Almond Butter Cookies
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These almond butter cookies are soft and chewy and need just three ingredients to make. They bake in just 12 minutes.
Table of Contents
Why I love this recipe
My almond butter cookie recipe is a weekly staple in my household, mostly because my sister has a peanut allergy and we just love cookies. It’s also why I whip up a batch of homemade almond butter so quickly.
I took my tried-and-true peanut butter cookie recipe and swapped out the nut butter while keeping the other ingredients the same. I found that the smoother the almond butter, the softer and more tender the cookies would turn out. Here’s why I make them most weeks:
- 3 ingredients. All you need is almond butter, eggs, and brown sugar.
- No flour is needed. Traditional cookies call for flour, but these are completely flourless. It’s perfect if you follow a gluten-free diet.
- Ready in 12 minutes. From prep to plate, these cookies take no time at all, and there’s zero chilling required.
- Perfect texture and flavor. Soft, chewy, and crisp around the edges. The cookies themselves are sweet and taste even better with some chocolate chips mixed through and a sprinkle of salt on top (as told by my toughest critic- my partner).
★★★★★ REVIEW
“Wow, these are delicious and SO easy! I may double the batch next time. I used coconut sugar and thought they were amazing!”– Sherri
Key Ingredients
Here’s what goes into almond butter cookies, along with my kitchen notes. Full measurements are in the recipe card below.
- Almond butter. Smooth almond butter, not the crunchy type. If I’m not making my own, I like to use Kirkland almond butter (from Costco). It’s affordable, drippy, and tastes delicious. Not a fan of almond butter? Other nut butters, like smooth peanut butter and cashew butter, work, as do nut-free subs like sunflower seed butter and tahini.
- Eggs. Room temperature eggs, please. Cold eggs firm up the almond butter, making the dough difficult to mix evenly.
- Brown sugar. Keeps the cookies soft in the middle but crisp around the edges. You can also use coconut sugar.
- Chocolate chips. Optional, but I love folding in about 1/2 a cup of dark chocolate chips or a chopped-up chocolate bar.
- Flavor boosters. I always add a sprinkling of flaky salt on top for a sweet-and-salty flavor.
How to make almond butter cookies
Step 1- Make the cookie dough. Add the almond butter, eggs, and sugar to a mixing bowl and stir until combined. Fold through the chocolate chips if using them.
Step 2- Shape. Roll the cookie dough into balls and place them on a prepared baking sheet. Lightly press down each ball of cookie dough into a thick cookie shape.
Step 3- Bake the cookies for 10-12 minutes until the edges are firm to the touch. Remove the cookies from the oven and let them cool completely.
Arman’s recipe tips
- Always use smooth almond butter. This mixes easily and yields smooth, even cookies. Crunchy or natural almond butter is too stiff and inconsistent. The oils can separate during mixing, leaving you with uneven dough.
- Room-temperature eggs are a must. Refrigerated eggs firm up the almond butter, making it difficult to mix.
- Lightly wet hands before rolling into balls. This prevents bits of cookie dough from sticking to your fingers and helps you create a more uniform dough.
- Add baking soda. While unnecessary, this helps produce thicker cookies. Just 1/4 teaspoon is enough. I skip it when I want thinner, slightly crisp cookies.
- For crispier cookies, swap out half the brown sugar (1/3 cup) with white sugar.
Dietary swaps and substitutions
Almond butter cookies are super forgiving and are easy to customize for various diets or eating styles. You can also try out some tested substitutions:
- Make them without eggs by trying out an egg substitute. I’ve had the best results by using ground chia or flax seeds.
- Low carb. Aimee in the comments made these with keto brown sugar and called them divine- that’s the version I’d recommend for low carb.
- Substitute the almond butter for cashew butter, peanut butter, or tahini. Janet, in the comments, used crunchy peanut butter with cinnamon and vanilla. She loved it, though smooth is still my preference.
- Add mix-ins like raisins, dried fruit, vanilla extract, nuts, or seeds.
Storage instructions
To store: Leftover cookies can be stored at room temperature, covered, for up to one week. If you’d like the cookies to be kept longer, store them in the refrigerator.
To freeze: Place the cooled cookies in a ziplock bag and store them in the freezer for up to 6 months.
Frequently Asked Questions
Almond butter isn’t a good substitute for butter in cookies or other dessert recipes. It’d be best to use a butter substitute instead.
Flat cookies almost always come down to the almond butter being too runny or the dough being too warm. Make sure your almond butter is thick and drippy and not separated- I would give it a good mix first. If it’s been sitting and the oil has pooled on top, stir it well before measuring. If your kitchen is warm, refrigerate the shaped dough balls for 10 minutes before baking.
You can pre-make the cookie dough up to 5 days in advance and refrigerate it. Let the dough sit at room temperature for 30 minutes before baking.
Almond Butter Cookies
Video
Ingredients
- 1 cup almond butter
- 2/3 cup brown sugar * See notes
- 1 large egg
- 1/2 cup chocolate chips optional
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 180C/350F. Line a large baking tray with parchment paper.
- In a large mixing bowl, combine the almond butter, brown sugar, and egg until completely mixed. If using chocolate chips, fold through at the end.
- Form 12 balls of cookie dough and place them on the lined tray/cookie sheet. Place balls of dough 2 inches apart. Press down on each ball into a cookie shape. Bake for 10-12 minutes or until just golden on the edges.
- Remove from the oven and let cool completely on the cookie sheet.
Notes
Nutrition
More recipes using almond butter
- Almond butter brownies
- Almond butter smoothie
- Almond butter cups
- Almond butter bars
- Almond butter balls
Originally published November 2019
Wow these are delicious and SO easy! I may double the batch next time. I used coconut sugar and thought they were amazing!
Absolutely delicious. Thank you for sharing the recipe. Do you think I could replace almond butter with other types of butter? Ex. Organic peanut butter, biscoff cookie spread
Any raw nut or seed butter is fine- Biscoff is a little different because it is made up of crushed up cookies.
Easy and great recipe. The cookies taste great. Question…
What brand(s) of almond butter do you use? My cookies came out a bit stiff, did not flatten and oil excess came out a bit during baking. I used natural almond butter.
Note… high altitude baking…
Thanks
Hi! I love the kirkland brand which is available from Costco- it’s also the most afforedable 🙂
I used coconut sugar, and cut the sugar in half, and they were absolutely delicious!
What Brand of Almond butter do you use?
Store bought ones, I love kirkland signature from costco. Affordable and tasty.
Hi Arman,
Is there a substitute for egg? I am allergic to eggs.
Thank you.
You could try ground chia seeds
I’m excited to try these!
Can I use regular baking white sweetner instead of the brown ?
Yes you can!
hi! loved the recipe but pls add baking soda to the recipe card :’) thank you i love your recipes!
Love how easy this is to make. I added some cream cheese to thicken my Cashew butter and it was great. Ty for the recipe!
This is a great recipe by far for simple almond butter chocolate chip cookies 😋🍪🍪 My 2nd batch I added 1/2 tsp baking powder, made sure my egg was room temp (forgot to take it out of the fridge so put it in a cup of hot water😁) beat my egg & added extra chips on top before baking, 12-13 minutes at 350° & VOILA!! THE BEST!!!🍪🍪 Thanks for sharing 😊
No measurements?
Did you skip over the recipe card?
Sugar is in the recipe but not in the nutritional part at the end
yummy without or with chocolate chips. Tried with equal amounts of cashew almond and peanut butter with and without the chocolate chips. So quick easy and delicious
How good is it!
These cookies are my go-to for grain free goodness. I use nestle allergen friendly chocolate chips and they are perfect. I use Kroger “simple truth” smooth almond butter and give it a really good stir before I add it to the recipe. Other almond butters so not turn out as well in my opinion.
Ohh I’ll need to try that!
These were amazing!!
This was one of the best cookies I’ve ever made / had. I did add half tsp of baking powder and refrigerated it for a bit too. Thank you for sharing your recipe.