Air Fryer Peanut Butter Cookies
Air fryer peanut butter cookies are so easy to make and require just 4 ingredients and 20 minutes! These small batch gluten free peanut butter cookies are a delicious, sweet treat and perfect for nights when you need something sweet quickly!
If you love peanut butter cookies that are crunchy on the outside and soft on the inside, these air fryer peanut butter cookies are for you!
Why you will love this recipe
- Easy to make – all you need is a bowl and a spoon to mix the dough for these peanut butter air fryer cookies! No fancy mixer needed. This recipe is great for brand new chefs or anyone who isn’t 100% confident in the kitchen.
- Simple ingredients – all you need to make air fryer peanut butter cookies is peanut butter, maple syrup, oat flour (or gluten free flour of choice) and baking powder. You can find these simple ingredients in most stores, and you can make your own oat flour from rolled oats (oatmeal). These ingredients create cookies that are vegan, dairy free, egg free, gluten free and plant based.
- Ready in 20 minutes – The cookies bake in just 8 minutes using the air fryer but do require some time to cool before they are ready to eat. Give yourself 20 minutes to bring together the dough and make the cookies.
- Small batch for portion control – this recipe makes 6 good size cookies. It’s the perfect small batch for those nights when you want something sweet but don’t want 2-3 dozen cookies around! Check out these simple oatmeal chocolate chip cookies made in the air fryer for another small batch cookie recipe.
Ingredients
- Peanut butter – for this air fryer peanut butter cookie recipe I have only tested using natural peanut butter (the only ingredient is peanuts or peanuts and salt). This kind of peanut butter typically needs to be stirred when you first open the jar as the oil separates from the peanut butter.
- Maple syrup – maple syrup naturally sweetens the cookies and also helps to provide some moisture to the cookies. I have only tested this recipe with real maple syrup (only ingredient should be maple syrup) I have not tested it with the pancake syrup that is just flavored to taste like maple syrup.
- Oat flour – oat flour is gluten free and easy to find. You can make you own oat flour by grinding up oatmeal (rolled oats or quick oats) in a high speed blender at home to make it very budget friendly. I typically buy it already ground as I use it in all my gluten free baking. You can use your favorite gluten free all-purpose flour in place of oat flour (I have not tested this with almond flour and would not recommend coconut flour).
- Baking powder – these cookies don’t rise much when baking but they do puff up a bit from the baking powder. Be sure you are using fresh baking powder (opened in the last 6 months) to provide the most rise in the cookies.
How to make air fryer peanut butter cookies
Check out step by step instructions on how to make air fryer peanut butter cookies.
Start by cutting holes in parchment paper that is fitted to your air fryer. You can buy it with holes already punched in the paper but I typically just make it myself. You want holes in the parchment paper or the cookies will most likely fly all over the air fryer when baking.
Add maple syrup and peanut butter to a bowl and stir well to combine.
Add oat flour and baking powder to the peanut butter mixture. Stir well to fully incorporate. It will look at first like the flour will not mix in just keep stirring until it does. The dough will be thick.
Use a tablespoon or a tablespoon cookie scoop and scoop out the dough. Roll the dough in your hands then flatten it before adding it to the parchment paper. I find it’s hard to press down on the dough once it’s in the air fryer, so I flatten it ahead of time.
Optional: Take a minute to press down with a fork on the cookies to make the cross-hatch decoration on the cookies. This is typically done to help flatten the cookies but since you flatten them in your palm, this step is not necessary, but many people associate that with peanut butter cookies so it’s up to you on this step.
Bake the cookies at 315F for 8 minutes. After 8 minutes, remove the cookies from the air fryer and let them cool in the basket for at least 10 minutes. If you try to pick the cookies up too soon, they will crumble as they are very fragile right after baking.
Enjoy warm, cold or right out of the freezer!
Top tips
- Be sure to cut holes in the parchment or buy parchment paper for the air fryer so that air can circulate around the cookies. The holes in the parchment ensure the cookies don’t move around when baking. Because of how the air circulates in the air fryer, if the paper doesn’t have holes cut in it, it can pick up the parchment paper and smash the cookies on top of each other (I can 100% attest to this happening without the holes – I was very disappointed).
- Use a cookie scoop or tablespoon to make even sized cookies.
- Flatten the cookies before baking, as they don’t flatten out on their own. I find that because the basket is so small, it’s tough to flatten each cookie once in the basket. NOTE: You can do the cross pattern with a fork, or you can choose not to do that, it doesn’t change the cooking time.
- Let cookies cool at least 5 minutes before trying to transfer to a cooling rack as the cookies are very fragile until they set up and will crumble. If you have the time, I recommend letting them cool a full 10 minutes in the air fryer basket.
- Use natural peanut butter. This recipe was tested using natural peanut butter (only ingredient: peanuts). The recipe may not turn out the same if you are using a “no stir” peanut butter because it’s not the same consistency or ingredients.
- Freeze the dough ahead of time and add 2 minutes to the baking time to account for the dough being frozen. If you choose to only make 1 or 2 cookies at a time from frozen, be sure to cut down your parchment paper to just fit the cookies or the paper can start to fly around in the basket from not being weighted down by dough.
- Every air fryer is different and therefore baking time may vary but these cookies are also very forgiving. The low temperature ensures the cookies don’t burn. If needed, add 1-2 more minutes to baking time but I would not recommend increasing the temperature or they may burn on the top and still be raw in the center.
Other add in’s
- Chocolate: Chocolate chips or white chocolate chips
- Nuts: Chopped peanuts, pecans, walnuts, almonds, pistachios
- Dried fruit: Dried cherries, dried cranberries or raisins
- Use crunchy peanut butter instead of smooth to add texture and crunch to the cookies
- Dip the cookies in melted chocolate and allow to cool in the fridge on a wax paper or parchment paper lined cookie sheet.
Can you freeze the dough
Yes! You can make these cookies (make the dough, roll and flatten the cookies) ahead of time and flash freeze them on a parchment paper or wax paper lined baking sheet. Once frozen, transfer the cookies to a freezer safe bag for up to 3 months. Be sure to put the baking directions on the bag for easy baking.
To bake these cookies from frozen, turn the air fryer to 315F for 10 minutes. Allow to cool at least 5 minutes (10 minutes if you can) before transferring or eating.
Note: If you choose to only make 1 or 2 cookies at a time from frozen, be sure to cut down your parchment paper to just fit the cookies or the paper can start to fly around in the basket from not being weighted down by dough, ruining the cookies.
Can you bake vegan peanut butter cookies in the oven?
Yes! If you want to make a bigger batch, I recommend baking them in the oven instead. Simply double the recipe and bake the cookies in a 350F oven for 11 minutes. Allow to cool at least 5 minutes (10 minutes is preferred) before moving the cookies around as they are very fragile in the beginning.
Storing leftovers
Fridge: These cookies will continue to dry out if left out on the counter for too long. Store cookies in an airtight container for 5 days.
Freezer: Transfer leftover cookies to a freezer safe bag and enjoy for up to 3 months. These cookies are higher in fat so are great right out of the freezer, no defrosting needed.
Substitutions
- Peanut butter – if you cannot tolerate peanuts or don’t have peanut butter on hand, you can also use sunbutter, almond butter or cashew butter in place of the peanut butter. Each of these will create a slightly different consistency for the cookies but all work.
- Maple syrup – the syrup helps to provide moisture to the cookies. You could also use date syrup in place of the maple syrup. I have not tried this with honey but that could work as well.
- Oat flour – you can make you own oat flour out of rolled oats or quick oats using a high-speed blender. If you prefer, you can also use your favorite gluten free all-purpose 1:1 gluten free flour, cassava or tigernut flour all work well. I would not recommend almond flour or coconut flour.
- Baking powder – if you don’t have baking powder on hand, you can simply omit it from the recipe.
If you love this recipe, you should try
Almond Flour Peanut Butter Cookies
Dairy Free Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies
Chickpea Peanut Butter Cookies
Vegan Double Chocolate Chip Cookies
Air Fryer Peanut Butter Cookies
$1.77 Recipe/$0.30 Per CookieGuided Recipe Video
Ingredients
- 3 tbsp. maple syrup - $0.93
- 1/4 cup peanut butter - $0.66
- 1/4 cup oat flour (or gluten free flour) - $0.15
- 1/2 tsp. baking powder - $0.03
Instructions
- Cut holes in parchment paper cut to fit your air fryer basket or use parchment paper specifically for your air fryer with holes already cut.
- In a bowl add the maple syrup and peanut butter. Stir well to fully combine.
- Add the oat flour and baking powder to the peanut butter mixture. Stir well until fully combined. It will look like it is too much flour at first but it's not, I promise.
- Scoop out 1 tablespoon of dough at a time. Roll it in a ball and flatten it in your palm or on a flat surface. Transfer to the air fryer.
- Once all the cookies are in the air fryer, bake at 315F for 8 minutes.
- After baking, allow cookies to cool in the air fryer basket (out of the air fryer though) for at least 5 minutes, but 10 minutes is preferred.
Equipment
Notes
- Be sure to cut holes in the parchment paper or the paper will fly around in the air fryer and smash the cookies.
- Use a cookie scoop or tablespoon to ensure the cookies are all the same size and bake evenly.
- Flatten the cookies before baking. They do not spread out and will be raw if not flattened.
- Be sure to give the cookies at least 5 minutes (10 is better) to cool after baking or they will fall apart when you pick them up.
- Use natural peanut butter: This recipe was tested using natural peanut butter (only ingredient: peanuts). The recipe likely won’t turn out the same if you are using a “no stir” peanut butter because it’s not the same consistency.
- Freeze the dough ahead of time and add 2 minutes to the baking time to account for the dough being frozen. If you choose to only make 1 or 2 cookies at a time from frozen, be sure to cut down your parchment paper to just fit the cookies or the paper can start to fly around in the basket from not being weighted down by dough.
- Fridge: These cookies will continue to dry out if left out on the counter for too long. Store cookies in an airtight container for 5 days.
- Freezer: Transfer leftover cookies to a freezer safe bag and enjoy for up to 3 months. These cookies are higher in fat so are great right out of the freezer, no defrosting needed.
VERY GOOD I WILL KEEP MAKING THEM
THANK YOU FOR ALL YOUR RECIPES
Yesterday, I prepared these cookies. It was really easy, but I didn’t know whether to preheat the air fryer or not. I presumed that it wasn’t necessary as it wasn’t mentioned in the recipe or the video. After 10 minutes at 320°F and more than 10 minutes to cool, they were quite tasty, but not crunchy at all. Today, I put them in the air fryer again for another 8 minutes at the same temperature. Now, they taste a bit more roasted, but the texture has hardly changed. What did I do wrong? Or perhaps it’s my air fryer? Is it performing less effectively? I used organic natural peanut butter, Kirkland’s maple syrup, good and recently opened baking powder, and self-made oat flour. It wasn’t as fine as the one in the video, but the texture of the dough was similar to what was shown in the video.
Hey Jenn – each air fryer is different, some heat up quicker than others so don’t require pre-heating. I have also found that if you are using an air fryer that is more like a toaster oven, those require preheating and sometimes longer cooking times. Also I have found that homemade oat flour can be hit or miss, sometimes you need to increase the homemade oat flour (I’m not sure why yet, I’m trying to figure that out). Anyway if you try this again with homemade oat flour, add 2-3 more tablespoons and see if that changes the texture for you. Hope this helps, happy cooking! Sam