Chocolate Peanut Butter Protein Cookies
Published 12/3/2024
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These delicious Chocolate Peanut Butter Protein Cookies pack in 14g protein per cookie. They’re gluten-free, grain-free, and made with your favorite protein powder.
Oh, did we mention that the chocolate + peanut butter combo really makes these the BEST protein cookies on the internet?!
We published this recipe back in 2014 and it’s still my favorite protein cookie EVER. I currently a bag of frozen ones in my freezer at both my house and the Fit Foodie studio! They’re chocolate-y, chewy and pack 14g of protein PER COOKIE. Homemade nut butter-based protein cookies are the best thing that ever happened to the internet and that’s a fact.
Our Favorite Protein Cookies
Today we’re teaching you how to make the most delicious chocolate protein cookies made with just 6 ingredients. AND, they are just under 300 calories each with a whopping 14g protein per cookie, making them a great post-workout snack or anytime sweet treat. Let me repeat:
- 6 Ingredients
- 14g protein/cookie
- Oh so delicious!
This protein cookie recipe is actually a spin-off recipe of our Grain-Free Protein Peanut Butter Cookies, but we decided to use slightly less sugar and add in that chocolate-y goodness. Don’t skip the flakey sea salt on the top — you can’t beat that salty, sweet combo 😉
Chocolate Protein Cookies Ingredients
As mentioned above, the basis of these protein cookies is nut butter. The fat and creaminess in the peanut butter is really what makes them soft and chewy and the eggs allow you to omit any kind of flour. Here’s what you need:
All-Natural Peanut Butter: make sure that you use all-natural, drippy peanut butter. Our favorite brands include 365, Smuckers, and the Fresh Thyme brand. Can’t have peanut butter? No worries! These cookies will work with any drippy nut butter such as cashew or almond butter.
Can I swap the peanut butter for something lower in fat?
ABSOLUTELY NOT. I repeat, do NOT swap the nut butter for something such as peanut flour or almond flour. The nut butter and the oil in it are the basis of this recipe and you absolutely CANNOT omit it or these cookies wont work.
Brown Sugar: we love the flavor of brown sugar, but if you prefer coconut sugar for whatever reason, we’ve tested this and it works just great.
Cocoa Powder: make sure to use unsweetened cocoa powder so that there is no added sugar!
Eggs: The eggs in this recipe not only add protein but also act as a bind for your cookies. If you’re looking to omit or swap the eggs, I suggest finding a whole different recipe that is made without eggs altogether!
Check out some of our favorite vegan cookies: (vegan peanut butter banana cookies and oatmeal banana cookies).
Protein Powder: We’ve made this recipe with both a plant-based protein powder as well as a whey protein powder and they both work.
Our recommendation? Whey protein powder takes the gold medal here because it leaves your protein cookies with the best texture. We’re specifically loving Simply Tera’s Chocolate Whey Protein — it’s not chalky at all and you can’t taste the stevia.
Best Protein Powders
Check out our top protein powder recommendations for baking, smoothies, and everything in between.
Garden of Life
Raw Organic Protein
Simply Tera's
Pure Whey Protein
Sun Warrior
Protein Powder
Garden of Life
Organic Whey Protein
More on Protein Powder
I thought I’d take a second to chat all things protein powder. We’ve done an extensive protein powder review on Fit Foodie Finds and I don’t want you to miss it! Protein powder is such a great way to amp up your protein intake if you find yourself not able to eat enough during the day.
That’s why YOU NEED to make these protein powder cookies ASAP.
remember…
Make sure you like the taste of the protein powder you are using as well as how sweet it is because it can definitely change the taste of your chocolate peanut butter protein cookies.
Protein Cookies Storage
Protein cookies will stay best stored in the refrigerator or freezer, but will also last up to 3-5 days in a cool, dark place.
Let your protein powder cookies cool completely and then transfer them into an airtight container.
Freezer Directions
If you want to keep these cookies on-hand at all times, I highly recommend storing these in the freezer. That’s what I do, at least.
Place your cooled chocolate protein cookies on a baking sheet and place them in the freezer for one hour. After they’ve hardened, transfer them to a freezer-safe gallon-size bag for later.
These cookies should last up to 3 months in the freezer.
5 Stars
Garden of Life Whey Protein Powder
21g protein // 2g sugar// 120 calories// $2.50 per serving// gluten-free// non GMO // grass-fed // organic
Chocolate Peanut Butter Protein Cookies
Ingredients
- 1 cup drippy, all-natural creamy peanut butter*
- 1/2 cup light brown sugar, or coconut sugar
- 1/2 cup chocolate whey protein powder*, we recommend Simply Tera's
- 2 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
- 2 large eggs
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- optional: 1/3 cup chocolate chips
- optional: flakey sea salt
Instructions
- First, preheat the oven to 350ºF and spray a baking sheet with coconut oil cooking spray.
- Place all ingredients in a medium-sized bowl and mix to combine. The consistency should be similar to cookie dough. It should NOT be crumbly and if it is, this is a sign your peanut butter is not drippy enough and we recommend adding 1-2 teaspoons of melted coconut oil.
- Spoon out 3 tablespoons of dough into your palms and roll into a ball. Flatten cookie dough between your palms, creating a cookie shape and place it on a baking sheet. Note that your cookies won't expand a lot, so flattening is important.
- If desired, place mini chocolate chips on top of each cookie.
- Bake chocolate peanut butter protein cookies at 350ºF for 12-15 minutes.
- Let cool for 15 minutes before removing from the pan so that the protein cookies can set. If you remove them too soon, they may break in half. Top with flakey sea salt.
Tips & Notes
- This recipe was updated on November 6, 2024.
- Peanut butter: make sure that you use a drippy, all-natural peanut butter such as Smuckers, 365 or Kirkland.
- Protein Powder: for this recipe, we recommend whey protein. Our favorite is Simply Tera’s Whey Chocolate. We HAVE tested this with plant-based protein powder, but we much prefer the texture whey gives these cookies.
- Nutrition information is without mini chocolate chips. the protein per cookie will vary based on the protein powder you choose to use.
Watch It
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
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Photography: photos taken in this post are by Erin from The Wooden Skillet.
I made these with Collagen Protein Powder (whey allergy), coconut sugar and Kirkland Peanut Butter. The batter was a bit too wet, so I refrigerated overnight and baked the next morning. The dough was easier to form after chilling. I like them. I will definitely make again. Based on the time of year, I wish I had put broken candy canes as a topping. And I am very tempted to make two other batches one with a little ground coffee and one with a sprinkle of cayenne pepper.
So good! I used the fresh ground peanut butter from Fresh Thyme which made them a bit lighter but have little flecks of peanut which I kind of liked! I also made them smaller so I got 16 cookies.
A perfect bite of sweetness without the guilt!
These are delicious and so easy to make! Perfect afternoon pick-me-up!
Best protein cookies we’ve tried! I’ve made them twice now! Thanks for the recipe!
I appreciated the ease of making this recipe: Just dump together the ingredients and give it a good stir. Forming the cookies was easy, too. Thanks for such as accessible, healthy recipe!
Who doesn’t like peanut butter and chocolate together… but the idea of a full on peanut butter cookie sounded appealing also so I made both. I swapped vanilla protein powder for the chocolate and used peanut butter powder in place of the cocoa. Both cookies were great! My oven must run hot cause I baked these for 12 minutes and they were a bit overdone/dry, but still edible and still tasty! I’ll definitely be making these again!
Can you use an egg substitute – like chia or flax eggs or maybe sub with applesauce?
We haven’t tested these with an egg alternative, but let us know if it works for you!
Pretty solid cookie and a good way to sneak in some extra protein! Consistency was similar to a muffin top for me vs a cookie, but overall really good!
Look at this gorgeous cookies!
I added 2 spoons of jaggery instead of coconut sugar. And 1/4 cup oats too !
Damn! I made these, and I ate them all!
I used Mutant Mass Protein Powder in strawberry banana flavour, with crunchy peanut butter, brown sugar and 2 eggs.
Mixed and got 5 circles ~ boom bam bing! I smoked a ding! And then the timers went ‘bing!’
All gone, but damn! Thank you for this idea 🙊
HA this is the best comment I love it so much!!!! also made this smoked no ding but boom bam bing they were gone