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GET IT NOWAs much as I love treats (um, this is my third recipe in the past week), I always try to keep things a bit lighter where I can. Like these healthy peanut butter cookies! This is actually the 5th (!!) peanut butter cookie recipe on my site, if that tells you anything about how much I love them. 😉 This time though, I tried out a liquid sweetener, because many of you have been asking me about using maple syrup in cookies. It’s a little more tricky for some types, but works beautifully for these. Make them with me for a sweet, chewy treat!
Why You Need My Healthy Peanut Butter Cookie Recipe
- Soft, chewy, and peanut buttery – For that perfect chewy texture and peanut butter flavor every time, don’t miss my tips below!
- 4 simple ingredients – Plus salt. They’re naturally gluten-free and dairy-free, with no flour of any kind. And with my natural zero sugar maple syrup, you can enjoy a treat without the crash.
- Quick and easy – The prep is super quick, all in one bowl, and half the time is just chilling in the fridge. You can be enjoying these healthy peanut butter cookies as a snack or healthy dessert in around half an hour!
Ingredients & Substitutions
Here I explain the best ingredients for my easy peanut butter cookie recipe, what each one does, and substitution options. For measurements, see the recipe card.
- Creamy Peanut Butter – Choose a thick one for best results. Most brands of natural peanut butter are pretty runny, but I like this brand—no sugar added but nice and thick. Other nut butters might also work, if you can find a thick one, or just make my almond butter cookies instead.
- Maple Syrup – You can use regular maple syrup, but if you want to avoid the extra sugar, I highly recommend my natural Wholesome Yum Zero Sugar Maple Syrup. It tastes like Costco’s Grade A stuff. 😉
- Eggs – Make sure they’re at room temperature for the best texture in your cookies. If you forget, just place them in a bowl of warm water to come to room temp faster. Flax eggs should work, too.
- Vanilla Extract – I like this brand.
- Sea Salt – Even though peanut butter is salted, I still prefer to add a little extra salt to cut the sweetness. How much you need can depend on how salty your peanut butter is, but the brand I use doesn’t taste very salty.
How To Make Healthy Peanut Butter Cookies
I have step-by-step photos here to help you visualize the recipe. For full instructions with amounts and temperatures, see the recipe card.
- Mix the dough. In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the peanut butter, maple syrup, eggs, vanilla, and salt. It’ll start off a bit runny and lumpy, but don’t worry—it thickens up as you keep stirring! You can switch to a spatula if it feels too stiff to whisk.
- Chill to firm up. Place the dough in the refrigerator for about 15 minutes.
- Scoop and flatten the cookies. Scoop the dough onto a parchment lined baking sheet using a medium cookie scoop, spacing the balls about 2 inches apart. Flatten with a fork in a crisscross pattern, about 1/4-inch thick.
- Bake. Pop your healthy peanut butter cookies in the oven. They’re ready when the edges are very lightly golden but the center is a little underbaked.
- Let them cool. Transfer to a cooling rack to cool — they’ll firm up as they do.
My Recipe Tips
- These peanut butter cookies are sweet, but not super sweet. If you prefer them a lot of sweetness, bump up the syrup to 3/4 cup. I’ve tested this and they still turn out well. If you’re unsure, you can add the eggs last and taste the dough before adding them.
- Don’t worry if your dough is runny and clumpy at first. Just stir vigorously and it should come together into a thick cookie dough. That is, as long as you use the right kind of peanut butter (the creamy kind, not the runny kind).
- Place the cookie dough balls onto the baking sheet in a checkerboard pattern to fit them all. On the baking sheet I use (and love, by the way), I do 6 rows of 3 cookies each. This cookie scoop gives you the ideal size to fit them perfectly on the pan.
- Don’t skip the classic criss-cross pattern! It’s not just for looks—it actually helps your healthy peanut butter cookies bake more evenly for that perfect texture.
- If your cookie dough sticks to the fork, dip the tines in water between presses. I usually don’t need to, but it depends on your peanut butter and kitchen humidity. Just be sure to chill the dough first to reduce stickiness!
- Slightly underbake your cookies for the best texture. Overbaking can cause too much peanut butter oil to leak, making them dry inside and oily on the outside. A little oil on the pan is normal, but a lot means they baked too long.
- Use a cookie spatula to transfer the cookies to the cooling rack. I love this one because it’s thin and gets underneath them easily. If you use your hands, your cookies are likely to break. They will firm up as they cool.
Recipe Variations
If you’re looking to switch things up, here are a few fun ways to customize your healthy peanut butter cookies:
- Chocolate Chips – If you like a chocolate chip cookie, grab a few tablespoons of your favorite chocolate chips (I like these sugar-free ones) and press them on top before baking. You can see a visual in my protein cookie recipe. Just don’t mix the chips into the dough, or they’ll melt all over the pan.
- Oats – Combine the best of both worlds and make my peanut butter oatmeal cookies!
- Crunchy – If you like a little texture in your cookies, swap out creamy peanut butter for crunchy, or stir in some chopped peanuts, pecans, or almonds.
- Spiced – For a fall inspired treat, add 1/2 teaspoon of cinnamon or even a teaspoon of pumpkin pie spice to the dough.
Healthy Peanut Butter Cookies
My sweet, chewy, and healthy peanut butter cookies have just 4 simple ingredients and no refined sugar. The perfect recipe for a quick treat!
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Instructions
Tap on the times in the instructions to start a kitchen timer.
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Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (177 degrees C). Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
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Combine the peanut butter, maple syrup, eggs, vanilla, and salt in a large bowl. Mix well with a whisk. The mixture will be runny and lumpy at first, but will thicken as you keep mixing.
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Refrigerate the dough for at least 15-20 minutes to firm up.
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Using a medium cookie scoop, place balls of cookie dough onto the baking sheet, about 2 inches apart. Flatten using a fork in a cross-cross pattern to about 1/4 inch thickness in the center (the edges may be a bit thicker, which is fine).
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Bake for 10-12 minutes, until very lightly golden on the edges but a little underbaked.
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Let your healthy peanut butter cookies cool completely. They will firm up as they cool.
LAST STEP: Leave a rating to help other readers, or tag me @wholesomeyum on Instagram. I’d love to hear from you!
Maya’s Recipe Notes
Serving size: 1 cookie
- Tips: Check out my recipe tips above to help you work with the cookie dough, get the right texture in your cookies, prevent them from falling apart, and adjust the sweetness.
- Storage: Keep in an airtight container at room temperature for up to a week.
- Freeze: Place the cookies in a single layer on a baking sheet and freeze until solid, then transfer them to an airtight container or zip lock bag. Store in the freezer for up to 3 months.
- Note on nutrition: The nutrition info is based on my sugar free maple syrup. These will have more sugar if you use regular.
I provide nutrition facts as a courtesy. Have questions about calculations or why you got a different result? Please see my nutrition policy.
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Healthy Peanut Butter Cookies
Gratitude Moment
I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, I’m so grateful to have my zero sugar maple syrup to play with in my cooking and baking! I really missed it for so many years after reducing sugar.
If you’ve been looking for a lighter alternative for your cooking and baking without the extra sugar, I hope you’ll give it a try. It works the same way as regular maple syrup in pretty much any recipe — and naturally, over your pancakes and waffles, too.
22 Comments
Wendy
1I was surprised to find these cookies didn’t flatten out without flour. They’re very good. I did add the salt to them. I’m just getting familiar with baking without refined sugar.
Maya | Wholesome Yum
1I’m happy you liked them, Wendy! Thank you.
Patricia Long
1I printed this recipe a few days ago and I made the cookies yesterday. I visit a local senior assisted living center with some of our church ladies. And due to some being diabetic, I was asked if I could make them some sugar free cookies and/or candy. I think the cookies are delicious and I hope the ladies there will, too. I think they will.
Maya | Wholesome Yum
0I’m so glad you like these, Patricia! How kind of you to bring these to the assisted living center. I hope everyone there loves them, too!
rn71cindy
1These cookies taste great. They are a perfect guilt free way to indulge.
Maya | Wholesome Yum
0I’m so glad you like them, Cindy! Enjoy!
Jules
0Have you made this with no sugar Sunbutter? I have a ton of it and LOVE it and thought I could try it in this but thought I’d ask first!
Maya | Wholesome Yum
0Hi Jules, I haven’t, sorry. Let me know how it goes if you try!
Kathy
0At times I am missing a cookie or desert of sorts. I see a lot of your recipes have your liquid sweeteners I.e. honey, maple syrup … My Question; what can be a good substitute for your honey or maple syrup? Sadly It’s just not in my fixed budget to buy it
Maya | Wholesome Yum
0Hi Kathy, Regular honey and maple syrup work, they are just not sugar free.
Sarah
0I tried the recipe and the dough was very sticky. It needs flour, oats or something for structure if using a liquid sweetener. Because these cookies taste taste very grainy to me.
Maya | Wholesome Yum
1Sorry to hear you had trouble, Sarah! This dough is not supposed to be sticky if you use the right kind of peanut butter. Did you use the natural runny kind instead of thick and creamy? The cookies should not be grainy either, that is a sign that they were probably overbaked. Hope this helps for next time.
Maddie M
0This recipe did not work well for me. I think it is the peanut butter that I used, a natural more oily peanut butter. The dough was very sticky after refrigerating and difficult to shape and press. The finished cookie looks nothing like the classic version, it does taste good though. Unless you’re going to use the suggested ingredients in this recipe, you may want to go for a more classic recipe.
Maya | Wholesome Yum
0Hi Maddie, Sorry to hear this, but I specifically noted in both the post and the recipe card not to use a peanut butter that’s too runny (a.k.a. oily). This is why. I hope you get the chance to make the recipe as written!
Marilyn
0I made these cookies and they turned out very well! They were easy to make and healthy. It is nice to find a healthy and tasty recipe for cookies. I have purchased the Wholesome Yum maple syrup before, but had not used it in cookies. I plan to make these cookies again.
Wholesome Yum D
0I’m so happy to hear that, Marilyn! It means a lot that you tried the cookies and used my maple syrup in them, isn’t it fun finding new ways to use it? I’m thrilled you’ll be making them again!
Karen
0Wow! The peanut butter cookies with the Wholesome Yum Maple Syrup are delicious!
Wholesome Yum D
0Thank you so much for the kind words about the Wholesome Yum Maple Syrup, Karen! I’m so glad you enjoyed the cookies. It means a lot to hear that you loved them!
Sara
0I like the idea of your oatmeal pb cookies but I like the simplicity of this recipe. Do you think I could just add oats to this one? Maybe an extra egg?
Maya | Wholesome Yum
0Hi Sara, I think you could do that, but I haven’t done it with this specific recipe so don’t have amounts to suggest. Please let me know how it goes if you try it!
Ella Smith
0Can you add flour to them or will that ruin them?
Maya | Wholesome Yum
0Hi Ella, There are definitely ways to make peanut butter cookies with flour, but I haven’t tried modifying this specific recipe to add it. I don’t use white flour, but I do use other flours in other recipes. If you find something that works well here, please let me know what it is and how it turns out!