Keto Chewy Peanut Butter Pecan Chocolate Chip Cookies - it may be a mouthful, but it's a SUPER tasty mouthful! Easy to forget it's diet food!
These may just be the best keto cookies I’ve ever designed - they’re currently my absolute favorite keto cookies.
At the base of it, they’re the perfect keto peanut butter cookies - gluten-free peanut butter cookies (flourless peanut butter cookies, specifically!), crossed with a regular chocolate chip cookie.
Then I added pecans.
I did it up as a protein cookie recipe, without all of the extra carbs - a soft cookie with a LOT going on, flavour and texture wise.
These chewy cookies absolutely pass for the real deal, which can be a blessing and a curse.
It’s the perfect recipe when you want a sweet treat to feed a mixed crowd - they absolutely do not taste or feel like low carb cookies, NO ONE will believe they’re diet food.
On the other hand ... they seem so much like the real thing, it means you’re going to have to defend them!
I don’t have to fend off my husband when it comes to any store bought keto items, but these low-carb cookies tend to VERY MYSTERIOUSLY disappear faster than I would like!
All in all, a great recipe - even if you do have to go into dragon hoard mode!
Let’s get to it!
Nutritional Notes
I've left the sugar-free chocolate chips out of the nutritional information calculation, as those values vary wildly between brands.
There is less than 1 tablespoon chocolate chips per cookie, so it should be easy to see how much carbs your choice of chocolate chips should add to these easy peanut butter cookies.
Aside from the chocolate chips, 4 grams of carbs per cookie come from sugar alcohols. Add that to the gram of fiber, and the end result is that these cookies end up at 4 g net carbs per cookie!
FAR lower than regular chocolate chip cookies, and a worthy indulgence for anyone on a low carb diet to indulge their sweet tooth!
Ingredients
If you do any amount of gluten free or keto baking, you’ll find this delicious keto peanut butter cookie recipe uses pretty basic ingredients, most of which should be easy to find in any grocery store.
If you don’t, some of these may be new to you... but all are great to have on hand, when living a keto lifestyle.
When it comes down to it, they’re relatively simple ingredients, and delicious cookies go a long way to making it feasible to stick to a keto diet, IMHO.
The “Flour” Mixture
Rather than using straight almond meal - as many keto cookies do - I apply the same concepts I learned in making gluten-free cookies, to baking keto recipes.
That is to say, I use a few different “flour” type ingredients, balancing out their flavours and properties, to get the best possible result, and one that mimics regular flour as much as possible.
In this case, I use:
Vanilla Flavored Whey Protein Powder (Specifically, I love Revolution Nutrition's High Whey in Vanilla Cake.)
Each of these ingredients plays an important role in these easy keto peanut butter cookies, so I do not recommend swapping them out.
Smooth Peanut Butter
This recipe is slightly higher in carbs than my original recipe it was based one - my keto peanut butter chocolate chip cookie recipe.
This is because I made it using the suggestion I provide on that recipe (which I haven’t even published yet, whoops!), of swapping out the unsalted butter in that recipe, for extra peanut butter.
This makes for the perfect keto peanut butter cookies, IMHO - amazing soft texture, great peanut butter flavour. For peanut butter lovers, it’s worth the extra carb or so per cookie, trust me!
Anyway, as with that peanut butter cookie recipe, this one was also developed using creamy peanut butter, which gives the best texture.
If you swap it out for crunchy peanut butter, you may need to add a little more, for there to be enough moisture/fat from it.
To keep it keto, you’ll want to use a sugar-free peanut butter. You’ll usually find the best peanut butter options in the “natural peanut butter” section.
Finally, if you’re allergic to peanuts, feel free to swap it out for almond butter or cashew butter.
Almond Milk
I use a small amount of Unsweetened Almond Milk in these low carb peanut butter cookies, as that’s what I have around.
Coconut Milk, Cashew Milk, Flax Milk, and Macadamia Milk are other great options, taste and performance wise - just be sure they fit your macros.
That said, regular milk will work, if you don’t tend to use the dairy free milks, like we do!
Sugar-Free Sweeteners
I use two different kinds of sweeteners in this recipe, to give the most authentic cookie taste and texture.
As far as the granulated sugar sub, I started out with using an Erythritol / Monk fruit Blend Sweetener - usually Swerve Granular Sweetener.
(Be sure you’re using granulated rather than powdered erythritol!)
Recently, I’ve been using Allulose as my sugar substitute of choice.
A very keto friendly sweetener, it tastes more like regular sugar, and doesn’t raise blood sugar like some other sugar alcohols do (other = not erythritol or monkfruit, to be clear!).
The best part is that it also doesn’t crystalize or give you the weird cooling mouth sensation that erythritol can.
As an autistic - that makes a huge difference to me!
As for the brown sugar sweetener, I tend to use Brown Sugar Swerve, as it’s the most readily available of the brown sugar replacements, where I live.
That said, I recently ordered some Brown Allulose, so I’m looking forward to playing around with that!
Sugar-Free Chocolate Chips
To keep these keto, you’ll want to use Sugar Free Chocolate Chips.
There are quite a few options for keto chocolate chips, these days, so just look for a brand that has the macros - and keto sweetener - that suits your needs.
If you can handle a few extra carbs, you can use Dark Chocolate Chips - just look for a brand without too much added sugar.
For this batch, I used Lily's Chocolate Chips - a popular brand of sugar-free chocolate chips.
Everything Else
Rounding out this recipe, you will need:
Chopped Pecans
Large Eggs
Vanilla Extract
Baking Powder
Salt
Baking Soda
... I just don’t have anything to add, for these last few. These ones are pretty simple ingredients!
How to Make Chewy Keto Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Pecan Cookies
The full recipe follows - in the recipe card at the end of this post - here is a pictorial walk through of the basic steps, with detailed instructions included.
In a large bowl, mix together the almond flour, protein powder, coconut flour, baking powder, salt, and xanthan gum, set aside.
In stand mixer - or in a large mixing bowl, cream peanut butter and sugar substitutes until fluffy.
Slowly add the dry ingredients mix to the mixer bowl of wet ingredients, and carefully mix until well incorporated and smooth.
Add chocolate chips and pecans, stir until well combined.
Preheat the oven to 350 F, line baking sheets with parchment paper.
Roll 1" balls out of the cookie dough, or use a cookie scoop. You want to get 24 cookies from the batch - I use a cookie scoop / small ice cream scoop to get equal portions.
Arrange cookie dough balls on baking sheets leaving at least 2" between balls of dough.
Very slightly flatten each cookie, as shown. This is mostly to keep them from rolling around on the cookie sheet, and because they don’t spread much.
Allow cookies to cool on the baking sheet for 2 minutes before removing them.
Once cooled, leftovers can be stored in a freezer bag on the counter for several days, or in the fridge for a couple of weeks.
More Keto Cookie Recipes
Looking to indulge your sweet tooth in a way that won’t spike your blood sugar? Here are some delicious recipes for low carb cookies to try!
Apple Pie Cookies
Biscotti
Candy Cane Cookies
Chewy Chocolate Peanut Butter Cookies
Chocolate Chip Cookies
Chocolate Protein Cookies
Cowboy Cookies
Gingerbread Cookies
Ladyfingers
Lemon Cookies
Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies
Pecan Pie Cookies
Pumpkin Spice Cookies
Raspberry Chocolate Thumbprint Cookies
Red Velvet Cookies
Rolled Sugar Cookies
Snickerdoodles
Soft Peanut Butter Cookies
Sugar Free Royal Icing
Triple Chocolate Cookies
Witch Finger Cookies
... but wait, there's more! We have a whole keto desserts section: Keto Dessert Recipes! Check it out!
Share the Love!
Before you chow down, be sure to take some pics of your handiwork! If you Instagram it, be sure to tag me - @LowCarbHoser - or post it to My Facebook Page - so I can cheer you on!
Also, be sure to subscribe to my free email newsletter, so you never miss out on any of my new recipes or random nonsense. Well, the published nonsense, anyway!
... and hey, if you love the recipe, please consider leaving a star rating and comment! (Sharing the post on social media is always appreciated, too!)
Keto Peanut Butter Pecan Chocolate Chip Cookies
Equipment
- 2 large baking sheets
- Parchment paper
Ingredients
- ¾ cup Smooth peanut butter
- ¼ cup Brown Sugar Substitute
- ¼ cup Granulated Sugar Substitute
- 2 Large eggs
- 1 tablespoon Unsweetened Almond Milk
- 2 teaspoon Vanilla extract
- ½ cup Superfine Almond Flour
- ½ cup Vanilla Whey Protein Powder
- ¼ cup Coconut flour
- ½ teaspoon Baking powder
- ½ teaspoon Salt
- ½ teaspoon Xanthan gum
- ¼ teaspoon Baking soda
- ⅔ cup Sugar Free Chocolate Chips
- ½ cup Chopped Pecans
Instructions
- In stand mixer - or in a large bowl, cream peanut butter and sugar substitutes until fluffy.
- Add eggs, milk, and vanilla, beat until everything is fully incorporated and smooth.
- In a large bowl, mix together remaining ingredients, except chocolate chips.
- Slowly add this dry ingredients mix to the mixer bowl, and carefully mix until well incorporated and smooth.
- Add chocolate chips and pecans, stir until well combined.
- Cover dough with plastic wrap, chill for an hour.
- Preheat the oven to 350 F, line baking sheets with parchment paper.
- Roll 1" balls out of the cookie dough, or use a cookie scoop. You want to get 24 cookies from the batch - I use a cookie scoop to get equal portions.
- Arrange dough balls on baking sheets leaving at least 2" between balls of dough.
- Very slightly flatten each cookie, as shown.
- Bake peanut butter cookies for 11-12 minutes. Cookies will look puffy, but flatten out as they cool. Do not over bake!
- Allow cookies to cool for 2 minutes before removing from baking sheets. Cool completely before storing in an airtight container.
Notes
Nutrition
This recipe looks great. But I didn't see a measurement for the peanut butter in the list of ingredients.
Are you looking at the recipe card? Because it's the first line there?