These gluten-free peanut butter cup cookies are jam-packed with chocolate and peanut butter goodness. They are crispy, chewy, and the perfect treat!
Who doesn't love chocolate and peanut butter? This classic combination is the star of many great things—like peanut butter cups and these cookies! Introducing, Gluten-Free Peanut Butter Cup Cookies.
This recipe is an adaptation of my favourite gluten-free chocolate chip cookies. They're buttery and soft, crinkly and chewy, and slightly crispy along the edges. Throw some peanut butter cups on top and you have a winner of a cookie! These surely won't last long on your counter.
Keep reading to learn all of my tips and tricks for the best Gluten-Free Peanut Butter Cup Cookies ever!
Looking for some gluten-free desserts? Check out my Gluten-Free Butter Tarts, Starbucks Copycat Lemon Loaf, Dairy-Free Tiramisu Jars, or S'mores Brownies.
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Why You'll Love This Recipe
- Quick & easy to make: These cookies are made with pantry staples that you likely already have in your house. Yes, they require some chill time, but from start-to-finish, you could be eating these gluten-free peanut butter cup cookies in just over an hour.
- Freezer-friendly: These cookies store well in the freezer, either as dough balls before baked, or finished cookies. Simply bake dough from frozen, or allow finished cookies to come to room temperature. Great to prep ahead so you can have cookies any time!
- Easy for everyone to enjoy: It's hard not to love these chocolatey and peanut buttery cookies. Gluten and non-gluten eaters alike will surely gobble these cookies up.
Ingredients Needed
Here is everything you'll need to make these gluten-free peanut butter cup cookies:
The great thing about this cookie recipe is that it comes together with mainly pantry staples. Here are a few notes on the ingredients...
- Salted butter: I often like to use salted butter in my baking, but if unsalted is all you have, just add an additional ¼ teaspoon salt.
- Brown sugar: For a less-refined option, you can successfully swap and equal amount of coconut sugar in this recipe.
- Vanilla extract: Vanilla enhances all the other flavours in this recipe and makes these cookies scrumptious.
- Egg yolks: Just using the yolks keeps these cookies rich and chewy.
- Gluten-free all-purpose flour: This provides the structure to the cookies and gives them some chew. I like to use Bob's Red Mill 1:1 All Purpose Baking Flour (blue bag).
- Almond flour: Almond flour gives the cookies a little bit of softness, as well as an additional nutty flavour. If you must, you can substitute more all-purpose flour for the almond flour quantity, but note that your cookies may be softer and not spread as much.
- Salt: If using unsalted butter, add an additional ¼ teaspoon salt.
- Chocolate chips: I mean, why wouldn't you want extra chocolate?!
- Peanut butter cups: You can use regular size peanut butter cups, chopped into 8 pizza-style slices, or you could use mini cups cut in half (you can see examples of both in the image below). You can also feel free to use whatever nut or seed butter cups you prefer. I've heard of almond butter cups and sunflower seed butter cups before. Use your favourite!
Step-by-Step Instructions
Be sure to read the recipe card below for the full ingredient list and instructions.
Making the Dough
(1) In a large bowl, whisk together the melted butter and brown sugar until fully dissolved. Whisk in the vanilla and egg yolks until combined.
(2) & (3) Add the gluten-free all-purpose flour, almond flour, baking soda, and salt to the bowl. Lightly mix the dry ingredients on top, then fold into the wet ingredients to form the dough.
(4) Once the dough is just combined, gently fold in the chocolate chips. Use a cookie scoop to form 16-18 golf ball size spheres.
(5) Place on a parchment-lined baking sheet or in a reusable container. Freeze for approximately 45 minutes to chill the dough.
Baking the Cookies
Just before ready to bake, preheat your oven to 375°F. Prepare 2 large baking sheets with parchment paper. Remove the cookie balls from the freezer and arrange with space between them. Press the tops down slightly. Bake for 12-15 minutes, until the edges are just golden. If you have baking sheets on different racks, switch them halfway through the cook time so everything bakes evenly.peanut butter cup cookies on a wire baking rackpeanut butter cup cookies on a wire baking rack
While the cookies are baking, prepare the peanut butter cups. If using regular sized peanut butter cups, cut into 8 mini slices (like you would cut a pizza). If using mini cups, slice in half. Each cookie will need 4 peanut butter cup pieces.
I usually remove the cookies after 13 minutes in the oven. They may not look done but they will firm up as they cool. While they're still hot, grab the baking sheet and slam it a few times. This will help spread the cookies slightly and give them nice crinkles.
(6) Top with 4 peanut butter cup pieces per cookie. Slightly press them into the tops of the warm cookies. For perfectly-shaped cookies, use a large-rimmed glass or cookie cutter and lightly run the edge around the cookies. Sprinkle flakey sea salt on top if you wish.
Cookies should be cooled on the baking sheet for 5 minutes then transferred to a wire rack to cool completely. Enjoy!
Storage Instructions
Cookies can be stored in an air tight container at room temperature for up to 4 days... if they last that long. Cookie dough can also be kept in the freezer in an air tight container for up to 1 week before being baked.
Additionally, baked cookies can be frozen in an airtight container once completely cooled. To enjoy again, simply allow the container to come to room temperature. Enjoy cookies anytime you want!
Substitutions
If you want gluten-free peanut butter cup cookies but are unsure of an ingredient, here are a few suggestions of substitutions you could try:
- Dairy: Using dairy-free butter in this recipe will work fine, you just may find that the cookies are slightly greasier. Be sure to use dairy-free chocolate chips and check the label of your peanut butter cups—as many may contain milk chocolate.
- Flour: If you don't have or want almond flour, you can substitute more gluten-free all-purpose flour for the quantity of almond flour (total would be 1.5 cups of GF AP flour). Note that this will make the cookies slightly more "cakey" and they will spread less, but will taste similar nonetheless.
- Nut butter cups: If peanut butter is not your thing, feel free to use any nut or seed butter cups that you enjoy, such as almond butter cups, sunflower seed butter cups, or cups with different types of chocolate. It's all up to you!
Expert Tips
- Don't skip chilling the dough. It's important for the soft and chewy texture of the cookies! You can wait 45 minutes for them to chill in the freezer 😋.
- Slam the cookie sheet to create crispy crinkles. As soon as the cookies come out of the oven, slam the cookie sheet down on the counter a few times. This will cause them to collapse a little bit, creating all of those lovely crinkles.
- Use a wide-rimmed glass or cookie cutter to shape the cookies. After slamming the baking sheet to get those lovely crinkles, take a large circular cup or cookie cutter and gently swirl it around the cookies to give them that perfectly round look. Work quickly!
- Add the peanut butter cup chunks after baking. I tested this recipe adding the peanut butter cups before and after baking, and I have to say that after had the best results! The peanut butter cups still get nice and melty on the warm cookies, but they don't completely melt away as they did before!
Frequently Asked Questions
While dairy-free swaps are fairly easy to make in this recipe, egg yolks are crucial for the texture and binding of the cookie dough. You may try to make a chia or flax egg in place of the egg yolks, but note that it has not been tested in this recipe.
To make this recipe nut-free, simply replace the almond flour with an equal quantity of gluten-free all-purpose flour, and use sunflower seed butter cups. Note that the flour may make the cookies spread less, so be sure to press them down slightly before baking.
Cookies may turn out extra crispy if the dough was not chilled long enough. The dough is chilled to re-solidify the melted butter and blend all the ingredients together. Ensure that the cookie dough balls are solid before baking. Crispy cookies are still delicious!
The cookies may not spread much if the oven temperature is not warm enough, or there was too much flour added to the dough. Be sure to gently press the cookie dough balls down slightly before baking. This will give them a head start on spreading out in the oven. If you substituted additional all-purpose flour for the almond flour, you may want to press the dough into disks to give them more of a chance to spread. Cookies will still be delicious either way!
And there you have Gluten-Free Peanut Butter Cup Cookies! Quick and easy to make, these crisp yet chewy cookies are sure to fly off your countertop.
Have you made these gluten-free peanut butter cup cookies? I'd very much appreciate it if you leave a comment below and tag me on instagram @livglutenfree!
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Recipe
Gluten-Free Peanut Butter Cup Cookies
Ingredients
- ½ cup melted salted butter, if using unsalted butter, add an additional ¼ teaspoon salt
- 1 cup packed brown sugar, can sub coconut sugar
- 2 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 egg yolks
- ¾ cup gluten-free all-purpose flour, I like to use Bob's Red Mill 1:1 All Purpose Baking Flour (blue bag)
- ¾ cup almond flour
- ¼ teaspoon baking soda
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ¾ cup chocolate chips
- 9 regular sized peanut butter cups or 32 minis, sub a different nut/seed butter cup if you wish
Instructions
- In a large bowl, whisk together the melted butter and brown sugar until fully dissolved. Whisk in the vanilla and egg yolks until combined. Add the gluten-free all-purpose flour, almond flour, baking soda, and salt to the bowl. Lightly mix the dry ingredients on top, then fold into the wet ingredients to form the dough.
- Once the dough is just combined, gently fold in the chocolate chips. Use a cookie scoop to form 16-18 golf ball size spheres. Place on a parchment-lined baking sheet or in a reusable container. Freeze for approximately 45 minutes to chill the dough.
- Just before ready to bake, preheat your oven to 375°F. Prepare 2 large baking sheets with parchment paper. Remove the cookie balls from the freezer and arrange with space between them. Press the tops down slightly. Bake for 12-15 minutes, until the edges are just golden. If you have baking sheets on different racks, switch them halfway through the cook time so everything bakes evenly.
- While the cookies are baking, prepare the peanut butter cups. If using regular sized peanut butter cups, cut into 8 mini slices (like you would cut a pizza). If using mini cups, slice in half. Each cookie will need 4 peanut butter cup pieces.
- I usually remove the cookies after 13 minutes in the oven. They may not look done but they will firm up as they cool. While they're still hot, grab the baking sheet and slam it a few times. This will help spread the cookies slightly and give them nice crinkles.
- Top with 4 peanut butter cup pieces per cookie. Slightly press them into the tops of the warm cookies. For perfectly-shaped cookies, use a large-rimmed glass or cookie cutter and lightly run the edge around the cookies. Sprinkle flakey sea salt on top if you wish.
- Cookies should be cooled on the baking sheet for 5 minutes then transferred to a wire rack to cool completely. They can be stored in an air tight container for up to 4 days... if they last that long. Cookie dough could also be kept in the freezer in an air tight container for up to 1 week before being baked. Enjoy!
Let us know what you think!