These no-bake peanut butter cookies are an easy and delicious treat made with quick-cooking oats, natural peanut butter, and maple syrup!
It's as easy as combining the ingredients into a cookie dough and chilling them on a prepared baking sheet to set.
Enjoy these refined-sugar-free and vegan peanut butter no-bake cookies as a quick treat with a glass of almond milk or as after-school snacks for the kids!
While I focus on healthier recipes, I believe in enjoying a sweet treat now and then.
These no-bake peanut butter oatmeal cookies are the perfect balance—wholesome yet satisfyingly indulgent.
Made with simple pantry staples, they’re a quick and delicious way to curb your sweet tooth. No oven required, just mix, drop, and enjoy!
Craving more peanut butter goodness? Don’t miss my classic peanut butter blossoms or irresistible buckeye cookies for your next baking adventure!
No Bake Peanut Butter Oatmeal Cookies
- Oats are a popular ingredient for my cookie recipes, and over time I've shared quite a few recipes that became popular on this blog.
- From classic oat chocolate chip cookies to healthy no sugar cookies, and my favorite snack banana oatmeal cookies.
- Oatmeal cookies come together fast and freeze beautifully for a healthy snacking later.
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Why It's Yummy
- Ease - only 3 ingredients and 5-10 minutes of whisking!
- Suitable for most of the diets - these no-bake cookies are eggless, vegan, sugar free, dairy free, gluten free.
- Great to make ahead and freezing - make a bunch and freeze for months to snack on later. The texture is great too!
What are no-bake cookies?
No-bake cookies are a type of cookie that requires no baking. They are prepared without the need for an oven or stovetop!
For more no bake recipes, check out my no bake cheesecake, snickers bar and pumpkin balls.
Ingredients
- Peanut butter - I’ve used unsweetened creamy peanut butter that is softened for easy mixing into the other ingredients. Almond butter or cashew butter or even sunflower butter could be used instead. A good quality natural peanut butter (salt + peanuts) will be a great choice as well.
- Maple syrup - This pure maple syrup thickens the cookie mixture, adds sweetness, and helps to hold the ingredients together. Agave nectar or other liquid sweeteners can be used instead, but the texture can vary.
- Quick oats - Rolled oats (also known as old-fashioned oats) can be used for more chunky cookies. Some oats come with sugar, so be sure to go through the ingredient label.
📋 What type of Peanut Butter to use? I recommend not adding any extra sweetness and fillers here. Make these cookies with unsweetened peanut butter or more natural peanut butter containing only peanuts and salt.
How Do No Bake Cookies Taste Like?
What is the texture and taste of these 3-ingredient no bake cookies?
These no-bake cookies have a similar texture to energy bars. These cookies have a delicious peanut butter flavor and are not overly sweet.
Instructions
Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or wax paper.
In a microwave-safe large bowl, combine peanut butter and maple syrup. Whisk until smooth.
Microwave in 20-second increments on medium heat, stirring in between, until warm and smooth.
Add oats to the peanut butter maple mixture. Stir until well combined.
Using a medium cookie scoop (about 2 ½ tablespoons), drop the peanut butter balls of dough onto the prepared cookie sheet, spacing them evenly.
Flatten the chewy cookies with a fork to your desired thickness.
I like to make larger and thicker cookies but you can easily get away with 1 ½ to 2 tablespoon-sized balls.
Or roll them into balls and serve them as peanut butter energy balls, yum!
For a pretty presentation, you can also drizzle melted chocolate after the cookies have frozen.
(I use about ¼ cup chocolate chips + a drizzle of olive oil and warm the mixture in the microwave, although there are other easy ways to melt chocolate)
Place the baking sheet in the freezer for 15-25 minutes, until the cookies are firm.
Are No Bake Cookies Gluten Free?
Yes, these cookies are gluten free if you use certified gluten free oats.
Peanut butter is naturally gluten free, but I do recommend checking the labels on everything you buy.
Tips
- The type of peanut butter used in this recipe is the runny kind that requires a good stir before incorporating all the oil into the peanut butter. Don’t add oil to the peanut butter or the cookie mixture.
- I don’t recommend using honey to make these no bake peanut butter oatmeal cookies, as the honey won’t thicken the mixture like maple syrup does.
- The cross-hatch marks made with a fork are a classic look for peanut butter cookies and help to flatten these no-bake cookies.
- Use a cookie scoop to create uniform-sized cookies.
- If the cookie mixture seems too thin or thick, adjust by adding more oats or peanut butter.
- If you're looking for alternatives read this post about nut free alternatives for peanut butter.
Smooth vs Crunchy Peanut Butter
- These 3-ingredient no bake cookies already have a good amount of texture thanks to the quick oats.
- For a more crunchy texture, use crunchy peanut butter instead of smooth peanut butter.
What Substitutes Do You Recommend for the Peanut Butter?
- For this recipe, the best flavor will come from peanut butter. But if you really need to substitute peanut butter you can use alternatives such as sunflower seed butter, almond butter, or any other nut or seed butter you prefer.
- If possible, opt for a natural variety that is already salted. Alternatively, you can add a pinch of salt to the recipe for added flavor.
- Salt helps to balance the sweetness and elevate the overall flavor of these no-bake cookies.
Freezing And Storing Instructions
- To Store. Keep the cookies in an airtight container in the refrigerator (for a month) or at room temperature for up to 2 weeks. After the first day, they can be stored at room temperature, becoming firmer.
- To Freeze. Place the no-bake cookies in a freezer-friendly container or bag for 1-2 months. Thaw at room temperature for 5-15 minutes before enjoying.
- Related: How To Freeze Peanut Butter
Variations
- Add vanilla extract to this sweet treat for added flavor.
- Pitted Medjool dates can be used as a sweetener for these cookies and pulsed in a food processor with the oats.
- Salted peanut butter enhances the sweetness of maple syrup, but you could use unsalted peanut butter instead.
- For nut allergies, use sunflower seed butter in this no-bake peanut butter cookie recipe.
- Add cocoa powder to this no-bake cookie recipe for no-bake chocolate oatmeal cookies.
- Add mini chocolate chips to the cookie mixture for extra sweetness and decadence. Once set, you could dip half of these no-bake peanut butter oatmeal cookies into melted chocolate!
FAQs
Your cookies could fall apart if you haven’t measured the ingredients correctly and used more oats, which will dry out the cookies, or too little peanut butter and syrup.
Refrigerating the cookies before serving also helps to set them so they don’t fall apart.
Yes! Make these no bake peanut butter cookies with certified gluten-free oats.
Yes, absolutely! The quick oats (not the instant oats though) will blend better and provide more smoother texture. The texture of rolled oats cookies will be more chunky, but the flavor is great with both options. It's all about personal preference here.
Feel free to reduce the maple syrup and oats to your preference. Experiment and find your perfect balance! You can also try similar Chocolate No Bake Cookies made with cocoa powder.
You can replace some or all of the maple syrup in this recipe with a low-carb, low-sugar liquid monk fruit sweetener. It's a great alternative that works well in keto recipes and delivers delicious results.
Certainly! For those who are nut-free, sunflower seed butter is a fantastic option. If you prefer to use different nut butter, consider almond butter, cashew butter, or even pecan butter as delicious alternatives!
Easy Oatmeal Cookie Recipes
For all baking recipes, hop on to our Desserts collection.
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Recipe Card
3-ingredient Healthy No Bake Peanut Butter Cookies (Dairy Free)
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INGREDIENTS
- 1 ¼ cup (340g) unsweetened creamy peanut butter, softened
- ½ cup maple syrup
- 1 cup quick oats , or rolled oats for more chunky cookies
INSTRUCTIONS
- Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or wax paper.
- In a microwave-safe large bowl, combine peanut butter and maple syrup. Whisk until smooth.
- Microwave in 20-second increments on medium heat, stirring in between, until warm and smooth.
- Add oats to the peanut butter maple syrup mixture. Stir until well combined.
- Using a medium cookie scoop (about 2 ½ tablespoons), drop the peanut butter balls of dough onto the prepared cookie sheet, spacing them evenly. Flatten the chewy cookies with a fork to your desired thickness.
- For a pretty presentation, you can also drizzle melted chocolate on top after the cookies have frozen.
- Place the baking sheet in the freezer for 15-25 minutes, until the cookies are firm. Enjoy!
NOTES
- Freezing Instructions - Place the no-bake cookies in a freezer-friendly container or bag for 1-2 months. Thaw at room temperature for 5-15 minutes before enjoying.
- Peanut butter - I’ve used unsweetened creamy peanut butter that is softened for easy mixing into the other ingredients. Almond butter or cashew butter could be used instead.
- Maple syrup - This pure maple syrup thickens the cookie mixture, adds sweetness, and helps to hold the ingredients together. Agave nectar (the cookies will taste less sweet) or other liquid sweeteners can be used instead, but the texture can vary.
- Quick oats - Rolled oats (also known as old-fashioned oats) can be used for more chunky cookies.
ADD YOUR OWN PRIVATE NOTES
NUTRITION
Note: Nutrition information is estimated and varies based on the products used.
Full Nutrition Disclaimer can be found here.
Ali
I love that these cookies are only made with 3 ingredients, they are so easy to make!! Going to make a batch this afternoon.
Julia | The Yummy Bowl
Hope you like it!
Ava M
This was so easy to make! I didn't have maple syrup but I used honey and they come out delicious. Thanks 🙂
Julia | The Yummy Bowl
thank you Ava!
Tara
Such delicious and easy cookies! You had me at only 3 ingredients. I love that they are dairy free too.
Julia | The Yummy Bowl
thank you Tara, glad you loved them!
Liz
I didn't want to heat up my oven so these no bake cookies were the perfect treat! My kids loved them too!
Julia | The Yummy Bowl
thank you Liz, they are delicious right!
Suja md
Every bite does indeed look amazing! All of the flavors are incredible.
Julia | The Yummy Bowl
thank you Suja, glad you liked them!
Julia | The Yummy Bowl
These no bake peanut butter cookies are perfect for healthy snack as they are fulfilling, eggless, contain no butter, no dairy, are vegan and gluten free.