If you love creamy peanut butter, this new Crumbl copycat Gluten Free Buckeye Cookies recipe is a must-make. They are soft gluten free chocolate cookies topped with a peanut butter glaze and chocolate topping. They are such a fun cookie recipe to make!
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Mr. Fearless Dining is a peanut butter addict, so when I saw Crumbl post their flavors for this week, I knew I needed to make a gluten-free version of their famous buckeye cookie.
I keep this cookie recipe simple, and you can make them huge like a real Crumbl cookie or make them smaller and easier to eat.
If you want to try more Crumbl gluten free copycat flavors, you MUST try these Gluten Free Snickerdoodle Crumbl Cookies and my Gluten Free Chocolate Cupcake Cookies recipes.
Why I love these buckeye cookies:
- The gluten free chocolate cookie is soft and moist, almost like a brownie. It is topped with peanut butter and more chocolate! It doesn’t get any better than this.
- These cookies are straightforward to make with a few simple ingredients.
- The best part about this cookie recipe is that you can freeze the extras and have Crumbl-style cookies all week!
Allergen Information:
These homemade buckeye cookies are gluten-free, soy-free, and oat-free. Make them dairy-free using plant-based butter. Make them nut-free using Sunbutter instead of peanut butter.
Made these today. They are very good! Well worth the steps it takes to make them. The chocolate cookie alone is excellent. Another great recipe from Fearless Dining!”
brenda, blog comment
Ingredient Notes:
For the full list of ingredients and amounts, please go to the recipe card below.
- Gluten Free Flour Blend – Gluten free flour blend – I tested this recipe using King Arthur Measure for Measure Gluten Free Blend. That doesn’t mean others will not work; I have not tested other flours, and I can not guarantee the recipe will work if you use other mixes.
- Xanthan Gum – If your gluten free flour blend doesn’t contain xanthan gum or guar gum, please add 3/4 teaspoon.
- Cocoa Powder – There are quite a few brands of gluten free cocoa powder. I used Anthony’s (on Amazon). Ghirardelli is also great.
- Baking Powder – Use aluminum-free if you can. You can check this to ensure your baking powder is gluten free.
- Salt – Use sea salt or kosher salt.
- Eggs – Size large.
- Butter – I recommend using unsalted butter.
- Vanilla Extract – I like to use pure vanilla extract when possible.
- Peanut Butter – Any brand of peanut butter will work well.
- Chocolate – For the topping, I like to use Ghirardelli Dark Chocolate Melting Wafers. Always read ingredient labels to ensure your chocolate chips are gluten free.
- Powdered Sugar – Any brand is fine.
Step-By-Step Photos and Directions:
Preheat your oven to 350º F and check to ensure the oven rack is set to the middle position.
Step 1: Add the softened butter, eggs, vanilla extract, and brown sugar to the large bowl of a standing mixer. Put on the whisk attachment and whip the wet ingredients on medium speed for 15 seconds to blend them.
Measuring the gluten free flour accurately is really important. I recommend using either the spoon method or the leveling method.
Spoon Method: You can also use a spoon to fill the measuring cup. Use a knife to level along the top to remove the extra flour. Leveling Method: Put the measuring scoop into the flour and fill. Do not pack the flour. Use a knife to scrape along the top to remove the extra flour.
Step 2: Switch the whisk attachment to a paddle attachment. Add the cocoa, gluten-free flour, baking powder, soda, and salt to the mixer bowl. Turn on the speed to low and mix the wet and dry ingredients. Gradually increase the speed as the flour gets mixed in.
Step 3: After mixing, your chocolate cookie dough should look like the picture above.
📢 Sandi says: Every gluten-free flour blend has a different starch-to-grain ratio. The brand of gluten-free flour you use will affect the moisture of the batter. If your cake batter is too runny, add more flour, and if it is too thick, add more liquids.
Read Why Gluten-Free Flour Blends Vary to learn more about this.
Step 4: For best results, use a
Place the cookie dough balls on a parchment paper-lined
Bake the cookies for 10 minutes for standard-sized cookies or 12-15 minutes for large cookies. After baking, remove the cookies to a wire rack to cool.
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Step 5: Now make that peanut butter layer. Add the melted butter, peanut butter, and powdered sugar to a bowl. Mix until you get a nice, smooth mixture.
You can make your peanut butter layer thicker, as Crumbl does, or a little softer to spread it easier, as I did. To make yours thicker, add more powdered sugar a tablespoon at a time, until you get the desired thickness.
Step 6: Spread the peanut butter onto the cooled cookies. We are peanut butter fanatics, so I covered the top of the cookie with the peanut butter. Crumbl makes the peanut butter a smaller area on their cookies.
Step 7: Melt chocolate chips or Ghirardelli melting chocolate wafers in a microwave-safe bowl. I microwave it in 20-second increments, stirring between increments to prevent the chocolate from burning.
Spread some chocolate over the peanut butter. Note: Crumbl covers the blob of peanut butter with the chocolate. I like it layered with more peanut butter exposed, so mine has a little less of the chocolate covering the peanut butter.
Step 8: You can eat these cookies chilled or warm. If you prefer chilled cookies, refrigerate the cookies to harden the peanut butter and chocolate.
If you love baking cookies, I have dozens of easy gluten free cookie recipes on the blog.
Cookie Baking Tips:
- Use room-temperature butter and eggs. I know that it sounds crazy to use butter and eggs at room temperature, but it dramatically improves the turnout of your cookies. You’ll thank yourself later if you try it.
- Chill the dough when possible. I know you are probably ready to eat your cookies, but taking a few minutes to chill the batter makes them less likely to spread. I didn’t chill my dough because I wanted the cookies to spread a little.
- Your oven temperature may be off. Periodically check it to make sure it’s right. Otherwise, the cookies will definitely spread if it’s not accurate.
- Use a cooled
cookie sheet when baking. Don’t take a hotcookie sheet and put the batter on it, or I promise the cookies won’t turn out. They start baking immediately, and it messes with their shape of them. Use a couple of sheets and rotate them out when making large batches of cookies.
Read my Gluten-Free Cookie Troubleshooting Guide and Favorite Cookie Tools for more tips and guidance.
Frequently Asked Questions:
I really like using Ghirardelli melting wafers for the top chocolate layer on these gluten free buckeye cookies.
Store the buckeye cookies in an airtight container in the refrigerator. They will keep fresh for up to 4 days. You can warm them in the microwave for 10-15 seconds if you prefer warm cookies.
I always freeze my buckeye cookies. Place cooled cookies into a large zipper-style freezer bag and squeeze out any extra air. The cookies will keep fresh in the freezer for up to 4 months.
Yes! This cookie recipe is easy to make nut-free. Swap out SunButter for the peanut butter icing to make these buckeyes nut-free.
If you are looking for more Crumbl copycat flavors, try my Gluten Free Cornbread Cookies or these Gluten Free Rocky Road Cookies!
More Gluten Free Cookie Recipes:
- Gluten Free Snickerdoodle Cookies
- Easy Gluten Free Peanut Butter Cookies
- Homemade Gluten Free Chocolate Chip Cookies
- Gluten Free Cookies and Cream
Love This Recipe?
If you made and enjoyed this recipe, I would be incredibly grateful if you could leave a comment below. Please include which flour blend you used. This will help others know this recipe is delicious. Thank you!
Gluten Free Buckeye Cookies
Ingredients
- 1 ¼ cups gluten free flour blend * see note
- ½ cup cocoa powder
- ¾ cup brown sugar
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ⅛ teaspoon sea salt
- 2 large eggs
- ½ cup unsalted butter room temperature
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
Peanut Butter Layer
- ½ cup peanut butter
- 1 tablespoon unsalted butter melted
- ½ cup powdered sugar more if you want it thicker.
Chocolate Layer
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Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350º F and set the oven rack to the middle position.
- Attach the whisk attachment to a standing mixer. Add the softened ½ cup unsalted butter, ¾ cup brown sugar, 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract, and 2 large eggs to the mixer and whip until creamy.
- Switch to the paddle attachment and add the 1 ¼ cups gluten free flour blend, ½ cup cocoa powder, 1 teaspoon baking powder, ½ teaspoon baking soda, and ⅛ teaspoon sea salt. Mix on low speed, gradually increasing the speed until the cookie dough is formed.
- Use a large cookie scoop to make cookie balls. Place them onto a parchment paper-lined cookie sheet. Note you can make large Crumbl-sized cookies or regular-sized cookies. Press the cookie balls down with a flat bottom glass.
- Bake the cookies for 10-15 minutes. Regular-sized cookies 10 minutes, large cookies will need longer. Remove the cookies from the oven to a cooling rack.
- Mix the ½ cup peanut butter, softened 1 tablespoon unsalted butter, and ½ cup powdered sugar. Add a dollop of the peanut butter mixture to each cookie when the cookies are cooled.
- Place the ½ cup Ghirardelli Dark Chocolate Melting Wafers (or chocolate chips) in a microwave-safe bowl. Melt at 20-second intervals, stirring between each until the chocolate is melted. Drizzle chocolate over the peanut butter layer.
Notes
- I used King Arthur Measure for Measure when testing this cookie recipe. Other blends should work, but some are starchier than others so keep an eye on the moisture content.
- If your blend doesn’t contain xanthan gum, be sure to add 1 teaspoon.
- Most cocoa powder is gluten free, but always read the label to verify.
- These cookies will keep fresh in the refrigerator for up to 4 days. Store in an airtight container.
- You can freeze these cookies in a freezer bag. They will keep fresh for up to 4 months in the freezer.
SPECIAL NOTE
Please know that every gluten free flour blend has a different starch to grain ratio. If you use a blend I didn’t test, my rule of thumb is to add more flour if your dough or batter is wet and add more liquid if the dough or batter is too dry!
Nutrition
Nutrition Disclaimer
Nutritional information is an estimate provided to you as a courtesy. You should calculate the actual nutritional information with the products and brands you are using with your preferred nutritional calculator.
4.7/10- amazing, light, fluffy texture. That combined with the toppings is top tier. The base cookie itself doesn’t taste amazing but it pairs pretty well with the rest.
Thank you so much. What did you think the base cookie was lacking?
Hi Lindy, That function you used to 2x the recipe is only for ingredients…it is not designed to alter the directions. From a programming standpoint, it is working properly.
Made these today. They are very good! Well worth the steps it takes to make them. The chocolate cookie alone is excellent. Another great recipe from Fearless Dining!
I am so glad you loved these cookies, Brenda. Thank you!!