Our Low-Carb Sugar Cookies boast a delicate buttery texture that everyone will love! This recipe can be part of a low-carb, gluten-free, grain-free, keto, Atkins, diabetic, or Banting diet.
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I have been baking up a storm lately! There are cookies to bake and delightful desserts to create! I want to get some recipes out to all of you so you can do holiday baking and enjoy holiday goodies without wrecking your diet!
Of course, one of the classic cookies popular this time of year are sugar cookies. Sugar cookies were always my favorite cookies to make as a kid. I loved rolling out the dough and cutting it into shapes. I remember watching them bake through the oven door. the best part, of course was decorating them.
This sugar cookie dough can be rolled into a log, then sliced into perfectly round cookies, or it can be rolled out and cut into cookies. The choice is yours!
However you decide to shape them, these cookies taste delicious. They have a delicate texture and a buttery, almond-scented flavor. It’s hard to believe they are low-carb!
These Low-Carb Sugar Cookies are perfect for nibbling at home or taking to a holiday party. Add them to a platter with our Low-Carb Molasses Gingerbread Cookies, our Low-Carb Pecan Shortbread Cookies , this keto fudge from Butter Together, and our Low-Carb Chocolate Hazelnut Cookies to make a delicious low-carb party tray. Enjoy!
Annissa
These low-carb sugar cookies are easy to make and packable. Perfect for any time of the year!
Low-Carb Sugar Cookies
Our Low-Carb Sugar Cookies boast a delicate buttery texture that everyone will love! These delicious cookies can be part of a low-carb, gluten-free, grain-free, keto, Atkins, diabetic, or Banting diet.
Ingredients
- 1 cup super fine almond flour
- 3 tablespoons granulated stevia/erythritol blend
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 pinch sea salt
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1/4 teaspoon almond extract
- 1/4 cup butter cut into several chunks
Instructions
Place almond flour, stevia/erythritol blend, baking soda, and sea salt in a food processor. Pulse a few times to blend.
Add vanilla and almond extracts and butter to the mixture. Pulse several times until the mixture sticks together and forms a dough.
For making circle shaped cookies:
Turn dough out onto a piece of parchment. Shape dough into a log shape, about 8 inches long by about 2 inches in diameter. Place dough in an air-tight container or wrap in plastic wrap. Refrigerate 3-4 hours.
Spray a baking sheet with coconut oil. Place dough on a cutting board. Using a serrated knife, cut the dough crosswise to form 16 equal sized cookies. Place cookies on the prepared cookie sheet, making sure there is at least an inch between them. Continue with baking instructions below.
For using cookie cutters:
Turn dough out onto a piece of parchment. Shape dough into a disk shape about 8 inches in diameter. Wrap dough in plastic wrap and refrigerate for 3-4 hours.
Spray a baking sheet with coconut oil. Place disk of dough onto a piece of parchment. Cover dough with an additional sheet of parchment. Roll dough out to a thickness of about 1/4 inch. Cut into desired shapes using cookie cutters. If the dough sticks to the cookie cutters, spray them with a bit of coconut oil before using them to cut the dough.
Place cookies on the prepared cookie sheet, making sure there is at least and inch between them. Continue with baking instructions below.
Baking instructions:
Preheat oven to 375º Fahrenheit.
Bake cookies for 8-10 minutes or until edges begin to brown and tops are golden. Allow cookies to cool on the tray for 2-3 minutes, then transfer them to a cooling rack using a spatula and allow to cool completely. Decorate if desired.
Recipe Notes
Serving size: 1/16th of recipe (about 1 cookie, depending on the size)
Per serving:
Calories: 66
Fat (g): 6
Carbs (g): 2
Fiber (g): 1
Protein (g): 2
Net carbs (g):1
I just made these last night, and they are delicious!! They totally don’t taste low carb, and now I am going to work my way through all of your recipes!! I have the chocolate donuts in the oven now too! Thanks for all you do!
Thanks, Haley! Have fun trying all of the recipes!
-Annissa
I don’t have a food processor. So do I use a mixer? Pls reply
Hi Sue,
You could use a pastry blender like you would to make biscuits.It will take some elbow grease and a bit of time, but it should work.
-Annissa
Can coconut flour be usex?
Sandy,
Coconut flour acts very differently than almond flour, so it can’t be replaced in an equal quantity. I’m not sure how much you would need to use without trying the recipe using coconut flour.
-Annissa
These are great. I stuck them in the freezer to cut down chill time. I personally think they are too sweet, but my husband loves them. I used golden monkfruit to sweeten these. They tasted best the next day, because they became chewy instead of crumbly. Thanks for the recipe. It’s my second time making them.
What if you don’t have food processor
You could probably cut the butter into the mixture using a wire pastry blender. It will probably take some elbow grease to get the dough smooth, but think of it as a free workout.
-Annissa
Can I sub the stevia/e with coconut sugar? I know it isn’t as low carb, but stevia gives me headaches. Thank you!
Kristin,
To use coconut sugar, you will want to use double the amount of the stevia/erythritol blend. This may affect the consistency of the batter.
-Annissa
Do you have a cookbook with the low carb recipes?
Not yet, but maybe in the future!
We have loved all of your simple recipes and I expect this one will be no exception. Thanks for the delicious ideas!
You are welcome! We must be thinking alike. Making a batch of these is on my list of things to do!
-Annissa
I made these the other day. So good and so easy!
Thank you!
-Annissa
Would this be okay for diabetics to eat?
I can’t give specific recommendations, but if I were diabetic, I would eat them! You can double check with your nutritionist.
-Annissa
Hi! I’m not eating this yet, but I need to know some stuff. This is my first time using almond flour or stevia. The almond flour says finely ground almond meal/flour. Is there a difference? Also, I don’t have a food processor, so I used a potato masher. You know the one that’s squiggly like an ‘s’. It seemed to have work, however my dough was very crumbly and sticking to my rolling pan. And fell apart. Is this normal?
Hi Kati,
The sweetener I use in this recipe is a stevia/erythritol blend that is twice as sweet as sugar. This sweetener is called Pyure and is widely available in the USA. I do not recommending pure stevia in this recipe as it doesn’t have enough bulk. I try to stick to natural sweetness as opposed to artificial ones. Almond meal and almond flour are similar. Often almond meal is made from almonds that still have the brown skins and is not as finely ground as almond flour. If you’re trying to use a potato masher, I recommend squishing the dough together at the end and kneading it once or twice on a piece of parchment to make sure the ingredients are combined. Then, I would roll it into a log, refrigerate it for several hours and slice it into rounds to bake. The dough can be crumbly and a bit sticky. That is why I recommend using parchment paper. I hope this helps. I wish I could come to your kitchen and show you how to do all of this. It’s hard to explain.
-Annissa
Thank you, Annissa for responding! I appreciate it ! I’ll try the things you’ve suggested. Haha! There is always Zoom! Haha jk. Yeah, I love sugar but not super sweet stuff, and some artificial sweeteners at times. I’ll have to see if I can find that blend. Mine is I need mash it together m”Kroger Stevia Zero Calerie Sweetner Blend, made from Stevia extract.” It has Erythritol, Dextrose with maltodextrin rebiana (stevia leaf extract), natural flavors. I think it is what you’re talking about.
I did master it more at the end cause it wasn’t fully combined.
Thanks for your help and this recipe. I’m about to cook it now. Hopefully I didn’t chill .it too long. I made it last night.
Kati,
I’m curious how they turned out for you.
-Annissa
I love the simplicity of this recipe! I don’t have time for complicated processes or endless ingredient lists. Planning on trying these out today! Thanks!!!
Thank you! It’s nice to be able to make cookies easily! The only thing that takes time with this recipe is the chilling process. Quite frankly, if you didn’t want to spend the time chilling the dough, you could probably get away with it, although the dough won’t be as easy to work with.
-Annissa
I’ve become enamored with cookie molds. Will this recipe work for these? I have a friend who is diabetic I would like to gift her with these cookies, but want to use some of the beautiful molds I’ve collected.
JoAnn,
I’ve never used cookie molds with this recipe, so I don’t know how it would work, but I don’t have any reason to think that it wouldn’t work. I would spray the mold well with cooking spray first to help prevent sticking. I think the cookies would hold their shape well in the oven.
-Annissa
Mix a little powdered Swerve with cream cheese to taste and frost them and top with a couple berries – blueberry and strawberry slices. Mmmmmmm
and a few drops of vanilla extract
Sounds yummy!
Could you use nutribullet to pulse?
Hi Sophia,
I don’t know how a Nutribullet does with dry ingredients. If it has a food processor attachment, that might work. Otherwise, you could probably simply use a pastry blender like you would for biscuits.
Annissa
Could you use monkfruit for the sweetener?
If it’s the powdered Monk fruit, it may not have enough bulk. If it’s mixed with erythritol, you may need to change the quantity depending on how sweet it is. The sweetener I use is twice as sweet as sugar. If your sweetener is the same sweetness as sugar, you will need to use twice as much.
-Annissa
These are amazing, I love the almond scent! The only thing is I had to double the recipe to get 16 cookies.
So glad you enjoyed them! Thanks for your feedback!
Annissa
Looks so good, could you substitute cocunut oil and/or butter for the real utter as I have a dairy allergy. Thanks Pat
Pat,
In most of my recipes coconut oil can be substituted, but I’m not sure about this one. Butter is a super-important ingredient in this one and a difference in melting point and other small differences may change how the recipe works.
-Annissa
Hi can I use equal amount of granulated swerve in place of Stevie/erythritel blend?
Lisa,
Swerve is only about half as sweet as Pyure, so you’ll need to use more to get the same sweetness. This may affect the texture of the dough. I think it will be okay, but honestly, I’m not positive.
Annissa
So so good! Hard not to eat all of them at once.
That’s definitely the challenge!
Thanks for the recipe! Super easy and it uses basic ingredients. I forgot to refrigerate the dough before baking (too eager for cookies I guess). The dough was difficult to work with but the finished product was still delicious! I used some sugar cookie flavor drops since I didn’t have almond or vanilla extract, worked well.
The waiting is the hardest part. If I don’t want to wait,I’ve found that I can roll out the dough between two sheets of parchment and chill for just 1/2 hour to an hour, then cut out the cookies. The dough chills faster if it’s rolled out.
-Annissa
Can you use I can’t believe it’s not butter sticks instead of real butter, or use vegan butter? Im not supposed to eat all that grease from the cow.Im supposed to choose heart friendly options.
Rosanna,
I think those options would work for the recipe, but I would be careful about trans fats in many margarines. It seems that trans fats are the least heart-friendly options. This article is an excellent explanation about fats and how your body uses them.
Annissa
Can you use something else for the almond extract? Or could you leave it out? My family and I aren’t to fond of the taste it has? Could I add more vanilla? If so how much? Thanks! We are planning on decorating Christmas cookies and I want to be able to eat some lol!
Kate,
You could just leave it out and they would be fine.
-Annissa
We live at 7,000 feet. What adjustments should I make to bake these cookies? We have been keto for a few months and my autistic son needs a no-sugar treat for the holidays. Thanks!
Shel,
Honestly, I’ve never worked at high altitude, so I’m not really sure. I can’t speak from personal experience, but general recommendations are to increase the temperature (maybe try adding 25º Fahrenheit). You will want to watch them carefully as baking time may be different (probably longer, but if you increase the temperature, I’m not sure. You may want to decrease the baking soda slightly. Good luck and let me know how it goes.
Annissa
Do you think the dough could be frozen? And if so, how much increased baking time would be needed? I’m making these for my son, and thinking of slicing them and freezing, so he can take a few out and bake them fresh. Thanks!
I don’t know how that would work. Maybe you could try it with a few and see how it goes.
Annissa
Hi, can I replace the sweetener with regular sugar and almond flour with regular plain flour?
You may just want to use a sugar cookie recipe that isn’t low-carb rather than worrying about substitutions in this one.
-Annissa
I mixed the dough with my hand, used this recipe to make snickerdoodles they where sooo yummy! Thank you!
Sounds delicious!
-Annissa
I don’t know if you are still taking comments or questions, but I will try it. Would this recipe be suitable to use in a cookie press? Thank you!
Marcella,
I’m a little on the fence about using a cookie press. Honestly, I haven’t used one in years, so I’m trying to remember the consistency of the dough used. My guess is that it might work. You probably won’t want to chill it. Probably the best thing to do would be to try it with a small amount and see if it works out. If not, you can chill and slice or chill and roll. Please report back as I’m curious too.
-Annissa
I only have pure Stevia packets (like for coffee). How would that translate into this recipe?
Pure stevia would not work in this recipe because it doesn’t have the same amount of bulk that the sweetener I use does.
Annissa
Great recipe, is there a reason that you have to chill the dough, first? It seems, you could just bake them after putting dough together. I used Splenda and it was fabulous. I only got 12 cookies out of it, but we had only 2 left after the first day. I’m going to add PB Fit to the next batch, I’ll let you know how they turn out.
Chilling the dough helps it hold together better when slicing. It’s commonly done with sugar cookies. If it works for you without chilling, then do what works!
Annissa
Hi I’m excited to try this recipe it looks delicious! Can i use xylitol as the sweetener? and how important is the almond extract because I don’t have that.
Hayley,
I think this will work with xylitol, but it might change the texture. They may not be as crisp. You will need to use more to get the same sweetness as Pyure which may change the consistency of the batter. Sweetener substitutions can be a bit tricky.
-Annissa
Can all purpose or self-rising flour be used vs almond flour?
I wouldn’t try that with this recipe. The two flours act very differently.
-Annissa
This recipe looks sooooo good
I was recently diagnosed with type 2 diabetes and this recipe looks perfect !!!!
I wanted to know if I could use Splenda as a replacement?
Rachel,
I’m always wary of substituting sweeteners. Some bloggers act like you can just swap them around, but I’m a bit more conservative. Each sweetener has different properties and some work better than others in certain recipes. My concern with substituting Splenda in this recipe is that you may need to change the amount to get the same sweetness.This may cause some problems due to the added (or decreased, depending on which specific product you’re using) bulk. The sweetener I use, Pyure baking blend is twice as sweet as sugar.
-Annissa
I’ve made this recipe with blanched and whole almond flour; works with both. The whole almond flour made it dark and not like a sugar cookie, but has the benefit of nutrition in the skins. I doubled recipe to get 42 smallish cookies from 2 8” rolls, about 1.5 inches diameter, the cookies expanding to about 2”. I put 1 t cinnamon in a double batch and a scant 1/2 cup of Stevia baking blend, and they are really really good! Cinnamon really adds to it. Easy too. Many thanks.
Thanks for sharing your variations! Glad you’re enjoying the recipe.
-Annissa
Hi, Also, stevia is too sweet but I still want it low carb because i’m pre-diabetic. What about splenda or one of those? Or could I just lower the stevia to 2 tbs instead of 3?
And is it okay to chill more than 4 hours?
Kati,
You would not want to use pure stevia powder in this recipe. It’s super-sweet and won’t have the bulk needed. I use Pyure baking blend which is twice as sweet as sugar. If you like your cookies less sweet, you could use a sweetener that is the same sweetness as sugar and keep the amount used the same. You may chill it more than 4 hours.
-Annissa
How do you store the cookies?
I store them in an air-tight container at room temperature.