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 recipe archive. 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.
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- a little flat on top).
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!
Print
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 up to 11-12 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!
Keywords: almond butter chocolate chip cookies, flourless chocolate chip cookies
Absolutely delish and healthy. Will an extra egg make them bind together and be less crumbly?
Hi Anna, They could be crumbly due to the type of almond butter you are using. You can try a different type or yes, try adding an extra egg.
These. Cookies. Are. SOOOOOOO. GOOD.
Easy and delicious. an 11 out of 10 from me,
YUUUUM
★★★★★
I used peanut butter and 1/2 cup oatmeal along with chocolate chips and I did add vanilla. This is hands down the best recipe for the..absolute best, easy and tastiest cookies! I don’t usually comment on recipes I try….but this one I had too! Mmmmmmmuhhhhh!
★★★★★
I opted to use both vanilla and almond extract, they came out perfectly delicious. Easiest cookie recipe ever!
The cookies didn’t spread; any ideas why? I used half creamy peanut butter, half organic peanut butter. They tasted great, but stayed in little mounds of dough. Any tips? Thank you!
★★★★★
Are the temp & time different with a convection oven?
Hi Janis, I use the convection setting for savory items- like when I’m roasting veggies or cooking meats. When I’m baking, I prefer the traditional conventional setting because I feel things overbake quickly when using the convection setting. The general rule however is to lower your oven by 25 degrees if using convection setting and also keep an eye on them as the bake time may be shorter.
I was honestly skeptical about flourless cookies but I should’ve known better than to doubt Sally. These were incredible. I doubled the recipe when I made them today because they went too quickly last time!
★★★★★
Thanks for this great recipe! These were so delicious! For the cup of add-ins, I used a mix of sweetened shredded coconut, pumpkin seeds and milk chocolate chips. Next time I will reduce the coconut sugar a bit as the coconut also adds sweetness. So easy and so great! The only problem is they disappear too quickly.
★★★★★
Wow- these cookies are great! Few ingredients that you probably already have on hand-quick and delicious. Mine were crumbly but as she mentions- I’m sure it has to do with the type of almond butter I’m using ( I used TJ’s) so I’ll need to experiment further. Still so tasty regardless. With all of the recipes out there I somewhat randomly picked this one and so glad I did! Will be coming back for more of Sally’s recipes for sure!!
★★★★★
I don’t have any brown sugar on hand. May I use cane sugar instead?
You can use cane sugar (same amount), but the cookies may spread out more.
My favorite cookie recipe with a thousand possibilities!
I return to it again and again. My favorite way to spruce these up is by using muscovado sugar (higher molasses content). I always use a little less sugar by preference, though the recipe is well balanced as it is. We like to chop up walnuts and a special chocolate bar to toss in. Last time I chopped up a bit of a Theo brand candied ginger 70% dark chocolate bar. Still dreaming about those cookies! Also if you’re using jarred almond butter add an extra egg so they’re not too crumbly to pick up. Otherwise fresh ground almond butter gets you a beautiful consistency.
★★★★★
These cookies turned out amazing (just like the pictures). They taste like traditional chocolate chips cookie with almonds in them! I used a natural crunchy almond butter and ran out of brown sugar so I had to substitute 1/8 cup of granulated sugar. Baked for about 8 minutes. This is going to be a staple recipe for me 🙂
★★★★★
The flavor was amazing, but they were crumbly. I used raw natural almond butter w/o salt from Traders Joes and chopped up 3/4 bar of 60% bittersweet dark chocolate. I may try adding an extra egg next time. They were really tasty.
★★★★
i did those and they’re so muchy! the texture is amazing and they’re really good 🙂
★★★★★
Quick and easy to make. I used chunky natural roasted almond butter from Trader Joes and it worked out really well. Only alterations I made was to pour off the oil from my almond butter (saved, of course, for other applications) so my dough would be really thick and it helped it not crumble or spread too much while in the oven. I also increased the sugar amount by 50% (I used 135 g).
Next time, I might try using non-roasted almond butter for a slightly more subtle almond taste and to let the vanilla shine.
★★★★
I’ve made these cookies countless times over the years (always use peanut butter instead of almond butter), I absolutely love them. But today I successfully made a vegan version for a vegan coeliac friend. Replacing the 1 egg with 1/4 cup of sparkling water (I got this idea from theKitchn). It is a different, flatter cookie, but still really delicious!
★★★★★
You can also do flax egg as an egg replacement – it works great! I believe it’s 1 tbsp of ground flax seed mixed with 2 tbsp of water!
Just WOW!!!!!
Sally,
You have never failed me in the kitchen! Thank you for another simple yet absolutely delicious recipe! I think it’s time for another cookbook, please!
★★★★★
Baked exactly as laid out. We ate through the whole batch within 20 minutes of baking! DELICIOUS!
★★★★★
This recipe is sooooo good!! They were so easy to make. I used coconut palm sugar instead of brown sugar and they still turned out great. Next time, I wont leave them in as long so they’re a little more chewy instead of crispy. Regardless, they’re a HIT in my house.
★★★★★
Wow! These cookies are amazing. Used PB instead of almond butter, so good! Loved how few ingredients this required. Low maintenance recipe!
Has anyone tried these with crunchy almond butter instead of smooth? I am excited to make these!
Has anyone used a substitute for the eggs in this recipe? My granddaughter is allergic to eggs.
2 Thumbs Up!! These cookies are absolutely delicious, not overly sweet . Will be making another batch tomorrow!
★★★★★
These are SO GOOD!!!! I’m making my second batch in two days. I can eat them for breakfast and not feel as guilty. 🙂
★★★★★
My cookies came out so so tasty! Unfortunately, they were a little bit too crumbly. What can I do to fix this?
I’ve found two things can help with crumbly but butter cookies: Make sure they cool longer than normal cookies; and if that doesn’t do it, add another egg. Good luck!
★★★★★
Wow!!! These are the best chocolate chip cookies I’ve ever had! I used natural almond butter and dark choco chips and they turned out amazing. Nobody could tell them from traditional chocolate chip cookies and they even liked them better- they’re that good!
★★★★★
Hi! Do you know if the cookie dough could be frozen and then thawed to bake? Thinking of making the dough ahead of time for a family get together. Thanks!
Yes, they can! No need to thaw before baking – just freeze the individual dough balls and place them right from your freezer onto a baking sheet and add an extra minute or two to the bake time.
Just tried this recipe. Comes together super fast and they are delicious. I did not have light brown sugar so I used 1/2 and 1/2 white and dark brown sugar, and real crunchy almond butter. They are REALLY good!! The only problem is not eating them all up at once.
This has been my go to cookie since 2014! I use half almond butter and half peanut butter (fresh ground from the store machines, or Trader Joe’s), and NO ONE can tell they are GF! I like adding a sprinkle of sea salt on top before baking. Also add a litte salt to the recipe because I buy roasted unsalted nut butters, love the sweet/salty combo. Thank you Sally – this recipe is perfection!!!
Wish I had added a little salt, but otherwise very good. I used Wegmans organic almond butter