gold colored baking sheet
pressing a fork into flourless peanut butter cookie dough on white paper on gold
HOW TO MAKE FLOURLESS PEANUT BUTTER COOKIES
Make the cookie dough handheld mixer (or and salt.
Round metal mixing bowl with light brown peanut butter, white sugar, and egg out
metal mixing bowl with light brown peanut butter, white sugar, and egg out of
Same bowl with thick brown cookie dough with white powder on top
bowl with thick brown cookie dough with white powder on top
I like to use a #40 cookie scoop to create 12 equal portions of 1 1/2
tablespoons each, but spoons work, too. Roll each piece into a dough ball.
Then, wet the tines of a fork, dip it in some more sugar, and press the fork
down twice on each ball to create a crisscross pattern.
11 brown scoops of peanut butter cookie dough on gold baking sheet lined with
white paper, with hand holding metal cookie scoop with cookie dough in the bowl
brown scoops of peanut butter cookie dough on gold baking sheet lined with white
paper, with hand holding metal cookie scoop with cookie dough in the bowl of the
same baking sheet with about half the mounds of cookie dough rolled into rounds
with one round piece of cookie dough in the palms of 2 hands
baking sheet with about half the mounds of cookie dough rolled into rounds with
one round piece of cookie dough in the palms of 2 hands
hand holding small metal fork with white sugar stuck to the tines, positioned
over ball of cookie dough about to make a mark on the dough
holding small metal fork with white sugar stuck to the tines, positioned over
ball of cookie dough about to make a mark on the dough
all 12 pieces of raw cookie dough with two crisscrossed marks from the fork
tines with sugar on top on the same baking sheet
12 pieces of raw cookie dough with two crisscrossed marks from the fork tines
with sugar on top on the same baking sheet
If the cookies have lost their shape during baking, as soon as they come out of
the oven, you can coax them back into shape cookie cutter.
Let them sit on the baking sheet for 10 minutes, and then you can move to racks
to cool completely, if needed.
hand guiding small round cookie cutter around one of 12 freshly baked brown
cookies on white paper lined gold baking sheet
guiding small round cookie cutter around one of 12 freshly baked brown cookies
on white paper lined gold baking sheet
12 freshly baked round, light brown flourless peanut butter cookies with
crosshatch pattern on top of each on white paper lined gold baking sheet
freshly baked round, light brown flourless peanut butter cookies with crosshatch
pattern on top of each on white paper lined gold baking sheet
INGREDIENT SUBSTITUTIONS
You can try replacing peanut butter with a no-stir variety of almond butter
(Barney Butter is a good (if expensive) option). Either way, you’ll need a
Cashew butter might also work, as long as it’s no-stir. I also think that it’s
worth trying the recipe with no-stir Wowbutter, which is made from soy beans.
Try replacing the egg in this recipe with a “chia egg” each (1 tablespoon ground
chia seeds + 1 tablespoon lukewarm water, mixed and allowed to gel) or a “flax
egg.” Bob’s Red Mill’s egg replacer might also work.
If you can find a no-stir peanut butter that doesn’t have any regular sugar, you
can make these sugar-free. I’ve made this recipe with Lankato brand granulated
monkfruit sugar alternative, and although the texture wasn’t exactly the same,
it worked. Swerve might also work.
This is such a simple recipe, but you can make a few swaps to change it up a
* Add chocolate chips: add up to 2 ounces of miniature semi-sweet chocolate
chips to the raw cookie dough.
* Add cocoa powder: replace the 10 tablespoons granulated sugar with 6
tablespoons (82 grams) light brown sugar, add 1/4 cup (20 grams) unsweetened
cocoa powder, and replace the baking powder with 1 teaspoon baking soda.
USE A “NO STIR” PEANUT BUTTER
A nut butter is “no stir” if, when you open the jar, the liquid oil hasn’t
separated from the solid nut butter. It’s all integrated (and not drippy). It
usually has palm oil added to it to keep the peanut butter stable and fully
emulsified at room temperature.
BEAT THE COOKIE BATTER WELL
It’s mostly the balance of ingredients that creates the proper texture in the
cookie that’s crispy outside and chewy inside. But beating the batter a bit
In a traditional cookie made with flour, creaming butter (or other fat) with
sugar creates a bond between the two that allows the heat of the oven to cause
them to rise and crisp. If you want crispy-chewy cookies, try beating the batter
This recipe can be made with a bowl and spoon, stand mixer or hand mixer makes cookies with the best smooth texture and the
PRESS A FORK ON TOP FOR EVEN BAKING
Flattening the dough ball helps the cookies bake evenly, and spread properly.
For that distinctive peanut butter cookie look, press a fork in that criss cross
pattern on top of each cookie dough ball.
The granulated sugar on the outside of the cookies is absolutely optional. But
dipping the fork in water first, and then in some granulated sugar first does
help create a bit of a crust on the outside. And you really don’t need much
granulated sugar to make that sort of magic happen.
5 Flourless peanut butter cookies on a cooling rack
Flourless peanut butter cookies on a cooling rack
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FLOURLESS PEANUT BUTTER COOKIES RECIPE
Prep Time: 10 minutes mins
Cook Time: 10 minutes mins
Chilling time: 10 minutes mins
Total Time: 30 minutes mins
pile of flourless peanut butter cookies on black wire rack
of flourless peanut butter cookies on black wire rack
These flourless peanut butter cookies are are crispy outside, soft and chewy
inside, and made simply with just 5 basic ingredients.
* Handheld mixer for the best cookie shape and texture (but optional)
* 10 tablespoons (125 g) granulated sugar, plus more for topping
* 1 (50 g (weighed out of shell)) egg, at room temperature, beaten
* ⅛ teaspoon baking powder
* ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
* Preheat your oven to 350°F. Line a large rimmed baking sheet with parchment
paper and set it aside.
* In a large bowl, place the granulated sugar, peanut butter, and egg, and mix
to combine very well. Using an electric mixer (hand or stand mixer) will help
get the perfect cookie texture, but it’s not necessary. Add the baking
powder, and salt, and mix again to combine.
* Divide the dough into portions of 1 1/2 tablespoons (or 35 grams) each. A #40
ice cream scoop works great, or you can use 2 spoons.
* Place the pieces of dough about 1 1/2-inches apart from one another on the
prepared baking sheet. Roll each piece of dough between clean palms, and
return to the baking sheet.
* For slightly thicker cookies, or if you just think that your peanut butter
was a little oily and soft, place the baking sheet in the freezer to chill
for about 10 minutes.
* Wet the tines of a salad fork, press into the extra granulated sugar, and
then press into a crosshatch pattern on each piece of cookie dough. Wet the
fork as often as necessary to prevent it from sticking to the cookie dough.
You can just use the wet tines without the sugar if you prefer.
* Place the baking sheet in the center of the preheated oven and bake for about
10 minutes, or until the cookies are puffed and the dough no longer glistens
on top (although the granulated sugar will glisten where it has clumped).
* Remove the cookies from the oven. If they’ve lost their shape at all, quickly
run a round cookie cutter around the edges of each cookie on the baking sheet
to coax it back into shape.
* Allow them to cool for 10 minutes on the baking sheet or until firm.
A note about the proper peanut butter.
Be sure to use a “no stir” peanut butter in this recipe. That just means that,
when you open the jar, the liquid oil hasn’t separated from the solid nut
butter. It’s all integrated, and not drippy.
For the thickest cookies, chill the shaped pieces of dough for about 10 minutes
in the freezer or 30 minutes in the refrigerator before baking.
Trans Fat: 0.002g | Cholesterol: 14mg | Sodium: 150mg | Potassium: 127mg |
Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 12g | Vitamin A: 20IU | Calcium: 15mg | Iron: 0.4mg
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an
Flourless peanut butter cookies raw with a fork marking them, overhead on a
rack, and closeup on a rack
peanut butter cookies raw with a fork marking them, overhead on a rack, and
These cooled baked cookies will keep well and maintain their texture in a sealed
glass container at room temperature for up to 5 days. Storing them on the
counter in plastic may lead to a change in texture.
For longer storage, place the baked and cooled cookies in a sealed plastic
zip-top bag with as much air removed as possible, or wrapped tightly in
freezer-safe wrap. Then, place them in the freezer for up to 3 months. Defrost
at room temperature or in the microwave.