Irresistible almond cookies that taste rich and buttery, despite being free of oil, eggs, butter and dairy. They are naturally grain-free, gluten-free, Paleo & vegan, plus they can be varied in countless ways.
These are the cookies I want, and I am pretty certain you will want them, too.
Because they are perfect.
And ridiculously easy. The dough takes roughly 1 minute to prepare (that’s averaging up) with the help of nothing more than a medium-size bowl and a spoon.
The texture? Tender and crisp-chewy, similar to a macaron, but more substantial. The sweetness? Spot on (not too much, nor too little). And buttery? Very buttery, in fact, despite having no butter, or added oil of any kind.
These cookies are not ersatz, health-food imposters. Anything but that. Serve them to gourmet friends, traditionalist cookie aficionados, children (big and small), significant others, friends, neighbors, health-conscious acquaintances, and co-workers.
They will love them.
All of that, and I have not mentioned several key features that makes these cookies all the more extraordinary. They are:
*Made with just 3 ingredients (not counting water & salt)
*Vegan (dairy -free & egg-free)
*Grain-free
*Gluten-free
*Oil-free
*Paleo-friendly
All you need is almond flour, baking powder, and a bit of coconut sugar (or the granulated sweetener of your choice), along with a pinch of salt and a splash of water. That’s it.
It’s very important to use blanched almond flour, not almond meal (which is more coarse, and is ground with the skins still on). The cookies will be greasy and heavy, plus they will not rise very high. I know, it is a little bit pricey, but it is 100% worth it for these cookies. In addition, 1 cup of flour yields 10 generous-sized cookies, which is pretty frugal in the long run.
Here’s another reason to love these cookies: versatility. With one basic recipe, you have a wealth of cookie options at the ready, depending on what flavorings (e.g., vanilla and other extracts, spices, citrus zest) and/or stir-ins (e.g., chocolate chips or chunks, dried fruit, nuts, seeds) you want to incorporate.
You can even make jam thumbprints or use the dough as the base (in an 8-inch or 9-inch square baking pan) for bar cookies. Pretty neat!
I specifically scaled this recipe small (10 cookies at a time) for anytime (now!) cookie baking, but the recipe can be doubled, tripled or quadrupled without a problem, in case you need to serve a crowd.
Happy baking, everyone!
Making this recipe? I would love to see it!
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- 1 cup blanched almond flour (not almond meal)
- 3 tablespoons coconut sugar
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- ⅛ teaspoon fine sea salt
- 2 tablespoons water
- Preheat the oven to 350F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- In a medium bowl, whisk the almond flour, coconut sugar, baking powder and salt (breaking up all lumps in the flour). Add the water and stir until blended.
- Drop by tablespoons (I used a small cookie scoop) on the prepared baking sheet, spacing 2 inches apart.
- Bake in the preheated oven for 13 to 16 minutes until golden brown and set at the centers.
- Remove from the oven and cool for 10 minutes on the baking sheet. Transfer cookies to a cooling rack and cool completely.
Variations:
Chocolate Chip Cookies: Add ¼ cup miniature semisweet chocolate chips to dough.
Thumbprints: Maake an indentation int the top of each unbaked cookie mound and fill with ¼ teaspoon of jam or preserves before baking.
Dried Fruit Cookies: Add ⅓ cup very finely chopped dried fruit to dough.
Sesame Almond Cookies: Add ⅛ teaspoon almond extract to dough.Sprinkle tops of cookie dough with sesame seeds before baking.
Toasted Almond Cookies: Add ¼ teaspoon almond extract and ⅓ cup toasted sliced almond, coarsely crushed, to dough.
The recipe doesn’t say when to add the sugar. I assume it’s added with the flour and other dry ingredients.
Thank you so much for catching that, Penny! I have made the change 🙂
Do you think these could be made without the sugar?
Hi Nicole,
It might produce something akin to a cracker, I just do not know. Were you planning on using an alterative sweetener, such as stevia? If so, it will not for this particular recipe, a the sugar does more than add sweetness (adds volume, moisture, browning, and more). With such a minimalist recipe, there is not much wiggle room for change in the basic formula, other than additions.