3-Ingredient Keto Peanut Butter Cookies

You’ve found an easy-peasy, low carb yummy recipe…Keto Peanut Butter Cookies! With only 3 simple ingredients mixed in one bowl for easy cleanup. These low carb peanut butter cookies are flourless, sugarless, and only 2.2 NET CARBS! Enjoy indulging without the guilt.

How many of you have enjoyed the classic peanut butter cookie when you were growing up or honestly even as an adult? My friend has been making them for years. It’s his signature dessert to bring over and they are sooo good! 

If you are a peanut butter cookie lover and have missed them while eating low carb then look no further because you don’t have to miss them anymore.

Out of all of our low carb and keto desserts, this seriously has to be the easiest one out there!

What are Peanut Butter Cookies?

The traditional peanut butter originated in the United States and dates back to the early 1900s.

Peanut butter cookies are a basic cookie made with peanut butter, flour, butter, sugar, egg, salt, baking powder, and or baking soda. It’s nothing fancy, just a basic good ole cookie. 

But what makes them so good? If you are a peanut butter fan like I am, what’s better than biting into a soft chewy cookie that is exploding with real peanut butter? 

Very few things are better than that….haha!

Are Keto Peanut Butter Cookies Healthy?

Keto peanut butter cookies are a pretty healthy cookie choice actually, which is different than regular peanut butter cookies. 

They are made with a low carb sweetener that doesn’t contain any calories and natural peanut butter with no added ingredients.

How Many Calories are in Sugar-Free Peanut Butter Cookies?

Let’s talk about calories in these sugar-free peanut butter cookies. In our recipe, they are 106 calories per keto cookie. 

The calories come from the natural peanut butter and the one egg that makes up the batter. 

If you want to lower the calorie count, then you could make smaller cookies. But on average you get 15 cookies per batch.

Is Peanut Butter Keto?

Peanut butter can be enjoyed while on Keto but you can’t just use any old jar of peanut butter. It has to be a natural peanut butter that does not have any added ingredients. 

When looking at the label for either JIF or Skippy Peanut Butter the calories and other nutrition facts might not look like a huge difference, but keep reading the label. 

You will see that where it says “Ingredients” it not only says peanuts but also things like: Sugar, Hydrogenated Vegetable Oils, Mono and Diglycerides. UGH!!! 

Who wants to eat things that you don’t know what they are or how to even pronounce them? I certainly don’t! 

When choosing good peanut butter, look at the label under ingredients, it should just say: “Peanuts.” 

If we look at the nutrients facts for natural peanut butter and regular there’s a bit of a difference, see below: 

• 2 Tbsp Nature’s Promise Natural Peanut Butter: 7g Carbs, 3g Fiber, 0g Added Sugar 
• 2 Tbsp JIF Peanut Butter: 8g Carbs, 2g Fiber, 2g Added Sugar

How Many Carbs in Peanut Butter Cookies?

Now that we all know that as long you buy the right kind of peanut butter it can be eaten on keto. But how many carbs are in low carb peanut butter cookies? 

For 1 Keto peanut butter cookie, it has only 2 NET CARBS. 

Not too bad right? It’s a perfect low carb snack. 

And just to show you the difference, a NON-KETO peanut butter cookie has around 9 NET CARBS. And that’s on the low side…I’ve seen other recipes that have more carbs than that.

What Ingredients are in Low Carb Peanut Butter Cookies?

This is one of the easiest low carb recipes to make as it only takes 3 ingredients to make them!

• Peanut Butter – Use a natural sugar-free creamy peanut butter. I went with Nature’s Promise Brand, but you can use any kind you prefer. 
• Low Carb Sweetener – Use your favorite granulated low carb sweetener. The graininess of the sweetener helps to keep the cookies together. 
• Egg – 1 egg is all that’s needed.

Best Peanut Butter for Keto Cookies

When making keto peanut butter cookies you need to use natural unsweetened peanut butter. Don’t worry though because we add a low carb sweetener to give it some sweetness. 

I tend to use whatever brand is on sale, and that I can find. Most commonly I buy Nature’s Promise Natural Peanut Butter, but that’s only a Stop and Shop Brand. 

Other brands you can get are: 

• Whole Foods 365 Organic Unsweetened Creamy Peanut Butter
• Trader Joe’s Unsweetened Creamy Peanut Butter

If there is another brand you like then use it, just make sure that the label doesn’t have any other ingredients besides peanuts.

Best Sweetener Options

We’ve got some options when it comes to what sweetener to use. I like using Lakanto Classic White Monkfruit and I love the way they came out. 

Most of the time I use this sweetener, I don’t find there to be an aftertaste. Plus a big perk of using this one is Costco now sells it and I can get it rather quickly for a good price.

Other low carb sweeteners options for sugar-free peanut butter cookies are: 

• Lakanto Golden Monkfruit – Another favorite of mine. 
• Xylitol – Be careful because it’s very toxic to your pets.
• Allulose – Just be sure to add 30% more, because it’s less sweet. 
• Swerve – You can use granulated, powdered, or even brown. All will work, and they are a 1:1 ratio.

Can I Omit the Eggs in this Recipe?

Unfortunately, you really can’t just get rid of the egg in this keto peanut butter cookie recipe, the egg is what helps to hold the cookie together. 

If you are a vegan and can’t eat eggs, the most common way to substitute eggs are to use chia eggs or flax eggs. 

However, I personally haven’t tried it, but if you do then let us know in the comments how it comes out.

Different Variations Low Carb Peanut Butter Cookies

Do you want to change up the recipe for these easy keto peanut butter cookies? 

Here are a few ideas: 

• Roll the sugar – Roll the cookie dough balls in granulated low carb sugar before pressing with a fork. 
• Chopped Nuts – Add some chopped peanuts to the cookie dough. It will give you a more crunchy texture. 
• Dip in Chocolate – Melt sugar-free chocolate and dip the peanut butter keto cookies into the chocolate. Let firm up before eating. 
• Use Almond Butter – Swap the peanut butter with almond butter for an almond butter cookie. 
• Chocolate Chips – You can add a few sugar-free chocolate chips, or a chocolate square in the middle of the cookie then bake them.

What Other Nut Butters Can I Use in these Cookies?

Did you know that you can use other kinds of nut butter besides peanut butter? Yup, you can! 

The most common nut butter replacements are: 

• Almond Butter
• Cashew Butter 

However, if you are looking for a nut-free option then try using Sunflower Seed Butter. If you choose to use sunflower seed butter the color of the cookies may be off and even can have a weird shade of green. 

Whichever nut butter you choose just make sure that it’s creamy, the texture will be better.

Can I Add Flour to this Recipe?

So obviously we all know that white and wheat flour is out of the question when on Keto or a low carb diet. That being said, almond flour and coconut flour tends to work well as a flour replacement. 

That said, in this keto peanut butter cookie recipe, there really is NO need to add any flour. This is a perfect flourless keto cookie recipe. 

The peanut butter mixed with the egg and sweetener holds together just fine, and the taste is great. Why add more carbs, or calories if you don’t need to?

Adding Protein Powder to these Cookies

I know some people like to add protein powder to their Keto peanut butter cookies, the problem with this is that by adding protein powder, it can cause your cookies to become too dry.

You don’t want your sugar-free peanut butter cookies to fall apart, and that’s exactly what could happen. 

In my opinion, adding protein powder is not at all necessary and doesn’t make for a better keto peanut butter cookie.

Tools to Use

• Cookie Sheet 
• Cookie Scoop – Gives you perfect size cookies every time. 
• Silpat Baking Mat or Parchment Paper

How to Make Sugar-Free Keto Peanut Butter Cookies

Making the best keto peanut butter cookies is so easy and only takes less than 5 minutes to prepare.

Mixing the Ingredients

STEP 1: For starters, you need to preheat the oven to 350 degrees. 

STEP 2: In a small bowl combine the peanut butter, egg, and sweetener. Mix all the ingredients together and stir until fully combined.

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Forming the Cookies

STEP 3: Using a 1-inch cookie scoop, scoop out cookie dough balls onto your baking sheet.

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Once all the dough has been evenly dispersed, take each one and roll the dough into 1-inch balls, and place back on the cookie sheet.

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STEP 4: Use a fork to gently flatten the cookies. Classic peanut butter cookies have a criss-cross design on them.

The reason for using a fork to flatten them is that it helps them not to spread too much as they bake.

Baking

STEP 5: Place the cookies in the oven for 10-12 minutes.

How to Tell When Peanut Butter Cookies are Done Baking?

They will be soft when you pull them out of the oven but that’s ok. The edges should be a nice golden brown color.

Let Your Cookies Cool

STEP 6: Allow your keto peanut butter cookies to cool for about 2-3 minutes before removing from the cookie sheet.

You want to make sure that the cookies firm up a bit before handling them, otherwise, they can crumble.

Once they are firmed up, serve!

Best Tips

• Add ½ tsp vanilla extract for added flavor. 
• Add chopped peanuts to give some crunch.
• Use natural peanut butter, with no added sugar
• For a vegan peanut butter cookie, replace the egg with either a flax egg or chia egg.
• The dough will be slightly crumbly. After you scoop it out, make sure to compact it in your hands.
• Dip the fork in granulated low carb sugar. This helps to keep the fork from sticking when making the criss-cross pattern on the cookies. 
• Don’t overbake the cookies. The edges should just be starting to brown, but they will still be soft.
• Let the cookies cool before removing them from the tray.

• Bake at a lower temperature for chewier cookies. If you want a chewier cookie, bake at a lower temp for a little longer. 
• To store: Store the keto peanut butter cookies in a sealed container at room temperature. They will stay fresh for over a week. 
• To freeze: Place the keto cookies in a freezer-safe container and put parchment paper in between the layer of cookies. The frozen keto cookies will stay fresh for up to 6 months. 
• To thaw: Allow the cookies to thaw at room temperature or in the refrigerator overnight. 
• Replace the peanut butter with almond butter, cashew butter, or sunflower seed butter. 
• Melt sugar-free chocolate and dip the baked low carb peanut butter cookies into the melted chocolate. Let firm up before eating.

Why Do Peanut Butter Cookies Have Fork Marks?

The reason for adding fork marks to keto peanut butter cookies, or really any peanut butter cookie for that matter, is because it is a denser cookie and they don’t spread out very much and may not bake evenly. 

The fork marks help to flatten them out and ensure a more even cooked sugar-free peanut butter cookie.

How to Make the Perfect Fork Mark Pattern?

Getting the perfect fork marks can be tricky, especially with keto peanut butter cookies. One tip for getting better fork marks can be done by using a skewer instead of a fork. 

It takes more time than using a fork but the marks come out pretty good. 

If you are sticking with the fork method, then use a longer fork, because it makes better lines.

How to Make Low Carb Peanut Butter Cookies Soft

To ensure you get soft low carb peanut butter cookies you don’t want to overcook them, which is very easy to do. 

Once the edges start to brown remove them from the oven. If you eat them a few minutes after they are removed from the oven they will be nice and soft for you. 

Cooking these keto cookies at a lower temperature can keep them soft. I cooked mine at 350 degrees, but you can lower the temperature to 325 degrees if you want extra soft keto cookies.

How to Make Peanut Butter Cookies Crispier?

If you want a crispier and crunchier keto peanut butter cookie then all you have to do is add in some chopped peanuts! That’s it! 

Now that does mean we added an extra ingredient but come on, it’s now 4 ingredients instead of 3…no big deal. 

You also could cook them a little longer for some added crisp as well. Add about 2-3 extra minutes in the oven. 

And to really ensure maximum crispiness let them completely cool before eating.

My Cookies Fall Apart

When pressing these easy keto peanut butter cookies with a fork they can fall apart, so be careful. Don’t press down too hard, just do it lightly and they should keep their shape. 

If you don’t let them cool before taking them off the tray, then they could fall apart as well. Even though they look delicious right out of the oven, try to resist them for at least a couple of minutes.

Making Peanut Butter Cookies Sweeter

If you feel that these low carb peanut butter cookies aren’t sweet enough, then on your next batch you could add more sweetener. Typically when on keto or a low carb diet you get used to things being less sweet, but you can always add more. 

I used ½ cup of low carb sweetener, so I would recommend using ⅔ cup or ¾ cup if you want them sweeter.

Other Diets This Recipe is Good For

• Gluten-Free: A great gluten-free cookie for all of those who are celiac or gluten intolerant. You can’t tell at all that they are gluten-free. 
• Dairy-Free: This is not only a gluten-free cookie, but it’s also a dairy-free one as well. It doesn’t contain any butter or butter substitute.

When to Eat Keto Peanut Butter Cookies

Keto peanut butter cookies can be eaten at any time of the day….that’s right, I know some of you have eaten cookies for breakfast. 

In fact, if you are from Europe, especially Italy where my brother lives, then I know that cookies are your favorite thing to eat in the morning.

Make-Ahead & Store Peanut Butter Cookies

You can make the batter for your keto peanut butter cookie recipe ahead of time if you want to. Just leave it in the fridge until ready to bake the cookies. 

Take the batter out of the fridge and let sit for about 20-30 minutes to come to room temperature.

Can You Freeze Sugar-Free Peanut Butter Cookies?

Yes, these sugar-free peanut butter cookies can definitely be frozen. 

The best way to freeze them is to place the baked cookies in a freezer-safe container and put parchment paper in between the layers of cookies. 

To thaw the keto peanut butter cookies, allow cookies to thaw on the counter or in the refrigerator overnight.

Other Low Carb Cookie Recipes

If you’re in the mood for some other Keto-friendly Desserts, check out our:

• Best Keto Chocolate Chip Cookies
• Low Carb Pumpkin Cookies
• Fudgy Keto Chocolate Cookies
• Almond Flour Keto Shortbread Cookies
• Easy Keto No-Bake Cookies

Other Keto Peanut Butter Recipes

If you are looking for more Keto peanut butter recipes, you’ll love these:

• Keto Peanut Butter Buckeyes
• Sugar-Free Peanut Butter Fudge
• Keto Chocolate Peanut Butter Fat Bombs

All of them are Keto-friendly and low carb, and will have your friends raving!

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