Vegan No Bake Peanut Butter Cookies Recipe (2024)

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Simple vegan no bake cookies featuring chewy and creamy peanut butter, quick oats, brown sugar, cocoa and vanilla. Almond butter, walnut and even tahini can be used instead of peanut butter if desired.

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Vegan No Bake Peanut Butter Cookies

Fastest no bake freezer cookies you’ll ever make!

Because let’s be honest: who wants to crank up their oven right now ? Not me!

Here’s what to expect from these cookies:

Delicious rich caramel flavor
Chewy
Decadent
Quick + easy to make
Flourless, eggless + dairy-free
Vegan and gluten free!

FAQ:

  • Can i make these cookies without peanut butter? You sure can, i’ve made them with almond butter and even walnut butter would be delicious.
  • How can I make them nut free? Replace the nut butter with tahini and the coconut milk with oat milk and you are all set.
  • Can I use coconut oil instead of butter? Yes you may swap the butter for equal parts of coconut oil.
  • If i don’t have brown sugar can I just use granulated sugar? Yes any sugar is fine, I prefer brown for the caramel flavor but whatever you have is cool.
  • No oats? No problem! Rice Krispies, corn flakes and even crushed (vegan) graham crackers can be used instead of oats.

Storage

Once set in the freezer for a couple of hours, the cookies can be kept frozen or refrigerated in a lidded container. Personally I prefer to think of these as freezer cookies as I love the chewy straight out of the freezer texture, so that’s where they live until gone.

More favorite desserts to try:

  • Vegan Frozen Yogurt Bars
  • Fruit Popsicles
  • Pitaya Mango Banana Nice Cream
  • Raw Chocolate Avocado Pudding
  • Rainbow Chia Pudding
  • No Bake Coconut Snowballs
  • Best Baklava
  • Vegan Christmas Cookies
  • Vegan Shortbread Cookies.

As always, If you make these cookies make sure to come back here to rate them in the comments, snap a photo and tag me with #VeggieSociety on Instagram, it always makes my day ~ Florentina Xo’s

Vegan No Bake Peanut Butter Cookies Recipe (8)

5 from 1 vote

Vegan No Bake Peanut Butter Cookies

Simple vegan no bake cookies featuring chewy and creamy peanut butter, quick oats, brown sugar, cocoa and vanilla. Almond butter, walnut and even tahini can be used instead of peanut butter if desired.

Print Recipe

Prep Time:10 minutes mins

Cook Time:2 minutes mins

Feeze:2 hours hrs

Total Time:2 hours hrs 12 minutes mins

Ingredients

US Customary - Metric

Instructions

  • Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper or one that will fit in your freezer.

  • Add the oats to large mixing bowl and set aside.

  • In a saucepan combine the brown sugar, coconut milk, butter and cacao powder. Bring to a simmer and whisk until the butter and sugar has melted, about 1 to 2 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in the peanut butter and vanilla until mixed in.

  • Pour the mixture over the oats and use a spatula to combine everything. Allow to sit for 10 minutes or so for the oats to soak up as much of the liquid as possible.

  • Drop a spoonful of the cookie mixture onto the parchment lined baking sheet a couple of inches apart from each other and flatten the ball with the back of the spoon. Make about 20 cookies.

  • Freeze for 2 hours until set and enjoy.

Notes

  • Storage: the cookies can be stored in the freezer in a lidded container or transferred to the refrigerator once set.
  • Can i make these cookies without peanut butter ? You sure can, i’ve made them with almond butter and even walnut butter would be delicious.
  • How can I make these cookies nut free ? Replace the nut butter with tahini and the coconut milk with oat milk and you are all set.
  • Can I use coconut oil instead of butter ? Yes you may swap the butter for equal parts of coconut oil.
  • If i don’t have brown sugar can I just use granulated sugar ? Yes any sugar is fine, I prefer brown for the caramel flavor but whatever you have is cool.
  • No oats ? No problem! Rice Krispies, corn flakes and even crushed (vegan) graham crackers can be used instead of oats.

Nutrition

Calories: 220kcal | Carbohydrates: 33g | Protein: 4g | Fat: 9g | Saturated Fat: 3g | Sodium: 74mg | Potassium: 163mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 22g | Vitamin A: 216IU | Vitamin C: 1mg | Calcium: 31mg | Iron: 1mg

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: American

Keyword: no bake cookies, plant based, vegan cookies

Servings: 20 cookies

Calories: 220kcal

Author: Florentina

Vegan Desserts:

Vegan No Bake Peanut Butter Cookies Recipe (2024)

FAQs

How do you keep peanut butter cookies from falling apart? ›

Use more granulated sugar than brown sugar.

With all of the peanut butter in this cookie dough, however, too much brown sugar made the cookies so soft that they fell apart.

Why do my no bake cookies fall apart? ›

If you've glanced at other no-bake cookie recipes then you'll see how important it is to boil the sugar mixture long enough which will help the cookies to set. Boiling too long will cause the cookies to be dry and crumbly. However, if you don't boil long enough the cookies will not set and will be runny.

Why are my 3 ingredient peanut butter cookies falling apart? ›

There are a few reasons why your cookies are falling apart. The wrong ratio of ingredients, such as too little sugar or peanut butter will make them fall apart. The wrong type of peanut butter may cause them to fall apart. Or using old eggs may create crumbly cookies.

What happens if you don't flatten peanut butter cookies? ›

Peanut butter cookies don't spread as they cook, so you have to flatten them before hand. This ensures that the middle will cook through before the outside burns. As for the pattern created, it actually creates slightly more surface area, so you'll get more browning at the extra edges that you create.

Should you refrigerate peanut butter cookie dough before baking? ›

Chill your cookie dough! The dough is extremely soft due to the creamy peanut butter, eggs, and butter and if it's not cold going into the oven, the cookies will spread all over your baking sheet. I chilled this cookie dough for 24 hours and my cookies were soft, thick perfection.

Why are my peanut butter cookies crumbly and dry? ›

If you overmix the dough, the cookies will be dry and crumbly. The best way to fix this is to add more liquid to the dough. This can be done by adding milk, water, or even melted butter. You may also need to add more flour to the dough if it is too wet.

What are the basic ingredients for peanut butter cookies? ›

Image of What are the basic ingredients for peanut butter cookies?
Peanut butter is a food paste or spread made from ground, dry-roasted peanuts. It commonly contains additional ingredients that modify the taste or texture, such as salt, sweeteners, or emulsifiers.
Wikipedia

What am I missing if my cookies are flat? ›

If you use too much butter, the cookies will end up flat and greasy. And if you use too little flour, the amount of butter and sugar will be proportionally too high, meaning the cookies will spread for the aforementioned reasons.

Why do you smash peanut butter cookies? ›

The reason is that peanut butter cookie dough is dense, and unpressed, each cookie will not cook evenly. Using a fork to press the dough is a convenience of tool; bakers can also use a cookie shovel (spatula).

Why do my peanut butter cookies taste weird? ›

One reason could be that you overcooked them. Another reason could be that you didn't add enough moisture to the dough. Finally, your peanut butter cookies might be dry and crumbly if you used a natural peanut butter that doesn't have any added oil.

Why do my peanut butter cookies not taste like peanut butter? ›

The most common mistake with peanut butter cookies is using the wrong type of peanut butter. The BEST peanut butter for today's cookies is a processed creamy peanut butter, preferably Jif or Skippy.

What happens if you don't chill peanut butter cookie dough? ›

For starters, chilling prevents cookies from spreading out too quickly once they're in the oven. If you use a higher fat butter (like Kerrygold), chilling your dough is absolutely essential. Popping your dough in the fridge allows the fats to cool.

Should I let peanut butter cookie dough rest? ›

We prefer natural peanut butter here, so you can dial in the sugar and salt amounts precisely, and smooth peanut butter over crunchy to better control the cookies' fat and moisture levels. Letting the cookie dough rest ensures the flour is fully hydrated, resulting in crisper edges and chewier middles.

Why did my peanut butter cookies not spread? ›

Dough being too stiff to spread is a common problem. If you find yourself in this situation, chances are good that you've added too much flour to your dough. In order to fix this, try adding in some more liquid (milk, water, or softened butter) one tablespoon at a time until your dough is slightly looser.

How do you fix peanut butter separation? ›

Here are some steps you can take to fix it:
  1. Pour off any excess oil on top of the peanut butter.
  2. Use a clean spoon or knife to stir the remaining solids in the peanut butter.
  3. If the peanut butter is still too thick, add a small amount of oil back in and continue stirring until it reaches the desired consistency.
Mar 9, 2023

What keeps peanut butter from separating? ›

Luckily, there's a solution besides dumping it down the drain, trying to mix it with a spoon, or going back to buying peanut spread: Store the jar upside down. The oil will trickle to the bottom of the jar, and the peanut solids will stay on top.

How do you keep cookies from breaking? ›

Plastic wrap each cookie. For added protection against bumps and bangs, take individually wrapped cookies and double wrap them back-to-back. Use an airtight container for packing the cookies. Line the bottom of the container with a cushioning material, such as bubble wrap or Kraft paper.

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