These Soft Sugar Free Lemon Cookies are low carb and made with almond flour and fresh lemon zest. This is the best quick and easy recipe for healthy, gluten-free cookies.
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This post was originally published in 2021. It has since been updated.
Table of Contents
How to Get Lemon Flavor
You will need two tablespoons of fresh lemon juice and 2 tablespoons of lemon zest. You will likely need at least 2 lemons, unless you use a really large one. I keep a few on hand just in case. I don't use store-bought lemon juice. There's an obvious difference in taste and quality.
You can also use less lemon juice and lemon zest and add lemon extract for flavor. This is pretty common. I prefer to use the flavor from just the fruit. If using lemon extract, use 1 tablespoon of lemon juice, 1 tablespoon of lemon zest, and ½ to 1 tablespoon of lemon extract.
Using the amount recommended in the recipe will result in a medium dose of lemon flavor, which is what I prefer. If you want really bold lemon flavor, you may want to use lemon extract in addition to fresh juice and zest.
What Type of Sweetener to Use
I use monkfruit sweetener. These sweeteners are natural, zero-calorie, zero-carb, and won't spike blood sugar.
If you use something like stevia, you can follow the standard method you use for converting refined sugar to stevia. Monkfruit sweetener measures 1:1 like refined sugar.
How to Make Sugar Free Lemon Cookies
Detailed measurements and full instructions can be found in the recipe card at the bottom of this post.
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- Cream butter and sweetener in a mixing bowl.
- Add the egg, lemon zest, and lemon juice. Use the mixer and blend on low for 30 seconds.
- Add in almond flour and beat.
- Add in salt and baking soda. Beat.
- Line a sheet pan or cookie sheet with a silicone baking mat.
- Form balls with the dough.
- Bake.
Can You Substitute Coconut Flour
No coconut flour and almond flour do not have a 1:1 substitution ratio. It absorbs moisture much differently than almond flour.If you have allergies, I recommend searching for an allergy friendly recipe.
Cookie Texture
I like a cookie that's soft at the center, but has a firm edge. That's what you will find with these cookies. If you want crispy cookies bake them a few minutes longer.
Why Baking Soda is Used
When combining lemon juice and baking soda, it creates a chemical reaction that will add a puff to the cookies and make them softer and chewier as they cool.
You cannot substitute baking powder for baking soda.
Optional Lemon Glaze
If you want to glaze the cookies and add additional lemon flavor, combine ¼ cup powdered monkfruit sweetener (Confectioner's), 1 ½ tablespoons lemon juice, and 1 teaspoon of lemon zest. Spread the glaze over the cookies after they have fully cooled.
It must be powdered, you cannot use granular.
Optional Cream Cheese Icing
Combine 3 ounces of softened cream cheese, 1 teaspoon of powdered Confectioner's sweetener, and 1 teaspoon of vanilla. Spread over the cookies when cool.
Baking Tips
Watch these closely while they are in the oven. You want it to appear as though you have under-baked the cookies at first. The cookies should never look fully baked while they are in the oven.
Once the bottom of the cookies begin to turn brown and the cookie has taken shape and appears somewhat firm, remove the cookies from the oven. Almond flour bakes fast. If you leave the cookies in too long you will end up with burnt cookies.
Every oven bakes differently. I notice that items toward the back of my oven brown faster than food toward the front. Sometimes I have to rotate the positioning of sheets and pans to take this into account, otherwise, some cookies would turn out done while others were way too soft. Become familiar with how your oven bakes.
Cooling is Important
The longer the cookies cool, the firmer they will be.
How to Store
Store these tightly sealed and covered on the counter for up to 3 days.
Store them in the fridge (covered) for up to a week.
Freezer Tips
To freeze, store them tightly sealed. They will freeze for 2-3 months. Thaw at room temperature. You can also freeze the cookie dough and defrost overnight in the fridge.
More Sugar Free Recipes
Sugar Free Cheesecake
Sugar Free Vanilla Cupcakes
Sugar Free Blueberry Muffins
Healthy Sugar Free Banana Bread
Sugar Free Apple Butter
Sugar Free Apple Pie
Sugar Free Apple Crisp
Sugar Free Blueberry Crisp
Sugar Free Oatmeal Raisin Cookies
Sugar Free Cookie Dough
Banana Split Pie
More Cookie Recipes
Keto Low Carb Pumpkin Cookies
Keto Low Carb Cream Cheese Sugar Cookies
Keto Low Carb Chocolate Chip Cookies
Keto Low Carb Peanut Butter Cookies
Keto Low Carb Peanut Butter Cup Cookies
Keto Low Carb Double Chocolate Cookies
Keto Low Carb Macadamia Nut Cookies
You will also love my Keto Low Carb Key Lime Pie.
Sugar Free Lemon Cookies
Ingredients
- 6 tablespoons unsalted butter Softened
- ⅓ cup sweetener
- 1 egg
- 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice See notes
- 2 tablespoons lemon zest
- 2 ½ cups blanched almond flour
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ¼ teaspoon salt
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- Cream the butter and sweetener in a mixing bowl using a stand or hand mixer on medium speed for about 2 minutes.
- Add the egg, lemon zest, and lemon juice. Use the mixer and blend on low for 30 seconds. And then blend on medium for a couple of minutes or until light and fluffy, scraping down bowl.
- Add in half of the almond flour and beat.
- Add in the remaining almond flour, salt, and baking soda. Beat.
- Line a sheet pan or cookie sheet with a silicone baking mat. This will prevent the cookies from over-browning.
- Form balls with the dough (I measured 1 ½ -2 tablespoons for each) or use a cookie scoop. Flatten the top with your hands or with a spoon. Using a cookie scoop will result in more, smaller cookies.
- Bake for 8-12 minutes or until golden brown. When checking in on the cookies they should look really soft, but golden at the edges and on the bottom when ready. They will harden up as they cool. You don't want them to look firm in the oven. That will result in burnt cookies. Mine were ready right at 10 minutes.
- Remove the cookies and cool on the silicone baking mat and cookie sheet for 5 minutes before moving them to a cooling rack. This is important. If you move the cookies too soon, they will crumble. Give them a chance to firm up.
- Cool on the cooling rack before serving.
Video
Notes
- You should use blanched almond flour (superfine) in the recipe. If you don't the cookies will be dry. You buy blanched almond flour.
- You will likely need at least 2 lemons, unless you use a really large one. I keep a few on hand just in case.
- I don't use store-bought lemon juice. There's an obvious difference in taste and quality.
- You can also use less lemon juice and lemon zest and add lemon extract for flavor. This is pretty common. I prefer to use the flavor from just the fruit. If using lemon extract, use 1 tablespoon of lemon juice, 1 tablespoon of lemon zest, and ½ to 1 tablespoon of lemon extract.
- Using the amount recommended in the recipe will result in a medium dose of lemon flavor, which is what I prefer. If you want really bold lemon flavor, you may want to use lemon extract in addition to fresh juice and zest.
- I prefer large cookies and measure them with 1 ½ tablespoons -2 tablespoons of dough per cookie. I don't use a cookie scoop.
- You cannot substitute baking powder for baking soda.
- You cannot substitute coconut flour. If you would like to use coconut flour, I recommend finding a recipe that uses it.
- Watch these closely while they are in the oven. You want it to appear as though you have under-baked the cookies at first. The cookies should never look fully baked while they are in the oven.
- Once the bottom of the cookies begin to turn brown and the cookie has taken shape and appears somewhat firm, remove the cookies from the oven. Almond flour bakes fast. If you leave the cookies in too long you will end up with burnt cookies.
-
Every oven bakes differently. I notice that items toward the back of my oven brown faster than food toward the front. Sometimes I have to rotate the positioning of sheets and pans to take this into account, otherwise, some cookies would turn out done while others were way too soft. Become familiar with how your oven bakes.
A. H. says
These are SO GOOD. just the right amount of lemon without being overly sweet. Very quick and simple to make, and the cookies have a great texture. Highly recommend!!!
staysnatched says
I'm glad you enjoy the flavor!
Lauren Worthy says
Ask and you shall receive! These lemon cookies are everything. I love that all of the ingredients were things that I already have at home. The lemon zest really puts it over the top to where you can add the glaze or not and these cookies are still amazing.
staysnatched says
Simple ingredients is key!
Erin Garcia says
I love lemon cookies, but I have never made them before. Brandi’s recipes are soo easy to follow so I knew I had to give this a try. This is my first time using monk fruit and almond flour. But you wouldn’t even know these cookies have any substitutions. They are soft and delicious and were so easy to make! I am so happy I have a recipe for a yummy treat!
staysnatched says
I'm so glad you gave it a try!
Laura says
The PERFECT cookie! So fluffy, perfectly sweet and my favorite-lemon. I didn’t have fresh lemons, but had Santa Cruz lemon juice-it was still delicious but can’t wait to try with the zest next time. Thanks for all of the helpful tips.
staysnatched says
Yay! SO glad it's the perfect cookie.
MaryAnne says
These are sooo good. I love lemon desserts and these hit the spot. I don’t tend to love 100% almond flour recipes (personal preference), so I did sub 1/3 c coconut flour for one of the cups of almond flour and they were perfect. I also added the glaze for an extra kick of lemon and it made them for me. I will make these over and over!
staysnatched says
I'm glad to hear you will make them again!
Kerra says
Love these cookies!! The flavor and texture is perfect! It’s such an easy recipe + I can eat them all guilt free 😉
staysnatched says
I'm so glad you loved the cookies!
Shalethia says
The cookies were amazing! I saw this recipe and had to make it because I love lemon cookies. These cookies did not disappoint. They were delicious. I sprinkled a little monkfruit granular sugar to the top of the cookies after baking. This will be in the rotation when I need a lemon fix. Thanks for this amazing recipe. God bless!
staysnatched says
I love that idea!
Nasreen says
These cookies are divine! So easy to make and they smell heavenly! I filled mine with some mascarpone cream cheese icing to make cookie sandwiches and oh man sooo good! Thank you for another winning recipe
staysnatched says
I'm glad you found them easy!
Mary Anne Panganiban says
I am always looking for a good recipe and I am happy to find this one. The lemon and sweetness is perfect. I will continue to look for more recipes on your website. Thank you! I love your website.
staysnatched says
I'm glad you enjoyed the taste!
Shauna says
I made these and they were amazing. I did add a little vanilla extract. My cookies took about 20 minutes to bake though. But the extra wait was well worth it.
staysnatched says
I'm glad you enjoyed them!
Lauren says
Great recipe, I love all the additional notes and instructions from Brandi. This was my first-time use monk fruit sweetener, was surprised how natural it tasted compared to Truvia which I usually bake with. I think I want to add the lemon glaze next time for even more flavor, also think my cookies looked on the pale side but the texture and flavor were awesome, great no gluten recipe.
staysnatched says
Wonderful! Glad you enjoyed the recipe.
Mallory says
Brandi does it again! I believe this is my first baked good recipe of hers I’ve tried, but it definitely didn’t disappoint. Following the recipe to a T gives you a delicious, buttery cookie without an overwhelming lemon taste and it’s not too sweet. Even my fiancé, who isn’t a big lemon fan, loved them! Saving this recipe for the next time we have a sweet craving.
staysnatched says
Awesome! So glad you both enjoyed them.
Felicia says
These cookies are delicious! They are just sweet enough and the lemon flavor is just right. The only problem is I want to eat them all. No after taste, they almost have a cake like fluffiness to them.
staysnatched says
Wonderful! So glad you enjoyed them.
Violet says
I just made this and it came out perfect! I will double the recipe next time as these will go fast in my house..
staysnatched says
Yes! So glad to hear you enjoyed them.
Teresa says
Hi. Are these 190 calories each?