Soft and chewy, these keto chocolate chip cookies have only 2g net carbs per cookie! These are a favorite on my blog, and in my house. Bonus they’re sugar-free, paleo-friendly, and have a nut-free and egg-free option! It took a few tries, but I tell ya, they’re the best, and we’re hooked. People are always messaging me to thank me for this recipe. After many attempts, they finally found the perfect keto chocolate chip cookie.
Head to the bottom of the post for the full recipe or keep on reading to learn all the tips and tricks for the best chewy keto cookies, ever.
Table of Contents
I got close with my Giant Low Carb Cookies… Have you seen that recipe? The look, the flavor is spot on but the texture is actually best the next day. I’m realistic, I’m honest. I know the perfect cookie is hard to come by. So when I tell you that THIS IS IT. I am not fucking around. These gluten-free, sugar-free, low-carb chocolate chip cookies are a favorite for anyone who makes them.
The secret is that you need to have the perfect ratio of fat to flour, too much fat and they will turn out too flat. Then you need a good amount of sweetener, melted/ caramelized sweetener in baked goods contributes a lot of holds and chew. Lastly, the. most important ingredient and what sets THESE CHEWY COOKIES apart is grass-fed gelatin.
Magic Ingreidients
These chewy chocolate chip keto cookies are one of the most popular recipes on the blog, second to the Avocado Brownies. They use almond flour, ghee, one egg, and the secret ingredient: gelatin. The result is a soft but dense cookie with a nice chew. The pools of melty chocolate are a bonus! Everyone, even non-paleo boyfriends and spouses… mine included… LOVE these. The magic is in the ingredients!
- You want to use almond flour or almond meal that is made from blanched almonds, meaning they don’t have their skin. It will look beige, not speckled with brown. These days most almond meal is fine ground, some bags so say it, a fine ground flour will make smoother cookies.
- You can use ghee or coconut oil, butter or lard, any saturated fat will do.
- The sweetener is your choice too! I use a keto sweetener, like Lakanto Golden, but coconut sugar works well.
- I really like chopped-up dark chocolate for cookies, it creates those big melty pools. Choosing chocolate that doesn’t have added lecithin in it will also result. Chips will usually not melt in cookies.
- The gelatin in here, as well as the denseness of them, is what makes them chewy. They’re not a crispy or bendy cookie. They’re like Soft Batch cookies! I use pastured beef gelatin but Knox will work too, as long as it’s powered.
Allergen Free Variations
Need the egg-free recipe?
- Mix one tablespoon of flaxseed meal with one tablespoon of water.
- Let it sit to get thick and gelatinous for about 5 minutes.
- Use that as your egg. Follow the recipe as written.
- The adorable Sadie from Goodies Against The Grain made them like this and they turned out beautifully! I’ve since made them with a flax egg and it works well.
Need a nut-free recipe?
- I’ve developed a nut-free keto cookie, a version of these cookies that is just as good as this one, the recipe is in my best-selling cookbook, Made Whole.
- What you do is use 2 eggs and use 1/3 cup + 2 tablespoons coconut flour. That’s it. The rest of the recipe stays the same!
Step by Step Keto Cookies
- Start by whisking the egg vigorously until it’s frothy.
- Then you add in the melted ghee, vanilla and sweetener and mix well.
- Then you add in all of the dry ingredients.
- Use a spatula and mix and fold make a dough, it will be a very thick, almost dry dough.
- Add in the dairy free milk and fold and mix until it comes together again.
- Add in the chocolate and fold it in until thoroughly mixed in.
- Shape one-inch balls with the dough.
- Place them on a lined sheet pan and gently flatten.
- Repeat with all of the dough.
- Bake for 15 minutes. Let cool and dig in!
Frequently Asked Questions
Almond flour is lower carb by volume, and coconut flour is higher in fiber, and much more dense.
So while per cup coconut flour is higher in carbs, you use much less per recipe. For example, 2 cups of almond flour would substitute for 2/3 cup coconut flour.
I like several kinds. If you do well with keto sweeteners I like Lily’s Dark Chocolate Chips. If you prefer a very dark with very little sugar chocolate, I like Pasha’s Dark Chocolate Chips. I am also a fan of using chopped-up dark chocolate bars, chocolate without lecithin will melt better in the cookies.
Yes, make your dough balls and refrigerate for 2-3 days or freeze. Thaw to bake!
Yes, although they won’t be quite as chewy, they will still be delicious!
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Chewy Keto Chocolate Chip Cookies
- Prep Time: 10
- Cook Time: 10
- Total Time: 20 minutes
- Yield: 12 cookies 1x
- Category: desserts
- Method: baking
- Cuisine: American
- Diet: Gluten Free
Description
One bowl and 15 minutes to the BEST Keto Chocolate Chip Cookie!
Ingredients
- 1 large egg
- 3 tbsp melted ghee (coconut oil or softened butter)
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1/3 cup Swerve Sweetener, Lakanto (or coconut palm sugar for paleo)
- 2 cups fine ground almond meal or flour (from blanched almonds)
- 1 tbsp pastured gelatin (for chewy factor, but you may omit)
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1/2 tsp flake salt (if using fine salt only use 1/4 tsp)
- 1/3 cup milk (I use cashew milk, or coconut milk)
- 1 cup chopped dark chocolate (I use Alter Eco)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 325F convection (or 350F bake).
- In a medium bowl, whisk egg until frothy. Keep whisking as you add in the oil, vanilla, and sweetener. Mix well.
- Add in the almond meal, baking soda, salt, and gelatin. Whisk to combine the dry ingredients.
- Switch to a spatula and mix until the dough is crumbly. Add in the milk, mix well until the dough comes together again. Once the dough is moist, chop the chocolate into small pieces and fold in.
- Shape 1 inch balls with the dough, roll between your hands to make smooth, even balls, and place them 2 inches apart on a sheet pan lined with parchment paper. Gently flatten the cookies with the palm of your hand or the back of a spoon.
- Bake 15 minutes or until the base of the cookies turns golden brown. Remove from oven, let cool for ten minutes. Enjoy!
Recipe Notes:
- READ THE POST FOR NUT FREE AND EGG FREE VARIATIONS
- The gelatin is there to make them chewy once the cookies cool down. You can use peptides if you want a protein boost or you can omit them altogether, the recipe is still bomb dot com.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1
- Calories: 157
- Fat: 14.6g
- Carbohydrates: 2g (net)
- Fiber: 3g
- Protein: 4.1g
Joi L Reece says
This keto cookie is absolutely amazeballs. So chewy and buttery…. I’m a fan. Gelatin is my new bff.
Cristina says
whoot whoot!
Becca says
The milk is never addressed but I’m assuming it gets added with the wet ingredients? Or am I dumb ?
Cristina says
Milk added in step number 8 🙂 It’s there.
Diane Moore says
This is not the first keto/Paleo choc chip recipe I’ve tried, but it is the best! They taste awesome and you can actually pick them up without them falling apart or crumbling in your hand. My new go to recipe!
Cristina says
Yeah! Thank you so much!!!
Theresa says
Taste good but… First batch according to recipe was dry and fell apart so I doubled the butter and added two large spoonfuls of cream cheese so it would stick together.. And there perfect.. Thank you for the recipe
Cristina says
Hi Theresa, I can assure you, the recipe as written works and is absolutely delicious. These cookies are one of my most beloved recipes, made by thousands of folks, hence my confidence in it. However, I’m glad that you were able to troubleshoot. Thanks for sharing!
Jodi says
I’m confused – the top of the recipe says yield is 24 but the final step says it makes about 20.
Also the carb count reads 3.2 under recipe notes, but below that the carb count reads 2.3 and fiber 1.1.
Can you please clarify? Thank you!!
Cristina says
24 cookies, 3.2 total carb count.
Jodi says
Excellent, thank you Cristina! I am obsessed with these cookies!!
Cristina says
You’re very welcome Jodi! Thank you!
Stephanie Musser says
Perfect cookies. Can fool the best of them! Thank you!
Cristina says
woohooo!!
Elizabeth says
Agree with Lauren, I also used almond milk and would back off on the sweetener to a 1/4 cup (just a tad too much aftertaste). I have been searching for a flax seed cookie so I manipulated yours. I subbed in 1/2 cup milled flax seed for 1 1/2 cup almond flour. (and would lighten the sweetener). For this flax recipe, I am also going to do 1/4 almond milk and 2-3 tbsp of table cream next time. What a great recipe you figured out! I can’t wait to try the original!! (sorry, I was fixated on getting a flax cookie similar to what I used to buy at the bakery [non-keto]).
Samantha McDowell says
Mine didn’t turn out looking like the picture, but man are they GOOD!! I’ve been doing the Keto diet for one month so far, I’m 3 months postpartum with twins and trying to get back to my slimmer figure. These cookies are the best Keto dessert I’ve tried so far! Recipes like this are what keep me going strong with no cheats. Thank you for sharing!?
Cristina says
Thanks so much Samantha!
Robyn says
This recipe looks amazing! Any idea whether you can substitute aquafaba for the egg? (I know you have a flax seed option, but I’m on an aquafaba kick… :)) Thanks so much!!
Cristina says
I haven’t tried it with aquafaba lmk how it turns out
Connie says
Hi Cristina! I was wondering if I could sub the almond flour for sesame flour? I’m very allergic to nuts.
Connie Gould
Cristina says
I’ve never used sesame flour, but I assume yes. There is also a coconut flour version linked in the post.
Madeline says
I just made these and they’re to die for! The texture is just right! Best Keto cookie recipe ever! And I’ve tried just about all of them. Thank you!
Cristina says
yeahhh thank you so much!!!
Smetha says
These were a complete disappointment for me. I don’t understand why. I used melted butter but when I added the 2 cups of almond flour, the mixture was really sticky. I couldn’t imagine adding milk to the already sticky mixture so I had to add some coconut flour until it would come together.
The end result is tasty – but crumbly. Is it normal for the dough to be so sticky? Was it because I melted the butter?
Any thoughts?
Cristina says
Smetha, I can’t take responsiblilty for the recipe not turning out if you did not follow the instructions. The sticky/thick dough would have become softer with the almond milk, a liquid. Adding coconut flour that is SUPER absorbent just made it DRY. Next time, just follow the recipe 🙂 Ps. There is a recipe on my youtube channel if you need a visual.
Smetha says
Yeah – I agree…I should have just followed the recipe. But I got nervous when I encountered the stickiness and didn’t want to get a big mess by adding milk. I’ll try again. PS: I wasn’t holding you responsible – just wanted to check if you want some suggestions. I’ll checkout your YouTube channel.
Krista says
Does it call for canned coconut milk (super thick and rich) or boxed (thinner and more for drinking)? Thanks–can’t wait to make these tomorrow, they look amazing.
Cristina says
Canned, I don’t use the box stuff because it always has lots of filler ingredients.
Julie says
Hi, if I wanted to freeze these, should I freeze dough unbaked or cooked? Thanks!
Cristina says
hmmmm I would freeze the dough
Alison says
Hello, I was wondering if this would work with just regular Erythritol? I bought some today and am looking for recipes to use with it.
Cristina says
It should 🙂
Cheryl Montgomery says
These are PERFECT! I am loving all of your recipes and the hard work you have put into making sure they are delicious!!
Cristina says
Thank you so much Cheryl!!!