Gluten Free Chocolate Dipped Peanut Butter Cookies

These Gluten Free Peanut Butter Shortbread cookies with a melt in your mouth texture are perfect cookies to turn into Chocolate Dipped Peanut Butter Cookies. Because what's better than chocolate and peanut butter?

Recipe Ingredient Notes

Gluten Free Flour: I have tested this recipe for Gluten Free Chocolate Dipped Peanut Butter Cookies with King Arthur Measure for Measure, Bob's Red Mill 1-1, and my own gluten free flour blend.  All three flours worked very well and produced a peanut butter shortbread with a tender and melt-in-your-mouth texture. I am not saying other brands will not work in this recipe. I just have not tested them in this application. The Flour blends used to develop this great recipe do contain xanthan gum. Please remember – you can NOT substitute a gluten-free flour blend with one single product such as almond flour or coconut flour. You will receive the best results when using blends.

Peanut Butter: The key ingredient to making Gluten-Free Peanut Butter Shortbread Cookies is definitely peanut butter. I prefer baking with “conventional” peanut butter such as Jif or Skippy. Conventional peanut butter is made with fully hydrogenated vegetable oils, which help stabilize the peanut butter and prevent it from separating. In my opinion, it’s more reliable in baking than natural peanut butter (which is perfect for snacking!). Smooth peanut butter or crunchy peanut butter will work in this recipe. I have not tested this recipe with different nut butter such as Almond Butter.

Milk Powder: Milk powder is an optional ingredient to add to this recipe. It enhances the taste of the baked goods by adding just a hint of sweetness as well as a creamier texture (think of it as an additional emulsifier).

Cornstarch: The added cornstarch gives this cookie a tender crumb and keeps them soft as well as chewy.

Chocolate: While I love high-end high-quality chocolate like Valrhona and Cacao Barry, I love using coating chocolate also known as Melting Wafers to dip my Gluten Free Peanut Butter Shortbread Cookies. One can also use dark chocolate chips combined with some coconut oil. Melting Wafers melt smoothly and set up firmly when used (with a pretty shine). Personally, I am a big fan of the Dark Chocolate Melting Wafers sold at Aldi.

How to make Gluten Free Peanut Butter Shortbread Dough

The dough for this recipe for gluten free peanut butter shortbread cookies is very straight forward but it is important to mention that it will be on the softer side. Therefore it's important to mention chilling the dough for at least one hour is mandatory before rolling it out.

Step 1: In a mixing bowl combine the gluten-free flour, baking powder, kosher salt and dry milk powder (if using). Whisk or stir to combine and set aside.

Step 2: Place the unsalted butter and light brown sugar into the bowl of the stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Cream the butter and sugar for 3-4 minutes, until light and fluffy. Make sure to scrape down the sides halfway through the creaming process.

Step 3: With the mixer running on low, add the large egg to the sugar butter mixture and cream for an additional minute. Add the peanut butter and vanilla extract and mix until fully incorporated.

Step 4: Dump in the dry ingredients and mix together just until the flour disappears into the butter mixture. Make sure to scrape down the sides of the bowl to ensure there are no pockets of flour on the bottom of the bowl.

Step 5: Transfer the gluten free peanut butter shortbread cookie dough to a parchment-lined sheet tray and with your hands, gently push it together. I like to shape it in a round disk, about 1" tall which will make rolling out a lot easier. As mentioned, the dough might be sticky. You can use a little flour (1-2 teaspoons) to make it more workable.

Step 6: Cover the dough with some plastic and refrigerated it for at least one hour. Chilling it will make it easier to roll out.

Bake & Decorate Chocolate Dipped Peanut Butter Cookies

To roll out the dough for Gluten Free Chocolate Dipped Peanut Butter Cookies, I like to split it in half. It just makes it easier to roll out evenly.

Step 1: Roll it out on a lightly floured sheet of parchment paper. If it starts to stick to your rolling pin, you may need to refrigerate it for a bit longer. Try not to add too much flour. Once your dough is rolled out around ¼ inch, stick and refrigerate it for at least 45 minutes (or up to 2 days) until the dough is firm and chilled. If you skip the chilling, these cookies won’t hold their shape.

Step 2: When ready to bake, preheat the oven to 350F. Line baking sheets with parchment paper.

Step 3: Use your favorite cookie cutters (I am a traditional and like round circles), cut out your cookies. Try to cut the cookies as close as possible together. The more often you roll out the cookie dough, the tougher the cookies will get.

Step 4: Arrange the cookies on a baking sheet (up to 12 cookies per sheet). Depending on the size of your peanut butter shortbread cookies, bake them for 9-11 minutes, until they are no longer shiny and look set. Remember, not all ovens are the same.

Step 5: Remove the cookies from the oven and allow them to cool on the sheet tray for a few minutes before transferring them to a cooling rack to cool completely. In the meantime, bake the remaining cookie dough (or freeze it for future use).

Step 6: Once the shortbread cookies are cool, melt the chocolate wafers according to package instructions. I melt mine carefully in a heatproof bowl in the microwave in 30 second intervals and use a rubber spatula to stir it until smooth.

Step 7: Dip half of each cookie in the melted chocolate and wipe off the excess chocolate at the edge of the bowl. Place the chocolate dipped peanut butter cookies on a parchment lined cookie sheet tray and sprinkle with some chopped peanut and flaky sea salt. Allow the

Storage & Freezing

Fully baked and decorated (or undecorated) chocolate dipped peanut butter cookies can be stored at room temperature in an airtight container for up to 5 days.

To freeze the cookie dough, I recommend cutting them in whatever shape you like and then freezing them. It is very hard to roll out this dough once it has been frozen. To bake the frozen cookies, bake them straight from the freezer. Maybe add 1-2 minutes to the baking time but since they are fairly thin, I did not increase the baking time a lot.

Serving Ideas

While these gluten-free peanut butter shortbread cookies are AMAZING when dipped in chocolate, they are also delicious on their own. This recipe will not work like a regular peanut butter cookie recipe (shaped like cookie dough balls and criss cross pattern with a fork before baking). I do have a recipe for delicious Gluten Free Peanut Cookies on my website though.

Here are some ideas on how to use these gluten free peanut butter cut out cookies

Gluten Free Ice Cream Sandwiches: A big hit! Make sure you bake larger cookies if you want to use them for ice cream sandwiches

Use them in S'mores: Not a fan of graham crackers? Use those Gluten Free Peanut Butter Cutout Cookies to make S'mores with

Peanut Butter and Jelly: The ultimate sandwich cookie right there.

Note about Salt in my Recipes

I use Diamond Kosher Crystal Salt in all of my recipes unless otherwise stated. If use use a different brand or kind of salt in your kitchen please adjust accordingly since some salts can be saltier. If you use Morton’s Kosher Salt please be aware that their salt granules are smaller in size, denser, and crunchier and twice as salty.

Baking in grams

I share my recipes in grams and by weight since baking by weight is the most accurate way to bake. Digital Scales are very affordable and easy to use. You can purchase them on Amazon for less than a set of measuring cups. For small amounts under 10 grams, I like to use this Precision Pocket Scale. Measuring cups are very inaccurate which can cause significant errors when it comes to gluten-free baking or baking in general. Especially since I bake with gluten-free flours which weigh differently than “regular” flours. I do provide some ingredients like spices and leavening agents in measuring spoons. To learn more about Baking with a digital scale, make sure to check out my post about Baking by weight.

Note about Ovens and Oven Temperatures

All my recipes are tested and developed with a conventional oven. I always bake my baked goods on the rack placed in the MIDDLE of my oven. This way the heat coming from the bottom will not burn my baked goods.

If you are baking with convection (fan-forced), please adjust the recipes accordingly. Convection oven can cause baked goods to dry out quickly and still be raw inside. Since takes at least 15-20 minutes for a standard American Oven to be fully preheated. I highly recommend investing in an Oven Thermometer.

Substitutions and Modifications

Any dietary or ingredient modifications/substitutions to this recipe may alter the end result in appearance and taste. I test my recipes several times as published in this post and The Gluten Free Austrian Blog is not responsible for the outcome of any recipe you find on our website.

More Recipes to try

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📖 Recipe

Yield: 24-30 cookies

Peanut Butter Shortbread Cookies

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These Gluten Free Peanut Butter Cutout Cookies are soft and hold their shape perfectly when baked. Dipped them in Dark Chocolate or use them to make your favorite Gluten Free Ice Cream sandwiches

Prep Time 30 minutes

Cook Time 15 minutes

Additional Time 3 hours

Total Time 3 hours 45 minutes

Ingredients

Chocolate Dipped Peanut Butter Cookies

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• 113 grams unsalted butter, room temperature
• 115 grams light brown sugar
• 185 grams peanut butter, smooth
• 1 large egg, at room temperature
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 270 grams gluten free multipurpose flour
• 10 grams cornstarch
• 10 grams dry milk powder (optional)
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt
• ½ teaspoon baking powder

For rolling out

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• Additional gluten free flour

For Dipping & Decorating

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• 250 grams chocolate wafers such as Ghirardelli
• roasted, salted peanuts
• flaky sea salts

Instructions

How to make Gluten Free Peanut Butter Cut Out Dough

1. Combine your gluten free flour, cornstarch, milk powder, salt and baking powder and set aside.
2. In the bowl of a stand mixer, cream together the sugar and room temperature butterr for 3-4 minutes until light and fluffy. Scrape down the sides.
3. Add the large egg and mix for an additional minute
4. Mix in your smooth peanut butter and vanilla extract.
5. Scrape down the sides of your bowl with a spatula.
6. Add the dry ingredients and mix together just until the flour disappears into the butter mixture.
7. Transfer the gluten free peanut butter shortbread cookie dough to a parchment-lined sheet tray and with your hands, gently push it together. I like to shape it in a round disk, about 1" tall which will make rolling out a lot easier. As mentioned, the dough might be sticky. You can use a little flour (1-2 teaspoons) to make it more workable.
8. Cover the dough with some plastic and refrigerated for at least one hour minutes. Chilling it will make it easier to roll out.

Baking & Decorating

1. To roll out the gluten-free peanut butter cookie dough, I like to split it in half. Roll it out on a lightly floured sheet of parchment paper around ¼ inch thick.
2. Once your dough is rolled out around ¼ inch, refrigerate it for at least 45 minutes or up to 2 days. If you skip the chilling, these cookies won’t hold their shape.
3. When you are ready to bake, preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line your baking sheets with parchment paper.
4. Use your favorite cookie cutters (I am a traditional and like round circles), and cut out your cookies. Try to cut the cookies as close as possible together. Reroll scraps and cut out more shapes. The more often you roll out the cookie dough, the tougher the cookies will get.
5. Arrange the cookies on a baking sheet (up to 12 cookies per sheet). Depending on the size of your peanut butter shortbread cookies, bake them for 9-11 minutes, until they are no longer shiny and look set. Remember, not all ovens are created equally.
6. Allow the cookies to cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes before transferring them to a wire rack to cool completely before decorating.
7. Once the shortbread cookies are fully cooled, melt the chocolate wafers according to the package instructions. I melt mine carefully in a heatproof bowl in the microwave in 30-second intervals and use a rubber spatula to stir it until smooth.
8. Dip half of each cookie in the melted chocolate and wipe off the excess chocolate at the edge of the bowl. Place the chocolate dipped peanut butter cookies on a parchment lined cookie sheet tray and sprinkle with some chopped peanut and flaky sea salt. Allow the

Notes

Storage: Fully baked and decorated (or undecorated) chocolate-dipped peanut butter cookies can be stored at room temperature in an airtight container for up to 5 days.

Melting Chocolate: If you choose to use regular chocolate chips instead of melting wafers, I recommend adding 15 grams of coconut oil or vegetable shortening per 170 grams of chocolate chips. This way the coating will be smooth and shiny. I don't recommend using vegetable oil or butter.

Recommended Products

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• 
  Nordic Ware Natural Aluminum Commercial Baker's Half Sheet, 2 pack, 2-Pack, Silver

Nutrition Information:

Yield:

30

Serving Size:

1
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 167

Calories are a guestimate and randomly generated.

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