Almond butter chocolate chip cookies are simple, wholesome, and made with only 5 ingredients! You won’t miss the butter and flour in these naturally gluten-free cookies.
Almond butter. It’s a toasty, almond-y spread that’s a bit more grainy than peanut butter. Besides on a spoon straight out of the jar, I love it in quinoa snack bars, breakfast cookies, banana chocolate chip breakfast cookies, coconut granola bars, and in today’s flourless chocolate chip cookie recipe. We’re ditching the butter and flour for these easy gluten-free cookies!
While flourless cookies are certainly nothing new, I love these cookies so much that they deserve a place in my collection of beloved healthy dessert recipes and gluten free dessert recipes. This recipe came about when we had some friends over and I wanted to serve something a bit healthier. Did you know almonds have tremendous health benefits? No one had any idea that these cookies were flourless—the entire batch was gone in seconds!
Everything to Love About Almond Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies
- Only 5 ingredients
- Naturally gluten free
- No mixer required
- Easy, 1-bowl recipe
- No cookie dough chilling (just like shortbread cookies and snickerdoodles!)
- Only 30 minutes start to finish
- Lots of customization options
Ingredients in Almond Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies
With such few ingredients, the natural flavors truly shine. Use quality ingredients for best results!
- Egg: Binds everything together.
- Almond butter: Acts as both butter and flour in these flourless cookies. You can use homemade, natural, or commercial almond butter, however, the type you use slightly alters the texture. I find the best texture is with 1 cup of my homemade almond butter OR 1/2 cup Jif Creamy Almond Butter and 1/2 cup all-natural organic almond butter.
- Brown sugar: Sweetens the cookies. For an unrefined sugar alternative, use coconut sugar instead of brown sugar. So tasty!
- Baking soda: Helps the cookies rise while baking.
- Pure vanilla extract: Optional, but is it really a cookie without vanilla?
- Chocolate chips: An essential component to chocolate chip cookies! 😉
Need another reason to love these flourless chocolate chip cookies? They’re totally customizable! The cookie base is an awesome starting point to add whatever you’re craving. A few ideas: dark chocolate chips, mini chocolate chips, peanut butter chips, white chocolate chips, peanuts, sunflower seeds, sweetened shredded coconut, chopped almonds, dried cherries, dried cranberries, or raisins. Keep add-ins to about 1 cup total.
You can also leave the almond butter cookies plain with no add-ins! And, finally, you can use peanut butter instead of almond butter or try sunflower seed butter for a delicious nut-free option.
If you’re craving a gluten free cookie with even more texture, try these flourless peanut butter oatmeal cookies or flourless monster cookies next!
How to Make Almond Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies
These flourless chocolate chip cookies are incredibly simple and come together very quickly (in 1 bowl!). We’re only using a few ingredients, so the preparation is super quick.
Crack the egg into a medium bowl and whisk until beaten. Mix in the almond butter, brown sugar, baking soda, and vanilla. Stir until well combined. You want your cookie dough to be mixed together very well, so depending how thick and/or cold your almond butter is, you’ll have to use some arm muscles! Fold in the chocolate chips.
No cookie dough chilling! This cookie dough doesn’t require any chill time—the entire batch takes 30 minutes from start to finish! Use about 1.5 Tablespoons of dough per cookie and place each onto a prepared baking sheet. Slightly press down the cookie dough mounds before going into the oven (see photo above).
The cookies will look quite soft and under-baked when they’re done, but as they cool, they will set and firm up. By the way, you could use these easy gluten-free cookies to make cookie ice cream sandwiches. I love that you don’t need to chill the cookie dough!
What Almond Butter Should I Use?
Any almond butter works in this chocolate chip cookie recipe. Here are a few tips depending on which kind (homemade, natural, commercial) you use:
- Homemade almond butter: Making almond butter at home is simple. It takes just a few minutes and you only need 1 ingredient. I highly recommend it! You could also use the maple almond butter detailed in those recipe notes. 🙂 Ensure the homemade almond butter cools before using it in this cookie dough. After being freshly processed, the almond butter is slightly warm and will make your cookie dough warm. And we all know what warm cookie dough means, right? Colder cookie dough is the key to how to prevent cookies from spreading.
- Natural almond butter: Sometimes, natural almond butter (the kind you buy that has a layer of oil on top) can be pretty oily. Make sure you stir this very well. The more oil, the greasier your cookie. The more oil, the more your cookies will spread while baking. So stir, stir, stir and make sure it’s super thick! You can even refrigerate before using.
- Commercial almond butter: This kind of almond butter is typically pre-stirred and ready to use, but give it a good stir just in case before using.
I guarantee these almond butter chocolate chip cookies are full of flavor, totally chewy, and incredibly soft. Each bite melts in your mouth!
More Gluten Free Desserts
- Chocolate Coconut Almond Tart
- Flourless Chocolate Cake
- Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Bars
- Healthy Berry Streusel Bars
- Chocolate Soufflé
- Cranberry Frangipane Tart
Flourless Almond Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 10 minutes
- Total Time: 30 minutes
- Yield: 12 cookies
- Category: Cookies
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Description
Almond butter chocolate chip cookies are simple, wholesome, satisfying, and made with only 5 ingredients! You won’t miss the butter and flour in these naturally gluten-free cookies.
Ingredients
- 1 large egg
- 1 cup (250g) almond butter or peanut butter, at room temperature or cold (not warm)*
- 1/2 cup (90g) light or dark brown sugar, lightly packed*
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- optional and tasty: 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 1 cup (190g) semi-sweet or dark chocolate chips, peanuts, peanut butter chips, etc.
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F (177°C) and line two large baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone baking mats.
- In a medium bowl, whisk the egg until beaten. Mix in the almond butter, then the brown sugar, baking soda, and vanilla (if using). Mix everything together very well. Depending how thick and/or cold your almond butter is, you’ll have to use some arm muscles. Fold in the chocolate chips until combined.
- Scoop the dough, about 1.5 Tablespoons each, onto prepared baking sheet. Gently press down on the dough mounds with the back of a spoon. If you find the cookie dough balls are a little oily from your almond butter—mine usually are—blot each with a paper towel. If desired, press a couple chocolate chips onto the tops of each cookie dough mound.
- Bake for 10 minutes. The cookies will look very soft—that’s ok! For crispier cookies, bake for up to 12 minutes. Sometimes I press a couple more chocolate chips into the tops of each cookie immediately after coming out of the oven. This is optional and only for looks.
- Allow the cookies to cool for 10 minutes on the baking sheet before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely. Cover leftover cookies tightly and store at room temperature for up to 7 days.
Notes
- Freezing Instructions: Cookies freeze well up to 3 months. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator.
- Special Tools (affiliate links): Baking Sheets | Silicone Baking Mats or Parchment Paper | Glass Mixing Bowls | Whisk | Cooling Rack
- Almond Butter: You can use homemade, natural, or commercial almond butter, however the type you use will alter their texture slightly. I found the best texture was with 1 cup of my homemade almond butter (the regular or maple version detailed in that post) or 1/2 cup Jif Creamy Almond Butter and 1/2 cup all-natural organic almond butter. Be sure to stir in any excess oil on top of the natural brands, and get it completely mixed in. An equal amount of peanut butter may be used instead of almond butter.
- Sugar: I’ve successfully made these cookies with coconut sugar instead of brown sugar. So tasty! I like Trader Joes brand organic coconut sugar.
- More no chill cookie recipes to try!
Hi can u substitute brown sugar for coconut sugar and how much thanks
Sure can! Same amount.
I’ve made these cookies several times and each time they come up very crumbly. What am I doing wrong?
These were so good. I made them with peanut butter cookies and my daughter doesn’t usually like peanut butter but she over these. I’ll try them with almond next. Best ones I’ve made! Xx
I made these with my two year old and we both loved them. Simple to make and also delicious. We added toasted pecans as we had them on hand. Thank you!!
Delicious thank you sooo much!
These cookies are so good! Making again today for a friend’s birthday party.
These were so easy and turned out great! Thanks!
Absolutely delicious. Texture is wonderful. Love these cookies.
Hi Sally! I had some cashew butter I wanted to finish so I substituted that instead, and they turned out delicious! The bottom of the cookie was almost toffee like and very yummy!
Should we refrigerate the cookie dough before baking the cookies or no??
No need to chill the cookie dough for this recipe.
I just made these today and they were awesome !!
Delicious! Â I’m glad you told us to blot them. Â These are kid approved.
These are wonderful tasting but I’m definitely doing something wrong!! I wait the 10 minutes before taking them off the cookie sheet and placing them on the rack. Then I let then sit another 10 minutes before I HAVE to taste them, but they fall apart in my hand. Why are they crumbling instead of staying in one piece like a cookie should? I buy my almond butter at the local co-op. Its very creamy.Â
These cookies are ridiculously good! So good, no flour, and little sugar. These are my go-to dessert. They taste better than most chocolate chip cookies made with flour. Amazing!!
Delicious!
Can you freeze these cookies, or are they an eat immediately?
Morgan, Cookies freeze well up to 3 months. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator!
Made these yesterday and they are seriously addicting! Was just shy of a cup of almond butte, so I used a heaping tablespoon of natural peanut butter and the flavors were perfectly balanced. Curious to see how these might come out with cashew butter!Â
Love the simplicity of this recipe. They were delicious! However, my cookies ended up being slightly bread like vs chewy and dense. This seems to happen to me with other cookie recipes, however.
Do you baking divas have any tips or technique issues I might need change? So, I went the homemade almond butter route… But got a lil resourceful when I realized we were a lil low and included some walnuts. My nut butter ended up in paste like form. I followed everything else according to the recipe. I baked at 350 (but convection bake) and used in a greased pan vs silicone or other liner. I’m suspecting the flaw is in my mixing of ingredients?
It *could* be the almond butter. Do you think you overmixed the dough though? You can try to make smaller cookies, too. That should help the texture.
I made these with cashew butter and they’re rich and amazing. Everyone that tries these cookies loves these cookies. This recipe is spot on.
This is my favourite cookie recipe of all time, I have made them tons of times over the last year or so, for every possible occasion and they are always a huge hit. I use peanut butter because it is so much cheaper to buy where I live and the recipe is still amazing.
Thank you so much for this Sally!
These came out great! I subbed sunflower seed butter for the almond butter for a nut-free friend, and they’re creamy and delicious. Another excellent recipe from Sally’s kitchen!
Hi! Is it possible to make these as cookie bars??Â
Sure is! I’d use an 8-inch or a 9-inch square baking pan.
Unbelievable! They are so good! I am in heaven!!Â
These are just in the oven! But the batter tasted insane! 🙂 perfect Sunday baking treat!
I just made these using chunky peanut butter, yum!!Â
These are so good! I added 1 tsp vanilla, and a dash of sea salt. Perfecto!
Wow! These were sooo delicious! Too bad I didn’t double this one. Â My husband loved them too! Â Thanks so much! Will make again very soon!
These are amazing! Â I replaced the egg with 1/4 cup freshly made applesauce and added freshly chopped ginger. Â OH MY!!!!! These could be addicting!!!!