Almond Butter Espresso Cookies
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Published Dec 08, 2021, Updated Feb 20, 2024
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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
- Oatmeal Raisin Cookies
- Almond Flour Chocolate Chip Cookies
- Oatmeal Date Cookies
- Brown Butter Chocolate Chip 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!
If you enjoyed this recipe, please consider leaving a ⭐ star rating and let me know how it went in the 📝 comments below.
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.
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?
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.
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!
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
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
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
@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.
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
Would coconut sugar work instead of the organic sugar?
Can I used ground dark roast coffee beans instead of espresso beans?
Hi Maya. I think that should work just fine. Enjoy the cookies.