Easy to make and so delicious, these healthy free chocolate chip cookies are (almond) milks new favorite cookie. They’re made with simple ingredients, sweetened with just pure maple syrup, gluten free, paleo and ready to devour in 20 minutes!
I’m kind of chocolate chip cookie obsessed, and can never turn down a butter and sugar filled classic, but sometimes you need something a bit healthier!
Like these oatmeal chocolate chip cookies, this recipe is refined sugar free, dairy free AND gluten free! But before I make them sound bland and boring, let me tell you they are DELICIOUS.
These healthy chocolate chip cookies are soft & chewy with a slightly crispy edge, perfectly sweet and with just the right amount of chocolate.
I will never understand the desire for crunchy cookies… I’m team chewy cookie until the end of time. But, you are welcome to bake these for a bit longer than the recipe calls for if you want a little crunch, I won’t judge 🙂
How to make this recipe
Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Whisk together all wet ingredients until well combined.
Add in the dry ingredients, making sure to spoon and level the flours. Mix with a wooden spoon until combined. Fold in the chocolate chips.
Form into 1 1/2 inch balls using a cookie scoop, press lightly to flatten with your fingers, and place on a cookie sheet with enough space in between.
Bake for 9-12 minutes or until the edges are golden brown. They will continue to harden as they cool. Sprinkle with salt flakes & enjoy!
My favorite flour
In this recipe, we don’t need any xanthan gum, extra starch or any other ingredients commonly found in gluten free baking. I love using 1:1 GF flours for baking in certain recipes, but not so much in others! Coconut and almond flours just keep things a bit more simple anyway!
The only flours you need for these healthy chocolate chip cookies are fine almond flour and coconut flour. We’ll be using mostly almond flour with just a little bit of coconut flour to absorb extra moisture and create a really chewy texture!
Can you freeze the dough?
Yes! To make life easier, you can make a double or triple batch of this recipe, roll it in plastic wrap, add it to a zip-lock bag, and freeze it for up to about 3 months.
When you’re ready to bake it, just let the dough thaw in the fridge overnight and bake it as usual in the morning. You can also roll the cookies into balls, flatten slightly, freeze, and bake right from frozen.
You’ll need to bake for longer (about 5 minutes) to account for the frozen dough. When baking dough from frozen, I also suggest lowing the temperature to 325 because the bake time will be longer and we don’t want them to burn!
Do they keep?
Once baked, these cookies will last for about 3-5 days stored in a container at room temperature. Be sure to let them cool completely before storing. I like to pop them in the microwave for about 10 seconds to re-melt the chocolate if they’ve been sitting out for a while.
They will continue to harden as they cool, so let them sit on the baking sheet for at least 20 minutes before serving to ensure they don’t crumble.
The best chocolate
I’m pretty picky about chocolate chips, especially since so many contain milk. For this recipe I used Lily’s Sweets dark chocolate baking chips since they’re sweetened with stevia and a bit healthier than other brands. I also love Guittard or Enjoy Life for allergy friendly baking!
Can I make them vegan?
Since these cookies only have one egg, it’s pretty safe to use an egg replacer without problem. They might be a bit more crumbly than usual, so definitely let them cool before eating to ensure the structure can set. Since there is already a bit of applesauce in these, I’d suggest subbing the egg for 3 1/2 more tablespoons of apple sauce, so you’ll use 5 1/2 in total.
Try these next!
- Cake Batter Energy Balls
- Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies
- Chocolate Caramel Truffles
- Chewy Paleo Chocolate Chunk Cookies
Lastly, if you try this recipe, leave a comment below and let me know how it turned out! Be sure to follow me on instagram for more recipes and daily eats!
Healthy Chocolate Chip Cookies
by: claire cary
Ingredients
Wet:
- ¼ cup refined coconut oil softened
- 2 tbsp apple sauce
- 6 tbsp maple syrup
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- ½ cup runny almond butter
- 1 egg see notes for vegan
Dry:
- 2 cups fine almond flour
- 3 tbsp coconut flour
- ½ tsp baking soda
- ¼ tsp salt
- ¾ cup chocolate chips or more, to taste
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
- Whisk together all wet ingredients until well combined.
- Add in the dry ingredients, making sure to spoon and level the flours. Mix with a wooden spoon until combined.
- Fold in the chocolate chips.
- Use a medium cookie scoop to scoop the dough and add to a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Press the tops lightly to flatten with your fingers.
- Bake for 9-12 minutes or until the edges are golden brown. They will continue to harden as they cool. As soon as they come out of the oven, I like so sprinkle on chopped up chocolate chips which will melt right on top as they cool. Not necessary, I just like the way it looks! I also always use a round cookie cutter to scoot around the edges of the cookie and shape it into a perfect circle.
- Sprinkle with salt flakes & enjoy!
Kristen says
Confused………the Notes mentioned you could use any granulated sugar, but you used coconut; however, I don’t see coconut sugar in the ingredient list???
Claire Cary says
Sorry for the confusion! This recipe was updated recently and now only calls for the maple syrup.
Olivia says
I’ve made these cookies twice in one week because they’re just that good, and my husband and I don’t feel bad eating them! I did switch the almond butter for peanut butter and coconut flour for regular gf flour, as I was missing those ingredients, and it worked just fine! These are definitely a go-to recipe for our house now! I will probably be making them again very soon haha.
Claire Cary says
Good to know those subs worked! So happy you enjoyed 🙂
Lori-Ann says
These cookies are so delicious! So easy to make, and very substantial and soft. Sometimes GF cookies fall apart, not these you can pick them right up and eat them. Highly recommend.
Claire Cary says
Yes! Took a while with testing to make sure they didn’t fall apart, finally got it! So happy you enjoyed them!
Rebecca says
These are my new go to cookie recipe!!! Love them. Thanks so much
Claire Cary says
Thank you Rebecca!
candice says
Delicious! came out perfect! Used flax egg instead and followed everything else as listed! Will be making again!! Love that they are sugar free and still taste so good!!
Claire Cary says
Perfect! So glad they worked well with the flax egg!
Kaela says
Very yummy and filling!
Blair says
Hi – is there sugar in this cookies ? I don’t see it listed . Thanks!
Claire Cary says
No, it’s just the maple syrup!
Aarushi Sehgal says
Nice! These look delicious!
Samia Ahmed says
Thanks, Claire for this awesome and delicious recipes. The chocolate cookie is one of my favorites. It has a very yummy taste. After switching to veganism, I have faced many problems like what to eat or what to not. Especially some foods taste are not satisfactory. I have made chocolate cookie by following your recipe. It tastes awesome.
Thanks for sharing!!!
Claire Cary says
So happy to hear that! Thanks for the feedback Samia!