I’ll be totally honest, the chocolate + peanut butter combo has been one of my biggest weaknesses for as long as I can remember…For the first 22-ish years of my life, offer me any sort of treat that combined these two and I was SOLD.

But once I started changing my diet, reducing my sugar intake, and really started learning how different ingredients affected my body, most of the sugary desserts I’d once eaten without a second thought stopped feeling worth it…

Now-a-days, when I’m in the mood for a sweet treat, I like to recreate my old favorites, just with healthier ingredients. These chocolate chip peanut butter cookies are one of my best creations!

Keep reading for all details on the ingredients I recommend using to keep these cookies sugar-free and low-carb, but still delicious…

Why They’re Healthy:

Unsweetened peanut butter – Sadly the classic Jiff peanut butter many of us grew up on isn’t exactly the healthy spread we may have thought. Traditional peanut butters contain lots of added sugar and inflammatory oils…NOT ideal. Luckily there are tons of stores that now sell healthier options. When purchasing your peanut butter, always check the ingredient list and make sure it only has two ingredients; peanuts and salt. A few of my favorite brand’s for unsweetened peanut butter are Santa Cruz Organic’s and Georgia Grinder’s.

A large egg – Eggs are one of the most nutritious foods in the American diet. Contrary to what many believed, we now know that they do not lead to elevated blood cholesterol levels – yay! My preferred variety are pasture-raised (for the most nutritious eggs!) but any kind of eggs will do fine.

Monk fruit / erythritol blend – One of the easiest upgrades you can make in your pantry is replacing regular sugar with a low-carb, low-glycemic sugar alternative like monk fruit extract. Monk fruit is an all natural, zero-calorie sweetener that’s high in a certain antioxidant called mogroside. In it’s pure form, it’s typically 100–250 times sweeter than regular sugar – sooo not exactly something you would want to swap directly for sugar in your recipes. But you can buy monk fruit blended with erythritol (a zero-calorie, low-glycemic sugar alcohol) that creates the perfect balance of sweetness and can be swapped 1:1 with cane sugar – perfect for baking! My favorite is the Lakanto Classic Monkfruit Sweetener.

Sugar-free chocolate chips – While you can always use regular chocolate and opt for a higher cocoa percentage for a less-sugary treat, there are some awesome chocolate brands available that make it 100% sugar-free and still taste just like the real thing – so why not?! I use Lily’s Sweets chocolate in all my recipes because it’s sweetened with a blend of erythritol (mentioned above) and stevia (a natural zero-calorie botanical sweetener derived from the stevia plant). If you’ve never tried it, you may be shocked at how good it is!

Peanuts not your thing?

Unfortunately, peanut allergies are becoming increasingly common today. Whether you’ve got a bone-a-fide allergy or you’re just someone who doesn’t love the taste of peanut butter (not even sure if that person exists, but if they do, howww??), the good news is, you can still make this recipe using a peanut butter alternative like almond butter, sunflower seed butter, pecan butter, tahini, or my personal favorite: cashew butter!

Just swap your favorite alternative with the unsweetened peanut butter in this recipe and go on with your bad self!

But keep in mind that you should still check your ingredient lists for any added sugars or oils, no matter what nut or seed butter you may be using.

Tips For Serving:

One thing I always remind my health coaching clients of is that while these are healthier than normal cookies (by a long shot!), they’ll still trigger the same reward pathways in your brain and create the same dopamine-hit that you’d get from the real thing.

You won’t experience the negative blood-sugar affects with these sugar-free cookies, but you may still experience heightened cravings and the urge to eat more than your body truly needs for fuel…

As long as you’re aware of that and consciously choosing to have them as a fun treat-yo-self kind of moment, I say RIGHT ON. Just keep in mind that healthy cookies are still cookies and shouldn’t replace real, whole foods in your diet.

One More Thing…

For more healthy meal ideas, come connect with me on Instagram @weeknightwellness! I’m sharing all sorts of helpful tips and recipes, plus a peek inside my daily routine. If you make any of my recipes, I’d love for you to tag me on Stories and let me know how you liked it! 

Now enough of this chit-chat. On to the recipe…

Chocolate Chip Peanut Butter Cookies

The perfect healthy treat, these chocolate chip peanut butter cookies are so easy to whip up (only 4 ingredients)! Plus they're low-carb, sugar-free, and grain-free…ALL THE THINGS. Most importantly, they taste amazing!

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Prep Time 10 mins

Cook Time 22 mins

Cooling Time 15 mins

Course Dessert

Cuisine American

Servings 12

Ingredients

  

• 1 cup unsweetened peanut butter
• 1 large egg
• 1 cup monk fruit sweetener / erythritol blend (like Lakanto 1:1 sugar substitute)
• 1/3 cup sugar-free chocolate chips (like Lily's stevia-sweetened chocolate)

Instructions

 

• Preheat the oven to 350° F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
• Stir together peanut butter, egg, sugar substitute and chocolate chips in a medium size mixing bowl.
• Scoop the dough into 12 even balls and place evenly on the baking sheet.
• Place cookies on the baking sheet and bake for 20-22 minutes, or until cookies are golden brown. Remove from oven.
• Allow to cool completely on the pan, then enjoy!

Keyword chocolate chip cookies, healthy cookie recipe, keto cookie recipe, low-carb cookies, peanut butter cookies