Homemade Peanut Butter Crunch Cereal
Growing up cereal was a morning staple. I remember having Fruity Pebbles, Rice Krispies, and all the other super famous 80’s and 90’s cereals. My absolute favorites were Captain Crunch and Chocolate Peanut Butter Puffs. I would love how the peanut butter and chocolate made the milk sweet and you had a not on purpose chocolate milk on your hands. And let’s be honest, that’s like legit the best part. The milk isn’t too cold but it’s not warm, it stays at the perfect room temp. Oh also Pop Tarts were a thing too for on the go breakfasts. Not so nutritious I know, but back then no one really knew any better.
When I made this Homemade Peanut Butter Crunch Cereal that is 100% vegan and has a gluten free option, the joy I felt inside brought me back to my kid days when adulting was far far away (at least till the age of 13, when I started working). I like to make this with a batch of my Homemade Vegan Cocoa Puffs and it gives me All. The. Feels.
Full disclosure: I ate a bowl of this late night watching Peaky Blinders on Netflix and it was AMAZING!!! It’s basically like eating little tiny peanut butter cookies doused in almond milk. It really brings me so much joy and I’m not even over exaggerating.
Only 7 super simple ingredients, one bowl and that’s it. No refined sugars no junk, just straight up deliciousness in every bite. You will say buh bye to your boxed cereal and stay together with this one foreves. Also we have options people!!! Add a tablespoon or two of cacao powder and you can make them chocolate!!! I can hear the roars coming from the crowd, it’s amazing aint’ it!
The Right Amount of Crunch
They start off super crunchy and take in just the right amount of milk. I suggest making them a day ahead so they set and get a bit harder that way when you do add the milk you don’t end up with mush. If you put them in cereal straight out of the oven that’s what you’ll get. I mean it will be the most delicious mush ever but you won’t get that crunch like you do with traditional cereal. So let it sit a couple of hours at least.
Another option that’s so super fun….you can make the dough into cookies too! Just instead of making tiny little balls take tablespoon size portions roll em’ out and bake em’ up for 10 minutes. You can gently flatten them with the palm of your hand.
Ok and one last thing with this recipe is you can enjoy it “raw” although it’s not raw like a standard cookie dough as it has no egg. It just taste really good before getting baked so I find my hand in the bowl “taste testing” more than I should be. I’m all about transparency here friends! LOL.
People look forward to breakfast and it can be the most important meal of the day for some, make it special by adding these melt in your mouth, vegan homemade peanut butter gems to the mix. Just 7 easy ingredients and all your cereal dreams will come true.
Homemade Peanut Butter Crunch Cereal
Ingredients
- 2 cups gluten free flour (see notes), spelt flour, or ap flour
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 1 tsp himalayan salt
- 1 cup creamy peanut butter
- 1.5 tsp vanilla extract
- 1/4 cup avocado oil, coconut oil, or extra virgin olive oil
- 1 cup maple syrup
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350F and line baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Whisk together all dry ingredients then add in all the wet ingredients. Mix well then let it sit for a few minutes.
- To make the cereal take 1/2 tsp size portions and roll into balls. You can go however big or small as you'd like but I like this size for the cereal as it will expand in the oven.
- Bake for 10-12 minutes or until golden on the edges. Remove from oven and let cool completely before adding to milk. I suggest waiting a few hours or overnight before adding them to a bowl of milk. You can enjoy them right away however as cookies.
- To make regular size cookies take tbsp size portions and roll into balls then gently flatten with the palm of your hand. Bake for the same amount of time 10-12 minutes or until edges are golden.
- Serve up with your favorite plant milk and Enjoy!
Notes
- Can sub almond butter for peanut butter.
- Store in an air tight container or ziplock bag at room temp for up to 5 days.
- Bobs Red Mill or King Arthur make great gluten free flour blends.
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Sounds good, but labor intensive! I wonder if I could roll a large sheet, then cut I into small squares?
My husband’s face when I told him I found this recipe!!😂 He’s an 8 yr old again! Definitely going in my recipe folder! Thank you.
This looks so good! What a great healthy snack on hand!
thank you!!!
This looks so good! What a great combination of flavors!
what is the nutrition facts of this cereal?
just asking i need it asap hhehe for my project.
This looks so good! What a great treat to make kids!
How long can this cereal stay good for if I wanted to make a whole gallon size zip lock bag,
Probably a week I’d say. I’m really not sure because when I make it, it doesn’t last that long. I also don’t know about freezing. However let me know what you end up doing and how it turns out!!
Does this result I’m a crispy cereal? My kiddos wanted to make crunch berries for a while, so we’re going to use your recipe as a starting place! Rhank you! 🙂
Hi Sierra, it does. Once it sits in milk for a few however it softens as any cereal. You can totally eat it dry too! Keep me posted 🙂
This looks so good! That a great combination of summer flavors!
Yummy in oat milk. Is there any nutritional information for this recipe?
I thought this recipe made tasty cookies but they were too soft for cereal. I let them sit in an open container and it too 3-4 days for them to get firm enough to be similar to a cereal texture. However they are very yummy. I have made a couple different versions and my favorite is chocolate sesame. I used tahini instead of peanut butter and added a 1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons of cocoa powder. I also topped them with sesame seeds and salt.
Just a heads up, even when making a cookie dough without egg, you should never eat cookie dough raw unless you have already baked the flour beforehand. Flour is very likely to contain harmful bacteria in it until we bake it.
how is maple syrup and spelt keto. Spelt is just another name for wheat and maple syrup is paleo not keto
my bad. I did a search for keto cereal and it took me to this recipe
It happens. But I do have keto friendly recipes on my site. I hope you find something you like!
Hi Tammy. You can use maple flavored syrup by Lakanto and also almond flour in place of spelt. It’s about learning substitutes and allowing yourself to be creative. Enjoy! 🙂
would it work if i swapped the peanut butter for nutella?
LOL I don’t know but please give it a try and let us know how it comes out!! 🙂
Sounds lovely. Thank you for the recipe. 🙂 Do you think it would be okay to use regular and/or whole wheat flour? What about crunchy pea/assorted nut and or seed butter?
Hi Kelly, you can totally use wheat flour and any nut or seed butter you’d like! Keep me posted 🙂
Can I use something else besides maple syrup?
yes, whatever sweetener you prefer however I’m not sure how they will turn out as I ever only used maple.
I made them, super delicious, but not all that crunchy. I did use almond flour, not sure if that is why. They weren’t mush, just no crunch like Reese’s Puffs. Thank
You have just given me a recipe to try! Not long after I started working at my current job I developed an allergy to tree nuts and peanuts. You have no idea the hell it is to get cravings for Peanut Butter Crunch, Reese’s products, peanut butter cookies & bars, Butterfingers, or any Nut-M&M candy but can’t have them. But with recipes, I have been finding and experimenting with my WowButter, I can slowly KILL those cravings and reclaim what that godforsaken allergy too away.
I look forward to trying out your Peanut Butter Crunch recipe with my Wowbutter (which tastes, smells, looks, and has the consistency of PB). Thank you!
Oh that’s so wonderful to hear Julius! Enjoy!
Could I use less sugar? I am so excited to make these
Hey Jess, you can definitely try to lessen the sweetener but I haven’t tried it with less measurements. If you do let me know how it turns out! 🙂
Is almond flour good for this?
Hi Velda, I haven’t tried this with almond flour so I can’t give you a clear answer on that. However if you do try it and it works keep us posted! Xo
Hi
Planning on making these tonight for a “rushed” breakfast tmrw morning. I dont have any baking soda…if i dont add it will it not turn out????
Hi Amanda, just seeing this sorry! You an do without and it should be fine. Keep me posted! Xo
Hi! These are super yummy but how do you get them to stay in ball form? All of mine flattened out to little cookies. I tried chilling for awhile too, but same result.
Hi Brooke, I’m so happy you like them! And mine flatten a bit too but I roll them really tiny, half teaspoon.