Vegan peanut butter cookies - these easy vegan cookies are so quick and simple to make in just one bowl and they taste amazing! They just use basic storecupboard ingredients and don't require any chilling before baking.
They are crisp around the edges, soft in the middle and very peanut buttery! They are addictively good and go great with a cup of tea for dunking.
These easy vegan peanut butter cookies are so moreish, it's impossible to only eat one.
They also happen to be incredibly quick and simple to make and just use one bowl and fairly basic ingredients. You can whip up a batch in around 30 minutes!
They are a great snack as the peanut butter makes them quite filling and satisfying; and they are also amazing dunked in a cup of tea!
What Do I Need To Make Vegan Peanut Butter Cookies?:
Vegan block butter: For the best results you need to use a BLOCK butter/margarine, NOT the spreadable kind in a tub which has too high a water content for baking. I use Naturli Vegan Block or Flora Plant butter.
Sugar: I use part light brown soft sugar and part caster or granulated sugar. The brown sugar adds flavor and the white sugar makes the cookies crisp. You can use dark rather than light brown sugar for a more intense flavour if you want.
Peanut butter: For the best results use a smooth, creamy peanut butter, not the natural kind which is likely too runny.
Vanilla extract: Essential for flavour. Extract is better than essence.
Non-dairy milk: This adds moisture in place of the usual egg. Any kind will work but I like soy best for baking as it has the highest protein content.
Baking powder and soda: You can use all one or the other if you only have one type, but 50/50 baking powder and bicarbonate of soda gave the best texture when I was testing the recipe.
Salt: Unless your peanut butter is very salty then these cookies really are best with a bit of added salt to bring out the peanut butter flavour.
Plain flour: Just regular plain (all-purpose) flour is best. I haven't tried making these gluten-free but I suspect that they would work ok using a gluten-free flour blend.
How To Make Vegan Peanut Butter Cookies:
(Full measurements and instructions can be found in the recipe card at the bottom of the page)
Start by whisking together the vegan butter and the light brown soft and caster/granulated sugars with an electric mixer until they are well combined.
Whisk in the peanut butter, vanilla extract and milk until it is smooth and creamy.
Whisk in the baking powder, bicarbonate of soda and salt then add the flour and stir with a spatula until it forms a smooth dough with no dry patches. If it is too crumbly then you can add a drop more milk as needed.
Roll the dough into golf ball sized balls and place them spaced apart on a couple of lined baking sheets.
Press the tines of a fork into the top of each ball of dough to flatten them, first in one direction then in the other to form a criss-cross pattern.
Bake the cookies for 10-12 minutes until pale golden if you like them on the softer side, or for 15-20 minutes until they are a deeper golden if you like them more crunchy.
They will be quite soft when they come out of the oven but will firm up as they cool.
Let them cool on the trays for 5 minutes then transfer them to a wire rack to cool completely.
Top Tips:
The difference between a soft peanut butter cookie and a crunchy one is just a matter of how long you bake it for. If you prefer your cookies on the soft side then bake them for 10-12 minutes, until they are just pale golden around the edges.
If you like a crunchier cookie then bake them for 15-20 minutes, until they are a deeper golden colour.
If you want, you can roll the balls of cookie dough in granulated sugar before you flatten them.
Try adding ½ - 1 tsp of cinnamon to the dough for extra flavour. (Add it at the same time as the baking powder/bicarb).
Store the cookies in an airtight container at room temperature. They will keep for several weeks.
Can I Freeze Them?:
I recommend freezing the unbaked cookies rather than the baked ones.
Once you have rolled the dough into balls and flattened them, place them on a lined baking sheet and freeze until solid, then transfer them to a freezer-proof container and freeze for up to three months.
They can be baked right from the freezer, no need to defrost them first. They might just need a couple of minutes extra in the oven.
More Vegan Peanut Butter Recipes:
- Vegan peanut butter chocolate chip cookies
- Vegan peanut butter chocolate tart
- Vegan peanut butter swirl brownies
- PB&J porridge
- Chocolate chip peanut butter energy bites
- Vegan peanut butter and cookies ice cream
- Vegan peanut butter chocolate chip pecan bars
If you tried this recipe let me know how it went! Rate it, leave a comment or tag @domestic_gothess on Instagram and hashtag it #domesticgothess
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Vegan Peanut Butter Cookies
Ingredients
- 115 g (½ cup) vegan block butter (NOT the spreadable kind. I use Naturli Vegan Block) softened
- 100 g (½ cup) light brown soft sugar
- 100 g (½ cup) caster or granulated sugar
- 250 g (1 cup) smooth creamy peanut butter
- 3 Tbsp non-dairy milk (plus extra if needed)
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- ½ tsp baking powder
- ½ tsp bicarbonate of soda (baking soda)
- ½ tsp salt (use less if your peanut butter is salty)
- 200 g (1 + ⅔ cup) plain (all-purpose) flour
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 180°C/160°C fan/350°F/gas mark 4. Line two baking sheets with baking parchment.
- Whisk together the butter, the light brown soft sugar and the caster/granulated sugar with an electric mixer until well combined.
- Whisk in the peanut butter, vanilla extract and milk until it is smooth and creamy.
- Whisk in the baking powder, bicarbonate of soda and salt then add the flour and stir with a spatula until it forms a smooth, stiff dough with no dry patches. If it is too crumbly then you can add a drop more milk as needed.
- Roll the dough into golf ball sized balls (I weighed mine and did 30g per ball) and place them spaced apart on the lined baking sheets.
- Press the tines of a fork into the top of each ball of dough to flatten them, first in one direction then in the other to form a criss-cross pattern.
- Bake the cookies for 10-12 minutes until pale golden if you like them on the softer side, or for 15-20 minutes until they are a deeper golden if you like them more crunchy (I go for 15 minutes). They will be quite soft when they come out of the oven but will firm up as they cool.
- Let them cool on the trays for 5 minutes then transfer them to a wire rack to cool completely. Once cold store in an airtight container at room temperature.
Notes
- For the best results make sure that you follow the recipe closely. As always, I highly recommend weighing your ingredients using the gram measurements (with a digital scale), rather than the cup conversions. Cup measurements are simply not accurate enough for baking and I cannot guarantee the best results if you use them. A gram is always a gram, but a cup won’t always measure out the same amount.
- The difference between a soft peanut butter cookie and a crunchy one is just a matter of how long you bake it for. If you prefer your cookies on the soft side then bake them for 10-12 minutes, until they are just pale golden around the edges. If you like a crunchier cookie then bake them for 15-20 minutes, until they are a deeper golden colour.
- If you want, you can roll the balls of cookie dough in granulated sugar before you flatten them.
- Try adding ½ - 1 tsp of cinnamon to the dough for extra flavour. (Add it at the same time as the baking powder/bicarb).
Julie Astill
Just made these cookies - Wow! Utterly delicious. I get so excited when a new DG recipe pings up in my emails. Thank you so much
Pauline
Absolutely gorgeous,Thank you x