Description
Chocolate lovers, you’ll definitely love these peanut butter chocolate thumbprint cookies that are filled with a rich chocolate center. Make a batch of these for your holiday cookie platter! Totally gluten-free and dairy-free too.
Ingredients
For the Cookie Dough:
- 1 1/2 cups gluten-free measure-for-measure flour
- 1/2 teaspoon xanthan gum (omit if your gluten-free flour blend already has it)
- 3/4 cup peanut butter
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 egg
- 1/3 cup brown sugar
- 1/3 cup granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 tablespoon water (optional, if needed for binding)
For the Chocolate Filling:
- 1/2 cup dairy-free chocolate, melted
- 1/4 cup peanut butter
Instructions
- Preheat and Line: Preheat the oven to 350F and line a large cookie sheet or 2 medium baking sheets with parchment paper.
- Mix Sugar with Wet Ingredients: In a large bowl, mix the peanut butter, brown sugar, granulated sugar, egg and vanilla extract until smooth and well combined.
- Whisk Dry Ingredients: In a medium bowl, whisk the gluten-free measure-for-measure flour, salt, and baking powder until very well combined.
- Combine Wet and Dry ingredients: Add the flour mixture to the bowl with the wet ingredients and whisk well until you get a thick and homogeneous dough. (Note: If the dough feels too dry or crumbly, add the tablespoon of water and mix again until the dough is pliable.)
- Shape Dough: Use a #20 cookie scoop (approximately 2 tablespoons of dough) to scoop out evenly-sized balls of cookie dough. Place the cookies in the prepared baking sheet in a single layer, making sure to leave 2 inches of space between each cookie (either 12 cookies for a large baking sheet, or 6 cookies for each medium baking sheet).
- Create Indent in Cookie Dough: Use your finger or the back of a spoon to press a small indent into the center of each ball, forming a “well.”
- Bake Until Golden Brown: Bake the cookies in the preheated oven for 12 minutes (rotating the sheets halfway through) until the edges are lightly golden.
- Let Cool: Once baked, remove the cookies from the oven and let them cool on the baking sheet until fully cooled.
- Prepare the Filling: Melt the chocolate in the microwave or a double boiler and then stir in peanut butter until the mixture is smooth and homogeneous.
- Fill Cookies and Let Set: Fill the well of each cookie with 1 teaspoon of the chocolate-peanut butter mixture. Allow the filling to set before serving or storing.
Notes
Gluten-Free Flour: I recommend using a good-quality gluten-free measure-for-measure flour (a 1:1 gluten-free replacement for regular all-purpose flours) that is made up of lighter flours/starches (such as rice flour, tapioca starch, corn starch or potato starch). I do NOT recommend using a gluten-free blend that is made up of heavier flours (such as garbanzo bean flour).
Xanthan Gum: Xanthan gum is the replacement for gluten in gluten-free flours and helps to better bind the ingredients together. If your gluten-free flour blend does not already include xanthan gum, make sure to add it in.
Peanut Butter: If you are allergic to peanuts, you may use other types of nut butters (such as almond butter, cashew butter, or sunflower butter instead).
Baking Powder: Baking powder is the only leaving agent (we only need a very little bit), so make sure to add it in. If you are Celiac or gluten-intolerant, make sure to use certified gluten-free baking powder.
Egg: The egg is for binding the ingredients better together, so I highly recommend adding it in. If you are allergic to eggs, or would like to keep this recipe egg-free, you may use acquafaba or an egg-replacer instead.
Sugar: I used a mix of brown sugar and white sugar, but you can also use cane sugar or coconut sugar if you prefer. If you are diabetic or insulin-resistant, I recommend using granulated monkfruit sweetener (a 1:1 sugar substitute that is zero glycemic index).
Vanilla Extract: I like adding a bit of vanilla extract for extra flavor, so I highly recommend adding it in.
Chocolate: I used dairy-free chocolate to keep this recipe dairy-free, but you may also use regular chocolate instead.
- Prep Time: 20 mins
- Assembly Time: 15 mins
- Cook Time: 12 mins
- Category: Cookies
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American