Looking for an easy-peasy (yet absolutely delicious!) low carb treat?! Look no further than these keto peanut butter cookies, with just four staple pantry ingredients (and at 1g net carb a pop)!
Keto Peanut Butter Cookies
The Easiest (& Best!)
If you crush on peanut butter as much as I do, then these keto peanut butter cookies are an absolute must! Lightly crisp on the outside with a melt-in-your-mouth center, they’re honestly bound to have you swooning.
Plus, they’re super duper easy to whip up (just whisk!) and they freeze great (both baked and unbaked!).
And, if you’re on the prowl for more excellent peanut butter desserts, don’t forget to check out our one-bowl peanut butter blondies!
The Deets
Classic (you know, sugar!) peanut butter cookies call for a 1:1:1 ratio. i.e. 1 egg for 1 cup peanut butter for 1 cup sugar.
But if you’ve been keto for a while, you’ll likely find one cup of sweetener to be sickeningly sweet. I generally do 1/2 cup… but with the latest batch I think you could even go to 1/3 cup, particularly if you’ve really been limiting your sweet intake.
Now, be sure to check out my ingredient suggestions to ensure you nail these guys!
The Peanut Butter
While I generally favor homemade nut butters, these keto peanut butter cookies are an exception as you really want that creamy smooth texture.
My suggestion is that you go for an unsweetened and salted variety (I really like the 365 brand from Whole Foods).
Whatever peanut butter you decide, just be sure it’s runny at room temperature (i.e. that its natural). You see, the ‘always solid’ varieties have generally had some of the natural fat drained or have added emulsifiers.
The Sweetener
You’ve got options here. I’ve tested them with Lakanto Golden (pictured), xylitol (non-corn though to avoid tummy troubles!) and allulose (just be sure to add 30% more as it’s less sweet!).
Just note that you’ll get slightly different results if you use erythritol vs xylitol or allulose. Least aftertaste will come from xylitol or allulose (though tbh the cooling effect from erythritol is minimal here!)… but the cookies will tend to spread more with xylitol and allulose (and take a few hours to set).
And last but not least, just like with our famous bakery-style chocolate chip cookies, I like to add a hint of blackstrap molasses for that burnt sugar kick (and needless to say, a tonne of umami). It’s just 0.15g net carbs a cookie, but it’s also totally optional!
If using xylitol, make sure to be careful if you have a pup (or kitty!) around the house, as it’s highly toxic to the little guys! 
(The Easiest!) Keto Peanut Butter Cookies
Ingredients
- 1/3-3/4 cup golden erythritol I use 1/2 cup*
- 1/2 teaspoon blackstrap molasses totally optional!
- 1 egg
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 225 g unsweetened, salted peanut butter **
- 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt ***optional, to taste
- flaky sea salt optional, to garnish
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F/180°C and line a baking tray with parchment paper or a baking mat.
- Add the sweetener, molasses (optional) and egg to a medium bowl and beat with an electric mixer (or whisk!) until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. If using erythritol, keep in mind it won't dissolve completely and that's ok.
- Mix in the vanilla extract, followed by the peanut butter. If you use erythritol, your mixture will be a bit crumbly, worry not! And also note that depending on the savory-ness of your peanut butter, you may need to add a touch of kosher salt at this point (see notes).
- Scoop out the cookie dough, form into rounds and press down with a fork. Place in a prepared tray and freeze for 15 minutes prior to baking.
- Bake for 12-14 minutes, until lightly golden and set. Feel free to sprinkle with flaky sea salt half way through!
- Allow to cool completely before digging (seriously!), and store in an airtight container for 3-4 days or in the freezer for up to 3 months.
Paola-I haven’t tried cookies yet; however, I can’t leave a msg w/o rating- but your recipes are always the best so I gave you a 5.
You are my top KETO advisor so I am coming to you with this concern: KetoConnect couple (Matt and Megha) did a test with all the Keto sugars and Allulose raised their glucose reading significantly. I bought Allulose after your recommendation and now I am scared to use it.
Any thoughts?
Thank you,in advance and stay safe!
These are definitely melt in your mouth. Used a TBS scoop and made thumb prints w/ sugar free chocolate chips. Made 20-21 cookies. Soooo good, thank you for sharing your fabulous recipes!!
Marcella, I love Paola’s recipes too… she’s brought me so much joy after being diagnosed with Type One Diabetes. I just wanted to comment that as a Type One I absolutely have to count ALL the sugar alcohols as carbs when I’m calculating my insulin. So, by extension, all of them can raise blood glucose. I’ve found allulose to be just slightly less carbs.
Thank you for sharing your personal experience Clare! xo!
How many does this recipe make?
15. It is at the top of the recipe…
Can you use xylitol in place of the erythritol?
Are these two sweeteners interchangeable?
I made these for my diabetic sister-in-law and she’s been sharing with her friends who are also amazed. This recipe is a hit!! And so easy to make. 💞
Many thanks for this free recipe Paola! I made these wonderful cookies yesterday and I am curious as to why I had to put them in the freezer for 15 minutes prior to baking them? I read through your post, but it doesn’t say why.