Almond Butter Espresso Cookies
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Published Dec 08, 2021, Updated Jun 12, 2023
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These almond butter espresso cookies are the perfect combination of crunchy and chewy. They’re super easy to whip up and require only six ingredients and one bowl. Plus, they’re flourless, vegan and gluten-free!
The holidays have me in a baking mood so this week I decided to remake an old cookie recipe I posted back 2011 so I could update the photos and republish them. I’m so glad I did because these almond butter espresso cookies are way too good to be collecting dust back in the archives.
Using Almond Butter to Replace Flour
These cookies are quite different from any other holiday cookie recipe I’ve made and I’m obsessed. There’s no flour (not even coconut flour or almond flour), no oil or butter and no dairy. If you’ve never tried using almond butter as a substitute for flour, you have to try these cookies! It’s crazy how well almond butter works as a flour substitute in baked goods like with these flourless pumpkin muffins and flourless zucchini muffins.
The outside edges are perfectly crunchy while the middle has a bit of chew. If you know me, you know I’m all about the crunch with baked goods so these cookies are perfection.
Plus, I’m loving the almond butter espresso flavor combo. It reminds me of breakfast! Not only are these cookies flourless, but they’re super easy to whip up, require only 6 ingredients and are vegan and gluten-free.
Almond Butter Espresso Cookie Ingredients
Like I mentioned above, you only need six simple ingredients and if you’re like me you probably have all of the ingredients to make these cookies sitting in your kitchen right now!
- creamy almond butter – look for a brand with just one or two ingredients (almonds and salt). One of my favorite brands is Wild Friends (use the code EBF10 for 10% off your order).
- sugar – I used organic white sugar in this recipe, but coconut sugar will work as well.
- instant espresso – finely ground coffee works as well.
- baking soda – a leavening agent.
- vanilla extract – a flavor enhancer.
- flaxseed egg – mix 1 Tablespoon ground flaxseed with 3 Tablespoons water and set aside for a few minutes to let it gel up. Check out my full post on how to make a flaxseed egg.
Substitutions & Notes
- almond butter – I’m assuming you can swap with any nut or seed butter, but I’ve only tested the recipe with almond butter. If you try a different nut butter, let me know in the comments.
- flaxseed egg – if these cookies don’t need to be vegan you can use a regular egg in place of the flaxseed egg if you’d like.
- sugar – as a sub to regular sugar you can use coconut sugar instead. I wouldn’t swap it with a liquid sweetener like maple syrup or honey.
How to Make Almond Butter Espresso Cookie
Start with making your flaxseed egg by mixing the ground flaxseed with water and set aside. The mixture will gelatinize to an egg-like consistency.
In a large bowl, mix together the almond butter and sugar until well combined. Add in the flaxseed egg, espresso, baking soda and vanilla extract and mix until combined. Use a cookie scoop or spoon to place 1 Tablespoon of cookie dough on a baking sheet – make sure you place them about 2 inches apart because they will spread!
Bake at 350ºF for 10-12 minutes. Allow the cookies to cool on a pan for 3-5 minutes before gently transferring the cookies to a cooling rack to cool completely.
How to Store Homemade Cookies
After letting your cookies cool completely, I recommend storing them in an airtight container. They’ll last a few days on the countertop, a week in the fridge and up to 3 months in the freezer. I love making these in advance, freezing them and then serving during the holidays!
More Cookie Recipes to Try
- Snowball Cookies
- Gluten-Free Snickerdoodles
- Peanut Butter Blossoms
- Thumbprint Cookies
- Gluten-Free Sugar Cookies
- Almond Flour Crescent Cookies
- No Bake Cookies
- Oatmeal Raisin Cookies
- Almond Flour Chocolate Chip Cookies
- Oatmeal Date Cookies
- Lemon Almond Flour Cookies
- Chocolate Peppermint Cookies
- SunButter Cookies
- Almond Cookies
- Lemon Ricotta Cookies
- Chocolate Crinkle Cookies
- Oatmeal Scotchies
Be sure to check out all of my holiday cookie recipes and cookie recipes here on EBF!
Almond Butter Espresso Cookies
Ingredients
- ¾ cup creamy almond butter
- ¾ cup organic sugar
- 1 Tablespoon finely ground espresso
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 flax egg, or regular egg
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F degrees. Line your cookie sheet with parchment paper or a silpat baking mat.
- Make flaxseed egg by combining 1 Tablespoon ground flax with 3 Tablespoons of water in a small bowl. While the flaxseed egg gels up, use a large bowl to mix together the almond butter, sugar. Add flax egg, espresso, baking soda and vanilla and mix until combined.
- Use a cookie scoop or spoon to place about 1 Tablespoon of cookie dough on baking sheet, about 2 inches apart. Cookies will spread!
- Bake for 10-12 minutes. Allow to cool on pan for 3-5 minutes on the cookie sheet before gently transferring cookies from sheet to a cooling rack with a spatula.
- They will harden up while cooling. Once completely cool you can transfer them to a storage container.
Video
Notes
- Almond butter – I’m assuming you can swap with any nut or seed butter, but I’ve only tested the recipe with almond butter. If you try a different nut butter, let me know in the comments.
- Flaxseed egg – if these cookies don’t need to be vegan you can use a regular egg in place of the flaxseed egg if you’d like.
- Sugar – as a sub to regular sugar you can use coconut sugar instead. I wouldn’t swap it with a liquid sweetener like maple syrup or honey.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
I know what I am making on Friday! Will share when they are done 🙂
Yay, these are the cookies you gave me to try! Very very tasty 🙂 I normally enjoy when cookies come straight out of the fridge/freezer and are still cold for some reason – so they were right up my alley!
So glad you liked them Steph!
Yum, gluten-free, almond butter, and espresso — I like!
Gotta love a hint of sweet and a caffeine boost all in one cookie. One of my friends has been trying hard to cut out carbs so I bet she would love these. Yes there is sugar but I think the flourless part would appeal to her.
Those look fantastic! My husband’s grandmother has celiac as well as an almond sensitivity… I’m assuming it would still work to substitute another nut butter, like peanut or cashew? I really want to make these for her for Christmas…she always bakes tons of cookies for everyone else but can never eat them herself 🙁
You can definitely sub another nut butter. Peanut butter would work great. I hope she enjoys the cookies!
I’d pls like to know the prep for almond butter and other nut butters as well pls
OT, but have you ever done any Kettleball Training? I am interested, thinking of asking for one from Santa, and wondered if you had an opinion. TIA.
I love espresso powder in cookies. It adds just the right amount of coffee flavor. I normally store all of my cookies in the freezer. While I love cookies warm right out of the over, I actually prefer most cookies frozen.
Yummy! I am seriously bookmarking all these cookie recipes! Love em! 🙂
Thank you for a GF cookie recipe – and these look pretty simple! I’m going to fit them into my baking plans this weekend!
These cookies look delicious and I can’t wait to get them started.
I love the combo of nut butter and espresso…it’s SUCH an awesome combo!
I am a brand newbie to gluten free and am a little intimidated about cooking right now so I really apprciate the simplicity of this recipe!! Thank you for sharing! 🙂
Wow, these cookies sound awesome!! 🙂
Wow, these sound amazing–and best of all they don’t require any shopping on my part! Thanks so much, will let you know how they turn out. I was going to try GF spritz cookies but don’t have enough time for decorating.
Love these! Thank you for sharing! Mind if I repost (w/attribution of course)??
Loved this gluten-free version!!! Loved your blog very much as well!
Do you know the nutritional content?
Hi Danielle. I know this response is super late, but I added the nutritional info. 🙂
Great! thank you so much. I just pulled out your recipe to make for cookies for people for the holidays. 🙂
Do you use store bought almond butter or natural? I make my own with just almonds in a food processor but was afraid that might alter the sugar amount and change the texture of the cookie.
I used store bought, but it was the raw kind with just raw almonds so it is probably similar to what you make at home.
These look so good! Can’t go wrong with anything that has espresso + almond butter : ) Thanks for posting!
http://hyggewellness.com/blog
Agreed! I love all things coffee flavored too.
Brittany these look SO GOOD! I’m definitely going to be making these!
Thanks Liz! You’ll have to let me know how they turn out! 🙂
They sound so good! I love the use of almond butter – and I’m super into coffee flavoured snacks (just not coffee itself, weirdly!) so this is right up my alley.
– Charmaine
http://charmainenyw.com
Do you think this would work with speculoos? I have a whole jar of cookie butter from Trader Joe’s that I want to use in something and I think it’d taste good in this! But I’m totally not a baker so I don’t like to take chances on my own unless someone says it’s ok!
I think it will work, but I’m not 100% sure because I haven’t tried it before. Give it a shot and let us know how it turns out! 🙂
These look perfect for the holidays! I love the crispy edges and chewy center!
I know what I’m making for the Cookie Exchange party this weekend!
I want ALL of these right now. So adorable and I love how simple the recipe is!
I like baking very much,with this recipe i think i will enjoy amazing homemade cookies very soon,Thanks a lot!
Hi , can i use honey instead of sugar? I cant have sugar due to health issues.thanks
Hi Karin. You can try the recipe with honey instead of sugar, but I’m not sure if they will turn out exactly the same because I haven’t tested the recipe with honey. IF you try it, I would reduce the amount just a bit — maybe do 1/2 cup honey instead of 3/4 cup! Let me know how they turn out!
I was looking for a gluten free option for a holiday cookie exchange, and these hit the spot! I added dark chocolate because I had it and chocolate makes everything better. Next time I might add sea salt flakes on top. Thanks for this simple yet delicious recipe.
Can you use 1 real egg instead of the flax egg? Thanks!
Hi Katie! I haven’t tried it, but I think it should work just fine!
Tried these, they were yum! Stored them in my Infinity jars to keep longer. Happiness in a jar. https://infinityjars.com/collections/screw-top-jars
Can I used ground dark roast coffee beans instead of espresso beans?
Hi Maya. I think that should work just fine. Enjoy the cookies.
Would coconut sugar work instead of the organic sugar?
It’s 10:30 at night and I just pulled the last tray of these from my oven and couldn’t resist trying one—the smell was heavenly! Only surpassed by the flavor!! These might become my new fav! My two daughters are grown but come home frequently and they immediately go to my freezer to look for hidden treats—these will be an immediate hit!
I’ve made four double batches of the Carrot Cake Cookies and they are now a staple in my house. This recipe looked easy too and I was ready to make something new. So glad I did! Can I give this cookie more than 5 stars? Thank you
@eatingbirdfood This may have already been asked, but…
If I swap actual eggs for flax, how many eggs = 1 batch (1 tbs ground flax whisked with 3 tbs water) = 1 egg???
Can instant espresso be swapped for reg espresso & would that change the ratio more or less than the 1 tbs you used?
Can 3/4 c coconut sugar be swapped for 3/4 c organic sugar?
Annnnnnd if I DOUBLE the recipe is it ok to double all ingredients or would you do anything different?
Hi! I would do 1 egg to replace the flaxseed egg (1 T ground flax + 3 T water). You can definitely use instant espresso. Yes, 3/4 of coconut sugar can be swapped for 3/4 cup organic sugar. I haven’t tried doubling the recipe, but I think it should be 100% fine just to double all the ingredients! Let me know how they turn out.
Made these for Christmas for my vegan co-worker. We ALL loved them!!! My new FAVE cookie recipe! Thank you, thank you for sharing!! My very first time making a flax egg too– which I’m now going to substitute in future recipes as well.
** note: I threw in a bit of coconut flour for my 2 batch before they went in the oven- since I typically prefer a thicker cookie- They turned out magnificent! 🙂
Thanks again. Love your site!
Oh yay!! I’m so glad that these cookies turned out for you with the added coconut flour. Thanks so much for coming back to leave a comment + star review. It’s so helpful to other readers, so I really appreciate it. <3
Oh my did it ever spread! Delish treats though. I ran out midway of “creamy almond butter” and “organic sugar” so I used the plain stuff and still it was very tasty! Thanks Brittany.
So glad you enjoyed these cookies, Mary!! Thanks for trying them and for coming back to leave a comment and star rating. I really appreciate it. <3
Love these cookies!!! I added Lily’s dark chocolate chips & Maldon on top- these are perfection!!
Dark chocolate + sea salt = best combo ever!! SO glad you loved these cookies, Kimberly. Thanks for making them and for coming back to leave a comment + star rating. I so appreciate it. <3
Hi Brittany,
Many thanks for this super super simple recipe. I’m going to try it tomorrow but a quick check on the cup measurements. I’m currently in India and so a cup measures 238ml. If you can send me the quantities in grams I would really appreciate it, it’s really just the almond and sugar. Rest is spoons so that’s standard. Many thanks!
Hi brittany,
Thanks for this recipe it sounds delicious.
Could you please let me know quantities in grams? Also I’ve just tried one third of the recipe and my cookies haven’t spread At all. What could be the reason do you know?
Thanks
You can convert the ingredients to grams here! I’m wondering if something just happened with doing 1/3 of the recipe. Sometimes doubling or halving a recipe doesn’t always turn out the same.
These are my new favorites! So simple and easy to make. I used 3/4 cup of coconut sugar and they came out great. Not too sweet and I love how they spread out to be nice and thin.
Ahh yay!! So glad you’ve been loving these cookies, Merritt. Thanks for coming back to leave a comment + star rating. I so appreciate it!
I’m not sure where I went wrong, but mine didn’t turn out well at all. They came out thin and hard, barely tasting like almond or espresso, and almost tasted and smelled like popcorn haha. I used a real egg in place of the flax egg, and used silpat mats. These are the only adjustments made to the recipe.
Oh no!! I’m so sorry to hear that, Leah. What type of almond butter did you use?
Can you use a regular egg instead of 1 Tablespoon ground flax whisked with 3 Tablespoons water* and do you need water?
Hey Monica – That should be fine to swap the flax egg with a regular egg and no you wouldn’t need the water. Let me know how these cookies turn out for you if you try them!
Can I use monk fruit instead? .. if so, will it be same ratio as the one in recipe?
Thanks 🙂
Hi Susy! Thanks for reaching out. I’ve never tried these with monkfruit so I’m not 100% sure what amount should be used. Let me know if you end up experimenting.
Hello Brittany!!
I became searching out a gluten unfastened alternative for a vacation cookie change, and these hit the spot. I delivered dark chocolate because I had it and chocolate makes the entirety better. Next time I may upload sea salt flakes on pinnacle.
Thanks for this easy but delicious recipe.
So glad you loved these cookies!! Thank for making them and for the review. I so appreciate it!
These cookies are so very delicious, both chewy and crunchy at the same time! Coffee adds such depth of flavor to the cookie! I simply folded in chocolate chips because … chocolate! But these cookies are so good I might not even do it next time! I will look for more of your recipes as this one is a definite winner! Thank you for sharing!
Yay!! I’m so glad this cookies have been a hit, Marie-Ann! Thanks for making them and coming back to leave a review. I really appreciate it!
These are soooo good!! I was craving a cookie this evening and decided to try these (after you posted a picture on Instagram and talked about how good they were LOL). I loved how quick and easy they were to make and the coffee adds such great flavor. Definitely will make them again!
Woo!! So happy to these cookies were a hit, Ellen. Thanks so much trying out the recipe and coming back to leave a review. I so appreciate it!
So yummy! I made two batches and I think I overcooked the second batch a bit. They were all crunch and not chewy like the first batch.
I also made them with peanut butter and brown sugar. Both substitutions seemed to work really well! I of course added some chocolate chips too, haha 🙂
Happy to hear you enjoyed these espresso cookies, Emily! Sorry to hear you overcooked the second batch, but glad they were still yummy. Thanks for the review!
Delicious! Made with an egg, almond butter & coconut sugar. Love the simplicity and the crunch!
Woo!! Happy to hear these cookies were a success, Jane. Thanks for the review!
I made these last night and they came out awesome! I ended up adding vegan chocolate chips (yum) and using a 1/2 tablespoon scoop instead 🙂 When I used the full tablespoon they were too big and melted into each other lol
Happy to hear these cookies were a success, Emily. Thanks for letting me know about your substitutions and that they worked for you!
Oh my goodness, these sound good. I can’t have almonds, so do you think Sunflower butter would be good subtitute? I can’t have peanut butter either. Also this may be a dumb question but is 1 TBL. of expresso the same as 1 TBL. ground coffee?
Hey Kathy – Any nut or seed butter should work just fine, but it might change the flavor of the cookies a tad. Keep me posted how they turn out!! Also, yes you can use finely ground coffee instead of the instant espresso if that’s what you have on hand.
A question about the coffee, can I use regular coffee or does it need to be instant? Can’t wait to bake these, my 2 favorite flavours combined!
You can use finely ground coffee if that’s all you have on hand.
excellent post thank you for sharing
I made these and they only made 8 cookies the size of yours! Not sure if English cups are the same size as your cups or if I did something wrong. They were still delicious!
Oh no! Sorry to hear that, Jasmine. I’m glad they were still a hit!
I substituted the flax egg for a chia egg, used sun butter instead of almond butter, and pressed a pecan into each cookie. Very delicious and it definitely does work with other butters! 🙂
Yay! That makes me so happy to hear. So glad they turned out with SunButter. Thanks for sharing and for coming back to leave a review. I so appreciate it!
This recipe is Brilliant! Thank you!
Of course! Glad you’re enjoying these cookies, Dawn. Thank you for your review & star rating, I really appreciate it!