Baked Sweets and Treats

Pumpkin Peanut Butter Cookies – Gluten Free & Vegan

Pumpkin Peanut Butter Cookies – Gluten Free & Vegan | MarlaMeridith.com

A few things we need to discuss today: Cookies, Cookbooks, Charity Bake Sales and October’s Secret Recipe Club reveal. Most folks love a good peanut butter cookie. Crumbly, comforting and sweet. Mine are all of that but also vegan and gluten free. These cookies are filled with health. They are baked in honor of a little boy named Liam who lost a struggle with life.

Will you please take a seat and join me for some cookies? Grab your milk and a plate.

Pumpkin Peanut Butter Cookies – Gluten Free & Vegan | MarlaMeridith.com

It was essential that I added some pumpkin to the usual peanut butter cookies. Any place I can use pumpkin I do. From pie tarts to applesauce to curries.

Pumpkin rules and that is all you need to know.

Pumpkin Peanut Butter Cookies – Gluten Free & Vegan | MarlaMeridith.com

The blog I get to reveal and share with you today is Darn Near Domestic. Kristy had these Peanut Butter Cookies sans the fork prints so I decided to make something similar. With my usual twists of course! Hers have no fork prints and neither do mine. Yes there is peanut butter in both our recipes. Hers have sugar, butter, white flour and eggs. Mine don’t. Her little son grabbed her freshly baked batch of cookies from the cooling racks.

My kids did the same…

Pumpkin Peanut Butter Cookies – Gluten Free & Vegan | MarlaMeridith.com

I love decorating with all kinds of raisins and dried fruits. They are colorful, tasty and fun…

Pumpkin Peanut Butter Cookies – Gluten Free & Vegan | MarlaMeridith.com

Here is the very special book I have been wanting to share with you…

I first learned about the book Cookies for Kids Cancer: Best Bakesale Cookbook on the blog Justcook NYC. The journey to creating this gem was emotional and well worth all the efforts.

Pumpkin Peanut Butter Cookies – Gluten Free & Vegan | MarlaMeridith.com

This book is important because all of the proceeds benefit a charity close to the authors heart. Gretchen Hot-Witt’s little son Prince Liam was diagnosed with pediatric cancer at the age of 2 1/2 in 2007. She shares in the book’s introduction that the only thing in the world that mattered after his diagnosis was Liam’s health and path to recovery. Sadly Liam lost the fight to cancer earlier this year. He was only 6 years old.

My heart bleeds for this family.

Bake Sale cookbook and peanut butter cookies recipe

None of us can imagine the pain associated with this sort of thing. To find out your sweet child is so sick sucks the life and strength out of you…..when you need it most.

Pumpkin Peanut Butter Cookies – Gluten Free & Vegan | MarlaMeridith.com

When Liam was diagnosed Gretchen created a a positive plan. A BIG plan that involved raising money through local bake sales. She figured everyone loves a good cookie and they are an easy sell. With her first large scale bake sale initiative they sold $400,o00.00 worth of cookies. All of that money helps to fund new pediatric cancer treatments. As of today they have raised millions of dollars. Through cookies…

Pumpkin Peanut Butter Cookies – Gluten Free & Vegan | MarlaMeridith.com

They formed the national nonprofit organization called Cookies for Kid’s Cancer that invites others to hold bake sales (and other events) across the  country to benefit this cause. You can help too by hosting a bake sale in your neck of the woods or by purchasing this book. All of Gretchen’s royalties go back to the foundation…to help little kids. Help me to help her help kids.

Pumpkin Peanut Butter Cookies – Gluten Free & Vegan | MarlaMeridith.com

What is your favorite cookie recipe? Have you ever held a bake sale?

Graphic with pink fleur de lis for MarlaMeridith.com

Bake Sale cookbook and peanut butter cookies recipe

Giveaway Details

This giveaway is now closed. Thanks for all of your entries. Congrats to Averie #33 from Love Veggies and Yoga.

If you love all kinds of cookies, brownies, cupcakes and cakes then you will love this book. Every sweet treat that you could possibly dream up is in the recipe index. A few that sound great to me are Fresh Apple Cranberry Bars, Applesauce Bread, Cocoa Carrot Cupcakes with White Chocolate Chips, Cream Cheese Brownies, Pecan Sandies, Tried-and-True Sparkly Ginger Snaps, Coconut Almond Chocolate Chip Cookies. And yes, there is a recipe for Peanut Butter Cookies in the book. They are named after Prince Liam. Read more about the cause here.

Because I cannot resist a great cookie and this amazing woman’s efforts I am purchasing a Cookies for Kids Cancer: Best Bakesale Cookbook for one friend of MarlaMeridith.com….

All the info you need if you wish to donate money or host any kind of event to benefit this cause can be found on their webpage.

How to Enter

Leave some comments….tell me what your favorite kind of cookie is. You have until Friday, October 28th, 12 midnight PST to enter this giveaway. One winner will be chosen via random.org and will have 3 days to respond or a new winner will be selected. Open to residents of the USA.

To earn additional entries, leave a separate comment for each of the steps listed below. If you don’t leave separate comments for each step, we will not be able to include them.

  1. Tell me about your favorite cookie recipe. Have you ever hosted or been a part of a bake sale?
  2. Add the MarlaMeridith.com badge into your sidebar or somewhere on your blog
  3. Tweet this giveaway, being sure to include my Twitter handle (@MarlaMeridith). Here’s a sample tweet you could use or make up your own: Win the @cookies4kids Best Bake Sale Cookbook to benefit Cookies for Kid’s Cancer via @MarlaMeridith http://su.pr/2cbaQH #giveaway PLS RT
  4. Tell me which MarlaMeridith.com Recipe cookie recipe you want to try.
  5. Follow @MarlaMeridith on Twitter
  6. Follow @cookies4kids on Twitter
  7. Follow Marla Meridith on Pinterest & pin this post
  8. Sign up for my Email or RSS feeds
  9. Stumble this post & follow @familyfresh on StumbleUpon
  10. Add a link to this post on your blog.
  11. Add a MarlaMeridith.com badge somewhere on your blog
  12. Follow @MarlaMeridith on Instagram

*Be sure to stay in touch with MarlaMeridith.com and Cookies For Kids Cancer on Facebook too.

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Check out Group C’s Secret Recipe Club October Reveals

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Gluten Free Peanut Butter Cookie Recipe Links

~ Marla Meridith

Join the Conversation

145 thoughts on “Pumpkin Peanut Butter Cookies – Gluten Free & Vegan

  1. Cookies for Kids with Cancer is an amazing organization and this book is wonderful. Clients of my BF have an 8 yr old daughter battling brain cancer at this time. The strength in her little body and the courage she exhibits just amazes me. Whether I win or not, I’ll definitely be purchasing several copies.

    1. Thank you Lisa. I am in such great support of this organization and I too will do what I can to support it. I am so sorry to hear about that little girl. xo

  2. So many things to process in 1 post (in a good way). 1st, peanut butter and pumpkin, in 1 cookie. I have no words for the happiness this brings me. 2nd. What a great cookbook for a great cause. 3rd. I love that you make such healthy treats for your kids.

  3. Oooh, I can just imagine how delicious the combo of peanut butter and pumpkin is, Marla! Love how you decorated them too, they are so cute! As always, another healthy/incredibly delicious treat.

  4. Favorite cookie – my mom’s apricot turnovers!! So delicate, fruity and addicting! We always made them for wedding/baby showers and any other fancy schmancy parties we were throwing.

  5. Those look…so…good! And the photos! The one with the basket is stunning! The natural light is perfect!! Bake sales are my favorite way to bake and try new treats, that’s for sure! I think my favorite cookie is a chewy, thick, chocolate chunk!!!

  6. Marla these look amazing!

    I just pinned them to my Cookie Board.

    You did a fantastic job on these. Wow. And that you made them GF and Vegan. Nice work, my friend!!

    My fave cookies lately are the Peanut Butter Oatmeal White Chocolate Cookies I made last week. This week…I’m onto something new.

    Great giveaway!

  7. I subscribe to the RSS feed for this blog.

    Also – just wanted to let you know I am also running a giveaway on my blog if you’re interested! 🙂

  8. Hi there! I am a new convert from Amanda at “I Am Baker”. I cannot begin to tell you how thrilled I am to find your blog! I’m currently on a quest to really change how my kids and I eat (my husband already does amazing, lol, even snubbing things I cook for broccoli and fish!). I’ve been doing an elimination diet with no gluten, dairy, soy, beef, pork, sugar, caffeine, and certain veggies (esp. corn). Even if I don’t turn out to be overly sensitive to any of these, I’m planning on cooking more like this – not as much gluten and lots more veggies especially. I’m also a Rocky Mountain girl (by Pikes Peak) and can’t get enough of “my mountain”.

    Thank you so much for your blog! In the 20 minutes I’ve been reading it I’ve saved 6 recipes and look forward to many more!

    Oh, and I love a classic chocolate chip cookie. 🙂

  9. Am I able to enter the contest being a Canadian? Or has the 49th parallel messed with me again?
    In any case, Pumpkin + Peanut Butter = AWESOMENESS! I love the little pumpkin head decorations!

  10. You are breaking my heart and making me drool at the same time. I think I’ll have a pumpkin cookie and a good cry for Liam at the same time.

  11. I love these cookies – both vegan and gluten-free! My kinda recipe, my friend. Now, I can’t wait to check out the next post with 10 Steps to getting skinny. Nah, I think I’ll make these cookies first!

  12. my favorite cookie is gingerbread and gingersnaps!!! they are amazingly delicious!!! i also love european biscuit cookies, they are also to die for!!

  13. A great reveal, a great cookie, and a great cause. Thanks for bringing attention to such a heart-wrenching issue.

    I love the pumpkin in these cookies as well as all the healthy (and pretty) toppings.

    Great SRC post.

  14. I’m a sucker for snickerdoodles right out of the oven.
    Thanks for doing this post – “Cookies” is a word that should always go together with “kids,” but not the word “cancer!”

  15. I am always touched and amazed by families that turn sadness into hope for others. I know too many families that have lost loved ones to cancer, and it is just incredible how so many of them have created organizations to raise money to fund research for cancer cures so that others might not have to go through their pain. What a thoughtful giveaway Marla, and I love your cookie recipe.

    1. Thanks Jeanette. Glad you like my cookie recipe. I know you have known many who have suffered from cancer. These organizations are so important. I always hope that all of that money ends up in the right hands…

  16. My favorite cookies are things that most people have never heard of. My favorite was a cookie that my mother used to make that was a sweet fried ravioli that unfortunately, I have lost the recipe for. There was also another cookie called cenci that were fried strips dusted with confectioners sugar.

  17. I have participated in several bake sales over the years, some for Camp Fire Girls, some for different clubs, some for my daughter. There have been too many to count.

  18. I have participtated in a bake sale and made my go to chocolate chip cookie recipe – gooey on the inside with a little crisp on the edges

  19. What an inspiring woman to continue helping other children in need.

    My favorite kind of cookie would have to be an oatmeal cookie, molasses, or chocolate chip dipped in milk of course! I’ve never hosted or been in a bake sale, but I have baked some cookies for a bakesale my mom’s work was hosting. 🙂

  20. HI! I’m so glad Amanda shared you with us! I’ll definitely be around again. My favorite cookie: Nutella-Oatmeal. Its a variation on peanut butter- oatmeal. Oh so yummy. I think it might be time for me to do some baking. 🙂

  21. Its been a LONG time since I’ve participated in a bake sale. But this week there is one for a girl that was just diagnosed with terminal brain cancer at our church. I’m shopping at this one. 🙂

  22. I want to try the Bacon and Cheese Stuffed Mushrooms. They look so tasty… I’m thinking I might need to go back out for mushrooms. 😉

  23. What a heart breaking story Marla! My heart goes out to Liam’s family.
    These cookies are beautiful Marla! And so is your heart to give back… and tell Liam’s story and to share this recipe! Which by the way sounds delicious.
    And the photo’s are amazing Marla!

  24. One time I made a ginormous batch of gluten-free vegan thin mint cookies (from Manifest Vegan’s blog). I took them to three different events, and everybody raved over them. Nobody could believe they were gluten-free!

  25. Those cookies look great! I’ve been thinking lately about how lower gluten content just seems to make sense and these cookies are going to finally inspire me to cook up my pumpkin meat (and roast the seeds!) to get going on pumpkin season (albeit a little late)! Glad to have found your blog!

  26. pumpkin and peanut butter together? Like a match made in heaven I would assume. Boy do they look delicious. Seriously though I have a bone to pick with you- with two kids running around where do you find the time to style all your photos. I am simply amazed everytime i leave this place! WOW

  27. Great way to “healthify” the traditional peanut butter cookie and for such a great cause! Love the berries and nuts on top. My kids are getting old enough that they like to have little bake sales but I’m pretty sure most of the merchandise gets eaten rather than sold 😉

  28. Such fun cookies – I love their little faces!
    My fave cookie is snickerdoodle, I think. Or a soft and chewy chocolate chip cookie. Or pumpkin cookies… or…. 😉

  29. Fantastic cookie recipe but most of all I love the story and the charity. It hits close to home with my brother who has so far won his battle. Thank you so much for sharing this {hugs}.

  30. I’ve participated in my daughter’s class bake sale. It was great and horrific all in one!! The chaos of the kids on sugar but so much fun to be around family and friends and doing something great for the community.

  31. Never have I organized a bake sale but I frequently participate in them. I love to try new recipes out after attending and volunteering.

    1. G, pumpkin & peanut butter are awesome together. Not only for the flavor, but they both add so much to the texture of baked goods. The crumb is amazing!

  32. What a great looking cookie!
    My favorite cookie are my chocolate chip cookies which I’ve adapted from Jacques Torres recipe–every one loves those and asks for the recipe.

  33. Marla, once I finish drooling over your photos, I’ll learn what this post was about. 🙂

    Favorite cookie? Oh…that would have to be a soft chocolate chip cookie. Like the Subway kind! My fave! 🙂

  34. Hi 🙂 You wrote that we could sub more oat flour for the quinoa flour, but could we just as well sub more quinoa flour for the oat flour? (Making it purely out of quinoa flour?)

    Thanks 🙂

  35. LOVE LOVE LOVE these cookies!!! i have made them dozens of times and have eaten them all by myself!!! hahaha such amazingly healthy and tasty recipes!! thank you so much adore the website and always look forward to making another one of your recipes.