Healthy Peanut Butter Cookies

These healthy peanut butter cookies are soft and chewy and they’re made without any refined sugar or flour!

This is my favorite kind of cookie recipe because these not only are these cookies a bit healthier than most, they’re also super easy to make! I’ve made them a bunch of times and I promise, they’re hard to mess up. No coconut sugar? Don’t worry, you can use brown sugar. Not sure where to buy oat flour? You can make your own in seconds!

Tips for Perfect Peanut Butter Cookies

• If you don’t have coconut sugar, you can substitute brown sugar.
• The applesauce is the key to producing soft and chewy cookies. Without it, the cookies won’t spread.
• To make the oat flour, add 1 cup of oats to a blender or food processor and pulse for about 30 seconds or until crumbly.
• Move the oven rack to the top-middle position, to avoid burning the bottom of the cookies.

The Best Peanut Butter for Healthy Peanut Butter Cookies

I find that creamy no-stir peanut butter works best in this recipe. If your peanut butter is too dry, as natural peanut butter can sometimes be, the cookies may be too crumbly. If you’re using natural peanut butter, be sure to stir it well before using it. My favorite brands are Santa Cruz or Whole Foods 365 brand. The dough will be thick and relatively stiff but it will stick together when rolled into a ball.

Peanut Butter Substitutes

If you’d rather use a different kind of nut butter, my recipe testers tried this with almond butter and it worked just fine! Be sure to use creamy almond butter and stir well before using.

If you’re avoiding nuts, you can also make these with Sunbutter, which is made from sunflower seeds! This is a great option for those with peanut allergies. They still taste like a chewy peanut butter cookie!

How to Make Oat Flour

Blend 1 cup of oats in a blender or food processor for 10-15 seconds or pulse 5-10 times until a flour is formed. It’s ok if there are still a few large oat pieces, but it should be pretty fine.

Since this healthy peanut butter cookie recipe doesn’t require any eggs, it’s easy to make a half batch or a double batch without having to worry about any fancy conversions. I made a half batch over the weekend and it’ll be plenty of cookies for us!

Is coconut sugar healthy?

I do want to mention that just because coconut sugar is a less refined sugar doesn’t mean you should go crazy with it. Like any sugar, you should enjoy it in moderation! You can read more about the health benefits of coconut sugar here. I like these cookies because they’re a bit healthier but they taste like a regular cookie. If you don’t have coconut sugar, feel free to use brown sugar instead.

How to Store Leftover Peanut Butter Cookies

These peanut butter cookies might not last long, but the best way to store them is in an airtight container at room temperature. You can also freeze these cookies! Allow to thaw overnight or pop them in the microwave for a few seconds to soften. You can also freeze the dough, then thaw and bake when you’re ready to enjoy them!

Are you ready to try this healthy peanut butter cookie recipe? Let’s do it.

Healthy Peanut Butter Cookies

★★★★★ 4.9 from 26 reviews

• Author: Liz Thomson
• Prep Time: 10 minutes
• Cook Time: 10 minutes
• Total Time: 20 minutes
• Yield: 8-10 cookies 1x
• Category: Dessert
• Method: Baking
• Cuisine: Dessert

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Description

These healthy peanut butter cookies are deliciously chewy with no refined sugar or flour. They’re also gluten-free and vegan.

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Scale 1x2x3x

Ingredients

• 1 cup creamy salted peanut butter (see note)
• 1 cup coconut sugar (see note)
• 2 1/2 tablespoons applesauce
• 2 teaspoons vanilla
• 1 cup rolled oats, blended into flour (see note)
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/8 tsp salt or more to taste, if using unsalted peanut butter

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Instructions

1. Move the oven rack to the top-middle position.
2. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
3. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
4. In a large bowl, stir together the peanut butter, coconut sugar, applesauce, and vanilla until combined.
5. Stir in the oat flour, baking soda, and salt until well mixed.
6. Scoop heaping tablespoons of dough into balls and roll. Flatten with a fork to make a criss-cross pattern on top of each cookie.
7. Bake for 8-10 minutes until lightly browned. These cookies can easily burn on the bottom so I recommend baking in the middle of the rack for 7 minutes and then moving to a top rack for the last 2 minutes of baking. Every oven is different, but that works best for my oven!

Notes

I find that creamy no-stir peanut butter works best in this recipe. If your peanut butter is too dry, as natural peanut butter can sometimes be, the cookies may be too crumbly. I’ve used Whole Foods Organic Creamy Peanut Butter and Aldi’s Organic Creamy Peanut Butter and both worked well. If you’re using natural peanut butter, be sure to stir it well before using.

If you don’t have coconut sugar, you can substitute brown sugar.

To make the oat flour, add 1 cups of oats to a blender or food processor and pulse for about 30 seconds or until crumbly. It doesn’t have to be super fine.

Keywords: peanut butter cookies

Now if you’ll excuse me, I’m going to go enjoy one of these deliciously chewy peanut butter cookies!

Looking for other healthy cookie recipes? Try these oatmeal chocolate chip cookies!

Or if you’re in the mood for a chocolate dessert, try these gluten-free almond flour brownies!

What’s your favorite kind of cookie?