Recently when I was working on a guest post for my friend, Sarah Bakes Gluten Free Treat's site, I decided to investigate and see what my reader's favorite recipes were here on B&B. Imagine my surprise when I realized that out of all of the healthy, great tasting, good for you treats on Beard and Bonnet it was my Peanut Butter Sandwich Cookies that are your favorite! Those cookies were the answer to distracting my kids from a day filled with constant tornado sirens in Atlanta. I wasn't concerned so much about nutritional value as I was creating something fun for us to do in between time spent in our tornado shelter with limited ingredients on hand. I was more concerned about erasing the absolute terror from my kid's eyes each time the tornado alarms went off. By round three of the alarms we were cuddling in our bunker with fresh baked cookies stuffed with marshmallow fluff. Silly giggles and giddiness ensued as our sandwich cookies were devoured and the fear was temporarily swept away.
Over the past few months I have been constantly searching for a new peanut butter cookie alternative that will still make me kids squeal in delight and that has no refined sugar. As you all know I have fallen in love with Teff flour. I have been baking up pumpkin loaf, fig chai tea bread, and Teff sandwich bread like no one's business around here. So, imagine my surprise when I actually skimmed the back of the Bob's Red Mill package the other day and saw a recipe for peanut butter cookies using Teff flour! I love that this recipe only has 6 ingredients, comes together in a matter of minutes, and tastes every bit as decadent as my previous peanut butter cookie recipe. I swapped out the suggested canola oil for coconut oil in this last batch and I personally feel that it resulted in a superior tasting peanut butter cookie. If you are dying to make sandwich cookies, these were absolutely insane when we stuffed balsamic strawberry jam in between them. I highly suggest it...at least once.
Teff Peanut Butter Cookies
A delectable peanut butter cookie that is crisp and tender, packed with flavor, and good for you!
- Prep Time: 25
- Cook Time: 15
- Total Time: 40
- Yield: 24 1x
Ingredients
- 1 ½ cups Teff flour, I use Bob's Red Mill
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- ½ cup organic maple syrup
- ½ cup coconut oil, in liquid form
- 1 teaspoon gfree vanilla extract
- 1 cup creamy peanut butter
Instructions
- 1. Preheat the oven to 350°F and line a baking sheet with parchment, set aside.
- 2. In a large bowl combine the Teff flour and kosher salt, stir to combine, set aside. In a food processor fitted with the "S" blade combine the syrup, oil, vanilla, and peanut butter then process until smooth. Add the liquid ingredients to the dry ingredients and stir until incorporated.
- 3. Scoop dough with a small cookie scoop into walnut size balls. Roll each portion in between the palms of your hands until smooth and round. The batter will be thick, but will still seem wet from the oil and syrup when you pick it up in your hands. Place on the prepared cookie sheet and gently press down with the tines of a fork to flatten.
- 4. *Bake for 13-15 minutes then cool completely on the baking sheet over a wire rack before serving.
Notes
- *Allow the cookies to cool completely before attempting to pick them up. They are very fragile when they come out of the oven, but will harden as they cool.
C says
I've made these before using a different recipe and they were much drier (pretty much needed a cup of milk to go with them!). 1/2 cup of coconut oil is on the upper end but they still firmed up nicely and are very moist. If you are using super oily/natural PB you might want to adjust the oil down to 1/4 cup if you're having issues with texture.
Commenting from the year 2025!
-C
Suzisunshine says
I've make these cookies successfully about 3 times but I've had issues with the last 3 batches with the batter being too smooth, like cake batter rather than a hard to mix batter texture which worked well in the oven. I've tried refrigerating them and slicing before cooking but they still end up flat with no structure and I can't get them off the pan without crumbling the whole thing in a mess. I will try using parchment paper next time and perhaps add another 1/2 cup of flour. Wish me luck.
Meg says
Hmm...did you change brands of any of the products that you use? It' s strange that it worked so many times before and isn't working now.
Deanan says
I just made these today. I used a combo of natural peanut butter and natural almond butter. They came out perfect and are so yummy. Thanks.
Meg says
So glad you like them Deanan!! That makes my day.
Mary says
Hey, just tried to make these but not sure of the results. Are you using natural peanut butter without added sugar? I had to add some extra flour because it was too liquidy, and even so, I couldn't roll them into balls. They ended up really dry though, so perhaps I shouldn't have added the extra flour after all.
Meg says
Hi Mary, unfortunately natural peanut butter doesn't always bake up the way I want it too. I used Natural Jiff, but it doesn't separate like the other brands do. The dough definitely shouldn't be liquidy, maybe if you try almond butter or another type of peanut butter it would work out better. The baked cookies should not be dry and crumbly, but should be tender instead.
I hope this helps!!!
Amanda says
Thanks, Monica and Meg! I think my final verdict is that I didn't like the combination of almond flour and teff, and I need a nice thermometer for my oven just to be sure my temperature is accurate!
monica says
I haven't used almond butter, but I did use homemade walnut butter and they were fabulous. Maybe a lower oven temp?
Amanda says
Has anyone tried this swapping out peanut butter for a different nut butter? I tried using almond butter and the cookies didn't hold their shape at all. They became thin around the edge and almost taste burnt. I tried baking the second batch for less time and that didn't help. Maybe a swap doesn't work?
Meg says
I have never tried using another nut butter in place of the peanut butter. Have you checked using an oven thermometer to make sure that the oven is heating correctly and not getting too hot? I can't imagine why another nut butter wouldn't work the same.
Shelley Alexander says
Meg, I just recently purchased some Teff flour so I'm going to make these cookies! They sound delicious! I just discovered your fantastic blog from BA and I so look forward to reading your posts and trying some of your recipes!
Meg says
I hope you really enjoy them Shelley! I love Teff flour, just cannot get enough:) Glad to have you here by the way:)
Sherrie | With Food + Love says
I have never used teff flour and this recipe definitely has me curious. Must get some ASAP. These cookies sound pretty amazing Meg, I'll definitely be sharing this soon - XO SHERRIE
Meg says
Thanks Sherrie! I have fallen in love with Teff flour, I can't be without it now.:)
monica says
No worries! I'm definitely enjoying this healthy treat today 🙂
monica says
Help! I don't know if I'm doing something wrong, or if a measurement is off. I followed the ingredient list exactly, but my "dough" is more like cake batter. I can't get it to form a ball - it just sticks in a gooey mess to my hand. Should I add more than 1/2 c teff flour?
Meg says
Oh my goodness Monica!!! I am so sorry the recipe should have read 1 1/2 cups Teff flour. I guess I was typing too fast and didn't catch it again when I read back through. I apologize for the mistake! I have updated the recipe.:)
monica says
Thank you! I was able to salvage them after I double checked Bob's Red Mill recipe that you modeled them after and discovered the difference in teff flour...and they are delicious. Thanks for a tasty recipe!
Meg says
Monica, I am SO glad!!! My heart sank when I realized the typo and I just hoped that I was able to get back to you in time to save the recipe. Again, I apologize for my typing error.
Beth @ Tasty Yummies says
Um, yes please!!! These look amazing. I just adore teff flour, but I have never used it alone. I can't wait to try out this recipe.
Meg says
I just know that you will love it! I had never used it all by itself either, but it really is a super star in these cookies.