This post is part of the Health, Home & Happiness sweetener free challenge for April 2010
These cookies are very similar to the Hazelnut Shortbread recipe, just a few slight differences. I actually like them even better than the shortbread recipe though, perhaps because they are cooked in rounds and not bars, so have a chance to crisp a bit more. I love the sweet almond flavor paired with vanilla.
These cookies are filling and all you need is one, very satisfying and gluten free! They also have a lot less carbs than regular cookies, since they are flourless.
Having really good Crispy Almonds will be important to this recipe. You can make them yourself, or you could do like I did in this instance and get them from JoshEWEa’s Garden. Their crispy almonds are amazing! Extremely crisp and flavorful, a much superior product to the one that I made at home.
Tips for making Almond Cookies:
- You can substitute any other natural granular sweetener that you have, I used coconut palm sugar because I had some, but I would also use Rapadura, coconut sugar, palm sugar or even maple sugar.
- This is a great recipe because it’s made in the food processor completely so it comes together easily and quickly if you have all of the ingredients on hand.
- I used a small cookie/ice cream scoop to scoop these out onto the baking sheet, and it worked really well.
- Use a Silpat or parchment paper on the baking sheet. Even though I buttered my pan well, the cookies still stuck a bit. I was able to get them off of the pan but next time I will use my silpat.
Almond Cookies
Rating: 4 forks (key)
Difficulty:
Easy to moderate
Page in NT: 528
Yield & Notes:
Makes 18 cookies
Ingredients:
1 1/2 cups Crispy Almonds (or get yours from JoshEWEa’s Garden)
1/2 cup butter, softened, or coconut oil [TNC: I used butter since I'm out of coconut oil]
1 cup arrowroot or 7/8 cup bulgur flour [TNC: I used arrowroot]
1/2 cup Rapadura [TNC: or - coconut palm sugar, coconut sugar, palm sugar, maple sugar]
1/2 tsp sea salt
grated rind of 1 lemon [TNC: I left this out but I think it would be good]
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon almond extract [TNC: the original NT recipe says 1 tsp but I think it was a bit too strong]
about 18 whole crispy almonds, 1 per cookie
Preparation:
Place almonds in food processor and process to a fine meal. Add remaining ingredients, execpt the 18 whole crispy almonds, and process until well blended. Form dough into walnut-sized balls and place on buttered cookie sheets. Press a whole crispy almond into the top of each cookie. Bake at 300 degrees for about 20 minutes total, but after about 5 minutes in the oven, press each cookie down lightly with a fork. Let the cookies cool completely before removing to an airtight container. Store in the refrigerator.
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{ 9 comments… read them below or add one }
How do you find the palm sugar to taste in recipes compared to the Rapidura? I don’t care for the rapidura too much, as the flavor is so strong, but I just picked up some palm sugar and the flavor seems milder.
Hi Laurie… I think it is a bit milder taste than Rapadura but it’s still a whole sweetener. The best place to get it here in Oregon is at my local Asian market. But there are sources on the internet too, but they are so much more expensive. I bought this coconut palm sugar a couple years ago and never used it up, forgot about it in the back of my cupboard until just now! It is lighter brown than Rapadura so less minerals.
Funny, I was just eating one when you wrote this comment! These would be great crumbled up over yogurt too. Yes you do need to use the oven for a long time, but I found that I could put in two trays at once and it made enough for a long time. Or you could take a look at the dehydrators, Excalibur seems to have the best reviews from the NT bloggers that I know.
Yum, these sound good. I haven’t yet tried to make crispy nuts as it seems like you need the oven on for rather a long time.
These are delicious! I ate almost half of them in a day! But I do get hungry as I’m nursing.
Hi Kim, I was looking at this recipe and as I have a child with a severe nut allergy I need to alter a few of Sally Fallon’s recipes. What would you recommend to replace the almonds?
Hi Chris… since this recipe is pretty much 80% nuts, I don’t know that a substitution would work so well. There is also a sweet potato cookie recipe in Nourishing Traditions that I’ve heard is good, but I haven’t made it yet. Also, the lemon bread recipe may be a good substitute. These can also be made into muffins.
If anyone else has ideas on nutless NT cookie recipes please chime in!
Olivia… glad you enjoyed them! I found that they were even better a day or two after they were baked. I stored them in the fridge.
I was just wondering what the difference would be using blanched almonds or with skins? Could the whole nuts go rancid more easily when heated? I wonder which is healthier. Does anyone know?
Anyone know if cornstarch could be used as a substitute for arrowroot powder?
Another question