CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIES (GLUTEN-FREE, DAIRY-FREE, EGG-FREE, REFINED SUGAR-FREE)
on Aug 22, 2024, Updated Jun 09, 2025
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Pillowy, chewy cookies filled with dark chocolate chunks that just so happen to be healthier for you?! Go ahead and file this recipe away as “must try ASAP”!
The perfect chocolate chip cookie really does exist. AND it just happens to be gluten-free, dairy-free, egg-free, and refined sugar-free!
For my fellow egg-sensitive friends, finding a dessert recipe that doesn’t call for this key binding ingredient can be challenging. While many egg-free dessert recipes substitute with a flax egg or chia egg, I found that the combo of almond flour, tapioca flour, and creamy nut butter works best.
I’ve been looking to recreate classic recipes with a gluten-free and dairy-free twist. As you can imagine, Chocolate Chip Cookies were high on the list.
Baking gluten-free isn’t always the easiest, either. Add on top of it my own request to make it dairy-free, egg-free, refined sugar-free and we have ourselves our very own science experiment going on!
These gluten-free chocolate chip cookies still look and taste like the beloved original, just healthier!
Bake these up whenever you’re craving a little something sweet or make them for a party or neighborhood bake sale. Your friends and family may not even realize that these cookies are healthified, but they will recognize just how delicious they are. Enjoy!
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Pin ItIngredients for Eggless Chocolate Chip Cookies
Just 10 ingredients are all you’ll need to bake a dozen warm chocolate chip cookies! Gather your ingredients and let’s get baking!
- Nut Butter: I love to use cashew butter for these cookies, specifically Maisie Jane’s Organic Cashew Butter because it only has roasted cashews and no added oils or sugars.
- Coconut Sugar: I opted for coconut sugar since it’s more natural than refined white sugar.
- Maple Syrup: Another natural sweetener, maple syrup, gives the cookies a slightly nutty note.
- Vanilla Extract: The price of your vanilla extract will dictate its quality. Anything labeled as vanilla flavor typically has artificial ingredients, while pure vanilla extract is the real deal. Yes, it can be pricey, but remember you only use a bit in every dessert recipe, so it’s well worth the upfront cost.
- Almond Flour: To play up the nutty theme, almond flour is used as the main flour in this recipe.
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- Tapioca Flour: An essential ingredient in many gluten-free baked goods, tapioca flour makes the cookies soft and chewy. Tapioca flour is relatively inexpensive and can be used for breads and cakes too.
- Baking Powder: A teaspoon of baking powder will provide enough lift so the cookies come out light and fluffy.
- Salt: Adding a touch of regular salt in the cookie dough will bring out all the flavors of the sugar and chocolate.
- Dairy-Free Chocolate: The best part of the cookie, am I right?! A blend of dark chocolate chips and chunks leads to the most satisfying cookie, IMO. I love @hukitchen chocolate and chose to chop up one of their chocolate bars and use their dairy-free chocolate chips.
- Flaky Sea Salt: To take these over the top, I sprinkle each cookie with a few granules of flaky sea salt. These salt crystals provide an intense burst of flavor, contrasting with the sweet chocolate chips. @maldonsalt is my flaky sea salt of choice!
How to Make Gluten-Free Egg-Free Chocolate Chip Cookies
Before you do anything, go ahead and preheat your oven to 350°F. Then, line a large baking sheet with parchment paper.
Add the nut butter, maple syrup, and vanilla extract plus the coconut sugar to a medium mixing bowl or bowl of a stand mixer. Beat with a hand mixer or the stand mixer until well combined.
Add the almond flour, tapioca flour, baking powder, and regular salt. To create the most fluffy cookies ever, I prefer to sift the dry ingredients, but you can skip this step if you’re in a rush or don’t have a sifter. Beat with the mixer until there are no lumps remaining.
Using a large spatula, stir in your chocolate chips and/or chunks (tasting a few to be sure they’re good is, of course, optional but highly recommended!)
Scoop and roll the cookie dough into 1-inch balls.
Bake for 13 minutes until the top is golden and the cookies are set in the center. Note, they will still be quite soft.
Allow them to cool on the pan on a wire rack for a few minutes. Carefully transfer the cookies to finish cooling on the wire rack using a spatula.
Top each cookie with flaky sea salt and enjoy!
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Pin ItSubstitutions for these Gluten-Free Egg-Free Cookies
You can use other types of nut butter instead of cashew, such as almond, however the final consistency may be different. They’ll still taste great but they may be softer or chewier, depending on what type you use. If your nut butter has any oil on top, be sure to stir it thoroughly. This separation is natural, but you’ll get the most even consistency if the butter is mixed well.
I have not tried swapping in honey for the maple syrup, but if you do give it a try and let me know how it turns out. Using maple syrup also keeps the cookies 100% vegan!
Almond flour works best as opposed to almond meal which has a more gritty texture. Do not substitute coconut flour to almond flour as it is not a one-to-one substitute.
Other Gluten-Free Cookie Desserts To Make and Devour:
- Single Serve Deep Dish Chocolate Chip Cookie
- Vanilla Salted Cashew Butter Cookies
- Healthier Peanut Butter Blossoms (Gluten-Free, Dairy-Free)
- Gluten-Free Shortbread Cookies
- Chocolate Chip Cookie Inspired Granola
CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIES (GLUTEN-FREE, DAIRY-FREE, EGG-FREE, REFINED SUGAR-FREE)
Ingredients
- 1 cup creamy nut butter, such as cashew butter (see note 1)
- ½ cup coconut sugar
- ½ cup maple syrup
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1 ¼ cups almond flour (see note 2)
- ¼ cup tapioca flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ½ cup dairy-free chocolate chips and/or chunks (I used a combo of both)
- Flaky sea salt, to sprinkle
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 350°F.
- Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Add the wet ingredients (nut butter, maple syrup, and vanilla extract) plus coconut sugar to a medium mixing bowl. Beat with a hand or stand mixer until well combined (see note 3).
- Add the remainder of your ingredients (almond flour, tapioca flour, baking powder, and salt). I like to sift the dry ingredients, but this is optional. Beat with the mixer until there are no lumps remaining.
- Using a spatula, stir in your chocolate chips and/or chunks.
- Scoop and roll cookie dough into 1-inch balls.
- Bake for 13 minutes until the top is golden and the cookies are set in the center (they will still be quite soft).
- Allow to cool on the pan on a wire rack for a few minutes. Carefully transfer the cookies to finish cooling on the wire rack.
- Top with flaky sea salt and ENJOY!
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Hi Olivia,
Thank you so much for sharing this amazing and delicious cookies recipe, they are absolute delicious.
So happy you love these ones, Linda! Thank you so much for the feedback.
Brought these to friends dinner night for dessert and they were a hit!
I substituted arrowroot starch for Tapioca flour and used the peanut butter I had on hand. Delish!
Thank you so much, Courtney! So happy you and everyone loved these.
Can you use tahini as the nut butter?
Hi Lana! I haven’t tried with tahini but that sounds delicious! They may just be a little bit more bitter but if you like the taste of tahini, then give it a try and let me know how they turn out!
I made these for Valentine’s Day, and unfortunately, they didn’t turn out as expected. I followed the recipe exactly, However, the cookies turned out too thick, and they weren’t sweet enough for my taste. In the end, I ended up throwing them out.
I wish the recipe included measurements in grams for more precise ingredient quantities, as this might have helped with the consistency. It would also be helpful if the recipe specified how many cookies it yields, as I wasn’t sure how many to expect from the dough.
Next time, I plan to try adding an egg for better texture and use brown sugar instead of coconut sugar for a richer flavor. I’m excited to give them another shot with these changes!
Thanks for sharing the recipe, Olivia—I’m looking forward to trying again with a few tweaks!
Thank you for the feedback, Paige! It could be that your nut butter was too thick. If that’s the case, feel free to add a tablespoon of avocado oil or melted coconut oil to thin out the nut butter a little bit before mixing with the other ingredients. This should yield about 12 cookies. Happy to hear you’ll give this recipe another shot, though! Let me know how your adjustments turn out.
Could I use Bob red mill gf one to one in place of almond flour?
Hi, Kate! Yes, they’ll still turn out great!
These were great I will make again!!
Could you use regular flour?
That should work!
wow these are packed with protein and yummy! Thank you
Can arrowroot flour work in place of tapiocaflour? Also, im trying to cut back on sugar, would you advise omitting either maple syrup/coconut sugar? or what would you suggest? thank you so muc
Hi, Tiff! I haven’t personally tried but I think arrowroot would work. I wouldn’t recommend cutting out the maple or the coconut sugar. The consistency of the cookies won’t be the same.
These are truly the best! So addicting! Made it a few times now and they’re always a hit 🙂