These peanut butter gluten-free monster cookies are chewy, rich, and EASY to make! You only need gluten-free oats and pantry staples to make them.
Add your favorite mix-ins like M&Ms, chocolate chips and mini peanut butter cups! You also might like these Gluten-Free Peanut Butter Cookies!
This monster cookie recipe is a mash-up that includes the best parts of all of your favorite cookies!
It’s easy to get creative with the ingredients and make it your own too! Use seasonal M&M’s for a festive color scheme, change the flavor of chocolate chips, or add sprinkles—the possibilities are endless!
These chewy cookies have the best texture and are a hit at every party. And since the base is old-fashioned oats instead of flour, this cookies recipe is naturally gluten-free.
This is a reliable, easy recipe, which is why it’s become a go-to in my house for parties, birthdays, or a weekend treat.
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Ingredients You’ll Need
The flavors of this sweet treat are the best of three all-time favorite cookies. They’re a combination of flourless peanut butter cookies, oatmeal cookies and chocolate chip cookies.
In this super easy monster cookie recipe, I use the following ingredients:
- Butter: Start with softened butter at room temperature. When butter is soft but not melted, it keeps the cookies fluffy and ensures that they will cook evenly.
- Brown sugar: I like to use light brown sugar for these gluten-free monster cookies, but you could also use dark brown sugar. (This will give the cookies a stronger molasses flavor.)
- White sugar: Domino fine sugar is my favorite for gluten-free baking!
- Creamy peanut butter: Be sure to use regular creamy peanut butter for these cookies. All-natural peanut butter that requires stirring will make the cookies more dry and crumbly.
- Eggs: I always use room temperature, large eggs for these cookies.
- Vanilla: Pure vanilla extract has the best flavor, but you can also use imitation vanilla.
- Quick cooking oats: If you are baking for someone who cannot tolerate gluten, be sure to find certified gluten free oats. Regular old fashioned oats are often processed in factories that also handle wheat flour. Also, it is best not to use regular rolled oats. The chewy texture comes from using quick oats. Additionally, cookies made with rolled oats tend to be crumbly. I like to use Bob’s Red Mill Gluten-Free Quick Oats!
- Oat flour: I have notes about this down below.
- Baking soda: Baking soda is an essential ingredient that helps the cookies rise!
- Salt: I prefer using fine sea salt for these cookies.
Mix-In Ideas
The other ingredients for this recipe are the mix-ins. This is where you can let your creativity shine! Chocolate chips are practically a must-have ingredient in monster cookies. But you can get as creative as you like. Aside from chocolate chips, other mix-in ideas include:
- Butterscotch chips: These are a great complement to the chocolate flavor! Not all butterscotch chips are gluten-free. I recommend and use Guittard! You also might like these gluten-free oatmeal scotchies.
- Peanut butter chips: If you don’t like peanut butter chips, you could add more butterscotch chips or white chocolate chips.
- M&Ms: Using special colors to match the season is super fun! Red and green for Christmas, yellow and green for Easter, etc. Check out this article on are M&Ms gluten-free and are Reese’s gluten-free. You also might like m&m popcorn!
- Dark chocolate chips: Dark chocolate chips add more depth of flavor and complement the other chocolate.
- Mint chocolate pieces: Mint chocolate doesn’t pair well with butterscotch, but it could be a stand-alone ingredient!
- Reese’s pieces: This is another great alternative to chocolate and peanut butter chips.
You also might like these recipes for peanut butter balls and gluten-free peanut butter blossoms.
We also love these gluten-free oatmeal cream pies!
Can You Make Flour Out of Oats?
This is the best monster cookie recipe because it is also gluten-free! Plus, you don’t have to buy any hard-to-find or expensive gluten-free flour to make it.
You can buy oat flour in some stores, but it’s just as easy to make your own. Just place the quick-cooking oats into a high-speed blender or food processor. Then, grind or process until the oats are the consistency of flour. You should be able to achieve this in less than 60 seconds.
How to Make Gluten-Free Monster Cookies
- Combine the butter, sugars, and peanut butter in a large bowl with an electric stand mixer or hand mixer on high speed. Be sure that the sugars incorporate completely into the butter.
- Add eggs and vanilla extract and beat until the mixture is creamy.
- In a separate bowl, combine the flour, baking soda and salt. If you mix these ingredients into the flour without combining them first, they may not evenly distribute. Next, add the flour to the mixer and continue to mix on very low speed until the mixture is well combined.
- With the mixer still on a low speed (to prevent ingredients from flying out of the bowl), add the oats and any add-ins you want.
- Roll the dough into balls. You can measure this will a cookie scoop to make sure they are all about the same size and will cook evenly.
- Place the cookies on a prepared large baking sheet. You can use parchment paper, a silpat baking mat or lightly grease the tray. Keep them a couple of inches apart so they don’t spread into each other.
- Bake for 10-12 minutes at 350F. They should be set and golden. Let the monster cookies cool on the pan for five minutes then transfer them to a wire rack to cool completely.
If you love to eat cookie dough raw, try this gluten-free edible cookie dough!
Storage Instructions
Store leftover cookies in an airtight container for up to five days. You can also freeze these cookies in a freezer bag for up to three months!
Gluten-Free Monster Cookies FAQs
Yes, regular chocolate M&M’s are gluten-free. Almost all other M&M’s flavors are also gluten-free, with the exception of pretzel M&M’s and crispy M&M’s.
These gluten-free monster cookies have 147 calories per cookie.
Your monster cookies could fall apart if you use regular oats. I recommend using quick cooking oats, which will soak up more moisture and be easier to work with.they don’t have enough moisture to hold them together. In this recipe, I use eggs, creamy peanut butter, and butter to add moisture. (Be sure to use creamy peanut butter—not all-natural!)
Expert Tips & Tricks
- No fancy gluten-free flours needed: This recipe called for gluten-free oat flour you grind up in a blender from gluten-free oats. No need to buy any fancy ingredients! I’ve you’re making these for gluten-free friends just be sure to use certified gluten-free quick oats. Regular quick oats can be contaminated with wheat flour.
- Double or triple the recipe: Like any cookie recipe, these monster cookies can be doubled or tripled. That makes them great for parties or to take to a classroom.
- Use gluten-free quick oats: These cookies have an amazing chewy texture, but don’t fall apart because of the oat flour and the use of quick oats. These cookies will fall apart more if you make them with regular oats. So I recommend the quick.
- Add any mix-ins you like: You can add 1 cup of any mix-ins you like to these cookies. My favorite combination is mini peanut butter cups (from Trader Joe’s) and dark chocolate chips. Seasonal colored M&Ms are also fun – try red and green for Christmas. The options are endless!
MORE GLUTEN-FREE COOKIE RECIPES
I hope you love this recipe as much as we do! If you try these gluten-free monster cookies, be sure to leave me a comment/rating below. I’d love to hear from you!
Easy, Gluten-Free Monster Cookies
Ingredients
- 1/4 cup butter softened
- 1/2 cup brown sugar
- 1/2 cup white sugar
- 1 cup creamy peanut butter
- 2 eggs
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 1 cup gluten-free quick oats ground to flour in blender
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 cup gluten-free quick oats
- 1 cup mix-ins any combination of chocolate chips, mini peanut butter cups, peanut butter chips, M&Ms, etc.
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350F.
- In a large bowl with a handheld electric mixer or in the bowl of an electric stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, add the butter, brown sugar, white sugar and peanut butter. Beat together until light and fluffy for 1-2 minutes, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed.
- Add the eggs and vanilla and beat until creamy. Add the oat flour, baking soda and salt. Mix until well combined.
- Add the remaining gluten-free oats and mix-ins of choice. Stir or mix until combined.
- Scoop the dough and roll into 1- or 2-inch balls. Place on parchment or silpat-lined (or lightly greased) large, rimmed baking sheets, placing them a couple inches apart. Bake for 10-12 minutes until slightly golden and set.
- Let cool on the pan for 5 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack to cool completely. Enjoy!
Notes
- Use gluten-free quick oats: These cookies have an amazing chewy texture, but don’t fall apart because of the oat flour and the use of quick oats. These cookies will fall apart more if you make them with regular oats. So I recommend the quick.
Can you use a gf blend flour instead of the oat flour?
Yes that will work great!
Loved these cookies! So good, couldn’t beleive they were gluten free!!
We loved these! I made them for Valentine’s Day and the kids adored them.
These cookies are so fun and delicious, my kids loved them! Super easy to make too, thanks for sharing!
Any chance you have g/f & d/f cookie recipes in your stash?
I have 2 grandsons that need one or the other I try to prepare recipes for them with both g/f& d/f ingredients in a college care package to each. Thanks!
Hi, if I have oat flour which is already ground how much would I use 1 c. or less? These look delicious Nad can’t wait to try. Thank you,
1 cup of oat flour will work great!
Delicious!
I used chunky peanut butter for a little more crunch. And also used choc chips. They came out great:)
I could eat a whole batch of these cookies! There is nothing better than chocolate and peanut butter especially in cookie form.