These Lightened Up Sugar Cookies are the perfect way to indulge in the classic taste of cookies. Made with wholesome ingredients like almond flour, monkfruit, and vanilla, these cookies are the perfect balance of sweet and satisfying. With no refined sugars and a soft, chewy texture, they're a balanced option for any cookie lover.
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This post was originally published in 2018. It has since been updated.
Looking for Christmas cookies? This recipe is perfect. It makes soft cookies that aren't crispy at all. Kids and adults alike will love them.
Table of Contents
What Type of Sweetener to Use
I use zero calorie and zero carb monkfruit sweetener. It's natural and doesn't have any artificial ingredients. It measures 1:1 like refined sugar. I use the granulated sweetener, but the baking sweetener works well, too.
If you use stevia, you can follow your standard conversion calculation for how you would convert table sugar.
If you want to use table sugar, you can use the same amount noted in this recipe.
Ingredients like honey and pure maple syrup can be used in this recipe. You can use ½ cup honey or pure maple syrup or adjust to taste.
How to Make Lightened Up Sugar Cookies
Detailed measurements and full instructions can be found in the recipe card at the bottom of this post.
- Line a cookie sheet or sheet pan with a silicone baking mat.
- Add the sweetener and butter to a mixing bowl and mix with a hand mixer. Add the cream cheese, egg, and vanilla. Add the almond flour and mix.
- Use a cookie scoop to scoop 10-14 cookies onto the sheet pan or cookie sheet. I made mine using 1 ½ tablespoons of dough which made 10 cookies.
- Bake.
How to Store the Cookies
Store the cookies in an air tight container. They can be left at room temperature for 4 days.
Can You Use Coconut Flour?
Coconut flour absorbs flour differently in comparison to almond flour. Coconut flour is highly absorbent and will absorb a lot of moisture.
As such, I did not use any coconut flour in this recipe. For desserts and baking, I typically stick to almond flour.
Check out more Tips on Baking with Coconut Flour here.
Cooling is Important
The longer the cookies cool, the firmer they will be. Patience is crucial. I let these cool in a cooling rack for at least 30 minutes so they could firm up.
Freezer Tips
The cookies can be frozen for up to 3 months. Defrost at room temperature.
More Cookie Recipes
Keto Chocolate Chip Cookies
Keto Peanut Butter Cookies
Sugar Free Cookie Dough
Sugar Free Peanut Butter Cup Cookies
Sugar Free Lemon Cookies
More Sugar Free Desserts
Sugar Free Zucchini Bread
Sugar Free Cheesecake
Sugar Free Vanilla Cupcakes
Sugar Free Pound Cake
Sugar Free Cookie Dough
Sugar Free Blueberry Muffins
Lightened Up Sugar Cookies
Ingredients
- 4 tablespoons unsalted butter Softened
- ¾ cup sweetener
- 3 oz cream cheese Softened
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 1 egg
- 3 cups almond flour
Optional Icing
- 3 oz cream cheese Softened
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 1 teaspoon powdered sweetener
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- Line a cookie sheet or sheet pan with a silicone baking mat.
- Add the sweetener and butter to a mixing bowl and mix with a hand mixer.
- Add in the cream cheese and mix.
- Add in the egg and vanilla. Mix.
- Add the almond flour and mix until cookie dough forms.
- With wet hands, use a cookie scoop or spoon to shape the cookies. For large cookies I make them with 1 ½ to 2 tablespoons of cookie dough. This will produce 10- 12 cookies. Flatten each using the palm of your hands.
- Bake for 10-14 minutes until the cookies begin to brown. Mine were done around 11 minutes. You don’t want the bottoms to turn brown, this will result in burnt cookies. The bottom should be golden when removed from the oven.
- Remove the cookie sheet from the oven. Allow the cookies to cool for about 10 minutes before transferring to a cooling rack.
Icing
- Combine the ingredients and spread on the cookies. If this doesn't produce enough icing for you, add more cream cheese and confectioners sweetener as needed.
- Ice the cookies after they have cooled completely.
Wilhelmina Wessel says
Keto Christmas Cookies! This is a genius recipe!
Aimee Shugarman says
Extra icing for me! These are fabulous.
Altani says
Hi!! I made these yesterday!! So yummy!! I'm going to make more for my daughter's Christmas party!! ????????????
staysnatched says
Awesome! I'm so glad you enjoyed them!
Katie says
Just made these with my 6 year old and they were fabulous!
staysnatched says
I'm so glad you enjoyed them!
Michelle says
Could you roll the dough out between parchment paper and use some cookie cutters?
staysnatched says
I haven't tested that, but I would assume so.
Stacy says
@Michelle, I did this and they came out great
staysnatched says
Good to hear!
Eac says
These were wonderful! I used raw honey because I didn’t have any other kind of sugar on hand and they turned out great. Definitely use a silicone baking mat because they burn very easily on the bottoms!
Cindy says
Wow! These cookies are incredible...my husband LOVED them! Love having these guilt free cookies for the week. Thanks so much for sharing!
staysnatched says
I'm so glad you enjoyed them!
staysnatched says
How much flour would you use?
Pam says
I used 2 cups of flour and ended up with 14 cookies. I baked them for 12 minutes..
Jacquelyn Miller says
I've made these several times - one of my favourite recipes. This time though I had the same issue - after adding just 2 cups of flour they were super dry. I'm not sure what happened? I added another egg and some more cream cheese. Very strange
staysnatched says
I'm not sure what happened because I don't know what you did. The only time I've had baking issues is when I didn't use blanched almond flour.
Cammie Solis says
How many carbs in each serving and what constitutes a serving? Unless I missed it I didn't see it.
staysnatched says
Hi, you missed it. Macros are documented at the top of the post. Servings are noted in the recipe card. A serving is a cookie.
Jolene Godschalk says
These are absolutely amazing! Best keto cookies I've ever made!
staysnatched says
I'm so glad you enjoyed them!
Lynn Robertson says
Lovely cookies really taste amazing. Thankyou
staysnatched says
You're welcome. Glad you liked them!
Denise says
Love the cream cheese in the cookie itself and for the frosting, if wanted. I toasted the almond flour in a dry skillet, until it turned a dark golden brown before using. Gives a wonderful depth of flavour almost like graham crackers. Keep an eye out as it turns dark quickly and could burn.)
staysnatched says
Thanks for sharing your tips!
Emilie says
So the recipe sounds great!
David Vavrek says
Awesome
Penny says
Have you tried using this as a base for a fruit pizza?
I am thinking about trying...just not sure the middle will cook adequately...
staysnatched says
I haven't, but I think it will work fine! Do you plan to use cream cheese and vanilla for the sauce base?
Nicole says
Please tell me what I am doing wrong!! I'm trying to calculate my macros for these but everything is coming up way higher....every kind of almond flour I check has around 24 grams of protein per cup which gives each cookie 6 grams! Help!
staysnatched says
I use Nature Eats almond flour.
Anonymous says
I tried it with that too. That has 6 grams per 1/4 cup?
staysnatched says
Use the macros from your calculation. As noted on this site, the macros are provided as a courtesy using the branded ingredients and calculator of our choice. You are responsible for calculating using your preferred tools and to use your own macros. The calculation will always vary depending on every single brand used in the recipe unless you use the exact same brand for every item used.
Megan says
Flavor is good but very dry! Maybe not 3 cups of almond flour. So dry!
Olivia says
Thank you for the delicious recipe looks so tasty! Here's a great way I found to better your Keto Diet. I Hope it helps some others.
staysnatched says
I hope you enjoy the cookies!
Anonymous says
@Megan,
Kim says
They turned out great. Even my kid approved. I ended up using a little less flour 2.5 cups. I also used a small scoop to make mini cookies. For my frosting I used cream cheese with 2 tbsp pumpkin spice skinny syrup and sprinkled a little cinnamon on the top. Yum!!!
staysnatched says
Oh my goodness that sounds amazing!
Doreen Elsesser says
I made these today. I used almond extract instead of vanilla. I used 1/2 cup sweetener and added Lily's milk chocolate chips and sliced almonds. Delicious. Thank you!
staysnatched says
You're welcome! Glad you enjoyed the recipe.
Becca says
I made these and they were good.
CYNDY BISHOP says
The recipe really needs Weights for more accuracy ...mainly for the Almond Flour.
That's why and how there are such inconsistencies for each persons results.
Great taste though.
staysnatched says
I agree, for most baking recipes weights are much better. It's hard to get the average cook to follow recipes using just the metric system, so it's really a tough call. Using weights confuses most.
Valerie B Williams says
I made these today and they were delicious. I actually ran out of Almond flour, so used 3 c almond and 1/8 coconut which worked perfectly. I also added a half cup of pecans and a bit of baking powder. 20 lushious cookies
staysnatched says
Yum! that sounds so good!
Jessica says
We made the recipe!! Very good!!! When we did the calculations though, it comes out to 1.8 net carbs!!!! Are we doing something wrong?
staysnatched says
Probably not. Your calculation should always differ as we use different brands with different macros. It isn't meant to be exact for what you will prepare.
Cindi says
These are great! And easy! I just made a second batch & put some lemon juice in the icing... SO yummy & perfect with a late morning cup of coffee thanks for sharing.
staysnatched says
You're welcome! I'm glad you enjoyed them!
Cathy says
Made these today and they were spectacular! I doubled the recipe except I used 4 cups of almond flour, 1 cup of sweetener and 1 tsp of vanilla and 1 tsp of almond extract. I made 48 cookies and they turned out with almost a macaroon-type texture. I can see making these with many different varieties. Another great recipe - thank you!
staysnatched says
You're welcome! Glad you enjoyed them.
Amy Jones says
Loved this!So easy to make, tastes amazing and love that it's gluten free since my daughter has Celiacs. I found my new Christmas sugar cookie!
staysnatched says
Yay! So glad you enjoyed them!
Sonserae F. says
Good Lawd! These were AMAZING plus as an added bonus they fit in perfectly with the custom keto meal plan I have been following for the last 6 weeks with much success (15lbs down, Hallelujah!)
This has been a total game changer.
staysnatched says
That's wonderful to hear!
Lucy Bratanch says
What type of sugar do I need to make these cookies😄
staysnatched says
I use sweetener. There a link to what I recommend in the recipe card.
Olivia says
Thank you for the delicious recipe looks so tasty! Here's a great way I found to better your Keto Diet. I Hope it helps some others.
staysnatched says
I hope you enjoy the cookies!
Melissa Brown says
I made these cookies using 2 cups of almond flour. When I entered the recipe into my carb manager app, it calculated 10.6 grams of net carbs per cookie. I made the cookies smaller and thus had 18 cookies instead of 12. Kind of disappointing don’t you think?
staysnatched says
No, because using the brand of almond flour I use and point out my number is accurate. I recommend calculating your macros using the brands you use before making a recipe. 10 grams of net carbs sounds like an error, no matter what brand of almond flour you used.
Amy says
Can you use salted butter?
staysnatched says
If you like.
Amy says
These cookies are SO GOOD!
I've have been following Brandi on Instagram for a while now, and this is the first recipe I have made (they all look amazing, I usually just throw things together).
Brandi's Crumble Cookie post about alllll of the added sugar really stuck with me, and I have been craving sugar cookies want wanted to give these a try. Very glad I did!
Vegan and dairy free folks: I did have some Vegan cream cheese I wanted to do something with, and put it in the icing. Turned out very good. FYI: I did not try the vegan cream cheese in the cookie dough as I was afraid they may not turn out since the baking chemistry of vegan cream cheese will be different from regular.
Can't wait to try more recipes!
staysnatched says
I hope you enjoy more recipes!
Angela says
Delish!, icing was perfect! And excellent instruction and tips
staysnatched says
I'm so glad you enjoyed it.
Sabrina says
So quick and easy AND super delicious!
staysnatched says
I'm glad they were easy!
Heather says
I’ve had mixed experiences with keto baking, so I was a little skeptical about these, but there was no need! These were so yummy and had a great texture. I will definitely make them again!
staysnatched says
I'm glad to hear you will make them again.
Audrey says
Can I substitute liquid stevia for the sweetener?
staysnatched says
Sure if you want. I don’t eat stevia so you will have to use their conversion.
Irene says
First time making these and I made a double batch of cookies. I followed the recipe exactly except mine came out slightly 1/2 cup less blanched almond flour only because I used up my entire bag for double batch of dough and didn’t feel like opening another bag lol. I read the reviews about some turned out dry but I made sure I used blanched almond flour and they came out amazing!! Made them for my boyfriend and his family and they all really liked it - even those who weren’t used to the sweetener substitute. The texture was just fine and tasted great with the icing! Definitely will make again!
staysnatched says
I’m so glad you all enjoyed them!
Pam S. says
I am trying to remain in my low carb way of eating even on Easter tomorrow. We are having a fruit tart as one of the desserts, so I made these cookies for me to have one with sugar free cool whip and berries on top while the other family members have "the real thing. " I absolutely love this recipe and so did my husband and teenage son!! Thank you!! I will definitely be making these again!!
staysnatched says
I'm glad you all loved them!
Cassie says
These are delicous. A hit with the whole family!
staysnatched says
I’m glad they were a hit!
Becky says
Not too bad. I do like them a lot!
staysnatched says
Glad to hear it.
Mad Dog says
These were really gross, coming from a real human, I did not not not like them. I will NEVER make or recommend again.
staysnatched says
Thanks for sharing. I love them.