These 3-ingredient vegan almond flour cookies are rich, shortbread-like, crisp on the edges, irresistibly chewy in the middle, and they just might be the easiest cookies you'll ever make! No refined sugar, oil or gluten.
Who doesn't love an easy cookie recipe? And friends, this one is about as easy as it gets!
You're going to LOVE these buttery, crisp-yet-chewy, lightly-sweetened almond flour cookies. They're:
- vegan and FREE from oil, gluten, soy, coconut, and refined sugar
- made with just 3 ingredients (plus a pinch of salt)
- ready in 20 minutes
- and absolutely delicious!
Jump to:
Ingredients
- Almond Flour - currently I'm using this blanched almond flour by Nature's Eats. I haven't tested this recipe with almond meal.
- Maple Syrup - this is important for the overall texture and sweetness of the cookies, so I can't recommend any substitutions.
- Vanilla - pure vanilla extract balances the nutty flavor of the almond flour and adds lovely aroma.
- Salt - I do think these taste even better with a small amount of salt, but it's also totally fine to omit it.
See recipe card below for quantities and full recipe.
Instructions
As promised, these cookies are ridiculously simple. There's no butter or oil to mess with, no baking powder or soda, and no gluten. The hardest part is simply scooping up twelve individual balls of dough and flattening them with a glass...
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F, and combine all ingredients in a mixing bowl.
- Scoop up one barely rounded tablespoon of dough per cookie. Place on the cookie sheet about 2 ½ inches apart.
- Use the bottom of a glass to flatten the cookies, with a small piece of parchment paper in between to prevent sticking. Bake for 10 to 12 minutes or until the edges and bottoms are golden.
Let the cookies cool completely, then store in an airtight container.
Look at that texture! The edges are just the right amount of crispy and the centers are pleasantly chewy, reminiscent of a really good peanut butter cookie.
The cookies maintain their awesome texture overnight, too. And they're sturdy and hold together well. No crumbly cookies here!
Variations
The simple, most basic form of these cookies is probably my favorite, but if you're feelin' fancy and want to try other flavors, here are a few tested ideas:
- Pumpkin spice - whisk 2 ½ teaspoons pumpkin spice blend into the almond flour before adding the wet ingredients.
- Citrus - add a full teaspoon of fresh orange, lemon, or lime zest to the mixing bowl.
- Chocolate chip - after flattening the cookies, press chocolate chips into the tops.
Related: You might also like these colorful Almond Flour Thumbprint Cookies!
Equipment
One of the great things about this recipe is how simple it is. No need for any special equipment! All you need are a bowl large enough to stir the cookie dough together, a standard-size baking sheet, and some parchment paper or a baking mat.
Storage
Once the cookies are completely cool, store in an airtight container at room temperature for 3 to 4 days or in the refrigerator for up to a week.
Almond flour cookies also freeze well.
More Ways to Use Almond Flour
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If you try these quick and easy almond flour cookies I would love to hear from you. Please rate the recipe and comment below to let us know!
The Easiest Almond Flour Cookies (Vegan)
Ingredients
- 1 ½ cups fine almond flour (170 g)
- ⅛ teaspoon fine sea salt, optional
- ¼ cup maple syrup
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (176 C), and line a baking sheet with parchment or silicone mat. Tip: during testing, my Silpat mat produced better texture, a more crisp cookie, as compared to parchment paper.
- In a mixing bowl whisk together the almond flour and salt, if using. Add the maple syrup and vanilla, and stir until fully combined. The dough should look moist but still slightly crumbly and ragged.
- Scoop up one barely rounded tablespoon of dough per cookie (see photos in post for reference). Place on the cookie sheet about 2 ½ inches apart.
- Cut a small, cookie-sized square of parchment paper, and locate a flat-bottomed glass. Use the glass to flatten the cookies, with the parchment square in between to prevent sticking. The cookies should be about ¼ inch thick and 2 ½ inches in diameter. It's okay for the outer edges of the cookies to be somewhat jagged. This gives the cookies a lacy (yet rustic) look and those frilly parts get nice and crisp.
- Bake for 10 to 12 minutes or until the edges and bottoms are golden. If you suspect your oven runs hot, you may want to check on them sooner than 10 minutes. Allow the cookies to cool on the baking sheet.
Notes
- Pumpkin spice - whisk 2 ½ teaspoons pumpkin spice blend into the almond flour before adding the wet ingredients.
- Citrus - add a full teaspoon of fresh orange, lemon, or lime zest to the mixing bowl.
- Chocolate chip - after flattening the cookies, press chocolate chips into the tops.
Estimated Nutrition (per serving)
Nutrition information is an estimate and will vary depending on the exact amounts and specific products and ingredients used. We calculate this information using the online calculator cronometer.com. For the most accurate nutrition information we recommend calculating it yourself to reflect the specific ingredients used in your dish.
Kelly
These are really quite delicious - they sort of remind me of Pecan Sandies shortbread cookies (next time I will throw some crushed pecans in the mix)!
Lori
I thought the same thing and created some pecan sandies based off of this recipe! Here you go: https://myquietkitchen.com/almond-flour-pecan-sandies/
So glad you enjoyed the cookies, Kelly!
Laurie Mcdaniel
Just made these with lemon zezt. Yummy!!! My challenge is I am at 7500 ft so cooking is still off. ( middle too gooey)I tried 15 min @ 375 and better..any suggestions?
Melinda Carley-Diehl
Wow!! I can't believe these are good but they really are! Thank you!!
Carol Murphy
I just made these and they are delicious.! Thank you. I just went back into the recipe and I see that you've added raw pecans?
Lori
Oh shoot, that’s a technical error. Thank you so much for bringing it to my attention! The pecans are part of a new recipe. Correcting it now. Thanks so much and I'm so glad you enjoyed the cookies!
Cathy
These are surprisingly delicious. Easy to make. I like your glass and parchment paper way of flattening them. Works very well. Thank you for this delightful recipe.
Gail Vasilnek
I made these cookies with 1/2 c. almond flour and 1 T. of coconut oil and maple syrup. It made three cookies and they were delicious, a perfect afternoon snack. I'll watch them better the next time as they got a little extra crispy around the edges.
KIM
Just made these! Thank you for a quick cookie recipe with minimal ingredients. I made some original, cinnamon on top, and pumpkin spice.