These easy peanut butter cookies don’t require any baking or cooking. The cookies also don’t contain any wheat flour or refined sugar. They make a nice snack when you’re craving something sweet.
These peanut butter cookies are great when you need a quick healthy snack. You can make a batch ahead of time and just grab one whenever you need one.
Ingredients
- Peanut Butter
- Maple Syrup
- Oat Flour, Coconut Flour or Superfine Almond Flour
Peanut Butter
Make sure to use creamy peanut butter. To keep things healthier, I would also recommend that you use natural peanut butter (the kind that needs to be stirred and only contains peanuts and salt in the ingredients). You can use regular peanut butter but it is harder to mix the cookie dough.
Maple Syrup
I tested these cookies with both maple syrup and honey but found that maple syrup works better. It does a better job sweetening the cookie dough and holds the dough together better.
Oat Flour
The cookies need some sort of flour to hold together. Since the cookies are not cooked you want to use a flour substitute that is safe to eat raw. I tested these cookies with oat flour, coconut flour and superfine blanched almond flour. All of them work though they do produce slightly different results.
Oat Flour Versus Coconut Flour Versus Amond Flour
Oat Flour Version
Oat flour was my favorite version. If you don’t have oat flour you can make your own by grinding up rolled oats in a food processor or high-powered blender. The oat flour is softened by the peanut butter mixture so that the cookies don’t taste grainy.
Coconut Flour Version
Coconut flour produces the sturdiest cookie. Because coconut flour is so absorbent you only need half the amount compared to the other two flour options. Similar to the oat flour, the coconut flour absorbs the peanut butter and syrup so you don’t really taste the coconut flour in the cookie. They feel a little dry at first but once the cookie touches your tongue, it melts and becomes creamy and peanut buttery.
Superfine Almond Flour Version
Almond flour is not very absorbent so this version is the least cookie-like. They are more like fudgy energy balls flattened into a cookie shape. However since almond flour is made completely of almonds, you don’t have any flour taste in these cookies. It just tastes nutty and fudgy.
More No Bake Cookie Recipes
- 3 Ingredient Healthy No Bake Oatmeal Cookies
- 4 Ingredient No Bake Chewy Chocolate Cookies
- 3 Ingredient No Bake Nutella Cookies
- Healthy No Bake Chocolate Cookies
3 Ingredient No Bake Healthy Peanut Butter Cookies
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup creamy natural peanut butter unsweetened
- 1/4 cup maple syrup
- 8 tbsp oat flour (see notes for substitutions)
Instructions
- Line a large cookie sheet with parchment paper. Set aside.
- In a large bowl, combine peanut butter and syrup. Mix with a spatula until completely mixed and a smooth paste forms.
- Add in oat flour, one tbsp at a time. Stir and completley mix in 1 tbsp before adding the next. You may need less than the amount stated (explained more in the notes) so do not add the whole amount at once. Add in enough until the mixture becomes thick and looks like a cookie dough that you can roll and shape.
- Scoop 1 tbsp of dough and form into ball. Place onto prepared cookie sheet and using the palm of your hand, flatten ball into a round cookie shape about 1/4 inch thick. Repeat with remaining dough. Use a large fork to make criss cross indent pattern on surface of cookies.
- Refrigerate cookies for about 1 hour or until cookies are firm. You should be able to peel the cookies off of the parchment paper. Store uneaten cookies in the fridge.
Notes
- Instead of oat flour, you can also use coconut flour or superfine almond flour. If using coconut flour you will only need half the amount (about 4 tbsp). If using superfine almond flour, it is a direct substitution for oat flour. Please see the post where I discuss the different results using each of these flour substitutes.
- The amount of flour you need to add may vary. Different peanut butter brands can produce different consistency of peanut butter and some are runnier than others. Also, brands can vary in the consistency of oat flour. This is why I recommend you add the flour in one tbsp at a time as you may need less.
- If you don't have oat flour you can make your own with rolled oats. Pulse them in a food processor or high powered blender until they become the consistency of flour.
- I made this recipe using natural peanut butter. It will work with regular peanut butter but it is much harder to stir and the amount of flour added may be different.
- The cookies are sweet but not super sweet as these are meant to be a snack rather than dessert. If you want to add more sweetness you can add 1 more tbsp of maple syrup (stir it in at the end after tasting the dough), but you don't want to add too much more than that because adding too much syrup will make the dough too soft. You can also add some chocolate chips to the cookies for additional sweetness.
- The cookies should be stored in the fridge. If left out too long the dough will become soft.
- I used Bob's Red Mill Gluten Free Oat Flour.*
- *This product link is an affiliate link. This means I earn a small commission from qualifying purchases (at no extra charge to you).
Nutrition
The nutrition information provided are only estimates based on an online nutritional calculator. I am not a certified nutritionist. Please consult a professional nutritionist or doctor for accurate information and any dietary restrictions and concerns you may have.
Amazing!!
Thank you! So happy you loved it.
Bussin. I used honey bc I didn’t have maple syrup, it definitely would be better with the maple syrup but honey ain’t bad. I also added Celtic sea salt to balance all the sweetness. Definitely will make this again and probably again!
We’re glad you enjoyed the recipe! Thanks for sharing your adjustments, too.
I used this recipe to add a peanut layer to my vegan chocolate fudge and got rave reviews from my vegan teenager.
Love that idea! Thanks for letting us know.
Followed recipe exactly using oat flour and these are awful. Gooey, grainy, sticky messes that are not at all tasty. Not sure what is going on with the other reviews, but no. Just no.
We’re sorry they didn’t work for you. It’s important to mix the peanut butter and syrup thoroughly until it forms a smooth paste. It shouldn’t be gooey. Also, as stated in the recipe, you should only add enough oat flour to form a dough you can roll and shape. You may not need to add all of it.
Do you know if cassava flour could be used in a no bake recipe?
We haven’t tried it, but it may work as it’s a 1:1 ratio for almond flour. Please let us know if you try it!
Can you use sugar free maple syrup?
You might like our Low Carb Peanut Butter Cookies.
Hi, I used the almond flour and sugar free maple syrup because that is what I had. They taste delicious but they are definitely soft. It’s like eating cookie dough. Would adding less syrup help?
Almond flour will produce a much softer cookie. Coconut flour produces the sturdiest cookie so if you want something firmer, I recommend using coconut flour. Adding less syrup won’t help. The syrup actually helps to thicken and firm up the peanut butter.
OK, got some old fashioned rolled oats and will try making my own oat flour. Thanks.
hope you enjoy!
Can you use oatmeal instead of oat flour?
you can grind rolled oats in a food processor or blender until they become flour consistency. it will not work if you keep the oats whole.
Can you use molasses instead of maple syrup?. Trying to get that brown sugar taste.
I have not tried with molasses. i don’t think it will work as well though
I made with sunflower seed butter. Also added some chocolate chips….. Really good. But needed to add a bit extra oat flour* to get the dough firm. Next batch will have raisans.
*Made my own oat flour by throwing instant oats in the food processor.
I’m glad you got these to work for you with sunflower seed butter
My grandson has a peanut allergy. Will almond butter work?
yes!
I used the finely ground almond flour because I couldn’t find oat flour at the local grocery store. I used real maple syrup. The flavor was excellent. We will be making these again.
I’m so glad they worked out well for you!
Clarification: sunbutter
Is sunflower seed butter
I haven’t tested with sunflower butter, sorry!
Can I use sugar?
the dough will not firm up with regular sugar
How about substituting creamy sunbutter, natural, unsweetened, for the peanut butter?
Can agave syrup be used instead of maple syrup?
yes, but the amount needed may be different
I will have to give these cookies a try, they sound interesting.
I hope you enjoy
Hi, the cookies sound really good. I was wondering how would they turn out if you used a mixture of flours?
they should still turn out well I think