These keto sugar cookies are soft, buttery, and made in one bowl – you won’t believe they’re low carb! Ready in just 20 minutes, they are the perfect keto cookie for the holidays! 1 gram of net carbs per cookie.
Keto Sugar Cookies
When it comes to keto Christmas desserts, I love making shortbread cookies, pumpkin cookies, and these almond flour sugar cookies.
Whenever the holiday season is in full swing, my mission is to make as many cookies as humanly possible. In the past, I used to make gingerbread or pumpkin spice cookies, but recently, I went back to the classics, with sugar cookies.
I’ve been wanting to share a keto sugar cookie recipe for quite some time. As someone who has eaten a LOT of sugar cookies in their life, these may be my favorites, ketogenic or non-ketogenic. One of my friends is the ultimate sugar cookie snob, so I HAD to make a batch for her to give her stamp of approval!
Now, these keto sugar cookies may look fancy, but they’re ridiculously easy to make and use a handful of ingredients.
No eggs, grains, or oil are needed, but you would never tell. The texture is thick, slightly smooth, and rich, so much that it melts in your mouth. There is a slight buttery vanilla flavor and pleasant sweetness, without being overpowering.
So how did my friend find it? Well, she could NOT believe it was low carb or sugar-free… she thought they tasted like any bakery-style cookie!
Ingredients
Almond flour: bleached, extra-fine almond flour, not almond flour. This ensures that the sugar cookies are soft and
Coconut flour
Powdered Sweetener: Ketogenic powdered sugar, for a finer consistency.
Salt: essential to highlight the general sweetness of the cookies.
Unsalted butter: room temperature and softened. If you only have salted butter, you can use it and omit the salt. See my tips for keeping these cookies vegan below.
Cream cheese: softened cream cheese or dairy-free cream cheese. If you use the latter, make sure it is coming from a block, not a tub of spread.
Vanilla Extract – A must for any good cookie recipe!
Granulated Sweetener – Optional, but I like to roll my cookies in a granulated sweetener, like monk fruit or erythritol.
Instructions
Start by adding the dry ingredients to a mixing bowl and mixing until just combined. Next, add the softened butter and, using a stand mixer, beat the butter until it is a crumbly texture. Finally, add the softened cream cheese and vanilla extract and beat until large clumps of butter remain.
Now, sprinkle some almond flour on a kitchen surface. With your hands, transfer the dough onto it and form a ball. Gently knead the dough until smooth and even. Cover the ball of dough completely and refrigerate for at least 40 minutes.
Once the dough has cooled, take it out of the refrigerator. Lay a sheet of parchment paper on a flat surface, followed by the ball of dough. Roll out the dough to about 1/4 inch. Using a cookie cutter, cut the cookies. If desired, dip each cookie in granulated sweetener.
Finally, bake the cookies for 12-15 minutes, or until the edges start to brown slightly. Remove from the oven and allow to cool completely.
Can I make these cookies without dairy?
Yes, if you want them to be vegan sugar cookies these cookies can be made dairy-free.
Just use vegan (one-block) butter and dairy-free cream cheese. No additional changes are necessary.
Tips to make the best sugar-free sugar cookies
You should refrigerate the dough to make sure it doesn’t spread too much. Even 30 minutes is better than no refrigeration.
If you want to bake the cookies later, you can keep the dough refrigerated for up to 3 days. Make sure to let the dough sit at room temperature for 30 minutes before rolling it out.
Traditional sugar cookies are often added with almond extract, but I found (personally) the taste to be overpowering. For a more authentic sugar cookie flavor, add 1/4 teaspoon of almond extract.
Do not overbake the cookies. They continue to harden as they cool. Once they are firm on top when touched and the sides start to brown, they are ready to be removed.
How to store sugar cookies
To store: The sugar cookies will keep at room temperature, covered, for up to 2 weeks. You can keep them in the refrigerator if you want them to keep longer.
To freeze: Place the sugar cookies in a zip-top bag and store them in the freezer for up to 6 months.
