Almond Butter Cookies

With just four simple ingredients, these almond butter cookies can be whipped up even when it feels as if there’s nothing in the pantry. They’re cousins with the three-ingredient peanut butter cookies, but the almond butter swap gives them a deeper toasted-nut flavor. Otherwise, all you’ll need is some brown sugar, vanilla extract and a single egg. There’s always room for chocolate chips or a jam thumbprint, though!

Almond Butter Cookie Ingredients

• Almond butter: Feel free to make your own almond butter, or purchase one of the best almond butter brands from the store for ease. Just make sure to really stir, stir and stir again, hitting the bottom of the jar and working upwards. We don’t want any dry, cracked butter pieces in this almond butter cookie recipe.
• Brown sugar: Brown sugar’s caramel-molasses sweetness is gorgeous with almond butter. This type of sugar contains more moisture than granulated sugar, too, which keeps your cookies softer. However, if all you have in the pantry is granulated sugar and you can’t bear a trip to the store, use the granulated.
• Egg: This almond butter cookies recipe needs only a single egg to bind the ingredients together. Almond butter is a natural binder as well, but the egg acts as extra security.
• Vanilla extract: When a recipe has so few ingredients, it’s best to use the highest quality ones you can find, especially when it comes to acquiring the best vanilla extract. As an avid baker, I always splurge on vanilla.

Directions

Step 1: Make the cookie dough

Preheat the oven to 350°F. In a large bowl, use a hand mixer or stand mixer to beat the butter and brown sugar until well combined. Add the egg and vanilla until well mixed.

Step 2: Shape the cookies

Scoop out the cookie dough by tablespoonfuls, roll into balls and place them 1 inch apart on a greased 15x10x1-inch baking sheet. Lightly press down the dough with the back of a fork to make an indent. Turn the fork 90 degrees and give the ball another slight indent.

Editor’s Tip: For as evenly sized cookies as possible, use a cookie scoop to portion out the dough. A cookie scoop is one of the most essential baking tools in a chef’s arsenal!

Step 3: Bake the cookies

Pop the tray of cookies into the oven and bake them just until they’re set, 10 to 12 minutes. Remove the tray from the oven and let the cookies cool for 10 minutes. Then transfer the cookies to a wire rack to cool completely to room temperature.

Recipe Variations

• Stamp a jam thumbprint: PB&J-inspired recipes fill our nostalgic hearts. Even with the almond butter spin, a bit of jam will complement the flavors beautifully. Once the cookies are portioned into balls, flatten them with the bottom of a glass, indent a thumbprint or spoon in the middle, and fill it with your favorite jam. Bake as directed.
• Add mix-ins: Between chocolate chips, peanut butter chips, white chocolate chips or crushed nuts, you can add as many mix-ins to the cookie dough as you please for more texture and flavor.
• Experiment with baking spices: One of my favorite upgrades to a peanut butter cookie I’ve seen so far is the paprika peanut butter cookies from Sister Pie Bakery in Detroit, Michigan. Other baking spices that would be nice here are cinnamon or a chai spice blend.

How to Store Almond Butter Cookies

Once they’ve cooled to room temperature, store cookies in an airtight container to seal in their freshness. One of the pastry chefs I worked under always advised that the best way to taste a cookie’s true flavor is when it’s at room temperature—not warm out of the oven or cold from the fridge. Therefore, depending on a cookie recipe’s ingredients, I like to keep my cookies at room temperature. These almond cookies with almond butter can be kept at room temperature for up to three days.

Can you freeze almond butter cookies?

Yes, you can freeze almond butter cookies, but it’s best to do this while they’re still in cookie dough form. Shape the dough into balls, place them on a baking sheet and pop them in the freezer, uncovered, until they’re firm, 30 to 60 minutes. Transfer the frozen cookie dough balls to a resealable bag or an airtight container, and freeze them for up to three months.

Almond Butter Cookie Tips

Are these almond butter cookies gluten-free?

Yes, our almond butter cookie recipe is naturally gluten-free. These flourless cookies are simply made with almond butter, brown sugar, one egg and vanilla extract. If the person you’re serving is very sensitive to gluten, double-check the packaged goods to ensure they are certified gluten-free and were not produced in a facility that handles wheat or gluten.

Why are my almond butter cookies dry and falling apart?

Your almond cookies with almond butter may be dry for a few reasons. The first may be if you used dry almond butter. The almond butter should be stirred completely in its jar before being measured out so the oil reincorporates.

Another reason for dry almond butter cookies? The same culprit that happens with so many other baked goods: overbaking. Your cookies are done baking when the center appears soft and a bit underbaked but not raw, while the edges are set and golden brown. Don’t worry about the soft center. The cookies will firm up as they cool.

Can I use a different nut butter?

Absolutely! Instead of almond cookies with almond butter, you can use cashew butter, macadamia nut butter, hazelnut butter, pistachio butter or peanut butter. For a nut-free swap, use sunflower seed butter. This is a very flexible almond butter cookies recipe.