The Best Vegan, Gluten-Free PB Cookies

The Best Vegan, Gluten-Free PB Cookies

I’ve got to post something kind of healthy. It’s been candy bars and cola all week long. Consider this recipe equally delicious, but a little less crazy than black cherry cola cake and Baby Ruth brookies.

Of course, it’s a peanut butter recipe. I have a rule when it comes to gluten-free baking: chocolate or peanut butter (or both) has to make an appearance. I don’t know about you, but I still haven’t mastered the GF yellow cake. It’s on my baking bucket list, but as yet, no progress. I’ll keep working on it.

Chocolate and peanut butter are both strong flavors, and they work well with my favorite of all gluten-free flours: oat flour. It has to be certified GF, by the way. Just remember that. I wouldn’t put oat flour in more delicately-flavored desserts, but in peanut butter cookies? Fo sho. For an added bonus, these puppies just happen to be vegan. Eat that, all y’all!

The Best Vegan, Gluten-Free PB Cookies

Last night, I went to go see the latest Terminator movie with my dad. We haven’t done a father-daughter date in quite some time, so I appreciated the fact that we could spend the time together. We picked this particular movie because even though my father is a mega-educated retired English professor, he loves Arnold Schwarzenegger. Or at least, he really enjoys the Governator’s movies.

The Best Vegan, Gluten-Free PB Cookies

As a big fan of the Terminator franchise myself, I’d lie if I pretended that watching Sarah Connor kick butt one more time wasn’t a whole heap of fun. But at the same time, I spent huge amounts of the film wincing. Like, I would actively catch my face in full-on wince. It was mainly during the giant explosions (every two seconds or so), especially those involving motor vehicles. You know, the bus blows up, or the truck explodes, or fifteen cars all crash into one another. If you’ve seen any action movie in the past 20 years or more, you catch my drift.

The Best Vegan, Gluten-Free PB Cookies

I didn’t used to mind those scenes very much. They were so very hypothetical. Maybe it’s part of getting older and feeling more vulnerable by the second, but I actually found myself wondering yesterday about the poor truck driver that got taken out in a burning inferno because Arnold had to rescue Sarah Connor once more. With all those vehicles crashing into one another, nobody ever stops to care about the people inside the cars you can’t see. They just want the bad guys to lose and the good guys to win. No real shades of gray there at all.

That’s enough deep thinking about Terminator. Honestly, it was a fun movie, and I don’t want to overthink it. I just want to pretend that the world is a happy sunny place where machines will never take over. I hope they don’t. Because they don’t have souls, nor do they understand the joy in eating a peanut butter cookie.

The Best Vegan, Gluten-Free PB Cookies

Peanut butter cookies are like any other category of baked good; there are a million ways to make them. This way is just one more method. If you’re vegan or GF (or, like me, if you love somebody who is), these cookies come together quickly with no mixer or special equipment. The recipe is very similar to the famous three-ingredient flourless peanut butter cookie, but with a twist: these babies definitely have flour. Oat flour.

For those of you who are food scientists, the presence of oat flour means that these cookies are more filling than their flourless counterparts. Oats are a whole grain, and combined with the protein from the peanut butter, these cookies actually have some nutritional benefit while being completely tasty. It’s a win for everyone! Furthermore, the presence of oat flour should mean little to no chilling time, since oats stop cookies from spreading. But I like really thick cookies, so I chilled the dough.

The Best Vegan, Gluten-Free PB Cookies

If the machines ever do rise up and cause mass mayhem, I’ll be in a bunker somewhere eating the last of the cookies. I invite you to join me. Will we survive and kick butt? Nope. But it’ll be a few good hours of fun. And no matter what, the Terminators will never enjoy a good cookie. They can’t take that away from us.

 

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The Best Vegan, Gluten-Free PB Cookies

Ingredients

1 cup creamy peanut butter
1 cup firmly packed light brown sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
3/4 cup oat flour (labeled gluten-free)
1/4 cup water

Instructions

  1. In a medium bowl, cream the peanut butter and brown sugar until well combined. Stir in the vanilla and mix again.
  2. In a small bowl or measuring cup, combine the salt and oat flour. Add the dry ingredients gradually to the peanut butter mixture. You might want to use your hands to get everything well combined.
  3. Stir in the water until a smooth dough forms.
  4. Line two cookie sheets with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat.
  5. Roll the cookie dough into balls and place two inches apart on the cookie sheets. Press the tops with a fork to create a crisscross pattern.
  6. Chill the cookies for 2-3 hours. Bake for 8-10 minutes. Remove from the oven and cool completely.
http://justaboutbaked.com/the-best-vegan-gluten-free-pb-cookies/

Mir

I fulfill many roles in life: wife, mother, teacher, everlasting learner. This site is dedicated to one role that expresses my creativity in ways that I find consistently challenging and rewarding: baker. Inventing new ways to enhance food, especially if that food involves chocolate or peanut butter (or both!), is a passion of mine. I look forward to sharing my ideas with you.

This Post Has 20 Comments

  1. Danielle

    I love peanut butter cookies, especially easier versions! I’ve never tried an eggless version of a cookie, so I may have to give this one a go!
    Danielle recently posted…Cream Cheese-Filled Zucchini MuffinsMy Profile

    1. Mir

      It tastes like it’s got it all, Danielle, but it doesn’t. I recommend!

  2. Medha @ Whisk & Shout

    Yay for vegan/gf pb cookies! I like your peanut butter or chocolate has to be there rule 🙂 Pinning!
    Medha @ Whisk & Shout recently posted…Weekly Obsessions!My Profile

    1. Mir

      You’re the vegan queen, Medha, so that means a lot coming from you!

  3. Gayle @ Pumpkin 'N Spice

    Sounds like you had a great father-daughter date! I totally forgot The Terminator was even out…shows how much I go to the movies! 🙂 These peanut butter cookies are just calling my name! I’ve never had a gluten free version before, so I’m loving how thick and fluffy they are.
    Gayle @ Pumpkin ‘N Spice recently posted…Baked Raspberry Chocolate Chip Pancake & A Giveaway!My Profile

    1. Mir

      It’s all about finding swaps that work, Gayle! Hope you get to the movies soon. I almost never go, either, but I had to for this!

  4. Alice @ Hip Foodie Mom

    Mir, I love that you and your dad went on a movie date!!! It’s times like this that I wish I lived in the same city with my parents. . I’m glad you appreciate them and are able to see them so often. . your kids probably love it too!!! OK, I LOVE these cookies. . because you know I love the GF/vegan baked treats!!!!! great job!!! these cookies look so good!!!! I might try these with almond butter!!! LOVE and TGIF!!!!
    Alice @ Hip Foodie Mom recently posted…Mediterranean Freekeh Salad + A Giveaway!My Profile

    1. Mir

      They’ll absolutely work with almond butter, Alice! Or you could do a 50/50 split with PB and almond. Either way. And add chocolate chips. 🙂

  5. Anu-My Ginger Garlic Kitchen

    A BIG yes for vegan, gluten-free pb cookies! These look so delicious and so YUM! Loved that you spent some quality time with your Dad! 🙂
    Anu-My Ginger Garlic Kitchen recently posted…Mascarpone Cream Cheese Chocolate Mousse CupsMy Profile

    1. Mir

      It was nice to hang out with him, Anu. We see each other a lot, but rarely without kids everywhere.

  6. Dannii @ Hungry Healthy Happy

    Awwh, so cute that you went on a movie date together. I actually haven’t seen any of the terminator films.
    Oh, and yay for vegan and gluten free cookies. Mmmm peanut butter.
    Dannii @ Hungry Healthy Happy recently posted…Comment on Sausage, Kale and Sun-Dried Tomato Gnocchi by DanniiMy Profile

    1. Mir

      If you like action movies, you should give it a shot, Dannii! If not, well…you won’t like them. But you’ll like the cookies!

  7. Rachelle @ Beer Girl Cooks

    That’s awesome that you and your dad have date night! The new Terminator movie sounds like it’s quite the action flick! Those PB cookies look perfectly delicious! And bonus that they are vegan and GF!
    Rachelle @ Beer Girl Cooks recently posted…National Cheesecake Day Recipe RoundupMy Profile

    1. Mir

      My dad was the first guy in my life, so he deserves a date night! And the fact that these are healthier is just a perk, because they don’t taste that way!

  8. Maria

    I’m hungry right now! They look absolutely awesome 🙂 I love peanut butter and I was looking for a good recipe, now I got it 🙂 Thank you a lot. I watched the second Terminator movie, maybe I’m going to watch the new one too but I’m not sure yet. Greetings from Belvita 🙂

    1. Mir

      I’m so glad, Maria! Hope the cookies work out for you. There are now 4 Terminator movies, so you have to catch up! 🙂

  9. Stacey @ Bake.Eat.Repeat.

    I love oats with peanut butter too. These cookies look amazing!
    Stacey @ Bake.Eat.Repeat. recently posted…Roasted Strawberry and Feta Focaccia with Balsamic GlazeMy Profile

    1. Mir

      Thanks, Stacey! They’re quite a happy combo, I agree!

  10. Harriet Emily

    These are amazing Mir! I love that they’re GF and Vegan! I’ve never actually made gf/v peanut butter cookies before, so I really need to try this! Love that you went to the cinema with your dad too – I also wince at all of the explosions in films, and the gory scenes as well!
    Harriet Emily recently posted…ILLUSTRATION: ICE CREAMMy Profile

    1. Mir

      I can’t do the gory scenes, Harriet Emily. My brain cannot deal. But the explosions are just getting louder each year…

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