Paleo chocolate chip cookies that are gluten, grain and dairy free but taste just like the real thing! Just a small amount of easy ingredients and you can be eating these in minutes!
It’s been a week.
Like one of those that despite your best intentions, all you can eat think of is chocolate, dessert, pasta, cheese… Basically, all the bad stuff.
I blame the stupid weather which, according to weather.com, was supposed to be sunny and 60s every day when I checked on Sunday and then somehow ended up a cloudy, drizzly mess for 3 of those days.
My cousin just graduated with a degree in meteorology and took his first job which is accompanied by a disgustingly low salary. I now understand why. I’m convinced they all just sit around throwing darts at a selection of weather patterns and pick whichever one they hit for the forecast. (Chris- I’m kidding)
This is why I hate winter. It makes me crave bad things.
And before someone gets all sassy in the comments, no, I’m not calling cheese and pasta inherently bad, but when you crave copious amounts of each every day because it looks like armageddon outside, it’s not the healthiest choice.
I can usually hold myself off for the first half of the day but that 2-3pm blah time gets me.
Every. Single. Time.
It’s about the time I want a nap, lose all motivation to work and want to eat every single piece of chocolate and/or carby goodness in my house. This doesn’t happen in the summer.
Reason #345987456 why we should’ve never moved back to NY from Florida.
So since we have approximately 6 more months of this craptastic weather coming our way, I decided I needed a go to 2-3pm fix.
Requirements:
- Chocolate
- Tastes legit
- I can eat like 5 of them without feeling bad.
Let’s expand upon #2 for a second – when I say “tastes legit” I mean I don’t want some “health-ified” or “high protein-ified” version of a classic that uses prunes or dates or protein powder. Although, I’m kinda making fun of myself when I say that because these raw brownie bites fit that description but are SO delicious at the same time.
Guys- there’s some crazy ass shit out there in the form of “recipes” for stuff like that.
I just so happened to have picked about 5 of them for recent breakfasts. Wednesday’s ended up in a batter explosion and a black waffle with great flavor but the texture of an air puff. Um, wtf? Do people not taste their creations before posting for the world?
I digress.
I’m giving myself an A on this assignment.
These paleo chocolate chip cookies have chocolate chunks, legit chocolate chip cookie flavor and most importantly for me when it comes to a chocolate chip cookie, they have the soft gooey chocolate center. Soft batch cookies are where it’s at. Life’s too short for crispy, hard cookies, at least when it comes to chocolate chip.
Somehow they’re also miraculously dairy-free, grain-free and paleo.
Holla.
Also, I somehow only ate 3 straight out of the oven. So make that an A+ on this cookie assignment.
If you want to take these paleo chocolate chip cookies to the next level, check out these paleo bacon chocolate chip cookies!
Same recipe just with the addition of some crispy crumbled bacon to the batter for that delicious salty sweet combination.
Love these paleo chocolate chip cookies?
Try these other paleo cookie recipes like this Paleo Salted Chocolate Chip Cookie Skillet <– so gooey and insanely delicious!, these Paleo Blueberry Thumbprints or these Paleo Blueberry Chocolate Macaroons.
And for something chocolaty but not in cookie form, paleo chocolate mousse never disappoints.
Paleo Chocolate Chip Cookies
Ingredients
- 1 cup almond meal
- 1/8 teaspoon salt
- 1/8 teaspoon baking soda
- 3 tablespoons melted coconut oil, *update: make sure to measure oil after melting so that you’re not inadvertently using too much. This can cause cookies to flatten
- 2 tablespoons honey
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 tablespoon almond milk
- 1/4 cup chopped dark chocolate pieces Enjoy Life chocolate chips are a great option.
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees and line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat.
- Combine dry ingredients in a medium bowl.
- Whisk together wet ingredients in a small bowl.
- Add wet to dry and mix together.
- Fill a tablespoon measure with batter and press down to form a half-circle. Tap batter out onto baking sheet and lightly press down in the center. *Optional – freeze cookies on baking sheet for about 10 minutes before baking. This helps keep them from spreading.
- Bake for 10-11 minutes until bottoms just start to turn brown.
- Remove from oven and let cool 3-5 minutes before transferring to a wire rack. They will be soft when removed from oven but firm up in a couple of minutes.
Video
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Gina Matsoukas is an AP syndicated writer. She is the founder, photographer and recipe developer of Running to the Kitchen — a food website focused on providing healthy, wholesome recipes using fresh and seasonal ingredients. Her work has been featured in numerous media outlets both digital and print, including MSN, Huffington post, Buzzfeed, Women’s Health and Food Network.
I added 1/2 tbsp of stevia to the recipe and they came out HELLA GOOD!! I’m obsessed! Thanks for sharing :)
I made these cookies and they were a good sweet treat. However, next time i make these i will use a finer almond flour…mine was more or less a consistency of grits, i might have used a tad to much coconut oil as well.
These are delicious! Just wish they made more…need to double the batch next time! These will be gone too soon :)
I found this recipe weeks ago and have made them countless times already. The first time I made them, I didn’t have enough almond meal/flour so I topped it off with coconut flour and flax meal. Turned out to be about 3/4 cup almond meal, 1/8 cup coconut flour and 1/8 cup flax meal. I have since made them just as this recipe calls for and while I love them both ways, I think I like the addition of coconut and flax best. It’s a great alternative if you like a little cakiness to your cookie. The dough was not as formable in this alternate version, as it has a tendency to fall apart, but it’s manageable and once it’s baked it holds together nicely.
I LOVE this recipe- it is a godsend for me and has played a crucial role in helping me stay on my path to eating better. I have a ridiculous sweet tooth. Just 2 of these usually satisfy me, although I have had nights where I eat nearly all of them. I can’t thank you enough for sharing this recipe!
p.s. I have used the ‘net for hundreds of recipes, many of which I have enjoyed. Yet, this is my first time commenting on a recipe- that’s how much I love these!!
Thanks for coming out of hiding to comment, Stacey ;) glad you like them!
These little suckers are deadly! They are bite size so I want to eat the entire batch! We have been Paleo for a year and my husband has never liked any cookie I have baked. UNTIL NOW! He was so surprised. I followed your directions exactly.
I did use Enjoy Life chocolate chips to keep it Dairy free. Thank you!
These are my absolute favorite cookies and so simple…way better than the traditional cookies! Thank you for the recipe!
Mmmmm awesome. Thanks for posting these! This makes eating paleo a little easier ;)
Oh yeah. very good. I was skeptical, I doubted these could be good, at the very least I knew I wouldn’t be able to get my 3 year old to eat them. I was very wrong – these rock. My 3 year old is happy and so am I.
Love this recipe! I only had almond extract when I first tried making these cookies in Feb and they were a hit at our superbowl party. I tried it once with the vanilla extract and wasn’t as pleased so now I just intentionally replace it with the almond extract. yummee!
I’ve made these twice now, they are delicious!!! I had to double the recipe the second time around! I added just a little more almond flour as well, may help w/the flattening that some experienced.