Classic Vegan Peanut Butter Blossoms (Easy!)
Soft and sweet vegan peanut butter blossoms that taste just like the classic! With a healthy twist, these chewy and decadent peanut butter blossoms are the perfect treat at a Christmas cookie exchange. So easy to make, and naturally eggless, dairy free, easily gluten free, and even topped with a homemade vegan chocolate kiss! A classic Christmas cookie!
If you want to know the way to my heart, it’s easily through peanut butter and chocolate. I mean, in my mind, there’s just no better combo.
I had to make my favorite cookie growing up: the oh so classic peanut butter blossom, but with a few twists (did you expect anything less?).
These chewy, deliciously soft peanut butter cookies with kisses are going to be the star of any cookie exchange or holiday party. What’s more, these melt-in-your-mouth blossoms happen to be naturally vegan, dairy free, gluten free, and low in sugar…oh, and I even teach you how to make the Hershey kisses on top!
Because homemade Hershey kisses are SO much fun! Also a great activity for the kiddos 🙂
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Why these chewy vegan peanut butter blossoms are the best:
You are just going to love these easy vegan peanut butter blossoms. They truly taste just like the classic Christmas cookie– even my mom, who is the queen of making these cookies, said so herself!
The texture is chewy, soft, and melt in your mouth, the taste is loaded with peanut butter and chocolate, and you won’t even be able to detect that these cookies are eggless, dairy free, and easily gluten free.
Both vegans and non-vegans absolutely love these cookies, making them a great option to make for any cookie exchange or even leave out for Santa 🙂
Ingredients and substitutions:
So what goes into these naturally gluten free and vegan peanut butter blossoms?
- Peanut butter: I used creamy smooth peanut butter. Make sure that it’s very runny, as this will help with the texture of the cookies (i.e. do not use Skippy’s peanut butter here! Please use all-natural or homemade peanut butter!).
- Flour: I use all-purpose flour, but I’ve also tested this with gluten free 1-to-1 baking flour. Either works great! I have not personally tested this with oat flour yet, but have heard from one tester that it does work. However, the dough is much softer.
- Sugar: I used a mixture of granulated sugar and coconut sugar. You could use granulated sugar and brown sugar, or even just all coconut sugar for refined sugar free.
- Unsweetened applesauce: This replaces the eggs in traditional classic peanut butter blossoms.
- Vegan butter: You can use coconut oil, but they won’t spread as easily.
- Homemade chocolate kisses: Like a classic peanut butter blossom, I wanted these vegan peanut butter blossoms to be topped with chocolate kisses! However, vegan chocolate kisses do not exist in stores, and even if they were made by Hershey’s, I’d rather not support them. So I purchased a chocolate kiss silicone mold via Amazon, and used Pascha Chocolate (my favorite vegan chocolate! Really good people who actually stick to their mission of Fair Trade!) to make the kisses!
Simple right? Not a lot of ingredients for the most perfect holiday cookie 🙂
How to make vegan peanut butter blossoms (overview)
For the full written instructions and ingredient measurements, see the bottom of this post in the recipe card. You can also hit the “jump to recipe” button at the top of this post! Here, we’ll go over a brief overview of the steps, along with providing visuals for a better understanding of the recipe.
Here’s how to make these easy vegan peanut butter blossom cookies taste just like the classic:
- Cream together the vegan butter and sugars.
This is very similar in process to a classic cookie recipe!
- Next add in the peanut butter, applesauce, and vanilla.
Use your hand mixer to mix everything together until smooth.
- Add in the flour and baking soda.
Use a silicone spatula to gently fold together the mixture. Be sure not to over mix!
- Chill the dough.
This step is crucial, as the dough will be very sticky and would then spread too much when baking.
- Scoop the peanut butter cookies.
I use a medium cookie scoop, but to make more cookies, you can scoop about 1 tbsp per cookie. Then roll the dough between your palms to form a smooth ball, and gently coat in the granulated sugar.
- Bake the peanut butter blossoms.
Place each cookie dough ball spaced about 2 inches apart to account for spreading. Bake the cookies until just set, about 10-12 minutes (I usually bake for exactly 11 minutes in my oven).
- Top immediately with the vegan chocolate kisses.
You don’t want to miss the window where these cookies are soft enough to place a chocolate kiss into! Once each cookie has a chocolate kiss, place the whole baking sheet flat in the freezer, as the chocolate will melt fast. This will help set the chocolate. You only need about 5-10 minutes.
Then you can serve and enjoy!
How to make homemade vegan Hershey kisses:
You can’t have peanut butter blossoms without the kisses! Now, you don’t need to make your own Hershey’s kisses, but it’s certainly a fun activity for kids.
To do so, I purchased these Hershey kiss molds and a pouch of one of my favorite vegan chocolate chips (I recommend Pascha Organics stevia sweetened chocolate chips for a low sugar option). First, I melted the chocolate chips over the stovetop (you can also microwave them- about 45 seconds, stir, then another 20 seconds, and stir).
Then, I piped about 1 tablespoon of chocolate into each mold and froze them for about 15 minutes.
I kept these in the freezer while the cookies were cooling too, and then as soon as they were plopped onto the cookies, I stuck them right back into the freezer! Easy peezy!
Tips & Tricks for these easy vegan peanut butter cookies
- Do I have to chill the dough? YES!! The dough is super sticky to work with if you don’t chill them, and your cookies will spread too much.
- How should I store these vegan peanut butter blossoms? Since these blossoms are naturally vegan and dairy free, they’re pretty good to stay at room temperature for the day. However, if the cookies are being used for an exchange a few days ahead, I recommend keeping them in the fridge, or even the freezer.
- What if I don’t want to make my own dairy free Hershey’s kisses? Not a problem! It’s easier to purchase them and just one less thing to make, I get that. You can easily purchase dairy free chocolate drops, such as Hu Gems, to place onto the cookies in place of the homemade vegan chocolate kisses.
- How do I make these classic peanut butter blossoms gluten free? I recommend either gluten free 1:1 baking flour (I’ve tested these with Bob’s Red Mill gluten free 1:1 baking flour) and cassava flour, and both work. I personally love cassava flour, but if you don’t have easy access to it, not a problem! You can also swap in your favorite gluten free 1-to-1 baking flour, or if you’re not gluten free, just use all-purpose flour!
- I have a cookie exchange to go to; what should I do? Well, my dear, double the recipe! People loveeeee classic peanut butter blossoms, so the more you have on hand, the better! If you want some help with how to make these cookies for a cookie exchange, check out our 30+ Vegan Christmas Cookies post, which has all of the tips for baking and gifting cookies! Plus they then make a good trade for another one of my favorite cookies…snickerdoodle cookies!
You are just going to absolutely love these easy vegan peanut butter blossoms! They taste just like the classic!
If you end up giving them a go, let me know in the comments below! And as always, I love to see your beautiful recreations on Instagram and Pinterest, so be sure to tag me there!
Happy peanut butter blossoms cookie baking!
More vegan Christmas cookie recipes:
The Best VEGAN Chocolate Chip Cookies
Vegan Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies
Easy Vegan Gingerbread Cookies
Grain Free Peanut Butter Cup Cookies
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If you make this recipe, please be sure to leave a comment and a rating ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ below. This helps others to find the recipes! As always, I absolutely love to see your beautiful creations on Instagram and Pinterest, so be sure to tag me there as well!
Print
Classic Vegan Peanut Butter Blossoms (Easy!)
- Prep Time: 10
- Cook Time: 10
- Total Time: 20 minutes
- Yield: 16 large cookies
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
- Diet: Vegan
Description
Soft and sweet vegan peanut butter blossoms that taste just like the classic! With a healthy twist, these chewy and decadent peanut butter blossoms are the perfect treat at a Christmas cookie exchange. So easy to make, and naturally eggless, dairy free, easily gluten free, and even topped with a homemade vegan chocolate kiss! A classic Christmas cookie!
Ingredients
- 155 grams all purpose flour, or gluten free 1-to-1 baking flour
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 1/4 tsp sea salt (omit if your peanut butter or vegan butter contains salt)
- 113 grams vegan butter, room temperature
- 100 grams granulated sugar
- 50 grams coconut sugar or brown sugar
- 175 grams all-natural creamy smooth peanut butter
- 60 grams unsweetened applesauce, room temperature
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 24 homemade chocolate kisses (see note in the post)
- 1/3 cup granulated sugar, for coating the cookie dough
Instructions
- Please read through all instructions before beginning.
- Prep: It’s easiest to start by making the chocolate kisses first. See notes section for instructions. Then while the kisses are setting in the freezer, measure out all ingredients. Line two large baking sheets with parchment paper or a silicone cookie mat, and set aside.
- Make the dough: In a large bowl, use a hand mixer to cream together the vegan butter and sugar until light and fluffy, about 2-3 minutes. Then add in the peanut butter, applesauce, and vanilla extract. Mix until combined. Then add in the flour, baking soda, and salt (if using), and use a rubber spatula to fold the flour gently into the wet mixture just until combined. Chill the dough for 30 minutes in the fridge covered.
- While the dough is chilling: preheat the oven to 350F.
- Scoop the dough: Place the remaining granulated sugar in a small bowl. Use a cookie scoop (about 1.5 tbsp in size) or roll dough into small dough balls (about 1.5 tbsp each). Dip each cookie dough ball into the decorative sugar, coating it all around, then place the dough onto the baking sheet. They should be about 2 inches apart to prevent touching when they spread.
- Bake the cookies: Bake for 10-12 minutes, or until the edges have set, and the middle is slightly puffy. Remove from the oven. While the cookies are baking, you can remove the chocolate kisses from their silicone mold and place them in a bowl while you wait.
- Place the chocolate kisses onto the cookies: Immediately press one chocolate kiss into each cookie lightly and immediately place cookies into the freezer so that the kisses doesn’t melt for 5 minutes.
- Storage: Serve and enjoy! Store any remaining cookies in the freezer for up to 3 months in an air tight container.
Notes
To make homemade Hershey’s kisses: melt 1/2 cup chocolate chips in a bowl and pipe melted chocolate into Hershey kiss mold. Place the mold into the freezer to chill for 15 minutes.
Gluten free: Use Bob’s Red Mill 1:1 Gluten Free Baking flour in the blue bag for gluten free.
Make ahead: If you’re making these cookies for a cookie exchange, you can make the dough and store it wrapped tightly in the fridge for up to 2 days. Then the day you’re ready to make the cookies, remove the dough from the fridge, and proceed onto Step 4/5.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 cookie
- Calories: 147
- Sugar: 13.4 g
- Sodium: 139.3 mg
- Fat: 6.5 g
- Saturated Fat: 2.2 g
- Carbohydrates: 21.1 g
- Fiber: 1.1 g
- Protein: 2.9 g
- Cholesterol: 0 mg
Those homemade Hershey’s kisses are so cute! The perfect topping to a perfect cookie! 🙂
Aw I’m so happy!! Enjoy!! They’re my fave!!