Almond Flour Chocolate Chip Cookies

Learn how to make the best Almond Flour Chocolate Chip Cookies with this quick and easy recipe. A simple list of ingredients mixes together in minutes for soft, chewy gluten-free cookies made with almond flour!

best chocolate chip almond flour cookies

Chocolate chip cookies made with almond flour rivals any old fashioned soft and chewy recipe out there! No one will suspect they are enjoying a gluten-free treat once they taste these bakery-style cookies exploding with chocolate. 

If you love chewy cookies, this recipe pulls out all stops for the best, soft cookies ever! Using extra egg yolk, increasing the amount of brown sugar, and adding a small amount of peanut butter guarantees ultimate chewiness. 

If you love baking with almond flour, check out all the best almond flour recipes in this valuable, free resource!

Ingredient notes

Almond flour is the only speciality ingredient required for this recipe. Luckily, with the popularity of keto diet and low carb counts, it is easy to find at local grocery stores.

If you do a lot of baking with almond flour, like almond flour banana muffins, brownies, almond flour pie crust, or zucchini almond flour bread, you can make your own almond flour.

Alternatively, purchase larger, more economical amounts from Costco or on sites like Amazon or Vitacost. Recently I’ve been able to find it at Aldi for a great price!

• Butter – Unsalted and softened. See below for dairy-free modifications
• Peanut butter – Creamy almond butter or any preferred nut butter will work. Just a bit is added for chewiness, but it doesn’t overwhelm the taste. For ultimate peanut butter fans, check out almond flour peanut butter cookie recipe! 
• Sugar – Use mixture of light brown sugar and sugar for structure and chewiness. If looking for a keto recipe, refer to the “low carb” substitutions below. Coconut sugar would also work as a substitution.
• Almond flour – Use blanched almond flour, instead of almond meal for this recipe
• Chocolate chips – Use semisweet, milk chocolate, dark chocolate chips, or white chocolate chips. I like to use a mixture of mini and regular chocolate chips in cookie recipes to evenly distribute the chocolate in every bite!

How to Make Almond Flour Chocolate Chip Cookies

(Below shows step-by-step photos and modified instructions. For the complete recipe, along with ingredient amounts, scroll down to the recipe card.)

1. In a large mixing bowl beat together butter, peanut butter, brown sugar, and sugar for about 3 minutes, or until smooth and creamy.
2. Add whole egg, egg yolk, and vanilla extract. Beat until well combined.
3. Slowly mix in almond flour, baking soda, and salt until no flour pockets remain. Use a wooden spoon to stir in the chocolate chips.
4. Use a medium cookie scoop to drop dough onto ungreased baking sheets (alternatively line with parchment paper or silicone baking mats), about 2 inches apart. For bakery-style cookies, chill the dough for 1 hour (or freeze 30 minutes) and shape the cookie dough balls in tall cylinders.
5. Bake for 12-13 minutes, or until edges are golden brown and set, but middle is still soft and slightly undercooked. 

Are these Cookies Gluten-Free?

Yes! All the ingredients in this cookie recipe are gluten-free and grain-free, similar to Italian Almond Cookies!

Baking with almond flour, as opposed to gluten-free flour, usually has a higher percentage of success, as long as the recipe is well researched and written. Store bought gluten-free flours contain a huge variance of flour combinations, so they don’t all perform equally.

Almond flour, on the other hand, is simply ground almonds so the results are more predictable. 

For a more traditional chocolate chip cookie, that is also gluten-free, try the best gluten free chocolate chip cookie recipe! To make a bar cookie, instead of shaping dough balls, try almond flour blondies recipe.

dairy-free modification

For a dairy-free almond flour cookies, replace the butter with vegan butter sticks. Since plant-based butters are saltier, omit the salt in the cookie dough.

Also, sub dairy-free chocolate chips for the baking chips, or replace with raisins, dried cranberries, coconut, or nuts.

substituting Almond Flour for Regular Flour in Chocolate Chip Cookies

If you are sold on grain-free, low carb almond flour, you may want to start substituting it in all your recipes. Unfortunately it’s not as easy as that.

Almond flour weighs less than traditional flour, so a one-to-one conversion isn’t always possible. It also contains more moisture, which changes the chemistry of baked goods. 

It takes a little trial and error substituting almond flour for all-purpose flour, but here are some general tricks to try. Also find more of my favorite almond flour recipes here!

• Increase the amount of almond flour by 25%, so for every 1 cup flour, use 1 1/4 cup almond flour.
• Add extra leavening to offset the density of almond flour. 1/4 – 1/2 teaspoon of baking powder, baking soda, or combination of both will help.
• Use less liquid in the recipe since almond flour adds more moisture. Using an egg yolk instead of the whole add egg or cutting back on moisture containing ingredients, such as milk, bananas, applesauce, or sour cream. 

Should the Cookie Dough be Refrigerated? 

I tested the recipe both ways. Refrigerating almond flour cookie dough does not have an affect on how much the cookies spread or texture, so it does not have to be refrigerated.

However, the dough could be a little easier to handle when refrigerated. For bakery-style cookies (as pictured), I refrigerated the dough and rolled into cylinder balls. This gives that layered cookie look.

If you want to skip refrigerating, I suggest using a medium cookie scoop to portion out the dough without having to handle and shape it.

If perfectly round cookies is of no importance to you, use two teaspoons to scoop and scrape dough onto the baking sheet. No need to chill!

Low Carb / Keto modifications 

One cookie contains 17 grams of carbs. This is significantly lower than traditional chocolate chip cookies, which contain around 29 carbs.

To make low carb almond flour cookies you would have to replace the sugar with monk fruit or use a sugar-free granular substitute, such as erythritol. 

I haven’t personally tested a keto, low carb almond flour chocolate cookies recipe, but have received reader comments for those who have with success. Also check out these helpful baking tips for using sugar-free sweeteners.

Since the sweetener will contain less bulk than the sugar / brown sugar blend, you will have to replace it with something else. Try adding a couple additional tablespoons of almond flour.

Difference Between Almond Flour and Almond Meal

Both almond flour and almond meal are made from ground almonds, but they will change the texture in gluten-free baking recipes.

Almond flour is more finely ground than almond meal with a uniform consistency. It works better in more delicate baked goods, such as cookies, brownies, and french macarons. 

Almond meal can be blanched (ground with skins removed) or unblanched (ground with skins on), so there might be a difference in color. Almond meal is good for more rustic recipes, such as breads or breading meats. 

Additions and modifications

Versatile almond flour cookie dough morphs into so many different cookie possibilities! Use this basic recipe and try out these different versions.

• White Chocolate Macadamia Nut –  Substitute 1 cup white chocolate chips and 1 cup chopped macadamia nuts for the chocolate chips. 
• Almond Flour M&M cookies – Instead of chocolate chips add 1 1/2 cups M&Ms to the cookie dough to the dough at the end.
• Almond Flour Oatmeal Raisin Cookies – Mix in 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon and 1/4 cup nutmeg with dry ingredients. Add 1 1/2 cups raisins to the dough at the end. 
• Coconut Chip Cookies – Add 1 cup shredded coconut and use 1 cup chocolate chips or white chocolate chips.
• Salted Chocolate Chip Cookies – Sprinkle on sea salt or fleur de sel before baking. 
• Almond Flour Double Chocolate Chip Cookies – Instead of peanut butter use Nutella for chocolate chocolate chip cookies.

freezing and storing

Since almond flour has higher moisture and fat these soft and chewy almond flour chocolate cookies store for a longer period of time than other cookies. 

After the cookies have cooled completely, stack and store in an airtight container up to 3 days. If storing longer, wrapping a couple cookies together in plastic wrap before placing in an airtight container will extend longevity up to a week. 

Almond flour cookies can also be frozen a couple different ways.

Freezing unbaked cookies: Portion out cookie dough into balls and place on a wax paper lined baking sheet. Freeze baking sheet. Once dough becomes solid, transfer balls to an airtight freezer container. Freeze up to 3 months.

Place frozen cookie balls on ungreased baking sheets, 2 inches apart. Bake as directed for 14 minutes. 

Freezing baked cookies: Bake and cool cookies completely. Stack in groups of 2 or 3 and wrap in plastic wrap. Transfer stacks to an airtight freezer container. Freeze up to 3 months and thaw on counter when ready to eat. 

expert tips and tricks

• Room temperature ingredients are always best when baking. Separate the egg yolk from the white while cold, and then let it sit for 1 hour.
• To soften butter quickly use 20% power on the microwave for 30 seconds – 1 minute.
• Slightly underbake cookies to make sure they stay soft, even after cooling. 
• Chilling isn’t necessary, but is helpful if you don’t have a cookie scoop and want perfectly round cookies. Chill dough for 1 hour and roll into balls.
• For bakery-style cookies (as pictured), chill the dough and roll into cylinder balls. This gives that layered cookie look.
• For extra chocolate flavor use chocolate chunks or a mixture of semi-sweet, milk, and white chocolate chips.

More Gluten-Free Cookies 

• Flourless Chocolate Cookies
• Gluten Free Sugar Cookies
• Kitchen Sink Cookies
• Nutella Cookies

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