How about some gooey, chewy, soft, cookies to satisfy that cookie craving? These crunchy peanut butter chocolate chip cookies have crisp peanuts, but are soft and chewy and so good! They're naturally gluten-free and have only 1 net carb per cookie, so you can feel good about indulging!
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I’m so glad these are low-carb cookies, because I can’t keep them out of my mouth. These crunchy peanut butter cookies with chocolate chips make a great go-to low carb treat to satisfy those chocolate cravings. They're perfect if you feel the need for a keto fat bomb or if you're just looking for an easy dessert cookie (milk and cookies, anyone?).
These flourless chocolate chip cookies with peanut butter have NO flour, refined sugar or butter. Even without those traditional cookie ingredients, these still have a soft, cakey chew and give a delightful crunchy bite from adding peanuts. You can also use crunchy peanut butter to make it extra peanuty!
If you love peanuty goodness, try these Chocolate Peanut Butter Brownies, or make a delicious Peanut Butter Cream Cheese Frosting.
Why you'll love this recipe
- Simple ingredients – just a handful of healthy, low-carb ingredients make the best cookies!
- Quick and easy recipe – simply mix and bake!
- Special diet friendly – these are low-carb keto, sugar-free, gluten-free and decadent low-FODMAP cookies
Is peanut butter keto?
Not all brands are keto friendly. Many contain added sugar which can add significant carbs and kick you out of ketosis. Make sure you read the ingredients before you purchase.
Look for unsweetened products that contain only peanuts and no additional oils. Some brands add a little salt to enhance the peanut flavor, which is okay if you aren’t on a low sodium diet.
Even though all natural brands are considered to be low carb and keto compliant, two tablespoons have about 3 net carbs. As long as you don’t consume too much, peanut butter fits well into a healthy keto diet.
Are these low-FODMAP cookies?
Yes - you can enjoy these amazing cookies as a rich, indulgent low-FODMAP dessert or snack. I've added a small amount of molasses to the recipe that can easily be eliminated, especially if you're using brown sugar.
Is peanut butter low-FODMAP?
Yes, in servings of about two tablespoons or 32 grams. Each cookie contains less than 2 tablespoons, making them very FODMAP-friendly.
Ingredients
These cookies come together quickly with a handful of simple pantry staples. The ingredients you’ll need to make these awesome gluten-free cookies are:
- Natural unsweetened peanut butter – I actually like to use an organic creamy PB. You can also choose to use a chunky PB – either works great.
- Eggs – I like to use cold eggs for this recipe, as it keeps the batter a little thicker
- Baking soda and baking powder – these give the cookies a bit of a lift and soft chew
- Sea salt – enhances the savory flavor
- Vanilla extract – or try using maple extract!
- Molasses (optional) – adds extra depth of flavor and color to the cookies. There’s only a half teaspoon for the whole recipe, so the added carbs are minimal. Since molasses is a high FODMAP ingredient, consider omitting this for low-FODMAP, but the quantity contained in one cookie is negligible.
- Xanthan gum (optional) – adds just a little extra softness to the texture. Read all about this ingredient in my Xanthan Gum Ingredient Spotlight.
- Chopped peanuts – these add the extra crunch. You can omit or reduce the quantity used if using crunchy peanut butter, but I like to leave them in.
- Swerve Brown and monkfruit/erythritol blend sweetener – or sweetener of your choice, such as allulose or stevia. Keep in mind that erythritol can make the bottoms of the cookies very brown, as it scorches easily. If using allulose, use 50% more, as it's less sweet than other sweeteners.
- Sugar-free chocolate chips – you can use dark chocolate, milk chocolate, semi-sweet chips or cacao nibs. For sugar-free chocolate chips, there are two brands I love: ChocZero and Lily's. See the Notes in the recipe card for links to sugar-free milk chocolate, dark chocolate and semi-sweet chips.
Instructions
Making these decadent cookies is super simple:
Pre-heat the oven to 350°F.
Combine the PB, eggs, molasses, vanilla extract, salt and sweetener in a medium sized bowl.
Mix until thoroughly combined.
Stir in the baking powder, baking soda and xanthan gum (if using).
Mix in in the sugar-free chocolate chips and chopped peanuts.
- Roll or scoop in 1 inch balls onto a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat
- Decorate the top of each cookie with extra chocolate chips and bake for about 10 minutes
Remove from the oven and transfer to a cooling rack.
Expert tips
- The amount of oil contained in peanut butter (and nut butter) varies between brands. The thinner and oilier the nut butter is, the stickier the dough will be. The cookies will still cook just fine, but instead of being able to roll the dough into balls, you may find you need to scoop it out of the bowl with a spoon and place on the baking sheet. You can also try refrigerating the dough so it's more firm, then rolling it into balls.
- Always be sure the peanut butter is thoroughly mixed in the jar before using. It should be as homogenous as possible.
To get a crunchier cookie
Are you team chewy cookies or team crispy cookies? Personally, I’ll take a gooey, chewy cookie over crunchy any day. But, if you’re team crunchy cookie, you can flatten these out before baking just a bit to get a firmer texture.
Since these are gluten-free cookies and have no flour, they don’t ever get that crispy crunch that you might be looking for. They stay a pretty chewy, gooey cookie.
Variations
This recipe can be switched up in a few different ways:
- Replace PB with your favorite nut butter – try these chewy keto cookies with almond butter, sunflower seed butter or cashew butter
- Leave out the chocolate – what? Just want keto peanut butter cookies without chocolate chips? Feel free to leave them out.
- Use raw cacao nibs – in place of chocolate chips to make a healthier cookie
Storing
It's best to store keto baked goods in the refrigerator because they keep better and longer. However, you can store these cookies in an airtight cookie jar at room temperature for 3-4 days.
If you find you won’t consume them in time, freeze them in a freezer bag and then thaw at room temperature.
FAQ
You certainly don’t have to immediately bake your cookies. You can refrigerate the dough in a covered container or roll the dough into balls and store them in a container or zip lock bag. The cookie dough will keep just fine in the refrigerator for up to 2 days.
This dough freezes really well. If you want to only bake a partial recipe, freeze the dough in a freezer-safe container or freezer bag for up to three months. You can freeze the dough as-is or roll the dough into balls and freeze.
In this recipe, I've found that baking soda encourages the cookies to spread out a little bit, while the baking powder gives them a chewy, fluffy texture.
Chilling the dough isn't necessary. Cookies tend to spread out less when the dough is chilled, but these will stay fluffy and chewy, without flattening out during baking.
Room temperature PB is easier to measure out and mix with the other ingredients. Also, the more you cream it with the eggs, sugar and other ingredients before adding the dry ingredients, the more air will be put into the dough. This will lead to fluffier cookies.
Be sure to stop by my Dessert Recipes page for more sweet inspiration!
Did you make this recipe? Let me know how you liked it by giving a star rating and leaving a comment!
📖 Recipe
Crunchy Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies (Flourless)
Ingredients
- 1 cup peanut butter (choose Creamy PB or Chunky PB)
- ½ cup Swerve Brown sugar substitute (or sweetener of choice - see notes)
- ½ cup powdered stevia (or sweetener of choice - see notes)
- 2 large eggs
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon molasses (optional - omit for low-FODMAP)
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon xanthan gum (optional - read about this ingredient in my What Is Xanthan Gum post)
- ½ cup sugar-free milk chocolate chips (see Notes below for the brands I use)
- ¼ cup peanuts (chopped)
Instructions
- Pre-heat oven to 350 °F.
- In a medium bowl, mix the peanut butter, eggs, sweetener, vanilla, salt and molasses (if using).
- Add the baking soda, baking powder and xanthan gum and mix until thoroughly combined.
- Fold in the chocolate chips and chopped peanuts (if using).
- Roll into 1 inch balls and place on a parchment lined baking sheet.
- Top with additional chocolate chips.
- Bake for 10 minutes, then place on a cooling rack to cool down.
Notes
Sweeteners
Use the sweetener of your choice, such as erythritol, allulose or stevia. Keep in mind that erythritol can make the bottoms of the cookies very brown, as it scorches easily. If using allulose, use 50% more, as it's less sweet than other sweeteners.For sugar-free chocolate chip varieties I love, try
- ChocZero Milk Chocolate Chips and Lily's Milk Chocolate Chips
- ChocZero Dark Chocolate Chips and Lily's Dark Chocolate Chips
- Lily's Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chips
Variations
This recipe can be switched up in a few different ways:- Replace PB with your favorite nut butter – try these chewy keto cookies with almond butter, sunflower seed butter or cashew butter
- Leave out the chocolate – what? Just want keto peanut butter cookies without chocolate chips? Feel free to leave them out.
- Use raw cacao nibs – in place of chocolate chips to make a healthier cookie
Nutrition
*Net carbs = carbohydrates - fiber
Nutritional information is an estimate, calculated using online tools and does not include optional ingredients unless otherwise indicated.
Dana
Sugar alcohols are not low fodmap friendly.
Tracey Hatch-Rizzi
Hi Dana,
Some sugar alcohols, such as erythritol, are considered to be FODMAP and IBS-friendly because they are not fermented by gut bacteria and do not produce an osmotic effect like other sugar alcohols. However, they can cause digestive upset and may have laxative action for some people, with or without IBS, especially if consumed in large quantities. There definitely are some sugar alternatives, such as maltitol, isomalt and xylitol which are polyols and are not FODMAP-friendly because those are fermented in the large intestine and can lead to osmotic diarrhea. However, some sugar alternatives, such as erythritol (that is technically considered a polyol) and stevia and allulose (not polyols) are acceptable on a low-FODMAP diet because they are not digested in the small intestine or fermented in the large intestine.
Here is a link to an article from Monash University that discusses polyols that do and do not have effects in the gut in more depth: https://www.monashfodmap.com/blog/food-additives-and-fodmaps/ .
Take care,
Tracey
Monika
Can we use 100% peanut butter (the natural kind)?
Thank you.God bless you.
Tracey Hatch-Rizzi
Hi Monika,
Thank you! Oh yes, 100% natural peanut butter can absolutely be used and is a great choice!
Warmly,
Tracey