Crisp-chewy peanut-butter cookies are topped with peanut butter cups or chocolate chunks, for a gluten-free (and vegan) version of this classic cookie. These cookies are featured in my book, Golden Angels: A Pet Loss Memoir.
These go by a number of names: thumbprints, peanut blossoms, peanut kiss cookies. By any name they are delicious. My friend Caroline used to make these at Christmas, and they were always a favorite of mine. Recently, when The Husband brought home a bag of mini peanut-butter cups, I decided to renovate this recipe to make it gluten-free. If you can find vegan peanut butter cups or vegan semi-sweet chocolate chunks, these cookies are vegan. For people with peanut allergies, you can use sunflower seed butter and just the chocolate chunks. Everyone wins!
Suitable for:
vegan, gluten-free, low-sodium, reduced-sugar diets
Not for:
low-sodium or migraine diets
All of our recipes are gluten-free, refined-sugar-free, and made with plant-based ingredients to help you build a healthy life. Look for midweek essays and giveaways on Fridays (when available). Today’s post is a recipe from my book: Golden Angels: A Pet Loss Memoir, now on sale for Amazon Kindle.
Peanut butter blossom cookies
Ingredients
- 1 cup all-purpose flour (gluten-free) sifted (110 g)
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp sea salt
- 1/4 cup Earth Balance (60 g)
- 1/4 cup peanut butter (natural) or sunflower seed butter (60 g)
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar (organic) maple sugar, organic cane sugar (80 g)
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 tbsp flax seeds (ground)
- 2 tbsp water (filtered or spring) (30 ml)
- 24 dark chocolate (semi-sweet) large chips, chunks, or peanut butter cups
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375F/170C/gas mark 5. Line baking sheets with parchment paper.
- Sift together flour, baking powder and soda, and salt.
- Put the ground flax seeds in a deep mixing bowl (or stand mixer bowl) with the water. Let stand five minutes. Cream the margarine, nut butter, sugar, and vanilla together with the flax meal.
- Add the flour mixture; mix well. Chill in the freezer for 30-45 minutes until very firm.
- Take a level tablespoon of dough and roll between your palms into a round ball. Roll lightly in more of your granulated sugar. Place on the prepared cookie sheets, then flatten with your hand. Bake in preheated oven 8 minutes, rotating the pans at 4 minutes so the cookies bake evenly.
- While the cookies are baking, unwrap your chocolates.
- Pull out the warm cookies and press one chocolate into the center of each cookie. Return to the oven and bake 3-4 minutes more.
- Cool on wire racks. Store in metal cookie tins for best results.
Notes
- 111 calories
- 6 g fat
- 2 g saturated fat
- 1 g monounsaturated fat
- 1 g polyunsaturated fat
- 0 g trans fat
- 5 g cholesterol
- 250 mg sodium (201mg sodium with salt omitted)
- 2 mg potassium
- 14 g carbohydrate
- 2 g fiber
- 9 g sugars
- 2 g protein
- 3 Weight Watchers Points Plus
These are incredible!! It’s so nice to have a recipe where you put them back in after adding the candies because Justin’s dark peanut butter cups are kind of tall, this melts them a bit. Perfection!,
[…] story, from juicer pulp dog biscuits and birthday cake for dogs, to Maple-Pecan Glazed Popcorn and Peanut Butter Kiss Cookies for people — all gluten-free and plant-based. The ebook ($9.99) comes in a version for […]
These look wonderful! I think this will be my next sweet to make. Love that it’s sugarless!!
Thanks Susan! If you used sugarless chocolate chunks they would be free of all refined sugar.
Yum! They look wonderful! And sound healthier than the ones we used to make! :)
I still have great memories of those, though. :)
These are such a childhood memory treat – I make these for Christmas but they would love it if I made them more often I ‘m sure.
I know, I think of them as Christmas cookies but there’s really no reason to only make them then. :)
I can vouch for the delicious-ness of these little beauties. Did I eat 2 or 3 yesterday? Hmm…
I wasn’t counting… it’s possible I also ate 2… or 3!
Gorgeous photo!
Thanks Dorothy!
Yum! I’ve never tried making these, although I am a huge fan of baking PB cookies. Hmm don’t have any flax seed at the moment, I do have some Chia seeds though, so I think I’ll try use them as a substitute. Thanks!!
You could definitely use chia seeds in the same ratio.
I love pb blossoms, and yours look particularly delicious!
Thanks Kayle! I love them too. :)