Soft and chewy thick peanut butter cookies that are slightly crispy on the outside and fudgy on the inside! Only one bowl and four common ingredients needed to make this quick recipe.

The last 7 days have been a whirlwind of thoughts, emotions, new opportunities, and changes on the horizon. All week I’ve wanted to share this recipe, but my brain was too jumpy and distracted for me to sit down and commit to writing a blog post. Last Saturday, on a whim, I applied to a part time position in recreation therapy (which is what I do in “real” life, when I’m not blogging or being mommy). Tuesday I got a call and an interview was scheduled. Thursday (yesterday) was the interview, and today I received an offer (yay! and phew!). In the middle of all this hullabaloo we also got our first substantial snowfall of the season. If all that excitement isn’t a good reason to make (and eat) mass quantities of peanut butter cookies, then I don’t know what is!

These peanut butter cookies are so easy, even my scattered mind couldn’t mess them up. In fact, I had the easy recipe memorized by the second batch, which is both wonderful and wildly dangerous. Thankfully, my 3 year old side-kick was just as crazy about them, so I had some assistance with recipe testing. They taste amazingly like the peanut butter cookies from my youth; i.e. like something far less healthy. What’s more, they’re inexpensive to make, relatively more wholesome than their conventional counterparts, completely vegan, and can be done and in your belly in about 15 minutes flat.

Now, I know it sounds like I’m tooting my own horn calling them the “best” and all that, but really, of all the peanut butter cookies I’ve made over the years (and there’s been quite a ridiculous amount) these are my favorite! In fact, it’s my fifth cookie recipe on the blog featuring peanut butter, and as much as I love the others, this one tops all. Best Peanut Butter Cookies, how do I love thee? Let me count the ways:

1. Easy. To. Make. One bowl, 4 ingredients, need I say more?
2. Inexpensive. I used some of my favorite high quality + low price healthy ingredients here. In fact, most of the ingredients are probably in your pantry right now, which means they’re the perfect cookies to make if you happened to be snowed in (which thankfully we’re not) or if you suddenly find yourself in need of a dozen cookies for a school party (which thankfully we don’t). And that brings me to the next point…
3. Common Ingredients. Nothing crazy in these babies. All of the ingredients should be available at your regular grocery store. Although, if you’re into “crazy” peanut butter cookies, check out these and these.
4.  They taste AWESOME. Did I mention that? Fudgy, soft, thick, dense, chewy, perfectly sweet, and perfectly peanut-buttery. I think that about sums it up.

All this and they are completely free of gluten, dairy, eggs, refined sugar, and oils or margarine. Have I convinced you yet?

If so, what are you waiting for?? Get in the kitchen and start baking. You might not even have to make a trip to the grocery store 😉

The Best Healthy Peanut Butter Cookies – Vegan, Gluten Free, Oil Free

Makes 12-14 small cookies              Prep time 5-10 minutes, Bake time 8-10 minutes

Ingredients:

• 1 cup oat flour*
• 1/2 cup natural peanut butter (with salt**)
• 1/3 cup coconut sugar (or sub date sugar, brown sugar, or other granulated sweetener of choice***)
• 1/4 cup smooth unsweetened applesauce
• optional – 1 tsp vanilla extract (not necessary but I think it adds a little something)
• 1 -2 tablespoons of extra coconut sugar, in a shallow dish or plate, for rolling

Instructions:

1. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F. Prepare a baking sheet with silpat or parchment paper.
2. In a large bowl, combine the peanut butter, coconut sugar, applesauce, and vanilla if using. Mix well, then add the oat flour and stir everything together with a wooden spoon. You’re going to think the mixture is too dry at first, but it will come together perfectly, just keep stirring until the flour has been incorporated.
3. Using a tablespoon, scoop out the dough and roll into balls. Roll the balls lightly in the coconut sugar, then place on the prepared baking sheet. Use a fork to flatten the balls, using a criss cross pattern.
4. Bake for 8 – 10 minutes, they will be very soft coming out of the oven but firm up as they cool. Allow to cool a few minutes on the baking sheet then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely. Enjoy!

Notes:

*I use Bob’s Red Mill oat flour, which is available in my regular grocery store, use Gluten Free Oat Flour if needed. You can also mill your own flour by blending old-fashioned rolled oats in your high speed blender or Vitamix, but be sure to blend the flour very fine. Coarse flour will affect the outcome and texture of the cookie, and I can’t vouch for the results.

**I happened to have salted peanut butter on hand when I created this recipe, which saved me from adding another ingredient. If your peanut butter is unsalted, you’ll probably want to add an 1/8 – 1/4 teaspoon of sea salt.

***Date sugar is a fairly healthy and natural option, but isn’t as sweet as coconut sugar, in my opinion. Although many conventional refined sugars, such as brown sugar, are processed with animal products (i.e. bone char), organic sugar and brown sugar is usually not. Check the package to make sure. Whole Sweeteners Brown Sugar is vegan.