These EASY almond flour cookies with chocolate chips are soft, chewy, and super simple to make in just one bowl with 5 ingredients. Naturally grain-free, gluten-free, refined sugar-free, and vegan!
Soft and Chewy Almond Flour Cookies
If you’ve never tried cookies with almond flour, get ready to be blown away by simple, delicious bakes like almond flour apple pie cookies, thumbprint cookies, and these almond flour chocolate chip cookies. They’re soft and chewy inside with crisp edges and studded with chocolate chips. Even better, they’re healthier than regular cookies and SO easy to make!
Pull together these healthy almond flour cookies with just 5 ingredients in a single bowl in about 20 minutes. Unlike other recipes, they contain no refined sugars, oil, or butter. Instead, these cookies rely on the natural fats in the almond flour to add moisture. You can even use sugar-free chocolate chips.
There are also several ways to adapt the recipe to different dietary needs and with various mix-ins, like chopped nuts or dried fruit. You can even make the dough in advance and freeze the dough, ready to bake later.
What Is Almond Flour and What Does It Do For Cookies?
Almond flour is just blanched almonds that have been finely ground into a floury consistency. The resulting ‘flour’ is gluten-free, grain-free, low-carb, and contains the same nutrients (like fiber, protein, calcium, vitamin E, and heart-healthy fats) as whole almonds.
When used for baking, the flour is not only more nutritionally dense, but it helps to provide a moist and chewy texture and still achieve fluffy, light bakes, even though it’s a denser flour.
The nutty taste is surprisingly subtle, too – making it easy to disguise if wanted. Here, however, when paired with almond butter, these healthy almond flour cookies have a wonderfully toasty, nutty flavor. Enjoy them as a crowd-pleasing cookie, perfect for mid-week snacking, lunchboxes, and during the holiday season!
The Ingredients and Substitutions
- Almond flour: It’s best to use superfine or fine blanched almond flour (rather than coarse almond meal) for tender, melt-in-the-mouth cookies. If you can’t find it, make your own (refer to FAQs).
- Nut/seed butter: I use almond butter to enhance the flavor, but use any. I.e., peanut butter, cashew butter, sunflower seed butter, hazelnut butter, etc.
- Baking powder: For less dense cookies.
- Date sugar: I prefer less/unrefined sugars like date or coconut sugar. However, regular cane sugar will work, too. Alternatively, make keto almond flour cookies using a sugar-free sweetener like Erythritol.
- Dairy-free chocolate: Use milk or dark chocolate chips or chunks to make delicious almond flour chocolate chip cookies. Use keto sugar-free chocolate chips if preferred or options using unrefined sugars.
Recipe Variations and Add-Ins
- Vanilla extract: Just a little (about ½ tsp) adds warmth and enhances flavor.
- Almond extract: Boost the nutty flavor with a few drops (1/4 tsp) of almond extract.
- Cinnamon: Just a dash for extra warmth and depth.
- Flaky sea salt: Sprinkle over to balance and enhance flavors. Like Maldon/Fleur de Sel.
- Cocoa powder: Make chocolate almond flour cookies with about ¼ cup of unsweetened cocoa powder. Add extra water to the dough as needed.
- Mix-ins: Add or replace the chocolate chips (up to ½ cup) in several ways, including…
- Chopped nuts/ seeds (almonds, pistachios, sunflower seeds, etc.)
- Shredded coconut
- Raisins, cranberries, chopped dates, etc.
Please read the recipe card below for the full ingredients list, measurements, complete recipe method, and nutritional information.
How to Make Almond Flour Chocolate Chip Cookies
- First, preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C) and line a cookie sheet with parchment paper.
- Then, mix the almond flour, baking powder, and date sugar in a medium bowl (or a food processor) until there are no lumps.
- Add the almond butter (or nut/seed butter of your choice) and mix well. If the dough is dry, which it likely will be, add a tablespoon of water and mix again.
If it’s still too dry, add more water, a teaspoon at a time, mixing thoroughly in between.
- Fold in the chocolate chips, reserving a few for the top, then use a small ice cream or cookie scoop or tablespoon to divide the dough into 6 cookies.
- Spread the cookies across the prepared baking sheet with space in between, using your fingers to flatten them gently, and press the reserved chocolate chips into the top.
- Bake the cookies for 11-12 minutes until they’re lightly browning on the edges.
These gluten-free almond flour cookies will be soft right out of the oven, but firm up as they cool. Leave them to cool on a wire rack.
Storing Instructions
Store: Once cooled, store leftover almond flour chocolate chip cookies in an airtight container on the counter for 5-7 days or slightly longer in the fridge.
Freeze: These chocolate chip cookies with almond flour also freeze well. Flash freeze the cookies in a single layer on a tray, then transfer them to a Ziplock bag in the freezer for 3-4 months. When you want one, thaw it at room temperature OR in a microwave.
FAQs
How to make almond flour at home?
Grind blanched almonds (whole is fine, through slivers will be easiest) using a coffee/spice grinder or high-speed blender. Be careful not to over-blend it, or else it becomes almond butter.
What is the difference between almond flour and almond meal?
Almond flour is made by finely grinding blanched almonds. Meanwhile, almond meal is ground whole (skin-on) almonds and is usually coarser, slightly more bitter (thanks to the skins), with flecks of darker color.
Can you freeze unbaked almond flour cookie dough?
Portion the dough into cookies and arrange them on a parchment-lined tray to flash freeze until firm. Then transfer to a Ziplock for up to 3 months. Bake from frozen, adding 2-3 minutes to the baking time.
Can I use maple syrup instead of sugar?
As the dough usually requires an additional tablespoon or two of water anyway, I imagine using 2-3 tbsp of liquid sweetener would work fine, but I haven’t tried it.
Recipe Notes and Top Tips
- Measure the ingredients correctly: For the best results, measure all ingredients in grams on a kitchen scale rather than by volume (cup measurements). If measuring by cup, spoon it into the cup and level with the back of a knife.
- Add water as needed: If the dough feels dry, add a little more—a teaspoon at a time.
- To scale up: The recipe makes only a small batch of 6 cookies. However, it’s easy to scale the recipe by simply doubling (or even tripling) the ingredients.
- Don’t over bake the cookies: It’s normal for them to be soft directly from the oven. They’ll firm up more as they cool.
More Almond Flour Recipes
- Vanillekipferl – crescent cookies
- Almond flour gingerbread cookies
- Vegan vanilla wafer cookies
- Keto almond flour crackers
- Healthy carrot muffins
- Gluten-free chocolate chip banana bread
- Keto almond flour tortillas
If you try this easy almond flour cookies recipe, I’d love a comment and ★★★★★ recipe rating below. Also, please tag me in re-creations on Instagram or Facebook with @elavegan #elavegan—I love seeing them.
Almond Flour Cookies
Ingredients
- 1 cup (100 g) almond flour
- 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 4 Tbsp (40 g) date sugar (or sugar of choice)
- 1/4 cup (64 g) almond butter softened (see notes)
- 1 Tbsp water
- 1/4 cup (45 g) dairy-free chocolate chips
Instructions
- Please measure all ingredients in grams (use my written measurements) on a kitchen scale, if possible. Also, watch the video in the post for easy visual instructions.
- First, preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C) and line a cookie sheet with parchment paper.
- Then, mix the almond flour, baking powder, and sugar in a medium bowl (or a food processor) until there are no lumps.
- Add the almond butter (or nut/seed butter of your choice) and mix well. If the dough is dry, which it likely will be, add a tablespoon of water and mix again.If it’s still too dry, add more water, a teaspoon at a time, mixing thoroughly in between.
- Fold in the chocolate chips, reserving a few for the top, then use a small ice cream or cookie scoop or tablespoon to divide the dough into 6 cookies.
- Spread the cookies across the prepared baking sheet with space in between, using your fingers to flatten them gently, and press the reserved chocolate chips into the top.
- Bake the cookies for 11-12 minutes until they’re lightly browning on the edges. They will be soft right out of the oven, but firm up as they cool. Leave them to cool on a wire rack. Enjoy!
Notes
- Sugar: Use a refined sugar-free sweetener like date or coconut sugar or cane sugar if preferred.
- Make keto cookies: Use a sugar-free sweetener like Erythritol and sugar-free chocolate chips.
- Almond butter: You can use any other nut butter (like peanut butter, hazelnut butter) or seed butter (e.g. sunflower seed butter).
- The recipe makes only a small batch of 6 cookies. You can double (2x) or triple (3x) the recipe, if you like.
Nutrition information is an estimate and has been calculated automatically
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Fantastic cookies!!! Thanks for the recipe.
Hi Sandi, I am so glad you like them. 🙂