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These Paleo Chocolate Chip Cookies are the perfect way to satisfy your sweet tooth! Made with nourishing almond flour, they take just minutes to stir together and will quickly become one of your favorite chocolate chip cookie recipes.
Ingredients You’ll Need
This gluten-free cookie recipe is made with blanched almond flour, which means the skin has been removed from the nuts before they were ground into flour.
Your cookies will have a crispy, buttery texture when you use this type of grain-free flour, but you can use almond meal (made with whole ground almonds) if that’s what you have. Desserts made with almond meal tend to be denser and not quite as crisp, so just keep that in mind.
Maple syrup and coconut oil help to bind this recipe without using an egg or flax egg, but if you prefer to use coconut sugar as the sweetener, check out my classic almond flour cookie recipe instead. They taste like the Tollhouse cookies, only made with almond flour!
Using coconut oil keeps this recipe dairy-free, but if you’d prefer to avoid any coconut flavor, look for refined or expeller-pressed coconut oil which has zero coconut taste. You can also use your favorite vegan butter, or real butter if you don’t need a dairy-free cookie.
Use dark chocolate chips to keep this recipe lower in sugar, or try adding dried fruit for another variation. I like to use mini chocolate chips to distribute the chocolate flavor even more.
How to Make the Best Paleo Chocolate Chip Cookies
1. Mix.
In a large bowl, combine the almond flour, melted coconut oil, maple syrup, vanilla extract, baking soda, and salt. Stir well until a thick cookie dough is formed. (Because this recipe is not made with traditional flour, there’s no need to whisk the dry ingredients together before adding in the liquid ingredients.)
Fold in the chocolate chips, being careful not to stir too much. Almond flour cookie dough can become oily when overmixed.
2. Bake.
Prepare a large baking sheet by lining it with parchment paper and preheat the oven to 350ºF. Use a 1-ounce cookie scoop or tablespoon to scoop the dough onto the prepared pan, about 2 inches apart from each other. You should get roughly 19 to 20 cookies from this batch.
Use your hands to gently flatten each cookie mound, as they won’t spread much on their own. Sprinkle a little sea salt on top, if you’d like a sweet and salty cookie, then bake at 350ºF for 9 to 10 minutes, until the edges look lightly golden.
3. Cool.
Once the cookies are done baking, let them cool on the pan for at least 10 minutes. They will firm up as they cool.
The finished cookies will have a crispy edge and a slightly chewy center, reminiscent of a shortbread cookie studded with chocolate chunks.
Serve these paleo cookies warm or let them cool completely on a wire rack. They can be stored at room temperature for up to 3 days in an airtight container, but they do become softer and less crispy in that case.
For crispier results and longer shelf life, store them in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 2 weeks, or in the freezer for up to 3 months.
Frequently Asked Questions
Nope! Coconut flour is unlike any other flour on the market and needs a totally different ratio of ingredients. Check out my coconut flour cookie recipe for guidance.
I love Hu brand, which is naturally sweetened if you can find it at your local store. Otherwise, dark chocolate chips make a great lower-sugar option, or you can chop up your favorite chocolate bar. For a sugar-free option, try using crunchy cacao nibs instead.
Looking for more paleo cookie recipes? Try Almond Butter Cookies, Almond Flour Sugar Cookies, or the Healthiest Cookies Ever.
Ingredients
- 2 cups almond flour
- ¼ cup coconut oil , melted
- ¼ cup pure maple syrup (at room temperature)
- ¼ teaspoon sea salt
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- ⅓ cup dark chocolate chips (or cacao nibs, for sugar-free)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350ºF and line a baking sheet with parchment paper to prevent sticking.
- In a medium bowl, combine the almond flour, coconut oil, maple syrup, salt, baking soda, and vanilla extract. Stir well, then fold in the chocolate chips.
- Use a 1-ounce cookie scoop or tablespoon to drop the batter onto the prepared baking sheet. Use your fingers to flatten and shape the cookies to your liking; they will NOT spread when baked, so make them the shape you want.
- Bake at 350ºF for 8 to 9 minutes, or until the edges are lightly golden. The darker they get, the crispier they will be.
- Let the cookies cool on the pan for 10 minutes, then serve warm or at room temperature. These cookies can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 2 weeks, or in the freezer for up to 3 months. They will soften if stored at room temperature, so for the crispiest results, store them chilled.
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Notes
Nutrition
If you try this paleo chocolate chip cookies recipe, please leave a comment and star rating below letting me know how you like them.
These are delicious! I made them for my three year old to take to preschool in his lunchbox. He was so excited about his treat! Thanks for the great recipe!
Amazing recipe! Easy and delicious. Never been a fan a “faux” chocolate chip recipes but this recipe has changed my feelings on that! Love them.
Can I get the nutritional info please?
Please see my FAQ: https://detoxinista.com/frequently-asked-questions/
OMG! I just made these, and I didn’t have chocolate chips, all I had was lindt dark chocolate with sea salt – these are to die for!! I highly recommend the substitution too it sooooo good! Thank you for the recipe!
These are too good! Doubled the recipe and my daughter, husband, and I still ate all of them. :O
I made this recipe for my dad, who is on a paleo, low carb diet… He LOVED them! Even my mom and siblings who aren’t on the diet agree these are amazing! I made the almond meal myself and used butter instead of coconut oil. I have made a lot more almond meal just so I can bake these up for the family some times! P.S. my dad did NOT want to share these with his low-carb buddies!
Hi Megan.
I can’t wait to try your recipes. I was wondering if I could substitute ghee butter in your raspberry chocolate chip muffin reccipe and in your chocolate cookie recipe. I don’t really care for coconut oil.
Thanks.
I’ve never tried cooking with ghee, but if it bakes the same way as real butter does, it should work just fine.
I’ve baked with ghee, and it’s usually 1:1 in place of oil/shortening but learned the hard way to add water when subbing ghee for butter.
Skillet dessert of apples sautéed in ghee then sprinkled with cinnamon turned out delish but I fried my caramel sauce, eek!
How much water and ghee depends on amount of butter the recipe calls for. Maybe start with something like 2 tsp water with 7.5 Tbs ghee for every 8 Tbs of butter? It doesn’t take much water, you can always start with less then add more later.
Good luck!
I made a batch to send to my daughter in college…she shared with all her friends…love! FINALLY, a wheat-free chocolate cookie with a cookie texture. Yum!
Made these tonight and they turned out great! I was going to make a double batch to find that my dog sneaked the bag of almond flour I just bought and ate it in the backyard lol arg at least I had 2 cups of another bag left! The best part about these cookies is they are super easy 🙂
OK, I just have to chime in here how amazing these cookies are. I call them crack cookies. They are seriously better than full sugar cookies. I LOVE these cookies. <—- understatement
Thanks for letting me know! They are by far my favorite chocolate chip cookie recipe, too. 🙂