These soft Almond Flour Chocolate Chip Cookies are some of the very best around! They’re probably my top-visited cookie recipe (one that I first shared all the way back in 2015!) and they’ve gotten lots of love on Pinterest. And, of course, they’re a perennial favorite around here. (Be sure to check out this lemon cookie version, too!)
They truly taste melt-in-your-mouth divine, and – bonus! – they’re actually much easier to make than traditional chocolate chip cookies!
Remember those soft-baked chocolate chip cookies you’d buy in the snack food aisle? Bendy, pliable, perfect for sinking your teeth into one. Or – ahem – seven. These cookies totally remind me of those.
They’re melty, bendy little gems that satisfy your chocolate chip cookie craving while also being gluten-free, dairy-free, and surprisingly low in sugar and carbohydrates.
Did you ever think that gluten free, dairy free chocolate chip cookies would look like this?!
Almond Flour Chocolate Chip Cookies Ingredients
A surprisingly short list of ingredients makes up these almond flour cookies:
- Coconut oil – solid, but almost melty
- Pure maple syrup – use grade A for a sweet boost without maple flavor, or grade B for lots of rich maple flavor.
- An egg
- Vanilla extract – because of course!
- Almond flour – a finely ground almond flour or meal made from blanched almonds works best for this recipe (we really like this one)
- Baking soda
- Sea salt
- Mini chocolate chips
How to Make Them
All you do is stir the coconut oil and pure maple syrup together, then stir in the egg, almond flour, baking soda, salt, vanilla, and – of course! – chocolate chips.
I love to use mini chocolate chips in this almond flour chocolate chip cookie recipe because I love how they add sweetness throughout the entire cookie and just make them seem so much more chocolatey. Chocolatey is good!
What Do These Cookies Taste Like?
So: expectations. Almond flour chocolate chip cookies are not your typical chewy chocolate chip cookies.
Instead, they’re soft and bendy and they melt in your mouth and – yes! – they’re really, really tasty. The almond flour does give them a bit more texture than your typical chocolate chip cookie, but we love it.
If you’re in need of a gluten free chocolate chip cookie recipe (or dairy-free chocolate chip cookies) (or both!) and you’re tired of sandy, dry cookies, give these a try – they’re anything but.
And! If you’re eating low carb, and looking for low carb almond flour chocolate chip cookies, you may have just found what you’re looking for.
More Delicious Dairy-Free Deserts
- This Dairy-Free Banana Bread is the ultimate banana bread recipe!
- Vegan PB & J Thumbprints are another melt-in-your-mouth gem.
- These Almond Flour Lemon Cookies are very similar – just lemony and frosted! Mmm.
More Chocolate Chip Cookie Recipes
- Healthy Loaded Chocolate Chip Cookies
- White Chocolate Cranberry Oatmeal Cookies
- Flourless Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies
- Chewy Double Chocolate Oatmeal Cookies
- Salted Double Dark Chocolate Cookies
- Espresso Double Chocolate Chip Cookies
- Cowboy Cookies
Soft-Baked Almond Flour Chocolate Chip Cookies
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons solid coconut oil
- 3 tablespoons pure maple syrup
- 1 large egg
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 2 cups almond flour*
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/4 teaspoon fine-grain sea salt
- 1/2 cup mini semi-sweet chocolate chips + more for topping if desired (we like Enjoy Life dairy-free chocolate chips for a fully dairy-free cookie)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone mat. Set aside.
- Add the coconut oil and the pure maple syrup to a large bowl. If the oil is very hard, microwave for a few seconds until soft but not melted. Stir briskly with a whisk until the syrup and oil are mixed together – this may take a minute or two. Add the egg and vanilla and whisk together until combined.
- In a medium bowl, stir together the almond flour, baking soda, and salt. Add the flour mixture to the wet ingredients and stir together with a wooden spoon until combined. Stir in 1/2 cup chocolate chips.
- Scoop mounded tablespoonfuls onto the cookie sheet, spacing about two inches apart. Press down gently with your fingers to flatten slightly. Top each with a few additional chocolate chips, if desired.
- Bake until set and the edges are golden brown, 8-9 minutes. Remove from oven and let cool for about 5 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
- Cookies keep well in an airtight container at room temperature for 4-5 days.
Video
Notes
Substitutions
- Butter can be substituted for the coconut oil. Just make sure it’s room temperature so it’s soft and easy to stir. And, of course, the cookies will no longer be dairy-free – unless you use dairy-free butter (readers have reported using Earth Balance with success).
- One reader shares that they swapped canola oil in for the coconut oil because they don’t like coconut, and that the cookies turned out great!
- I’ve swapped the chocolate chips for fresh blueberries and it’s a delicious change! One reader reports 3/4 cup frozen wild blueberries, along with 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg and 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon and shared that they were a huge success.
- One reader swapped in white chocolate chunks for the chocolate chips and said they were perfect.
- Readers have reported swapping in a flax egg for the egg with success! For a flax egg, mix 1 tablespoon flaxseed meal with 3 tablespoons water in a small bowl. Let sit for about 5 minutes until thickened, then add just like you would an egg.
- To replace the pure maple syrup, readers have reported agave syrup or honey have both worked well.
Too dry, recipe disaster.
I’m sorry that happened. Can I help troubleshoot? Was the batter too dry or the end result?
The batter and cookies are too dry.
I was craving one of my man’s candy bars but went to the net for a better option and found your recipe. These are so yummy!! I didn’t have maple syrup so I substituted Agave. I added a little extra Agave as I wanted them a little sweeter, added a few oats and threw in just a smidgen of organic coconut flakes. Thank you, great recipe!
Those sound like some seriously delicious substitutions! I need to try them your way ASAP. 🙂
My daughter and I thought these were delicious! We are both eating a Keto diet and these were a great treat. I personally loved that they stayed in smallish balls. They were popable. 😄
Perfect! 🙂 Thanks Angela!
Great recipe!! Worked perfectly for me. I ran out of maple syrup so made up the difference with honey. Also, used regular sized dark chocolate chips and diced them up into smaller bits. Yum! Different consistency than using all purpose flour. More of a soft, nutty, maccaroon type consistency. I’ll make these again for sure! Wish I could share a picture.
Made these tonight they were so good.
I added About a cup of choc chips 🙂 yum
These are AWESOME! I’m following a low carb diet but have a huge sweet tooth! I melt my coconut oil, (but NOT HOT or you’ll melt the chips!), then add the rest of the ingredients. I also started using Nestle’s Dark Chocolate Chips instead of mini chips. I don’t flatten them, I use the smallest melon baller I have that looks like a tiny ice cream scoop and I can get almost 40 cookies per recipe. I underbake them as well, about 6-1/2 minutes. for the tiny cookies. When I did the larger cookies, I just used a spoon and did drop cookies, but again, I underbaked them and went for about 7-1/2 to 8 minutes. They just need to START to brown on top. They’re nice and soft on the inside and keep well in a sealed container on the counter. I litererally am never without a container of these on my counter! My teenage daughter loves them too! I share this recipe with my low carb friends all the time!
I love these so much, I’m dying for you to come up with a soft baked PB cookie recipe that uses almond flour, peanut butter and maple syrup as well. I can’t have brown sugar or white sugar. Please, please, please? : )
Oh, that sounds incredible! I’ll have to see what I can do! 🙂
I have been making this recipe for years and it is the go to choice for me and my husband. Today I decided to make toddler snacks with it by replacing the chocolate chips for chia seeds and only two tablespoons of maple syrup. My baby was dancing when she ate them and I was happy to give her a healthy snack instead of all the snacks containing wheat.
I absolutely love this idea! Thanks, Allison!
Just made these, and they were sooo good ! I’ll be doing another batch very soon, because they won’t last long. Thanks !
I’ve made these before but I just have to leave another review because of how amazing and versatile this recipe is!
I changed it up a bit this time and used a muffin/cupcake tin to make cupcakes for my daughter’s birthday party. They came out perfect consistency (I checked them every other minute after 8 min to make sure they didn’t overcook).
Made 3 batches and we had none leftover 🙂
Just made these & although the raw dough was not tasty the baked cookies are awesome! Next time I will add chopped pecans. The low carbs per cookie is great. Thanks
Now making these for the 2nd time and doubling the batch, very delicious cookies! They stay nice and soft and don’t get hard like a lot of recipes! My hubby loves them too…💖
These are YUMMY!! I was generous with coconut oil and maple syrup (pure) and they turned out soft & delicious:)
I also added a few chopped pecans.
Needs more Sweetener (I used honey instead of maple). I recommend almost doubling the sweetness level. Same with the vanilla and salt.
What can you use as an egg replacement to make them vegan?
A friend of mine used flax egg and she said they turned out great!
A friend recently used flax egg and said they turned out great!
By far my favorite cookie recipe EVER. This is my only cookie recipe from now on. My husband said they’re the best I’ve ever made for him, and my parents ate the whole batch I made for them when they visited. Spot on! Thanks!
Woo hoo! Thanks Melanie. 🙂
How is this classified as dairy free when there is an egg in it???
Eggs are not dairy 🙂
Could I replace the maple syrup with Stevia? And if so, how much would I use in place of?
I just made these cookies and they are absolutely delicious! I used cacao nibs instead of the chocolate chips and they turned out amazing! I am dipping them in almond milk and they soak it up well, thanks for the recipe!!😊
These are the best chocolate chip cookies ever. Very easy to make, but you should double the recipe because they won’t last long!! 😊
I really like them!! They are not too sweet which I love. Thank you:)
I’m so glad you like them! 😀
The cookie was more of a cake consistency. I replaced the and doubled the butter and honey (liquid and powdered honey) but overall very good. Thanks for the great recipe.
Very happy with this recipe. Made changes below though:
2.5 tbsp coconut oil
3.5 tbsp maple syrup to bump up the flavor of the dough
Added vanilla powder to complement the vanilla extract and make sure that there was enough flavor in the dough.
Mixed two types of flour: 1 cup almond flower + 1 cup of “cup 4 cup” gluten free flour. Only did this because I ran out of almond flour.
1 cup of chocolate chips! 🙂
The texture was interesting – like a cake-scone hybrid. Taste was delicious orb warm and cold
Sounds good! I just recently bought vanilla powder for the first time. Interesting product! I need to try it in these cookies stat. Thanks John!
I accidentally used the wrong measuring cup and put only one cup of almond flour instead of two, yet somehow they still came out amazing!! They are so light and fluffy and the chocolate chips are such a nice bite, I might even add some walnuts next time!
Oh interesting! You may have stumbled on an improvement over the original. 😀
Do you think this dough could be made a day ahead and refrigerated? I want fresh baked cookies for dinner guests, but won’t have a lot of prep time that evening.
Can I use oat flour instaed of almond flour and honey instead of maple syrup?
Readers have substituted honey with success but honestly I’m not sure oat flour would work. One of the reasons these cookies work so well is the high fat content of the almond flour. But if you gave it a whirl I’d love to hear how it went!
OMG !!!! THEY WERE SOOOOOOOOOOOOOO GOOOD!!!! I COULDNT BELIEVE IT!! Woow they are as good as regular cookies.
So glad you liked them! 🙂
Do you think it’s possible to replace the coconut oil with olive oil?
We have a coconut allergy in the house.
Hmm, I’m not sure that would work. I love olive oil in baked goods but it does add a grassy taste that I’m not sure would be very good in chocolate chip cookies. Plus, the texture would be off. Perhaps canola oil?
Just tried these with canola oil and they turned out beautifully! Great recipe!
Oh awesome; nice to know! Thanks Lee!
I just made them with applesauce instead of the coconut oil and they are really good!
Hi,
it can work if i sub the almond flour in coconut flour?
Unfortunately coconut flour is a whole different beast because it soaks up so much liquid, so I wouldn’t attempt it.
I should have read comments before attempting – this is clearly the issue I had.
I had to throw it out – didn’t come together at all with the coconut flour even though i doubled the wet.
Holy moly, these cookies were out of this world!! I used dark chocolate and added Chia seeds to mine, but the recipe as is would have been fantastic. They are firm, not crumbly, yet soft, melt in your mouth, not too sweet delicacies that will satisfy those suffering from gluten intolerance and even the pickiest eaters! Great job!
I made these today. Very good recipe! Excellent!
These were amazing and so much fun with 4 yr old granddaughter s help! I only had sugar free mrs butterworth pancake syrup but it worked . Nice and soft not crumbly at all. Thank you for sharing!
what can you sub for the Maple syrup to make it lower carb. maybe maple flavoring??
Can I use peanut oil instead of coconut
For the person asking about using olive oil… rather than using olive oil, use avocado oil !!
Works great for baking, frying, cooking anything requiring oil… does not add any flavor to foods and is very healthy to use ! It’s expensive, but well worth it for an excellent alternative to other oils !
My husband and I are trying to follow paleo, clean eating. I needed to find something sweet that we could have as a treat or snack. I was so hopeful when I found this recipe……it was great! These cookies aren’t grainy like some gluten free baked goods. The only grainy texture is fine bc it is the almond flour. I feel great that this is still clean eating but we still have a great dessert. Thanks!
Could I replace the almond flour with quinoa flour ? Or even regular flour ? I looked everywhere for almond flour but my local grocery stores and bulk store doesn’t have it ..
I attempted this recipe yesterday. I am not sure what was missing but I followed it and ended up doubling just the wet ingredients and still it was sand like. I tried to press into a sheet pan to see if I could salvage as a bar cookie. It still wouldn’t hold up – broke easily – tasted it and was so very dry I needed a drink immediately. Now my only change was I used Coconut Flour instead of Almond Flour. I was told it was a lighter/fluffier flour – so perhaps I should have reduced it. However in doubling the wet ingredients I expected that would work. It looked great so if you have any suggestions or tips I appreciate it.
These cookies are amazing! As I don’t have a problem with dairy and I was out of coconut oil, I substituted butter instead. Turned out really good with a slightly saltier taste. Can’t wait to try it with coconut oil.
Excellent and very easy to prepare guilt free cookie
Deliciousness! I used Nibs for the chocolate chips since I didn’t have any regular. I know they will be extra delicious with regular semi sweet chops!
Best GF cookies on the planet! So moist & Not dry, hold up well. They are not full of saturated fat & do not contain a bunch of sugar but are just as tasty as those that do, if not better than any chocolate chip cookie you will make. You will not be disappointed with this one if you eat GF or not.
5 stars hands down!
Family loved them
Can. I substitute maple syrup with stevia ? Thx!
I made these for my family and they were surprised at how delicious they were! Thanks for the recipe!
These were so good! I subbed 1 cup oat flour 1 cup almond flour (instead of 2 cups almond flour) and baked on 300 for 6 minuets, came out perfect :).
Can I substitute swerve and liquid stevia for the maple syrup? Not sure how that would change the consistency.
These are so good. I am a baker, confectioner by trade. Personally I am on a gf, dairy free, sugar free diet. Best gf cookies yet and I love that they have no refined flour. So good.
Question. Have you ever used the almond meal left from making almond milk in these?
Unfortunately leftover almond meal doesn’t work. I wish it did! So glad you like the recipe 🙂
What can you substitute the maple syrup for ? Is honey ok or regular syrup?
I haven’t tried either. Sorry! If you so, please report back!
I used local honey in mine, same amount and they came out great!
I used honey instead of maple syrup because I did not have it on hand and these turned out very good.
I substituted honey for the maple syrup in this recipe; Turned out perfectly and they’re DELICIOUS. Definitely making these again!
Woo hoo! Good to know that honey works too! Thanks Cassidy!