Six weeks ago, I was in full-fledged holiday baking mode and my mom joined me one evening for some girl time, Baileys, and coffee and a semi-professional cookie decorating contest. She won, I think, on account of finishing all of her Baileys and half of mine. Touche, Mom. Touche.
Over the course of a few hours we dipped pretzels in chocolate, sprinkled peppermint on chocolate bark and crowned peanut butter blossoms with a Hershey’s kiss. And you know what happened next? I practically ate a dozen of everything.
I think this is the part where I say, “Hi, my name’s Dana and I have…a cookie problem.”
Good news, though. Since then I haven’t inhaled a tin of chocolate bark, licked gobs of frosting off my fingers or made a game of seeing how many white chocolate pretzel sticks I can stick in my mouth at one time (although, now that I mention it, that sounds like an awesome idea).
And it’s not because I’ve had a deep look inside myself and wrestled the will to take control of my raging sweet tooth. It’s because I haven’t had the junk in in my house. It’s that simple. Junk food makes me feel terrible and I’ve been having an increasingly difficult time ignoring my conscience anytime I’m tempted to put something less-than-wholesome in my mouth. (Is this what they call becoming an adult?)
After all, we only get so many meals in a day and I want to make sure all of mine count, for good.
Lucky for me these cookies are full-on wholesome. They’re vegan, gluten free and contain no added sugar. Just dates, peanuts, oats, almonds and dark chocolate. They also match the likeness of a popular Girl Scout Cookie, only without all the partially hydrogenated what have yous and high fructose devil syrups.
This is pure hippie dessert heaven. The centers are tender, peanut-y and slightly salty thanks to salted, natural peanut butter (I made mine from scratch), and have just a hint of sweetness from a handful of dates. You could certainly leave them as is for a healthy snack, or you could cover them in dark chocolate to elevate them to dessert status.
Besides being simple to make, these little guys stay forever in the freezer so you can pop one out any time you want for an occasional treat. Alternatively, they’d make great gifts wrapped up all pretty – Valentine’s Day is just around the corner, after all.
Raw Peanut Butter Patties
Ingredients
- 1 cup raw salted peanut butter*
- 1 cup raw almonds
- 1 cup raw peanuts*
- 1/2 cup rolled oats (GF if needed)
- 5 pitted dates (deglet noor or medjool)
- 1 1/2 cups dairy-free quality dark or semisweet chocolate
Instructions
- Add your oats to the food processor and mix until small pieces remain. Then add dates and process again until only small bits remain. Remove from processor and set aside.
- Next add almonds and peanuts to the food processor and mix until they turn to meal – a few small chunks are OK.
- Next add peanut butter to the nut meal and pulse until well combined. Then add dates and oats and process until the mixture forms a loose dough. If it seems too wet to handle, add more oats. If it seems too dry, add a few more dates.
- Scoop out small handfuls of dough and form into small discs. Place on a parchment lined cookie sheet and pop in the freezer to harden for 30 minutes.
- Around the 25-minute mark, melt your dark chocolate over a double boiler. Then work in small batches to coat the cookies. Take only 5 cookies out of the freezer at a time for dipping.
- To dip, drop cookies one at a time into the chocolate, flip once, pick up with a fork and tap on the rim of the bowl to remove excess chocolate. Place back on a parchment-lined baking sheet and pop back in the freezer to set.
- Repeat until all cookies are dipped, re-warming chocolate as needed.
- For optimum freshness, store cookies in an air-tight container in the fridge or freezer until serving.
Notes
*Nutrition information is a rough estimate.
Nutrition (1 of 32 servings)
Note: We’ve updated our Blog Resources page and added a tutorials section that includes a photography and Photoshop lesson involving this recipe. Hope you find it helpful! Let us know what you think.
LT says
I made this for thanksgiving dessert a few days ahead of time to reduce time spent in the kitchen day of. I had to substitute cashews for the peanuts as I am allergic. Well I liked them so much, they were gone before thanksgiving (made a half batch, no judgements) but second try was amazing! I did the almonds with almond butter, subbed cashews for peanuts and coconut for oats and wow. Just a tiny bit of maple syrup to make it super dessert-y and this may be my new favorite thing!!
We’re so glad you enjoyed these! Thanks so much for the lovely review!
Danielle says
These sound amaaaazing! Also, can you share your recipe for homemade peanut butter or is there somewhere I can find it? Thank you!!
Hi Danielle! We don’t have a homemade peanut butter recipe (yet) but we do have a nut butter how-to here!
Danielle says
Oh awesome! Thank you!!
Nicole says
I made these last night for a bunch of my friends and they were INCREDIBLE. My friends didn’t eat too many because they had no idea they were even mildly healthy. Thank you!! These will be a new staple cookie along with your healthy oatmeal cookies! :)
Lorenzo says
Recipe seemed doable except part with running disks out of freezer 5 at a time and then putting them back in the freezer and then taking 5 out again while warm chocolate is sitting there. I just took all the family of disks out and just worked rapidly giving them their quick absolution in the hot stew chocolate bath. This seems like a great dessert but it’s pretty costly when you add up ingredients of almonds, nuts, peanut butter, dates, 12 ounces of chocolate. But it seemed worth it. Thank you.
Hanner says
Thank you so much for this recipe! I made it a few days ago and have been nibbling on the plain patties with just a square of 85% chocolate on the side. I am adoring the delightful comprise of good nutrition and satisfying indulgence.
I used toasted nuts (a mix of peanut, almond, and hazelnuts) for a not-so-raw version. I also used some wizened medjools that had been lingering in the back corner of the fridge.
I’m really pleased to find a simple, frugal, fiber/protein treat that pleases me so much. Excellent work!
You may have seen a Swedish treat that is popular as an afternoon coffee break food: oats, cocoa/chocolate, coffee, sugar, vanilla/arrak flavor, and some fat (like coconut oil) are all mixed together & shaped into balls. Then it is rolled in chocolate sprinkles or coconut flakes. Very similar to yours (but far more health-challenged) in basic format and texture, but I like yours better!
Again, many thanks for a treat that I like better each day!
Olaf says
Thanks for the instant response. Gotta say, I hate walnuts and sunflower seeds! Always have. Pecans might work, though. Never really eaten them, but I’ll give it a shot. I wonder if there’s any neutral bean that would work. I’ve never used beans in that way, but seems theoretically possible.
Olaf says
I’m allergic to peanuts (an allergy that developed after decades addicted to peanut butter in all forms) but have recently found some good almond butters that don’t have trace amounts of peanuts. They don’t taste just like pb, but it’s close enough for an addict. I’m not a big fan of almonds, though, so I’m not too hot on the idea of just replacing all the peanuts with more almonds. Anyone have any suggestions for other (non-nut) ingredients that could replace the peanuts (and maybe also the almonds) but still serve the same function in terms of helping the oats make the “dough” work properly?
Olaf, I’d recommend walnuts as they have a similar texture and fairly neutral flavor. Otherwise, pecans or potentially even sunflower seeds may work. Hope that helps!
Katie says
I see you use a lot of nuts in your recipes. As do I….I also make all my own nut butters. Do you soak your nuts prior to use? I never do but I read a lot that you should.
Melanie Thomassian says
Oh… these look totally amazing, Dana. Can’t wait to try them. Thank you for sharing :)
Robyn says
The beautiful photography drew me to this recipe and the end result was delicious. Thank you!
Heidi - Apples Under My Bed says
Thank you, Dana! I adore these bites, they’re just divine! Made some for valentines day & they were much loved. I have a feeling I will be making these very often.
Heidi xo
Krista says
These look delicious! I was wondering about substituting something for the almonds also, would it work with just more peanuts? Thank you for all the great recipes!
Yes, it should work just fine with more peanuts though I didn’t try it myself. Hope that helps!
Krista says
Thank you for the quick response. I’ll try and let you know :-)
Katie says
These look AMAZING! Can’t wait to try them!
Btw you’ve got a typo there – should be double boiler, not broiler. ;)
fixed! Thanks. Broiler/boiler is one of those words I flip flop ALL the time. Thanks for the catch.
Susan Pantle says
Oh yum!!
Jess says
Dana – these just made my peanut butter/chocolate loving heart skip a beat. I love that they look totally indulgent, but are quite a “good” treat. I only recently started making some of these desserts with dates in them, and I’m totally hooked. Will definitely be making these this weekend!
Anjo Angela Lim says
I am SO making these ASAP! They look wonderful! I never thought to sub rolled oats for ground graham crackers. Yuuuuuum!
admattai says
thanks for the great recipe! I’m obsessed with pb and chocolate at the moment so this was perfect for me. I added a few extra dates and some honey to the mix and they were awesome. Also, since I’m not raw vegan, I used regular pb and pre-roasted peanuts & almonds.
Holly says
Made these last night, they are incredible. Thank you for posting so many amazing vegan recipes!!!
Erin @ The Spiffy Cookie says
I love these. They remind me of an even better version of tagalong cookies, but with more peanut butter!
Emily @ Hungry Delights says
Looks insanely delicious and all raw! nom nom nom!
xo Emily
Becca says
Ohhhhhh sooo yummy!! I am back from a trip to Yosemite and I cannot wait to make these for the wee ones I missed so. Apart from the awesome scenery and wonderful companions, I had a wide range of food experiences! Some awesome, some not so great. I am thinking my next post will be on this wide range and how it impacts us and what we want to eat and what we end up wasting when the food is crappy & made in an industrial fashion. I will somehow figure out a way to make a link to your website because if more food was made like this there would be more intentional consuming and less waste! keep the yummy recipes coming. Can’t wait to see what is next!xxoo
Andrea D. says
Very awesome. Peanut butter + chocolate = LOVE
Tammy says
You are killing me! These look amazing! Glad my husband runs a peanut butter plant…I have a source for all the nut stuff! Making this one tommorrow!
Tammy
Averie @ Averie Cooks says
I’m like the biggest PB fan ever (and also of chocolate & no-bake treats) and this one hits the nail on the head! Delish, Dana! Gorgeous photos, as always!
Taylor says
Amazzinnggg! PB patties were my all time favorite girl scout cookie. Can’t wait to make these beauties!!
Paula says
Dreamy!
Aida says
Sounds great, but it is not a raw recipe.
-Roasted peanuts and roasted peanute butter?
Has to be raw both.. also, microwave.. not a good idea..
Chocolate can be warmed up, only up to 42C’
otherwise, it really look like cool one and i will try the really raw version at home, thank you!
Aida, thanks for the tip. I’ve noted those changes in the recipe. I’m new to “raw” foods but am excited to learn more about them. Thanks!
Kella says
What is hat in F.
Kristen Mastroianni says
Can u substitute almonds? My son has tree nut allergy
Julie says
Wow. Those look AMAZING and incredibly easy! Way to go, now I will be making a game of how many peanut butter patties I can fit in my mouth at one time…