Vegan Peanut Butter Cookies | One of The Best Vegan Cookies

These vegan peanut butter cookies are soft, chewy, and everything you'd want in a peanut butter cookie. This recipe uses no eggs or butter, making it a dairy-free cookie recipe with a whole lot of vegan deliciousness. Plus, it comes together in just 3 simple steps!

The Best Vegan Peanut Butter Cookie Recipe

Who doesn't love peanut butter? Especially when it's used to make vegan cookies!

Am I right?!

Well, these chewy peanut butter cookies are top-notch!

Each cookie is packed with peanut butter flavor, has just the right amount of sweetness, and is oh so soft that it just melts in your mouth. 

Not to mention, these cookies take only about 15 minutes to make from start to finish, and require just 6 common vegan ingredients.

They super easy to make, as easy as these vegan oatmeal cookies and vegan oatmeal raisin cookies. 

That said, let's jump into the ingredients and see what makes these vegan peanut butter cookies so delicious.

Ingredients For Vegan Peanut Butter Cookies

Butter and eggs are typically the two staple ingredients used in every cookie recipe. 

But, to make this recipe vegan, we won't be using any dairy or eggs, so those ingredients are out.

Instead, we'll be using these ingredients:

• 1 cup all-purpose flour (or gluten-free flour) 
• ½ teaspoon baking powder 
• ½ teaspoon sea salt
• ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
• ⅓ cup vegan butter softened (or coconut oil) 
• ¾ cup coconut sugar or dark brown sugar 
• ¾ cup creamy peanut butter 

As you can see, you probably already have most of these ingredients on hand. So, making this vegan peanut butter cookie recipe should be easy peasy. 

And if you like peanuts, grab some shelled peanuts from the store and you can make this Instant Pot Boiled Peanuts recipe next!

Vegan Fats For Baking

So, as we've already gone over, one way we will be making this recipe vegan is by swapping out butter for either vegan butter or coconut oil. 

And vegan butter looks like butter, tastes like butter, and does everything that dairy-based butter does in baking. So, that's a win, win, win!

Also, the fat from the vegan butter in this recipe will help make our cookies tender and give the dough structure.

By the way, as I noted, you can use coconut oil instead of vegan butter.

Coconut oil is one of the best plant-based fats for baking. It has a similar composition to butter and mimics the job butter does in baking as well.

And another reason to love coconut oil is that it measures out on a 1:1 ratio with vegan butter. So, it really is the perfect substitute for it.  

That said, there are two types of coconut oil, refined and unrefined.

Refined coconut oil does not have a coconut flavor, and unrefined coconut oil has a strong coconut flavor. Unrefined coconut oil is also commonly labeled as virgin or pure.

I suggest using refined coconut oil for this recipe, so your cookies primarily have a smooth peanut butter flavor, and not a coconut one. 

By the way, coconut oil is the ONLY substitute for vegan butter that I suggest using for these cookies.

If you use vegetable oil or olive oil, it will alter the cookies' texture and result in a less-chewy cookie.

And we want these vegan peanut butter cookies to be as soft and chewy as possible, so skip those oils.

Substitutions For Peanut Butter

Peanut butter is the star of the show in this recipe, and if you're like me and love peanut butter, I wouldn't recommend that you swap it out for another nut butter. 

But, if you do not like peanut butter or have a peanut allergy, various other nut butters are just as tasty in these cookies. 

One of the best nut butter substitutes for peanut butter is sunflower seed butter. It has a very similar texture and flavor to peanut butter, making it perfect for these cookies.

Soy nut butter is another excellent substitute for this recipe. It has a taste that mimics peanut butter and is gluten-free, dairy-free, and packed with protein. 

You can also use almond butter or cashew butter for this recipe.

That said, if you use almond butter, your cookies might turn out on the flatter side. It's just how almond butter bakes.

However, if you use cashew butter, your cookies will have the same texture as peanut butter cookies but they will have a much blander taste. 

So, just keep all of that in mind when making these cookies.

How To Make Vegan Peanut Butter Cookies

This vegan peanut butter cookie recipe is super easy, and it consists of only three simple steps. 

So, whether you're a pro baker, or have never baked before, making these vegan peanut butter cookies will be a breeze.

Step 1: Prepping & Mixing

First, preheat your oven to 350°F (176°C) and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

In a large bowl, mix the peanut butter, softened vegan butter (or coconut oil), sugar, and vanilla extract until smooth. 

Then add the flour, salt, and baking powder, and mix until a thick cookie dough batter forms.

Step 2: Shaping The Cookies

To shape the cookies, you will want to roll the dough into individual balls about 1 ½ inches thick. 

Next, Place the dough balls about 2 ½ inches apart on the parchment-lined baking sheet. 

Then, use the back of a fork to flatten the cookies by making a criss-cross pattern on each one. 

Step 3 Baking & Cooling

Bake your cookies at 350°F (176°C) for 10 to 13 minutes. 

The amount of time these cookies need to bake will depend on your oven. 

When the cookies turn golden and slightly harden around the edges, you will know they are done.  

Hold off from handling your cookies right out of the oven, as they will not have hardened and could potentially break apart. 

Let your cookies cool for a couple of minutes after taking them out of the oven, then transfer them to a wire rack to finish cooling. 

Storing Your Vegan Peanut Butter Cookies

These cookies are delicious fresh out of the oven, or as a vegan snack or dessert throughout the week.

So, to store these cookies, you can keep on them in an airtight container on the counter for up to 5 days. And what's great about these cookies is that they stay soft and chewy days after being made. 

That said, if you want to store these cookies for longer, you have the option to freeze them too. 

To freeze your cookies, transfer them to a freezer-safe zip-lock bag, or airtight container, and freeze them for up to 2 months.

Then, you can either enjoy these cookies as a frozen treat or thaw them out and eat them like you normally would. 

Anyway, I hope you love this recipe as much as I do. Hopefully, it will become your go-to vegan peanut butter cookie recipe.

If you make them, let me know in the comments below, I'd love to hear how they turn out.

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