Almond Flour Peanut Butter Cookies

Name: Almond Flour Peanut Butter Cookies Recipe
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 10 min
Total time: 20 min
Yield: 12
Cuisine: American
Ingredients: 1 cup packed almond flour (112 g); ⅔ cup creamy natural peanut butter (167 g); ⅓ cup maple syrup; 1 tsp vanilla extract; ½ cup dark or semi-sweet chocolate chips (80 g); 2 tsp coconut oil (10 g)

posted: 01/11/23 — updated: 10/11/23 by Deryn Macey Disclosure: This post may contain affiliate links.

Jump to Recipe·★★★★★5 from 5 reviews

You’ll need just 4 ingredients for these easy almond flour peanut butter cookies!

A stack of 3 small peanut butter cookies with another cookie leaning against the stack. The cookies have a crisscross pattern on top.

Table of Contents

About the Recipe

This recipe is made with almond flour for an easy gluten-free peanut butter cookie that’s perfectly moist and tender, just like the classic.

In addition to almond flour, you’ll need just 3 other ingredients: maple syrup, peanut butter and vanilla. The vanilla is technically optional, though suggested for the best peanut butter cookie flavour.

The cookies are super quick and easy to make. Simply mix the 4-ingredient cookie dough, shape the cookies and create the classic crisscross shape on top, then bake!

You’ll be enjoying a lightly sweetened and wonderfully nutty peanut butter cookie in 30 minutes including prep, baking and cooling time. For an extra treat, don’t skip the chocolate dip!

Extra almond flour? You can also try these almond flour oatmeal cookies, matcha cookies, sesame tahini cookies and chocolate chip cookies. These peanut butter powder PB2 cookies are also gluten-free but made with oat flour.

Two halves of a chocolate-coated peanut butter cookie stacked on top of each other so you can see the inside texture of the cookie.

Why You’ll Love Them

Vegan (dairy-free, no eggs).
Gluten-free.
Super easy to make.
Just 4 ingredients.
Naturally sweetened.
Nutty flavour.
Enjoy in under 30 minutes.
Soft and moist.
5 g of protein per cookie.

What You’ll Need

Please scroll down the page or use the Jump to Recipe button at the top to see the full printable recipe card with ingredient amounts and instructions.

The following sections cover some key notes on ingredients, possible substitutions and step-by-step instructions with photos.

All of the ingredients needed for making an almond flour peanut butter cookie recipe. Each ingredient is labelled with text.

Almond Flour: You’ll need blanched almond flour, not almond meal. You can use store-bought almond flour or make your own by finely blending blanched almonds. Do not use almond meal or your cookies will be dark and gritty (you can use it, the cookies will just be different).
Peanut Butter: You’ll need natural peanut butter. It should be nearly pourable/runny and not overly dry (don’t use the peanut butter at the end of the jar). If your peanut butter is unsalted, add a little pinch of salt to the cookies.
Maple Syrup: This can be substituted with agave syrup. Do not substitute a granulated sweetener.
Vanilla: A must for for the best flavour!

I included an option to dip the cookies in chocolate, which is always fun and yummy for an extra treat! The cookies aren’t super sweet on their own so if you’d like some extra sweetness, the chocolate adds that.

It also looks cute and you can even taken it a step further and dip the chocolate in crushed nuts or sprinkles.

How to Make (with Photos)

Prepare to bake! Before you start, preheat the oven to 350 F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

Step 1: Mix together the peanut butter, maple syrup and vanilla until completely smooth.

Peanut butter and maple syrup mixed together in a glass mixing bowl.

Step 2: Add the almond flour and mix until you have a uniform dough.

If the ingredients were measured accurately, you should have the perfect consistency to roll the dough into balls. However, if the dough seems too wet or dry you may need to adjust it a bit.

If it’s too wet, add a sprinkle of almond flour. If it’s too dry, add 1 tsp plant-based milk or a little extra peanut butter.

Almond flour peanut butter cookie dough in a glass mixing bowl with a wooden spoon.

Step 3: Shape the cookies. Scoop the dough into 12 roughly 1-heaping tablespoon scoops, then use your hands to roll the scoops into balls.

Quick Tip: I find it easier to scoop all 12 cookies before rolling them into balls. This way it’s easy to move a bit a dough around if some are too big or too small.

12 balls of of peanut butter cookie dough on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.

Place the balls evenly on the baking sheet and press the top of each cookie dough with a fork to create a crisscross pattern.

Quick Tip: To prevent the from from sticking to the cookie dough, place a small glass or bowl of water near by and the fork before pressing each cookie.

A hand using a fork to press a crisscross pattern onto peanut butter cookies on a baking tray.

Step 4: Bake and cool the cookies. Bake the cookies for 10-12 minutes until the bottoms are just golden brown. I baked mine for 11 minutes.

Remove them from the oven and let them cool on the pan for 10 minutes before carefully transferring them to a cooling rack.

12 baked peanut butter cookies with a crisscross pattern on top cooling on a baking rack.

Step 5: Dip in chocolate! This step is optional but it’s super cute and yummy.

If you’d like to dip your cookies, wait until the cookies are completely cooled, then place the chocolate chips and coconut oil in a microwave-safe bowl and microwave in 20-second increments until the chocolate is nearly all melted. Stir it to mix in any remaining pieces.

Dip each cookie halfway into the chocolate then place it back on the cooling rack. Once you’ve dipped them all, you can let them sit at room temperature for an hour to firm or transfer them to the fridge so they set faster.

Quick Tip: Place a piece of parchment paper under the cooling rack for easy clean up. I just reserved the baking sheet I used to bake the cookies and placed the cooling rack on top.

A peanut butter cookie that's dipped in chocolate covering half of the cookie.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I make these keto-friendly (sugar-free)?

Yes. To make these keto peanut butter cookies, use liquid monk fruit sweetener such as the one from Lakanto.

What should I do if my cookie dough is too dry/wet?

This may happen if you didn’t use a digital scale to measure ingredients and the ratios are off, or your peanut butter is too dry.

If the cookie dough is too dry, add almond milk 1 teaspoon at at time until you can form the cookies. If the cookie dough is too wet, add almond flour 1 tablespoon at a time until you can form the cookies.

Do I have to use peanut butter?

No. You can substitute almond butter, cashew butter, tahini or sunflower butter.

Can I double or half the recipe?

Yes. This recipe is easily doubled or a large batch or cut in half if you only want 6 cookies.

A stack of 4 peanut butter cookies sitting on the edge of a baking cooling rack.

Expert Tips

Use a digital scale. I suggest using a digital scale to weigh your ingredients for accuracy and recipe success!
Cool before handling. The cookies will fragile just out of the oven. Let them cool for at least 10 minutes before handling. Once completely cooled, they will firm right up.
Don’t over-bake. Avoid over-baking or the cookies will be hard and may burn. They will seem underdone and very soft when them come out of the oven but they will firm as they cool.
Wet the fork. The batter can be a bit sticky, wetting the fork before pressing the cookies will help.
Salt. If your peanut butter is unsalted, add up to 1/2 tsp salt to the cookie dough. You may even want a little extra pinch even if your peanut butter is salted. If you’re dipping in chocolate, you could also leave the salt out and just sprinkle a little coarse sea salt on the chocolate.

Variations

Peanut butter can be substituted with almond butter or any other nut or seed butter at a 1:1 ratio for peanut-free cookies.
For mix-ins, try up to 1/3 cup mini chocolate chips, raisins or nuts.
If you’re not adding chocolate chips to the cookie dough, try placing a chunk of chocolate in the centre of each cookie.
Add up to 1 tsp cinnamon and/or a pinch of nutmeg.

A peanut butter cookie with a crisscross pattern on top that's half coated in chocolate.

How to Store

The cookies can be stored at room temperature, in the fridge or in the freezer. They very yummy chilled!
Let them cool completely before storing.
Once cooled, store them in an airtight container at room temperature for 3-4 days or in the fridge for up to 1 week.
To freeze, store in a freezer bag or airtight container for up to 4 months.

Did you try this recipe? I’d love to hear about it! Scroll down to the comment section to leave a star rating and review.
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