How about some gooey, chewy, soft, flourless keto peanut butter chocolate chip cookies to satisfy that sweets craving? These low carb cookies are naturally gluten-free and make a perfect low-FODMAP dessert. With only 1 net carb per cookie, you can feel good about indulging!
I’m so glad these are low-carb cookies, because I can’t keep them out of my mouth. These are my go-to low carb treat when I have a sweet craving, need a fat bomb or am just looking for an easy, perfect dessert (milk and cookies is totally my jam!).
If you’re like me and love peanut butter, I’ve got you covered with this low-carb and low-FODMAP cookie recipe. You can also satisfy that craving with my Peanut Butter Cream Cheese Frosting on top of a fudgy, delicious Easy Keto Brownie. If you feel the need for chocolate, whip up a quick Deep Dish Browned Butter Chocolate Chip Cookie, or these Matcha White Chocolate Cookies with Almond Flour.
These are all sugar-free, gluten-free and high fat, which is perfect for a low-carb keto lifestyle. However, you don’t need to be on a keto journey to enjoy these magical cookies.
Since I’m always exploring the outdoors, these make the perfect hiking snack to fit into my backpack or take along for a picnic.
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, good ol’ PB fits well into a healthy keto diet.
Are these low-FODMAP cookies?
Yes – you can enjoy these amazing cookies as a 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. If you’re not using a sugar-free sweetener, try using coconut sugar for an added molasses flavor.
Is peanut butter low-FODMAP?
Yes, in servings of 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 keto pantry staples. The ingredients you’ll need to make these awesome keto treats 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
- Sea salt
- Vanilla extract
- Molasses – optional, but it adds extra depth to the cookies. There’s only a half teaspoon for the whole recipe, so the added carbs are negligible. Since molasses is a high FODMAP ingredient, omit this for low-FODMAP
- Xanthan gum – it adds just a little extra texture, but is optional. Read all about this ingredient in my Xanthan Gum Ingredient Spotlight.
- Chopped peanuts – optional, but I like the extra crunch
- Swerve Brown and monkfruit/erythritol blend sweetener or sweetener of your choice, such as allulose or stevia. Personally, I often use a combination of 50% Swerve Brown or monkfruit/erythritol sweetener and 50% stevia powder because too much erythritol (that is an ingredient in Swerve Brown and most monkfruit sweeteners) causes digestive upset.
- 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:
First, combine the peanut butter, eggs, molasses, vanilla extract and sweetener in a medium sized bowl. Mix until thoroughly combined.
Then, stir in the salt, baking powder, baking soda and xanthan gum.
Finally, stir 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.
Do your best to let the cookies cool before diving in.
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.
- Just want keto peanut butter cookies without chocolate chips? Feel free to leave them out.
- To make a healthier cookie, replace the chocolate chips with raw cacao nibs
Storing
I like to store all of my keto baked goods in the refrigerator because I find they keep better and longer. However, you can store these cookies in airtight cookie jar at room temperature for 3-4 days.
If you find you won’t consume them in time, you can 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 little life and 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.
If you make these cookies, please leave a comment and let me know! I’d love you hear how you liked them! Enjoy!
Other recipes you might like
- Chocolate Almond Flour Mug Cake
- Matcha White Chocolate Cookies with Almond Flour
- Keto Strawberry Clafoutis
- Low Carb Keto Pumpkin bread
- Lemon Raspberry Bundt Cake
Be sure to stop by my Dessert Recipes page for more sweet inspiration!
This post contains affiliate links. As an Instacart and Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.
Flourless Keto peanut butter chocolate chip cookies
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 (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 – optional)
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:
- Personally, I often use a combination of 50% monkfruit/erythritol blend sweetener or Swerve Brown and 50% stevia powder. Too much erythritol (that is an ingredient in Swerve Brown and most monkfruit sweeteners) causes digestive upset for me. Another good option is allulose, which tends to be more ‘digestive friendly’ than erythritol for many folks.
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
- Replace PB with almond butter, sunflower seed butter, or cashew butter
- Have peanut butter cookies without the chocolate chips
- Substitute chocolate chips for raw cacao nibs
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