No-Bake Oatmeal Almond Butter Cups that are made with only 6 wholesome ingredients for a healthier treat. Lower in sugar than store-bought peanut butter cups and infused with oats for a real good time!
Made with six wholesome ingredients, these easy almond butter cups are the perfect treat for those who enjoy the combination of nutty flavors with chocolate.
If you tried my No-Bake Oatmeal Peanut Butter Cups, this almond butter version is very similar but includes a couple of changes.
While I enjoy the original recipe using peanut butter, I decided to use less sweetener and less oats on this round because I find my palate craving less and less sweetness.
Plus, I often feel like treats that include nut butter have a natural richness that necessitates less sugar in order to achieve a delicious result.
This simple no-bake dessert recipe is perfect no matter the time of year but is particularly useful during the warm months of the year when turning on the oven sounds unappealing.
I love that the recipe is so simple even kids can make it. There’s no need to use a double boiler as all we need are a couple of mixing bowls and a microwave.
A dollop of almond butter enveloped in rich dark chocolate? Sign me up every time! This healthier version that your favorite store-bought almond butter cups, you’ll love the ease of preparation of this perfectly sweet treat.
Let’s discuss the simple ingredients for almond butter cups.
Almond Butter Cup Ingredients:
Unsweetened Almond Butter: Creamy almond butter gets mixed together with some pure maple syrup and oats to create the peanut butter layer.
This results in a rich and nutty experience. I use well-stirred natural almond butter, but you can pick your favorite.
Pure Maple Syrup: A little pure maple syrup adds sweetness to the almond butter. I prefer lightly sweet treats so be forewarned that the recipe as written results in only a slightly sweet treat.
Vanilla Extract: A splash of vanilla brings warm flavor to the almond butter cups.
Quick Oats: Bringing a bit of texture to this nutty treat, we add some oats. While you can use rolled oats or old-fashioned oats, I recommend sticking with instant oats or quick oats because they require less chewing.
I use gluten-free sprouted oats.
Sea Salt: A pinch of sea salt enhances all of the flavors so that the dessert tastes richer. You can sprinkle flaky sea salt on top of the chocolate layer while it’s still melted if you’d like as well.
Chocolate Chips: For the top chocolate layer of the almond butter cups, we need some form of chocolate chips. I love using dark chocolate chips in this application.
Coconut Oil (or Butter): Adding a couple tablespoons of coconut oil or butter to the chocolate chips before being microwaved helps them melt evenly and ensure the chocolate layer is easy to bite through.
Looking for ways of changing up these dark chocolate almond butter cups? Here are some options.
Recipe Customizations:
- Use any kind of nut butter or seed butter, like peanut butter, tahini, cashew butter, or sunflower seed butter. For a tree nut allergy, use sunflower seed butter and add some extra pure maple syrup or a couple of tablespoons of brown sugar or coconut sugar.
- For sweeter treats, add another 3 to 5 tablespoons of pure maple syrup and ½ cup of additional oats.
- Use any kind of chocolate chips for the chocolate layer. Semisweet chocolate chips, milk chocolate chips, sugar-free chocolate chips, and peanut butter chips are all great.
- If you aren’t into chocolate, you can use melted cocoa butter for the tops.
- Add 2 to 3 tablespoons of hemp seeds or 1 tablespoon of chia seeds.
- Use a mini muffin tin for smaller treats if you own a mini muffin pan.
- For a full outer chocolate shell, triple the chocolate layer ingredients and drizzle a layer of chocolate in the bottom of each muffin cup before adding the almond butter oatmeal layer. Drizzle the remaining chocolate on top to complete the hard outer shell.
Now that we’ve covered the basic ingredients for these no-bake almond butter cups, let’s make them.
How to Make Almond Butter Cups:
Add the almond butter, pure maple syrup, vanilla extract and oats to a mixing bowl and mix well until everything is well combined and a thick dough forms.
Note: if your almond butter has been chilling in the refrigerator, microwave it for 30-60 seconds or until it becomes easy to stir.
Spray 9 holes in a muffin tin with cooking spray. This will ensure the almond butter cups are easier to remove from the muffin tray.
Note: you can also make 12 almond butter cups if you’re okay with smaller treats. In addition, you can also use paper liners, which are easier to remove from the muffin tray once the homemade almond butter cups have set up.
Divide the almond butter mixture into the 9 holes and use the back of a spoon to press it into an even layer.
Transfer the chocolate chips and the coconut oil (or butter) to a microwave-safe small bowl and microwave for 20-second intervals, stirring in between each interval, until the chocolate is fully melted (about 60 seconds total).
Use a tablespoon to spoon the chocolate mixture over each almond butter layer. If you’d like, sprinkle the top of the melted chocolate with flaky sea salt.
Refrigerate the almond butter cups for 2 hours or freeze for 1 hour, or until the almond butter cups have set up completely.
To release each cup from the muffin tray, run a butter knife between the cup and the edge of the muffin tray to release it and pop it out. If you used muffin liners, the cups are super easy to lift right out.
Storage Instructions:
Store almond butter cups in a zip lock bag or airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 1 week or the freezer for up to 3 months.
While the cups are stable at room temperature, they melt if they get too warm. For this reason, I recommend keeping them in the refrigerator rather than allowing them to sit at room temperature for an extended period.
The next time you have a craving for a bite sized display of nutty chocolatey goodness, whip up this simple recipe.
With only a few minutes of prep time and a handful of ingredients, the most difficult part is simply waiting for the cups to set up in the refrigerator.
If you enjoy no-bake dessert recipes like this, also try out these reader favorites.
More No-Bake Desserts:
- No-Bake Oatmeal Peanut Butter Cookie Bars
- 5-Ingredient No-Bake Oatmeal Peanut Butter Cookies
- No-Bake Nutty Cookies Without Oats
- 3-Ingredient No-Bake Banana Oatmeal Cookies
- Paleo Pumpkin Cheesecake
- No-Bake Paleo Lemon Bars
- Vegan Strawberry Cheesecake
Almond butter lovers unite!
Oatmeal Almond Butter Cups
Equipment
Ingredients
Almond Butter Layer:
- 1 cup unsweetened almond butter
- 3 Tbsp pure maple syrup
- 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
- 1 cup quick oats
- ¼ tsp sea salt
Chocolate Layer:
- ⅔ cup chocolate chips
- 2 Tbsp coconut oil*
- Flaky sea salt optional
Instructions
- Add the almond butter, pure maple syrup, vanilla extract and oats to a mixing bowl and mix well until everything is well combined and a thick dough forms. Note: if your almond butter has been chilling in the refrigerator, microwave it for 30-60 seconds or until it becomes easy to stir.
- Spray 9 holes in a muffin tin with cooking spray. This will ensure the almond butter cups are easier to remove from the muffin tray. Note: you can also make 12 almond butter cups if you’re okay with smaller treats. In addition, you can also use paper liners, which are easier to remove from the muffin tray once the homemade almond butter cups have set up.
- Divide the almond butter mixture into the 9 holes and use the back of a spoon to press it into an even layer.
- Transfer the chocolate chips and the coconut oil (or butter) to a microwave-safe small bowl and microwave for 20-second intervals, stirring in between each interval, until the chocolate is fully melted (about 60 seconds total).
- Use a tablespoon to spoon the chocolate mixture over each almond butter layer. If you’d like, sprinkle the top of the melted chocolate with flaky sea salt.
- Refrigerate the almond butter cups for 2 hours or freeze for 1 hour, or until the almond butter cups have set up completely.
- To release each cup from the muffin tray, run a butter knife between the cup and the edge of the muffin tray to release it and pop it out. If you used muffin liners, the cups are super easy to lift right out.
Notes
Nutrition
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Can I use old fashioned oats also in this recipe successfully?
Hi Toni!
Old fashioned oats work too but because they are larger and require a little additional chewing, the cups will have a bit of a more noticeable texture than the quick oat counterpart. Some people pulse the oats in a food processor or blender first to give them a little chop so that the texture is a bit smoother. Let me know if you have any other questions, and I hope you enjoy the recipe!
We’ve made this delicious treat using both almond butter and peanut butter and we can’t get enough of them! We think they’re even better than the store bought version!