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I don’t know why I didn’t start making cashew butter cookies earlier. If you love peanut butter cookies, these are similar, only they’re made with cashew butter instead. Since cashew butter has a milder flavor, they almost remind me of a classic chocolate chip cookie. Hence, the added chocolate chips.
What you’ll really love about this recipe is how it’s made healthier. There’s no flour, butter, or oil required, so it’s naturally gluten-free and Paleo-friendly.
Something you should know about me is that I test recipes a lot before they make it to this website. So, I’ve also tested an egg-free version of these, if you need it. Just check the recipe notes below!
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Featured Review
“I found this recipe to “get rid of” the cashew butter my family didn’t like. Although the recipe has great ratings, I expected it to be a bust, and at least a fun experiment with the kids.
When we tried the cookies, we fell in love! These might be my favorite cookies now, and my family put cashew butter back on the grocery list just to make this recipe again!” – Tiffany
Ingredients You’ll Need
- Cashew Butter. I’ve made these with homemade cashew butter and store-bought from Trader Joe’s (which is salted). If you’re using homemade cashew butter without salt, add an extra 1/4 teaspoon of salt to this recipe.
- Coconut Sugar. This is my favorite natural sugar for baking recipes that need to spread. If you cut back on the sugar, your cookies won’t spread out as much as they bake, FYI.
- Eggs (or flax eggs!). These add structure to grain-free baking, as well as protein. But, you can use flax eggs if you prefer. See the recipe notes for details.
- Baking Soda. This also helps the cookies rise and spread as they bake.
- Vanilla Extract. Since these taste more like chocolate chip cookies than peanut butter cookies, I like to add vanilla, too.
- Salt. This is a crucial ingredient in desserts. Be sure to read my recipe notes if you’re using unsalted cashew butter.
How to Make Cashew Butter Cookies
Step 1:
Preheat the oven to 350ºF and line a large baking sheet with parchment paper. This recipe yields a little over 24 cookies, so you can bake them on two pans if you want to bake them all at once. (I usually just bake them in two batches.)
In a large bowl, stir together the cashew butter, coconut sugar, eggs (or flax eggs), baking soda, vanilla, and salt.
The batter will look a little wetter and stickier than a traditional cookie dough.
Step 2:
Fold in the chocolate chips if you plan to use them. (You can omit these, too.) Then, use a slightly heaped tablespoon or cookie scoop to drop the dough onto the prepared baking sheet.
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This cookie dough won’t spread fully on its own, so I like to flatten the dough with my hands. Get your hands wet to help prevent sticking, if needed.
If you prefer to omit the chocolate chips, you can use a fork to make a crisscross pattern on these cookies, as you would with traditional peanut butter cookies.
Step 3:
Bake the cookies for 10 to 12 minutes at 350ºF, or until they are lightly golden around the edges.
If you prefer under-baked cookies (which I sometimes do), you can experiment with pulling these out of the oven at the 8-minute mark. Be sure to let them cool completely on the pan, as they are very fragile when they are warm.
Storage Tips
Cashew butter cookies can be stored at room temperature for up to 3 days, but I don’t recommend storing them in an airtight container, as they tend to soften when sealed at room temperature.
They remain sturdier when left out on the counter, but they will start to dry out over time.
For the best shelf life, I recommend storing these in an airtight container in the freezer. We actually prefer eating these straight from frozen! They become quite crunchy that way. You can also store these in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 1 week.
Cashew Butter Cookies (No Flour!)
Ingredients
- 16 ounces creamy cashew butter (about 1 ⅔ cups)
- ¾ cup coconut sugar
- 2 large eggs (or flax eggs; see notes)
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ¼ teaspoon sea salt (see notes)
- 1 cup dark chocolate chips , plus a few more to press on top
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350ºF and line a large baking sheet with parchment paper. In a large bowl, combine the cashew butter, coconut sugar, eggs (or flax eggs), vanilla, baking soda, and salt. Stir well, until a sticky dough is formed.
- Fold in the chocolate chips, if using them, and then drop the dough by rounded tablespoons onto the prepared baking sheet.
- Use your fingers (getting them wet helps prevent sticking) to gently press the dough down into a cookie-shape, as these cookies only spread slightly. If you omit the chocolate chips, use a wet fork to flatten the dough, into a criss-cross pattern. (Similar to a peanut butter cookie.)
- Bake at 350ºF for 10-12 minutes, until the cookies are lightly golden around the edges. Cool on the pan completely, as these cookies are very fragile when they are warm. Serve at room temperature, or chilled. I like to store these cookies in an airtight container from the fridge or freezer for the best shelf life. They last in the fridge up to 1 week, or in the freezer for up to 3 months. They are crispy if you serve them frozen!
Video
Notes
Nutrition
More Recipes to Try
- Almond Butter Blondies
- Flourless Peanut Butter Cookies
- Almond Flour Sugar Cookies
- Gingerbread Cookies with Almond Flour
If you try these Cashew Butter Cookies, please leave a comment and star rating below, letting me know how you like them!
I made these last night with a couple of modifications, based on what I had on hand. I didn’t have enough cashew butter, so I made it with half cashew butter and half almond butter. And since I didn’t have chocolate chips, I added cacao nibs instead. They came out so fantastic. Thank you for another wonderful recipe and for helping us get through a challenging year. I hope you and your family have a wonderful 2021.
I love these cookies, I’ve made them several times with a couple different nut butters and they always turn out awesome! I’m just wondering where I’m going wrong in calculating the calories. Your nutrition facts say they contain 62 calories per cookie at 24 cookies in a batch. The cashew butter alone accounts for 115 calories per cookie according to my calculations. Please let me know how I’m so miscalculated!!
Are you meaning 1 cup of cashew butter? Because 16oz would be two cups?
I did one cup and halved the rest of ingredients and loved them 🙂
I substituted monk fruit sweetener for the coconut sugar (just because I can’t have coconut) and used regular eggs instead or chia eggs. The only is issue I have with this recipe is that it’s so good that I can’t stop eating them. Fantastic!!!
These turned out wonderfully! Loved them!
Made these today and they were great! (I made my own cashew butter, weighed the cashews and then the butter, to which I added a little avocado oil because I thought it might be dryer than the TJ’s version — which I wanted to avoid because it also has almonds.). Great recipe – thanks!
My husband’s favorite cookie, healthy or otherwise!
These cookies are delicious.The recipe was a life saver since I made way too much cashew butter. My cookies DID spread however and kind of grew into one another.
Of course it was easy to separate them with a spatula.
Thank you so much
These were amazing❤️🙏🏻
These are soooo good, at least the ones I accidentally made. I used cashew butter that I made with soaked cashews and freshly squeezed orange juice but it made the batter too runny so I added whole wheat flour and my cookies came out so moist and delicious! So here’s what I did in case anyone wants to try it: soak 1 cup raw cashews in purified water for 2 hours, drain and rinse, then blend with juice from 2 medium oranges until smooth. Then make the recipe above but cut everything in half. Add about 1/2 cup whole wheat flour or enough to make the dough sticky. I also used 1 regular egg so I’m not sure how a chia egg would turn out. I should try it sometime. Anyway, you may need to bake the cookies a minute or two longer – I used a toothpick to determine doneness. This is definitely my favorite chocolate chip cookie recipe now and I will make them again and again!