Sugar-Free Low Carb Chocolate Chip Cookies (Keto, Nut Free)
These are the BEST CHEWY LOW CARB KETO Sugar-Free Chocolate Chip Cookie you will ever need or want!
Creating that traditional tender inside, chewy bite of a sugar and gluten filled chocolate chip cookie, I thought was simply out of reach. I’ve been working on this recipe for years, quite literally. I’ve researched what makes the best the chocolate chip cookie and found 3 important elements that need to happen to achieve perfection of a low carb sugar-free cookie and I’m sharing the secrets today!
Number One important inclusion to the perfect chocolate chip cookie? You need extra egg yolks. Additional Egg yolks provide more fat than just using eggs alone which helps create a smooth and creamy texture that is undeniably what may have been missing in my past attempts.
Number Two? You must CHILL the DOUGH for at least 2-3 hours. This is hard to swallow because who really wants to wait that long when you’re craving some cookies? In a traditional recipe using gluten, the chilling allows the gluten strands to relax. Chilling the dough also gives the flour time to rehydrate, especially helpful so our cookies won’t be dry. My recipe makes 30 cookies. Bake a dozen, prepare the rest and freeze them! When you want some cookies just pull out the already perfectly shaped little cookies and bake!
The FINAL most important part of making a gluten free, low carb, sugar free cookie get that “bite” to it that just really can’t be beat? The secret ingredients is………drum roll please……… GELATIN POWDER!
For some reason the gelatin powder helps the low carb flour I’ve used in this recipe, have that chewy factor I felt was always missing in other cookies. Gelatin of course is used in most jelly type desserts but when you add it to these cookies it helps bind. It acts like a glue, almost like gluten would act in a recipe which creates this chewy texture!
KETO CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIES
Low Carb Keto Chocolate Chip Cookies (Nut Free, Gluten Free)
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup butter softened
- 4 oz cream cheese softened
- 1/2 cup tahini or a nut butter of choice
- 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
- 1/2 tsp vanilla liquid stevia
- 2 eggs
- 2 egg yolks
- 1 cup Swerve confectioners
- 1.5 cups sesame flour
- 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp beef gelatin powder
- 1 cup sugar free chocolate chips
Instructions
- Place the first 7 ingredients together in a stand mixer and blend on high until well combined.
- Add the next 5 dry ingredients to the mixer and blend until combined.
- Stir in the chocolate chips by hand. Form a ball and wrap in plastic wrap.
- Refrigerate 2-3 hours.
- Using about a tablespoon of batter, make 30 balls of dough. Flatten them and place on a parchment lined baking sheet. You can bake 1 dozen and freeze the remaining cookies between parchment paper in an air tight container.
- When you're ready to bake preheat the oven to 350 degrees F and bake for 18-20 minutes. Cool and enjoy!
Notes
- I've made these cookies without the tahini and instead used an additional 1/2 cup of the sesame flour. With that change you would be able to get 30 total cookies instead. My hubby stated they were more cake like and loved them. I prefer the addition of the tahini and feel it creates more of that chewy bite.
- If you don't have a nut allergy in the family feel free to use almond flour in place of sesame and a nut butter of choice in place of the tahini.
- I've also made these without any cream cheese and again felt while they were good cookies, they were more cake like. The cream cheese adds more fat and more of that texture. You could replace with a dairy free cream cheese if needed or possibly try coconut cream in its place.
- UPDATE: Dec 2018 I added 1 tsp of baking soda and these expanded nicely and are more chewy. If you like a dense more like a chips ahoy cookie don't added the baking soda. If you prefer a chewier cookie, add 1 tsp of baking soda when you add the baking powder. Please note that using baking soda with sunflower seed butter or tahini will cause a chemical reaction with the natural chlorophyl from the sunflowers and sesame will turn the inside of the cookies green.
Nutrition
About Brenda
Brenda Bennett is a certified Nutritional Therapy Practitioner, certified Sugar Detox Coach, certified Keto Coach and certified Life Coach. She has been Sugar Free & Refined carb free for 17 years and has written 2 cookbooks, Sugar-Free Mom, and Naturally Keto and her 3rd book The 30-Day Sugar Elimination Diet, is a four part program to help you detox from sugar, eliminate cravings, balance blood sugar and lose weight all while eating a delicious, nutrient dense whole foods. Meal plan offers two tracks to follow, low carb or keto. She is the founder of the Sugar Free Fresh Start course and Sugar Free Tribe weight loss membership. Learn more.
I baked these tonight. Made the dough yesterday and put in a bowl in the fridge overnight. Used Knox Gelatin instead of the beef gelatin. Baked for the full 20 minutes, but the first batch is a bit dry. When I decide to make the next 12, I’ll bake for a shorter time. I used about 1/4 of the dough for 12 cookies, so I guess mine are small – which could be why they are a bit dry, now that I think of it.
I dunked these in almond milk, and they soak up the liquid just like regular cookies!
Non-keto Comparison: My daughter tried these side by side with the Nestle toll house cookies she and my son made, and she said for a non-sugar cookie, they are good.
I followed this recipe exactly with the exception of substituting almond for sesame flour but I had read that was ok to do. My “dough” is mushy. I couldn’t form it into a ball before wrapping it in saran wrap. What could have gone wrong?
If the dough was mushy, it needed more almond flour. It’s hard to tell exactly as sesame does absorb more liquids like coconut flour so with almond, and depending on the brand and how fine it is, it needed more for these cookies. When trying to swap any of these flours, just remember how you know the dough should look for a cookie batter and add just 1/4 cup more until you see the batter isn’t mushy or wet.
does beef gelatin powder has a beefy taste in the cookie
I have used beef gelatin in chaffle recipes. There was no beef taste.
Can cashew flour or coconut flour be used? What about gluten-free all purpose from Bob’s Red Mill?
I haven’t tried either cashew or coconut but they would not be in the same amounts. You might have better luck with almond flour.
Can I use unflavored gelatin powder? Like Knox?
Thank you, cant wait to try this
yes
Is Tahini naturally soupy? I just bought a new jar (organic), and upon opening it, it was pretty runny. It was at room temperature. I have to refrigerate after opening. My dough is in the fridge right now. I am concerned these are not going to set up. Help!
Yes naturally loose in texture.