Gluten-Free Peanut Butter Cookies Recipe

Gluten-free peanut butter cookies are nutty cookies featuring alternatives to wheat or other flours that contain gluten. You can use store-bought gluten-free flour blends or naturally gluten-free flours such as coconut or almond flour to replace all-purpose flour. (Learn more about the difference between coconut flour vs. almond flour.)

Creaming butter and sugar together until they become light and fluffy adds volume and structure while giving the cookies a melt-in-your-mouth texture.

Flourless peanut butter cookies are typically gluten-free, since all-purpose flour is the main source of gluten in most baking recipes. However, flourless peanut cookie recipes go one step further than gluten-free ones by eliminating flour altogether. “Gluten-free” is a term that describes foods that do not contain gluten, the protein responsible for making bread chewy and crispy. Baked goods like cookies and cakes don’t need gluten development for a tight, tender crumb, making them perfect candidates for your next gluten-free baking project.

“Flourless” describes a style of baking that doesn’t use any sort of flour, whether gluten-free or not. Flour absorbs moisture and creates a crumb texture, making flourless cakes and cookies gooey and denser, as in the case of this flourless chocolate cake. Baking is a science, so each ingredient you add will change the chemistry of the food you bake.

This cookie dough is versatile and forgiving. Here are some easy variations of the classic peanut butter cookie with different mix-ins:

1. 1. Banana: For extra fiber and a fruit-forward flavor, mash a very ripe banana and substitute it for one of the eggs in the cookie dough.
2. 2. Crunchy peanut butter: While most recipes call for creamy peanut butter—a rich source of vitamin A, potassium, and calcium—you can easily substitute equal amounts of crunchy, chunky, or natural peanut butter for extra texture. Either of these options will lend a rich peanut butter flavor.
3. 3. Chocolate: For a nutty take on chocolate chip cookies, stir in one cup of chocolate chips or chopped dark chocolate chunks with the dry ingredients.
4. 4. Dairy-free: You can easily substitute a vegan butter alternative to make your cookies gluten-free and dairy-free.
5. 5. Oatmeal: Oats can add texture to a cookie for those who like a hearty, chewy result. To make a peanut butter oat cookie, substitute a half-cup of old-fashioned rolled oats for half of the almond flour.
6. 6. Spices: Try adding a teaspoon of cinnamon or nutmeg to the sugar during the creaming step for an extra layer of flavor.

Here’s how to get tender, fluffy gluten-free cookies:

1. 1. Start with softened butter. The creaming method is a key step in getting the melt-in-your-mouth texture of a classic peanut butter cookie. Starting with room-temperature butter ensures your mixture will get nice and fluffy.
2. 2. Bake on parchment. Parchment paper makes for easy cleanup and ensures your cookies don’t get too crisp or brown on the bottom. Additionally, cookies without gluten tend to be more tender, and parchment paper ensures they don’t stick to the bottom of the cookie sheet, so you can easily move them once baked.
3. 3. Use a cookie scoop. The key to evenly baked cookies is ensuring each portion of dough is roughly the same size. Use a tablespoon or cookie scoop to measure your dough.
4. 4. Bake until just set. These cookies won’t change much in color during the baking process and can easily dry out or become crumbly. Keep an eye on them while baking, and remove the cookies from the oven within the nine- to eleven-minute mark.