These Healthy Cookies are about to be your new favorite cookie recipe! They are made with 100% whole food ingredients: no flour, no added oil, and no added sugar. And oddly enough, they remind me of the popular “soft batch” cookies I used to eat when I was growing up.
Why You’ll Love Them
This recipe is what I consider the “healthiest cookies ever.” They are made with ingredients that you may already have in your pantry, and because they’re flourless, they’re naturally gluten-free, too.
Ingredients You’ll Need:
- Walnuts: Walnuts are a plant-based source of omega-3 fatty acids, specifically the essential fat alpha-linolenic acid (ALA). Research shows that eating ALA may help to lower your risk of heart disease. The polyphenols found in walnuts may also help to fight inflammation.
- Dates: Dates are loaded with fiber and may be beneficial for controlling your blood sugar. Dates are considered a low-glycemic food, and have a high antioxidant content that may help lower inflammation and reduce the risk of diabetes.
- Flax Seeds: Ground flax seeds may help to lower cholesterol and they may help to lower blood pressure, too. Eating ground flax seeds regularly may even help to expedite weight loss, as well!
- Baking Soda + Vinegar. This combination helps them rise, without using eggs.
- Vanilla + Salt. Contributes to the classic cookie flavor you love.
- Dark Chocolate Chips. Or, you can use cacao nibs, raisins, or extra nuts as a sugar-free mix-in.
I use the flax seeds as an egg substitute in this recipe, and I think it keeps them a nice and soft in the center– which I love. If you would rather use a real egg, you can replace the flax seeds and water with one for a little more protein in this recipe.
Substitution note: I’ll often use pecans when I don’t have walnuts on hand, and the results are just as delicious! I think that buttery nuts work best in this recipe, so macadamia nuts would probably work well, too.
How to Make Them
- Grind the nuts. Add the walnuts to a food processor, and process briefly until they have a coarse, crumbly texture.
- Make the cookie dough. Add in the dates, salt, baking soda, vanilla, flax seeds, water, and vinegar (which reacts with the baking soda to help the cookies rise) and process again, until a sticky cookie dough is formed. Add in the chocolate chips, and process again briefly to mix them in.
- Scoop. Use a tablespoon or 1-ounce cookie scoop to scoop the cookie dough onto a lined baking sheet.
- Bake. The cookies will bake for 12 minutes or so, at 350ºF.
- Enjoy! Let the cookies cool completely on the pan. They are fragile when they are warm, but they firm up as they cool.
These healthy cookies have a soft and tender texture that reminds me of my childhood favorite “soft batch” cookies. If you prefer a firmer cookie, simply store them in the fridge or freezer, and serve them cold!
How to Store Them
These grain-free cookies will become softer if you store them in an airtight container at room temperature. I recommend storing them in the fridge or freezer and serving them cold after the first 24 hours.
(They usually sit out just fine at room temperature for the first day!)
More Healthy Cookie Recipes
If you have other ingredients on hand and are craving a cookie, you might also enjoy these healthy recipes:
- Date-Sweetened Peanut Butter Cookies
- Vegan Chocolate Frosting (sweetened with dates!)
- Paleo Chocolate Chip Cookies
- Vegan Buckwheat Cookies
- Almond Butter Cookies
- Double Chocolate Cookies (also date-sweetened!)
- Coconut Flour Cookies
I hope you’ll enjoy these cookies whenever your sweet tooth strikes! Because they are made with nutrient-rich ingredients, I find that they leave me feeling satisfied much longer than a traditional cookie recipe.
Healthiest Cookies Ever
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups raw walnuts (165 grams)
- 1 tightly packed cup medjool dates , pitted (8 ounces)
- 1/4 teaspoon salt (3 grams)
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda (3 grams)
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract (3 grams)
- 1 tablespoon ground flax seeds (8 grams)
- 3 tablespoons water (42 grams)
- 1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar (5 grams)
- 1/2 cup dark chocolate chips (optional; 75 grams)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper. In a large food processor fitted with an "S" blade, briefly process the walnuts into a crumbly texture.
- Add in the dates, salt, baking soda, vanilla, flax, water, and vinegar. Process again, until the batter looks relatively smooth and sticky.
- Add in the chocolate chips, or any other mix-ins you like, and process briefly to mix them in. Use a tablespoon or 1-ounce cookie scoop to scoop the dough.
- Drop the cookie dough onto the lined baking sheet, and use your fingers to flatten and shape the cookies. (They don't spread much on their own.) I usually get about 16 to 18 small cookies from this batch.
- Bake at 350ºF for 12 minutes, or until the edges are lightly golden. While the cookies are still warm, you can add a few more chocolate chips on top (if there are any spots that look bare). Let them cool completely on the pan, as they will be fragile while they are still warm. Store the cookies in an airtight container in the fridge or freezer, and serve cold for the most firm texture.
Video
Notes
- I love the buttery flavor of these cookies when made with walnuts, but I have a feeling that pecans or almonds would work well, too.
- If you don't have access to dates, raisins can be substituted in most cases, but the flavor will be slightly different.
- If you don't want to use a flax egg, one chicken egg can be used instead.
- Optional add-ins that are free of added sugar include: cacao nibs, raisins, shredded coconut, chopped nuts
Nutrition
If you try these healthy cookies, please leave a comment below letting me know how you like them!
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Reader Feedback: What other date-sweetened desserts would you like to see in the future?
These cookies were delicious! I used dried figs, rather than dates, because it’s what I had on-hand…amazing! People were surprised by how few ingredients were in these cookies. Another keeper…good work Megan!!
These are amazing! thank you!
Great cookies- used half wholemeal flour and half walnuts and 1/4 cup pumpkin puree with 3/4 raisins. Came out AMAZING-can’t even realise that there’s no oil or sugar in there. I made them as in the recipe before too, but even though I loved them, they could be a little fatty.
If I wanted to use an egg would I use 1 or 2?
I usually substitute 1 egg and they turn out great.
Good!
Hi,
I made these and cooked them for 12 minutes on 170C (celsiuis).
They browned but were very soft and seemed to need more time in the oven.
Any suggestions to make them better next time?
Love these cookies! So delicious!
Would the recipe still work if I used mashed banana instead of the dates?
I’m allergic to almonds, would this work with ground oats instead?
These turned out super delcious. Mine came out very soft, are they supposed to be that way or did I uset too many dates? Either way, one of the best cookie recipes I’ve ever made.
They are relatively soft, but you can always flatten them more or bake longer to help them dry up a bit more next time. Glad you enjoyed them!
Truly the healthiest cookie ever! First recipe I had ever made using dates as the sweetener. SO GOOD! Even my husband likes them! I use half walnuts/half pecans and usually substitute a regular egg for the flax egg. Turns out great and super easy and delicious.
Made this two days in a row. So delicious and filling.
Sent before rating 5 Stars a new household favorite.
When I bought dark chocolate chips I didn’t realize they are 100% organic cacao, so the cookies were quite bitter. Also the chips melted completely. What chips are you using, and do you have any suggestions for keeping the chips whole? Someone suggested possibly refrigerating the batter a few minutes first. Would love to make another batch, and hate to waste what was purchased.
It’s normal for chocolate chips to melt when you bake the cookies, but they should firm back up into chocolate chips once they cool. Maybe try putting them in the fridge until the chocolate chips are solid again? Or do you mean they dissolved into the batter somehow? Since it is so bitter, you could use the 100% chocolate to make my flourless chocolate cake, because that recipe calls for unsweetened baking chocolate.
The chocolate melted while in the oven. It stayed in a melted state, kind of like baker’s chocolate would, even after cooling. The cookies were delicious otherwise. Maybe I can put ice-cream over them to get rid of the bitterness. Do you use chocolate chips that are 70% dark chocolate? I assume yours has organic sugar in it, which would avoid a disaster like mine.
That’s so weird! Baker’s chocolate always firms up again for me when it cools. I do use 70% dark chocolate chips usually, which do have a little sugar in them. If you still have the cookies, I’d put them in the fridge to firm up the chocolate, then you could serve at room temp later. I can’t imagine a chocolate that doesn’t firm up again after being chilled!
Yes, very strange. Your idea was similar to that of the company who manufactures the dark chocolate chips, just different in the timing. They said to firm up the chips in the fridge before even putting them into the batter. That way maybe they wouldn’t melt once put into the oven (it’s a commercial Vulcan, which I was told tends to get hotter faster than a regular oven).
I’m really excited to make these cookies! I shared this recipe on Facebook and my Dad asked me to make him a a care package of them and ship them to Missouri (from Texas). Your recipe says they’ll last up to a week in the fridge. But do you think they’ll go bad during the three day trip?
They get softer the longer they stay at room temperature, so they might be softer when they arrive. Maybe try shipping them with an ice pack to extend their shelf life?
These are wonderful!! I’ve shared and forwarded this recipe more times than I can remember. I’ve tried walnuts and pecans (both good) and always put cacao nibs instead of chocolate chips. Thank you for a great recipe.
Mmm! I’m baking the cookies as I type, if they taste like the batter then I’ll be in heaven!!
I have made these before and loved them! So simple and clean! I have a huge costco bin of deglet dates, should I adjust the amount of dates if I use deglet?
I have made them twice this week with pecans and no chocolate chips and they are delicious! Like pecan pie cookies.
I made this today! I didn’t use add-ins and they were incredible. I love that they aren’t too sweet, but I did find them a little bit too greasy. Maybe because I overprocessed the mixture?
That can definitely happen! I’d try processing a little less next time and see how that works for you.
Confession: I despise walnuts. But I just made these according to the recipe as written with walnuts (and with a chicken egg)–AMAZING. These are SO good. I will be adding them to the sweets rotation. Beloved by a carbaholic with an intense sweet tooth and a low-carber who prefers natural sweetness.
This recipe also seems beautifully simple and forgiving. I plan on doing some experimenting with different additives. These guys are plenty sweet even without chocolate so I will try making them next with the suggested cacao nibs.
Thank you so much for sharing!
Can you freeze the dough the shape of the cookies and then bake them? I usually like making a batch and baking what I want to eat in the moment.
I would think so! I’ve always had good experiences with freezing cookie dough.
These are my go-to cookies to make for my kids—they love them. I use cocoa nibs rather than regular chocolate as an add-in. Thanks!
Do you suppose it would work to substitute a mix of coconut butter and shredded coconut for the walnuts? My kids are unfortunately allergic to all nuts.
These cookies are a game changer. I actually bake for 15 mins (they get a little dark on top) and then freeze them. Straight from freezer the are both crisp yet chewy. The only problem is they disappear SO FAST! Husband loves them, kids love them. And I am super mom bc I let kiddos eat for morning snack! For sure my favorite cookie maybe ever.
I love all those healthy cookies. Do you have any one can be called keto with dates ?
I believe a Keto cookie would need to be sugar-free (so no dates), and I don’t have a recipe that doesn’t call for some sort of sweetener. If you want to search for “stevia” on my website, there are a few OLD recipes from when I used to use that!
Made these tonight and my husband is enjoying them now. Amazing. Simply amazing. I followed the recipe exactly and used Enjoy Life brand mega chunk vegan semi-sweet chocolate chips. Super delicious cookies and the dates and raw walnuts were perfection. Satisfies a sweet tooth.
What would the amount be if using Pecan Flour instead of pecan halves??
My kids loved these too! A delicious no guilt dessert. Will deed keep this in rotation!
Just made these and they’re fabulous. Simple clean ingredients and super easy to make. Made mine with chocolate chips which added a yummy taste and meltiness to the dates and walnuts. My husband thinks these are the best detoxinista cookies yet and wants to save some for Santa!!!
lean ingredients
These are incredible! Thank you so much for sharing this recipe. Now let’s see how to stop me from eating the whole batch right now
What is the vinegar for?
Vinegar reacts with the baking soda, to help cookies made without eggs rise. It’s not necessary when using baking powder or recipes that call for eggs.
How much would the sugar count drop if you eliminate the dates/raisins and just use dark chocolate ??? Love the cookie but would love it more if the sugar was decreased.
I’m not sure it would stick together without the dates, but let me know if you try it. I like to calculate nutrition information on FitDay.com if you want to play around with the ingredients.
These are seriously delicious! I was skeptical but I love them!
Your video showed chia egg but the printed recipe doesn’t have chia eggs – has ground flax seeds instead? I’m guessing that’s the substitute?
I use flax and chia eggs interchangeably, so feel free to use whichever you have on hand!
Yes, you can use ground chia or flax interchangeably.
Love your recipes & can’t wait to try this one. Don’t have dates but have organic date purée in the fridge containing only Iranian dates ( not Medjool).Already concentrated so would 1/2 a cup do instead of a cup? Have to conserve what we have in these days of quarantine. Thanks, Megan.
Delicious. The kids (and I!) gobbled them up. And they smelled ridiculously amazing while cooking! I put in less chocolate chips than the recipe stated, and that was enough for us, but otherwise I wouldn’t change a thing. Thank you!
I couldn’t find any eggs (flax eggs or chicken) mentioned anywhere in the ingredient list nor the instructions. I’m a bit confused about where the egg was supposed to come into play here. Am I missing something?
The ground flax seeds and water in the ingredient list make up the “flax egg” in this recipe. You don’t need to worry about using an egg if you have those ingredients, but I like to offer suggestions in case a reader needs to make substitutions.
Love these and all your recipes! 🙂
In the video and recipe notes it shows putting an egg in the recipe, yet the recipe does not call for an egg. Can anyone tell me if it should have an egg in it.
The ground flax seed and water make a “vegan egg” in this recipe, but you can omit those and use a real egg instead. Either way the cookies will turn out great!
Yes!!
Made these today, delicious and happy with the ingredients.
Thank you!
I’ve made these several times and they are wonderful for a breakfast on the go. I add cinnamon and nutmeg. I was wondering if anyone has added pumpkin purée? I’m in the mood for some kind of pumpkin recipe that is this healthy.
Hi I made This recipe along time ago,it was absolutely amazing but there was a difference in your instructions before end it recommended Chia egg (water and chia mixture as a substitute do you recall the measurements for this
The video shows chia egg but I dont see it listed on the ingredients.
Sorry for the confusion! I use flax and chia seeds interchangeably, and I had chia seeds on hand for the video. You can use either one to make the “egg” in this recipe. The ingredients call for ground flax and water, which are used to make the egg.
Can I use white vinegar instead of apple cider vinegar?
Yes, I think that should work just fine!
Amazing recipe, so yum. Used mixed nuts, and dried figs instead of dates. Best ‘healthy’ cookies I’ve had!
I followed the recipe to a T! I used an egg.
The chocolate chips save these!
They are puffy and soft. Good!
These cookies are so amazing. They are probably the first Detoxinista cookies I ever, way back when. For some reason, I’d forgotten about them. Then today I was looking through the website for some healthy cookies and came across these again. I’m so glad I did. They are delicious, completely guilt free, and so easy to make. Yum!
Made this over the weekend so that we could have some healthy treats to snack on throughout the week. Holy cow – the dough alone is so tasty, I was eating with a spoon! Love how simple they are to make, and how good I feel about eating them. Thanks for sharing the recipe!
I am absolutely OBSESSED with these cookies. I make them weekly and stash them in my freezer for a quick treat that I don’t feel quilts about. I have introduced these to so many friends who all agree – this recipe is a WINNER.
Can you make these cookies without a food processor?
It’s been a long time since I last made these, but your recent post reminded me of how much I enjoy these cookies. I personally enjoy them more at room temperature. As an extra bonus, the dough is good for some sampling before baking and is safe since it’s egg free. I need to make these again soon!