Almond flour chocolate chip cookies are a thin and chewy gluten free chocolate chip cookie. Make these cookies with chunks of chocolate instead of chocolate chips for a decadent treat!
This post is sponsored by Sprouts Farmers Market. I appreciate the opportunity to share recipes made with ingredients from brands I trust and support. All opinions are my own and do not necessarily reflect those of Sprouts Farmers Market. #sponsored
Why this recipe works
Homemade chocolate chip cookies are always welcome and this version, made with almond flour, is a gluten free and grain free recipe.
Gluten free cookies with almond flour are one of my favorite ways to convert a traditional recipe to a GF recipe. Almond flour lends a texture and softness to cookies where you want to avoid all purpose flour. A small amount of tapioca flour is included as well which helps thicken the cookie dough and creates a chewy texture.
While the exterior of these cookies is somewhat crisp, there is a soft bite hidden inside. The cookies spread quite a bit when baking due to the butter content, but as long as you space them generously on your baking pan, you’ll be fine.
If you like these almond flour cookies, you’ll also enjoy recipes for lemon almond flour cookies and almond flour sugar cookies.
Chocolate Chunks
Let’s talk about the chocolate in these cookies for a minute. It is a treat to start with high quality chocolate bars which are then cut into chunks. You’ll get a true bakery-fresh feeling when you make chocolate chunk cookies!
I shopped at Sprouts Farmers Market and baked with Chocolove chocolate bars. Chocolove is made in Boulder, Colorado with Belgian chocolate.
You’ll find so many flavor options– use your favorite for baking. From milk chocolate, to dark chocolate, to special varieties that have add ins like Raspberries in Dark Chocolate. Salted Almond Butter or Almonds & Sea Salt all pair beautifully in chocolate chunk cookies. Can you tell I’ve enjoyed nearly all of the varieties myself? I love Chocolove!
Chocolove is a favorite especially around Valentine’s Day because a love poem is printed inside every wrapper. Meeting at Night by Robert Browning and First Love by John Clare were two poems I recently enjoyed with my chocolate. What fun!
Recipe Ingredients
- Almond Flour: Use almond flour or almond meal. I used almond flour in this recipe.
- Tapioca Flour: tapioca flour is a gluten free and grain free flour. It is made from the root of the cassava plant.
- Baking Powder: Baking powder helps these cookies rise.
- Salt: Kosher salt is my go-to option for baking.
- Butter: Unsalted butter gives you more control in your salt content when baking, but if you only have salted butter that is fine too. Simply reduce or omit the kosher salt.
- Granulated Sugar: I like using a combination of granulated sugar and brown sugar in cookie recipes.
- Brown Sugar: I used light brown sugar in these almond flour chocolate chip cookies. Dark brown sugar is fine as well.
- Egg: Only one egg is needed for this recipe. I buy Sprouts Cage Free Farm Fresh Eggs.
- Vanilla: Sometimes I’ll add the vanilla with a heavy hand– 1 teaspoon is all that is required but I am in the camp that believes more vanilla is always better!
- Chocolate: Make rough chocolate chunks from high quality chocolate bars to give yourself a genuine bakery feeling. You may also use packaged chocolate chips.
How to make these almond flour cookies
- Combine the dry ingredients of almond flour, tapioca flour, baking powder and salt. Set aside.
- In a stand mixer or with a hand held mixer, beat the butter with the granulated sugar and the brown sugar until light and fluffy.
- Add the egg and the vanilla. Mix well.
- Stir in the dry ingredients until well blended.
- Fold in the chocolate chunks (or chocolate chips).
- Make small balls of cookie dough and space generously on a parchment lined baking tray. Bake.
Tips and Tricks for Success
Almond flour is made from blanched almonds. The skins are removed and the resulting flour is more uniform and fine. Almond meal is often made from raw almonds with the skins still on so it has a rougher texture. You can sift it first to remove any larger pieces.
Chocolate bars come in different weights and sizes. I used 2 bars of Chocolove Milk Chocolate which are 3.2 oz each for a total of 6.4 oz. Approximately 6 -8 oz chocolate is needed. You may cut bars into chunks or use packaged chocolate chips.
Cut the chocolate bars into chunks—aim to have pieces slightly larger than a typical chocolate chip. Of course, the size of all the chunks will vary and that is perfectly fine.
If you’d like to see some of the chunks in the baked cookie (rather than the pieces sinking into the cookie dough), leave a few chunks aside and do not add all of the chocolate to the dough. Place a few extra chunks of chocolate onto the tops of each ball of cookie dough before baking.
These cookies puff up while baking but deflate once removed. That is ok—they are perfect that way! Even though the cookie is somewhat thin, it is still chewy inside. Remove from the oven as soon as you notice the bottoms browning. You don’t want to overbake almond flour cookies as they will become brittle.
The balls of cookie dough will spread A LOT while baking. Please leave at least two inches around all sides of each cookie dough ball. It is better to bake a few extra trays and space the dough FAR apart instead of squeezing a dozen per tray and letting the cookies run together. Plan on only 6 cookies per tray.
Yes, you can make this cookie dough, form into balls, and then freeze the cookie dough balls to bake later. I love this trick for portion control. You can bake only a few cookies at a time. When you are ready to bake the frozen cookie dough, bake directly from frozen and add 3inutes on to the baking time. (Bake for 15 minutes at 350 degrees F)
Almond Flour Chocolate Chip Cookies
Almond flour chocolate chip cookies are a thin and chewy gluten free chocolate chip cookie. Make these cookies with chunks of chocolate instead of chocolate chips for a decadent treat!
Ingredients
- 2 cups almond flour
- ½ cup tapioca flour
- 1 tsp baking powder
- ¼ tsp salt
- 1 stick Sprouts butter (4 oz)
- ½ cup Sprouts granulated sugar
- ½ cup Sprouts light brown sugar
- 1 egg Sprouts Cage Free Farm Fresh Egg
- 1 tsp Sprouts Organic Vanilla Extract
- 6 oz chocolate cut into chunks (2 Chocolove Milk Chocolate bars)
Instructions
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line baking trays with parchment
paper.
Combine the dry ingredients of 2 cups almond flour, ½ cup tapioca flour, 1 tsp baking powder, and ¼ tsp salt. Whish gently then set aside.
In the bowl of a stand mixer, beat the 4 oz butter, ½ cup granulated sugar, and ½ cup light brown sugar until fluffy. Add the egg and 1 tsp vanilla. Combine well.
Slowly incorporate the mixed dry ingredients. Add the chocolate chunks. Stir well.
Form 1 Tbsp of dough into a ball and place on the parchment covered baking tray. Repeat with remaining dough.
Bake for 13-15 minutes.
Notes
Chocolove Milk Chocolate Bars are 3.2 oz each. I used two in this recipe. You could use other types of chocolate or use chocolate chips. Approximately 6 – 7 oz of chocolate is just right!
Cut the chocolate bars into chunks—aim to have pieces slightly larger than a typical chocolate chip. Of course, the size of all the chunks will vary and that is perfectly fine.
If you’d like to see some of the chunks in the baked cookie (rather than the pieces sinking into the cookie dough), leave a few chunks aside and do not add all of the chocolate to the dough. Place a few extra chunks of chocolate onto the tops of each ball of cookie dough before baking.
If you require a strictly gluten free recipe, please
make sure all your ingredients are certified gluten free.
These cookies puff up while baking but deflate once removed. That is ok—they are delicious! Even though the cookie is somewhat thin, it is still chewy inside. Remove from the oven as soon as you notice the bottoms browning. You don’t want to overbake almond flour cookies as they will become brittle.
The balls of cookie dough will spread A LOT while baking. Please leave at least two inches around all sides of each cookie dough ball. It is better to bake a few extra trays and space the dough FAR apart instead of squeezing a dozen per tray and letting the cookies run together.
Plan on only 6 cookies per tray.
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Holly Baker started the food blog, A Baker’s House, in 2011. She is the writer, recipe creator, and photographer for the site. Holly loves to bake and shares recipes for gluten free food, canning recipes, as well as traditional desserts too. Her recipes and food photography have been highlighted by BuzzFeed, Reader’s Digest, and She Knows.