Almond Cookies Recipe
These easy almond cookies have lots of almond flavor, are small for easy portions and are perfect for a light dessert or treat!
These wonderful little cookies have a good, solid dose of almond flavor. They are a firmer cookie that crumbles easily in your mouth.
These are not a cookie you want to eat a lot of, but with these, a little goes a long way. One of these small cookies totally satisfies my sweet tooth. They are also dairy free and gluten free. And if made with low carb sweetener, they will fit well into a low carb or keto eating plan.
What Is The Difference Between Almond Flour And Almond Meal?
Almond meal – Ground up almonds that are ground with their skins on. Anything you use them in will have a darker color (from the skins) and be a bit more crumbly. Almond meal is typically a bit more coarse than almond flour, although both can be ground to the same consistency with the right commercial equipment.
Almond flour – Ground up almonds that are ground without their skins. They are blanched first to remove the skins and then ground to a fine, flour-like consistency. Over the years, manufacturers have found ways to grind almonds to a very fine consistency. When almond flour first became popular, it was far more coarse. These days, it’s very similar to regular flour, though it will most likely never be the same exact consistency of regular flour.
Types Of Almond Cookies
I’m sure there are many more versions of almond cookies than I have listed here. They seem to span many cultures with quite a few variations. Here are a few of them.
- Butter Almond Cookies – These are made with plenty of butter and some folks will even roast the butter first. The butter and almond flavors are a lovely pairing.
- Chinese Almond Cookies – These are made very similarly to the recipe here, except that butter is typically used.
- Italian Almond Cookies – These cookies typically have the addition of lemon and/or orange. Typically, juice and zest are used, but extracts can also be used. Sometimes almond paste is used as well. There are many different versions. Regular flour is typical for these cookies.
- German Almond Cookies – These cookies are made with regular flour and butter and use copious amounts of powdered sugar. They also contain vanilla and are usually made into the shape of crescents. I make a lemon version of these that I learned to make in German when I lived there. You can find my Holiday Horns recipe here.
What Are Almond Cookies Made Of?
For the purposes of this recipe, this is what I used to make these cookies.
6 cups almond flour – Make sure you use almond flour, not almond meal. It will make a huge difference in the final cookie.
2 cups powdered sweetener – I personally used Xylitol because it’s what’s easiest on my blood sugar. But for clean eating purposes, you would want to use an unprocessed sweetener such as Sucanat, coconut sugar or monk fruit. Note that your cookies may turn out a bit darker in color due to the darker sweetener. If you can’t find powdered versions of the sweetener you want to use, you can run the sweetener through a blender or coffee grinder to powder it. And if you don’t care about clean eating, you can just use regular, powdered sugar.
2 tsp. almond extract – Get the real stuff. You don’t want almond flavoring, you want extract. Extract is made of natural ingredients, while flavoring is produced with synthetic ingredients. There is a difference in flavor as well.
3 large eggs – These should be room temperature eggs.
1/2 cup sliced almonds – You can find these in the baking aisle of most grocery stores. They come in small packages that are perfect for cookies like this.
How To Make Almond Cookies
I should mention that this recipe is adapted from the fabulous blog, It’s Not Complicate Recipes.
What did I change?
I changed the sweetener, used whole eggs instead of egg whites, doubled the recipe and omitted the final dusting of powdered sugar on the cookie tops.
What did these changes do?
For one, it “cleaned them up” for clean eating purposes. But it also made the cookies a bit more dense, which I like. If you like a lighter cookie, you can follow the original recipe by using lightly beaten egg whites. And lastly, it gave me a bigger yield, which I needed at the time for a cookie exchange.
Preheat oven to 350 F. and gather all your ingredients.
In a large mixing bowl, combine the flour, sweetener, almond extract. Mix well.
Crack the eggs into a small bowl, and whisk by hand until the whites and yolks are well combined. Pour the eggs into the flour.
Using your hands, knead the dough until you have a nice, firm dough. It will be a bit sticky, but will come together nicely.
Again, using your hands, roll the dough into walnut-sized pieces.
Place each ball on a parchment-lined baking sheet. You don’t need to give these much room. They do not spread.
Gently flatten each cookie, using your hand.
Then press several of the sliced almonds into the tops of the cookies.
Bake for 15-18 minutes, or until the edges are just barely golden brown.
These will need to cool before you can enjoy their full flavor.
How To Store Almond Cookies
Store in a food-safe container in the fridge for up to 7 days.
Can You Freeze Almond Cookies?
Absolutely! If packed in an air-tight container, these will last for up to 3 months in the freezer. It’s best to double bag them, however. This will help avoid the cookies taking on any flavors from the freezer.
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Almond Cookies Recipe
Almond Cookies
Equipment
- Mixing Bowl
- Cookie sheet
- Parchment paper
- Measuring cups/spoons
Ingredients
- 6 cups almond flour (not almond meal)
- 2 cups powdered sweetener (see notes in post above)
- 2 tsp. almond extract
- 3 large eggs
- ½ cup sliced almonds
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 F. and gather your ingredients.
- In a large mixing bowl, combine the flour, sweetener, almond extract. Mix well.Crack the eggs into a small bowl, and whisk by hand until the whites and yolks are well combined. Pour the eggs into the flour.Using your hands, knead the dough until you have a nice, firm dough. It will be a bit sticky, but will come together nicely.
- Again, using your hands, roll the dough into walnut-sized pieces. Place each ball on a parchment-lined baking sheet. You don't need to give these much room. They do not spread.Gently flatten each cookie, using your hand.Then press several of the sliced almonds into the tops of the cookies.
- Bake for 15-18 minutes, or until the edges are just barely golden brown.These will need to cool before you can enjoy their full flavor.
