Make these thick, mega-chewy gluten-free peanut butter cookies with almond flour and natural peanut butter in 15 minutes of active time. All you need is a bowl and a spoon to mix up the batter. Add chocolate chips if you like, or keep them classic.
After a 30 minute chill and 15 minute bake, the cookies are ready to nom. They keep beautifully for up to 10 days. You can also chill the dough and bake up fresh cookies when the craving strikes.
Just when I thought I couldn't love baking with almond flour more, in come these almond flour peanut butter cookies. Here, almond flour and tapioca flour combine with natural peanut butter to form a moist, tender, and chewy cookie. I used this winning blend in my reader-favorite almond flour oatmeal cookies too.
These peanut butter cookies are simple to make, and they keep like a dream for over a week. I love adding chocolate chunks and topping them with flaky salt for a chocolate peanut butter cup vibe.
Here's what I love about them:
- gluten-free and optionally dairy-free
- crispy on the edges and chewy in the middle
- balanced flavor; not too sweet
- equally delicious with or without chocolate chips or chunks
- made with flavorful and easy-to-find almond and tapioca flours
- easy to make in about 15 minutes of active time
Find even more GF cookie recipes in my award-winning cookbook Alternative Baker, where I've shared 140+ recipes using all kinds of flavorful gluten-free flours.
Ingredients
This recipe comes together with 11 ingredients. I've included details on few key components below. If you have questions or want substitution suggestions, slide into my comments below and I'll do my best to answer ASAP.
Flours
Two gluten-free flours make these cookies chewy and tender, no xanthan gum or starches needed. Be sure to use certified gluten-free flours if need be, such as Bob's Red Mill brand which are made in a dedicated GF facility.
Learn more about my approach to GF baking in my beginner's guide to gluten-free flours.
- Blanched almond flour forms the base, adding a mildly nutty flavor, and extra richness.
- Sub by weight almond meal, hazelnut meal, or any other nut or seed flour you prefer. Or make these flourless peanut butter cookies instead.
- Tapioca flour absorbs moisture and makes the cookies extra chewy.
- Sub by weight arrowroot starch, or try potato starch or corn starch.
Natural peanut butter
- Creamy natural peanut butter is the star of this show, so use one you love the flavor of. It should contain just one ingredient: peanuts. I'm partial to Once Again Organic, which has a clean, fresh, toasty flavor. Stay away from commercial peanut butter with additives, which may or may not work in this recipe.
Method
This recipe makes about 15 gluten-free peanut butter cookies. You can double or triple the recipe if you need more cookies! The dough takes about 10 minutes to mix up with just a bowl and a spoon. For the thickest cookies, chill the dough for 30-60 minutes and up to several days before baking.
The cookies take 10-15 minutes to bake, and I recommend baking one pan at a time for the best lift and browning.
Tips for Extra-Chewy Cookies
A few simple techniques make these cookies especially thick and chewy:
- Beat the dough for 60 strokes. This activates the sticky ingredients.
- Don't overbake. Moisture keeps the cookies chewy, while overbaking will make them more dry and crumbly.
- Rap the baking sheet on the counter when you remove the cookies from the oven. This will deflate the cookies, making them extra dense and chewy.
Make-Ahead & Storage
These cookies keep beautifully, staying moist and chewy for days. Here's how to keep them fresh:
- Layer the cookies between pieces of parchment paper in an airtight container.
- Store at room temperature for up to 10 days.
- Refrigerate the dough balls in an airtight container for up to 1 week, then flatten and bake as directed when a cookie craving strikes.
- Freeze the dough balls or baked cookies airtight for up to 1 month. Thaw before baking or eating.
Bojon appétit! For more Bojon Gourmet in your life, follow along on Instagram, Facebook, YouTube, or Pinterest, purchase my award-winning gluten-free baking cookbook Alternative Baker, or subscribe to receive new posts via email. And if you make this gluten-free peanut butter cookie recipe, I’d love to know. Leave a comment and rating below, and tag your Instagram snaps @The_Bojon_Gourmet and #bojongourmet.
Gluten-Free Peanut Butter Cookies with Almond Flour
Print Recipe Pin RecipeIngredients
Wet Ingredients
- 8 tablespoons (113 g) unsalted butter, melted and hot
- ½ cup (100 g) packed dark or light brown sugar
- ¼ cup (50 g) granulated sugar
- 1 large egg (50 g out of the shell)
- ¾ cup (200 g) natural creamy peanut butter (unsalted)
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Dry Ingredients
- 1 cup (112 g) Bob’s Red Mill blanched almond flour
- ¼ cup + 2 tablespoons (42 g) Bob's Red Mill tapioca flour
- ½ teaspoon fine sea salt
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- Flaky salt for the tops (optional)
Chocolate version:
- 5 ounces chocolate chips or coarsely chopped bittersweet chocolate (I prefer 65-85% cacao mass; plus a little extra for topping the cookies)
Instructions
Make the dough
- Combine the brown sugar and granulated sugar in a large bowl.
- Add the hot melted butter, stir to combine, and let cool for 5 minutes.
- While the mixture cools, whisk or sift together the almond flour, tapioca flour, salt, and baking soda to get the clumps out of the almond flour.
- When the butter-sugar mixture has cooled slightly, stir in the egg and vanilla until the mixture looks smooth, then stir in the peanut butter and vanilla until combined.
- Stir in the dry ingredients until combined, then beat the batter for 60 strokes. This will make the cookies extra chewy.
- Stir in the chocolate, if using.
- Cover and refrigerate the dough until firm, at least 30 minutes and up to 5 days.
Prepare to bake
- When you’re ready to bake, position a rack in the upper third of the oven and preheat to 350ºF. I recommend using an external oven thermometer to verify the temperature. Line two rimless cookie sheets with parchment paper for easy clean-up.
- Portion the dough into 2-3 tablespoon balls (a #24 scoop works well). Place the dough balls on the baking sheets and flatten slightly. Top each with a pinch of flaky salt if you like, and a few chocolate chips or chunks if using.
Bake
- Bake the cookies, one tray at a time, on the upper rack of the oven until the edges are just set and barely golden and the centers are puffed and cracked but soft to the touch, 10-15 minutes, rotating the pan at the 10-minute mark for even browning. Take care not to over-bake so the cookies will be moist and chewy. My cookies take 13 minutes in my oven.
- Remove the cookie sheet from the oven and rap the pan on the counter a few times to deflate the cookies and keep them dense and chewy. If the cookies are uneven or spread too much, you can use a large glass or biscuit cutter to “scoot” the cookies into a thicker, more even shape while still warm and soft.
- Slide the cookies, parchment paper and all, onto a wire rack to stop the cooking and cool completely. The cookies will be soft and delicate at first, but will firm up when cool.
Storage
- Store baked cookies in a container layered with parchment paper at room temperature for up to 10 days. They’re most chewy the day of baking and will become slightly more tender after a day or two.
Make-Ahead
- For fresh-baked cookies on the fly, freeze the cookie dough balls airtight for up to several months. To bake, thaw the dough balls until soft but cool in the fridge or at room temperature, then flatten and bake as directed.
Nora says
Looks fabulous! Is there Nutrition Information available? Thank you for your inspiring and healthy recipes. Nora
Alanna Taylor-Tobin says
Oh thank you! Great question. I just added the nutrition info. Please let me know if you try them!
Melissa says
Can this recipe be used for peanut butter blossoms by rolling into a ball instead?
Alanna Taylor-Tobin says
That's such a good question! I think that would work since this dough is pretty firm. I would bake off a single test cookie just to make sure before doing up the whole batch. Please report back if you try it!!
Melissa says
Unfortunately did not work! Partway through, I saw them flattening, so I dropped some chocolate chips instead. They came out like a blob and held no form. Not sure these would even work baked by the recipe as directed 😕
Alanna Taylor-Tobin says
I'm really surprised to hear that the cookies spread so much while baking! Mine hold their shape so well that they require being flattened.
I'm happy to help troubleshoot though! An easy fix would be to add another 2 tablespoons of tapioca starch to absorb some of the extra moisture from the dough. You could also try upping your oven temperature by 25ºF.
liz says
I hadn't checked your site for a while but had just decided to make peanut butter cookies with almond flour... I measured out half a cup of coconut sugar and heated half a cup of butter and started to wonder why I've never looked to see if you have a recipe. Here it is, and now I don't have to freestyle the rest of it. Thank you!
Alanna Taylor-Tobin says
Aw, we were on the same peanut buttery wavelength. I love it! How did the cookies turn out??
Rena says
Hi Alanna,
Is it normal for the dough to have a lot of oil separation from the natural peanut butter? I followed your directions perfectly. I haven’t tried to bake the cookies yet, I’m putting in fridge overnight to harden up.
Alanna Taylor-Tobin says
Hm that's a good question. My dough doesn't get a lot of oil separation once it's all mixed together.
But one time during testing I added the peanut butter before the egg instead of the reverse. That dough wasn't as emulsified and the cookies still worked, they were just a bit more tender and less chewy.
Hopefully chilling the dough will help bring it together. Please keep me posted!
Rena says
Ok I baked the cookies this morning and although there was a lot of harden up oil/butter around the dough, the cookies cooked up perfectly so if anyone else gets nervous about that it should still turn out delish!
Alanna Taylor-Tobin says
I'm so relieved to hear that - whew. Enjoy!!
Natalie says
These seem absolutely lovely! I will try making them . As of now I must abstain from sugar and dairy consumption for three months. Might you have substitutes you recommend?
Alanna Taylor-Tobin says
Definitely! You can use a good plant-based butter, such as Miyoko's, in place of the dairy butter. And you can sub coconut sugar and/or maple sugar for the refined sugars, or you could try a granulated zero-calorie sweetener instead. Please let me know what you try!
Kathy Rubesh says
Hi Alanna,
I made these amazing little jewels for our neighborhood Christmas party. Most people brought apps or wine, I brought these amazing cookies. Made them a little bit smaller so everyone could have a taste. Making them now to take to a Super Bowl party.
Can't wait for the Oregon Strawberry season first part of June so I can try the GF Strawberry Shortcake with almond flour biscuits.
Happy mid-winter!!
Kathy
Alanna Taylor-Tobin says
Hi Kathy,
So glad you liked the cookies and that they were a hit! I hope they were enjoyed at the Super Bowl party too. You're not the only one waiting oh so patiently for strawberry season!
xo,
A