I love peanut butter in just about every form. On bread, swirled in ice cream, drizzled on fruit or mixed into smoothies, in frostings and sauces—you name it. That being said, I don’t know why I’ll often go years without thinking about peanut butter cookies. Every single time they randomly cross my mind, though, you better believe I’m in the kitchen whipping up a batch within minutes!
I’ve come across a lot of peanut butter cookie recipes over the years, and after combining a few favorites into a vegan-friendly version, I’m not sure I’ll use any recipe but this one! These beauties take hardly any time or effort to make, and literally melt in your mouth.
I like to sprinkle mine with a little flaky sea salt, or drizzle them with a bit of dark chocolate, but they’re just as good without anything extra!
Melt-in-Your-Mouth Vegan Peanut Butter Cookies
Ingredients
- 1 cup smooth peanut butter
- 3/4 cup vegan butter
- 1 cup brown sugar packed
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 3 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 pinch flaky sea salt optional
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350ºF and line a few cookie sheets with parchment paper.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer (or using a hand mixer), beat the peanut butter and butter together until smooth.
- Add in the sugars and beat on medium-high until fluffy (3-4 minutes), scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed.
- Add in the unsweetened applesauce and vanilla, beating on low speed until just combined.
- Add in the flour, baking soda, and salt, and beat on low speed until the dough comes together. Dough will be slightly sticky, but moldable. If it’s still too wet, add up to another 1/2 cup of flour.
- Using a tablespoon or cookie dough spoon, roll into 1″ balls and place a couple of inches apart on cookie sheets.
- Press down the tops of each cookie lightly with a fork.
- Bake for 10-12 minutes. Note that the cookies will seem slightly underdone, especially in the center. Don’t worry! They’ll finish baking once they’re removed and firm up as they cool. If you’re topping with flaky sea salt, sprinkle it on while they’re still very warm.
- Let cool completely on baking sheets.
- Store in an airtight container for up to a week!
I love that these cookies can be made all in one bowl for easy clean-up and how quickly they come together. Plus, this recipe yields SO many cookies (I get a little over 40 each time I make them)!
You could certainly use any kind of nut butter for this recipe, but I’ll always stand by peanut butter when it comes to my cookies.
Let me know if you give these a try and what you think!
xo, Aly