High Altitude Flourless Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies (GF)

An easy high altitude recipe for soft and chewy, flourless peanut butter chocolate chip cookies, with no mixer needed and no chill time. These deliciously addictive cookies come together so fast, so you can enjoy fresh peanut butter cookies in less than 30 minutes. Once you taste these cookies, they might even replace your regular peanut butter cookie recipe, they’re that good! In today’s post, you’ll also find a recipe variation for making classic peanut butter blossoms, a.k.a., peanut butter cookies topped with a chocolate kiss.

You might also love these high altitude cookie recipes for salted peanut butter blondies, brown butter oatmeal raisin cookies, and my favorite brown butter chocolate chip cookies.

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Why You’ll Love This Recipe

No Mixer. No Chilling. Gluten Free. Flourless peanut butter cookies with chocolate chips are so soft and chewy, naturally gluten free, and incredibly quick to mix up.  They don’t even need a mixer, just a bowl and spoon to mix up the dough. Since the sugar doesn’t get creamed into the dough, expect a slightly granular texture in the cookies from the undissolved sugar.

Ready in 30 Minutes. Since the dough doesn’t need to be chilled, there’s no waiting around for cookies. From start to finish, you’ll have freshly baked cookies in about half an hour, which is a bonus when you have little ones who are waiting impatiently for a cookie.

High Altitude Tested. I develop all the recipes on my site for Denver’s altitude of 5,280 feet. If you’re at a lower or higher elevation, please see my FAQs for guidance on adjusting recipes for your altitude.

See the recipe card at the end of the post for the full ingredients list and instructions.

Ingredients

• Peanut Butter. You can use your favorite peanut butter for these flourless peanut butter cookies. And both creamy and crunchy work equally well. You can even use all-natural peanut butter, although you might need to use just a little less, since it has a runnier consistency than other peanut butters.
• Sugar. Both granulated and dark brown sugar adds sweetness to these cookies, as well as a subtle hint of molasses.
• Egg. An egg binds the dough together, as well as helps them puff up just a bit in the oven.
• Vanilla. Flavor. Use a good-quality vanilla extract.
• Baking Soda. Baking soda reacts with the acid in the brown sugar, and adds a subtle rise to the cookies.
• Salt. I use coarse Kosher salt to balance the sugar, and give these cookies a delightfully salty-sweet flavor.
• Cinnamon. A little spice makes everything better! Feel free to leave the cinnamon out, if you prefer.
• Chocolate Chips. Flourless peanut butter cookies are great on their own, but even better with chocolate chips. I like to use a combination of semi-sweet and dark chocolate chips.

Instructions

• Preheat the oven to 350 F, and line a large baking sheet with parchment paper.
• In a mixing bowl, combine everything except the chocolate chips, stirring the mixture into a soft dough.  Stir in the chocolate chips.

• Use a medium-sized cookie scoop (about 1 1/2 tablespoons) to portion out the dough into 18-20 balls. Roll the cookie dough balls smooth between your hands, and flatten slightly. Place the cookies 2 inches apart on the baking sheet.

• Bake the cookies for 8 minutes, or until slightly puffed and cracked, but not overly brown.  Let cool on the baking sheet for several minutes, then carefully transfer to a wire rack to cool completely. If you like, decorate the cookies by pressing a few more chocolate chips on top of the cookies while they’re hot. Finish with a sprinkling of flaky salt.

Since these flourless peanut butter chocolate chip cookies are such an easy recipe, my three-year-old was able to help me make them. They’re a quick treat to make, and a cookie that everyone loves to eat. And since they’re gluten-free, I’ve been bringing them to get-togethers with friends, where they are the first thing to disappear.

Recipe Variation: Flourless Almond Butter Cookies

While I’ve made these flourless peanut butter chocolate chip cookies with peanut butter and with almond butter, you can likely use any nut butter that you like instead of the peanut butter. Just substitute an equal amount of almond butter for the peanut butter, and a handful of sliced or chopped almonds for a little crunch.

Recipe Variation: High Altitude Peanut Butter Blossoms

Peanut butter blossom cookies, or chocolate kiss cookies, as I’ve always called them, are simply soft peanut butter cookies with a Hershey’s chocolate kiss pressed on top of the cookie. This is a classic Christmas cookie recipe that makes a wonderful addition to a holiday cookie box. You can use any type of chocolate kisses, even white chocolate or peppermint.

• Make the peanut butter cookie dough as instructed, without the chocolate chips.
• Scoop the dough into 18 balls, and roll them smooth between your hands, but don’t flatten the dough balls. Chill in the refrigerator for 10 minutes. (If you like, you can also roll the dough balls in granulated sugar, before baking the cookies.)
• Bake the cookies for 8 minutes. While the cookies are hot, immediately use a round cookie cutter (one with a circumference that’s bigger than the cookies) and “scoot” it around the cookies to pull them into a smaller, perfectly round shape.
• Gently press a chocolate kiss on top of the hot cookies.
• Let cool on the baking sheet for several minutes, then carefully transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

Be sure to read all of my BAKING FAQs where I discuss ingredients, substitutions and common baking questions, so that you can be successful in your own baking!

Frequently Asked Questions

Are flourless peanut butter cookies soft or crunchy?

Flourless peanut butter cookies are very soft, not crunchy. Since there’s no flour to strengthen the dough, they are a bit more delicate and crumbly than, say, a regular chocolate chip cookie that contains flour. So while they do break more easily, they are so soft and rich, and simply delicious. It’s easy to eat two or three of these when they’re minutes out of the oven.

How long do these cookies stay fresh?

You should store these cookies in an airtight container or cookie jar for up to 2-3 days, or freeze the extras indefinitely. I tend to freeze the majority of the cookies that I bake, just pulling out a handful every few days to replenish my boys’ cookie jar.

Can I use natural peanut butter?

You can use any type of peanut butter you like. I’ve tested this recipe with creamy peanut butter (one that’s stabilized with other oils) as well as natural peanut butter (the drippy kind that needs to be stirred). If using a creamy or no-stir natural peanut butter, use the amount noted in the recipe card. If using drippy peanut butter that needs to be stirred, use 2 tablespoons less.

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