Recipe: Peanut Butter Cup Cookies

Chocolate and peanut butter are a beloved flavor pairing. These peanut butter cup cookies are a health-ified spin on the classic peanut blossom, which often featured a chocolate kiss or star. Ours are made with oat flour as a whole grain option and maple syrup as a natural sweetener. We also traded that kiss/star for a mini dark chocolate peanut butter cup, though which chocolate element you choose is entirely up to you (dairy-free and refined sugar-free options listed below). When it comes to taste, these cookies do double duty on the peanut butter flavor with a wonderful accent of rich chocolate. They have a delicate, melt-in-your-mouth texture, so we suggest letting them cool completely to prevent breaking/crumbling and to enhance your enjoyment.
Peanut Butter Cup Cookies
Serves: 20 cookies
Ingredients
- 1 C natural creamy peanut butter, stirred well
 - 1/2 C maple syrup
 - 1 tsp vanilla extract
 - 1 C oat flour
 - 1/2 tsp baking powder
 - 1/4 tsp salt
 - 20 mini peanut butter cups, wrappers removed
 
Directions
- Preheat oven to 350°F and line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
 - In a large bowl, cream together the peanut butter, maple syrup, and vanilla.
 - Add oat flour, baking powder, and salt. Mix until just combined.
 - Using a cookie scoop or a spoon, scoop 20 balls onto the two baking sheets. Lightly press down on the cookies to flatten them a bit, but not all the way.
 - Bake cookies for 11-13 minutes. Remove from the oven and gently press a peanut butter cup into the top of each cookie.
 - Place cookies aside to cool completely, or in the fridge to harden up the peanut butter cups more quickly.
 
Tip: If following a strict gluten-free diet, use certified gluten-free oat flour.
Swaps:
- For the peanut butter: almond butter, sun butter, or tahini
 - For the maple syrup: honey
 - For the oat flour: almond flour or all-purpose flour
 - For the peanut butter cups: Lily’s chocolate (sugar-free), Enjoy Life (dairy-free), Hu Kitchen (refined sugar-free and dairy-free), or almond butter cups
 
For another grain-free cookie variation, try these