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!
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.
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.