These keto walnut cookies are a super healthy take on the Italian classic Dolci di Noci. They contain only 4 ingredients and are ready in 15 minutes.
I love a fancy cake. But secretly, my favourite keto dessert are cookies. They are so easy and quick to make. Plus, they have a handy in-built portion control.
Even better, you only need a handful of ingredients. I adore these almond butter cookies (3 ingredients), my nutella cookies and sugar free meringue cookies (both 4 ingredients).
I created these low carb walnut cookies after a trip to Italy many years ago, where I was introduced to dolci di noci - the classic Italian walnut cookie.
Since it contains only 4 ingredients, it was very simple to turn the original recipe into a sugar free version!
This is actually one of the first cookie recipes I published on the blog. I have just added step by step images and more tips and tricks to the post (November 2022).
This means I've just had the best day ever. Because I now have a portion of deliciously crunchy, nutty keto walnut cookies sitting right in front of me.
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🌟 Why You'll Love This Recipe
- Easy to make - only 4 ingredients, no special equipment needed
- Quick - ready in 15 minutes
- Gluten free & dairy free
- Keto friendly - just 0.8g net carbs per cookie
- Great nutty flavor and crunchy texture
Ingredients
- Chopped walnuts - Make sure they are fresh! I pulsed mine in a food processor. You can also chop them finely with a knife. Or, put them in a plastic bag and crush them.
- Egg - Use either 1 medium egg or 1 large egg white. I tried both and preferred the taste with the whole egg. However, both work well.
- Powdered sweetener - Powdered erythritol, any erythritol blend such as Swerve or monk fruit sweetener, Bocha Sweet, allulose or xylitol. Make sure you are using a 1:1 sugar alternative.
- Cinnamon
Instructions
(This section contains step by step instructions and photos that show how to make this recipe. Find the recipe card with ingredient amounts and nutritional information at the bottom of the post.)
Step 1: Beat the medium egg or large egg white with powdered sweetener and cinnamon.
Step 2: Add the crushed walnuts and stir with a for or a spatula until a cookie dough forms. Taste and adjust sweetness if required.
Step 3: Form balls with your hands or use a cookie scoop. Place them on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.
Step 4: Bake in the oven until golden.
Top tip
Don't over-process the walnuts! I like to leave some larger chunks. If the walnuts are coarsely ground, the cookies will be crunchier.
However, even if you blend the walnuts to a fine flour accidentally, the recipe will still work. It's quite forgiving.
FAQ
Yes, walnuts are suitable for a keto diet. They are very low in carbohydrates. 1 ounce (30 grams) or 14 halves of walnut contain just 3.9g of carbs.
Yes, if you don't mind a little grittiness. I have made these cookies with Lakanto Gold, which is a granulated brown sugar alternative.
The egg is the binder in this recipe. You could try a mix of nut butter and flaxseed instead. Also, grind the nuts more finely.
Your walnuts are too coarse. Add a little almond flour or a pinch of coconut flour to fix it.
Variations
Here are ideas how you can change up the recipe.
Use different nuts. The recipe works with any nuts, such as almonds, pecans or hazelnuts. You can also use a mixture. Just don't call them keto walnut cookies 😊
Add butter. 1-2 tablespoons of melted butter gives the cookies a rich, buttery flavor.
Chocolate: Throw in some sugar free chocolate chips or coat the cookies in dark chocolate such as Lindt (90% cocoa solids).
Change the spices: Try vanilla extract or a pinch of salt
Storage
Store in an airtight container for up to 2 weeks. You can keep them either at room temperature or in the fridge.
All low carb cookies freeze well. Store in the freezer for up to 3 months.
Related recipes
Want more treat ideas? Take a look at my Keto Cookies cookbook.
Tried this recipe? Give it a star rating below!
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Recipe
Keto Walnut Cookies
from Sugar Free LondonerNote: The servings slider only changes the first amount in each line and not any subsequent amounts. Please make your own calculations where necessary. ***As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.
Ingredients
- 175 g / a generous 1 ½ cups coarsely ground walnuts
- 1 medium egg or 1 large egg white
- 25 g / 2 heaped tablespoons powdered sweetener or more, to taste
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 180 Celsius / 350 F electric or 160C / 320F fan.
- Beat the egg with the sweetener and cinnamon until smooth.
- Stir in the ground walnuts. Taste and add more sweetener if preferred.
- Form cookie dough balls and place on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.
- Bake for 10 minutes or until golden brown.
Notes
Nutrition
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CHRISTINA RAHMING
GOOD AFTERNOON. DO YOU MEASURE THE NUTS BEFORE YOU CHOP THEM OR AFTER?
Katrin Nürnberger
I measured the nuts in cups after chopping.
sarah R
Can I use walnut flour instead? If so, how much?
Katrin Nürnberger
I'm sure you can use walnut flour. As it is much finer, I would probably add some butter as well. You would have to see how much you need.
Jillian
Most happily this recipe was in my mailbox today. It looked so simple I decided to make them instead of pinning to make "sometime." I have a recipe my husband loves for a walnut torte , making it several times a year. These taste similar. After cooling, glazed them with choc zero hazelnut spread. They are going fast. I wrote on the recipe to double it next time. Thank you for the recipes. BTW I decided to try Besti sweetener. It is a monk fruit /allulose blend and find it easier than erythritol to digest. It is pricey and avoided it for a long time for that reason. It also has no cooling effect. It is working very well.
Katrin Nürnberger
Glad you enjoyed the recipe! Allulose is a great option if you don't like the cooling effect of erythritol.
Timothy j Harris
Simple and delish thank for another great recipe
Liz
Soooo Delicious!
I made these cookies for the first time and my goodness, it is hard to leave them alone! I ran out of walnuts so had to use a 1/2 cup of pecans. Then my mixture was too wet, (probably because I grind nuts to a flour because of my diverticulosis) so I added some almond flour to stiffen things up. I added a dark chocolate chip to the tops of each (not sugar free but one chocolate chip comes out to a small of carbs). Anyway, so good for a treat! So good for you as well! My cardio doc told me that walnuts are good for reducing cholesterol, so it's a great excuse to keep these cuties around!
Susan Grace Millett
These were scrumptious and extremely satisfying, as well as LEGAL for a diabetic. YUMMY! I did add one heaping tablespoon of almond flour, simply because I couldn't roll them--too sticky. Excellent, kind of life-saving recipe. I will try the suggested cardamon next time. Thank you!
dezi
Hi Katrin,
These are really good. Thank you for developing this recipe. We liked your suggestion of using just the egg white for a crunchier texture. Thank you, again!
Valerie Williams
Delicious and so simple. I made them with just egg white and used brown swerve to sweeten them. Made them about half the size of the recipe to create really small bites. Thanks for the recipe!
myriam
Hello,
Thanky you! These look delicious. Do you think that I could make these without sugar at all? Would they hold their shape?
Katrin Nürnberger
Yes, the sweetener is not essential to the recipe. It's the egg white that keeps the cookies together.
Stacy
These were delicious. I don't love walnuts in all preparations but I had a huge back of them. These are perfect! Thank you! I made 12 cookies.
Mitzie
Loved it. It wasn't too sweet and didn't take long to make. Goes well with coffee.
andrea
is 72kcal for one 16g cookie?
Katrin Nürnberger
Yes, that is correct. I always calculate the nutrition per portion/serving
J
Just made these with allspice and they are sooooo good! Mine were slightly soft on the inside though, I wonder if i should cook them longer (but that might burn the top)?
Also, any idea how long they can be kept for at room temperature in a glass jar?
Katrin Nürnberger
Hi there, if you're eating these straight from the oven, they might crisp up more as they cool down. Or they are simply a little larger than mine and therefore need to stay in the oven a bit longer. Place aluminium paper on top so they don't burn and just put them in for another 5 minutes or so.
J
Hi Katrin, thanks for the tip! Gonna try them later.
Also, any idea how long can these cookies last in a jar in room temperature conditions? Or is it necessary to keep them in a fridge?
Thanks!!
Katrin Nürnberger
I think they're definitely fine for a few days. Probably even a week or longer. There's nothing in there that would go of quickly.
Charlotte
Just made these! Followed the recipe to the letter, made in mini muffin pan and made 22 cookies. They are delicious!!! So easy to make too!! Thanks for the recipe. I make the peanut butter cookies all the time, but will be making these as much. Going to try with different nuts. Delicious!!!
Katrin
What a great idea to make the mini mini muffin pan! Glad you like the recipe-it would work with any kind of nut
Mary
Hi. I’m not eating sugar free, but I made your almond bread and love it. Can I use real powdered sugar in this recipe or would the amount need to be reduced?
Katrin
Hi Mary, yes, you can use "real" sugar in all the recipes. Just in case, use a little less first and taste your dough, then add add more if necessary. The erythritol I use is supposed to be a 1:1 sugar replacement, but it's always good to be on the safe side.
Carol mckeever
I used 1 tbsp of honey to sweeten. Even my husband likes them.
Mariam
Hi Katrin,
Thanks for all your hard work inventing and testing these delicious recipes for us. I've made a few of your recipes and they've worked out a treat :).
I'm keen on trying these walnut cookies, was wondering if it would be possible to make the balls and freeze them ( like cookie dough), and just bake a few at a time when I want to eat them, rather than having a whole batch made. Do you think that would work?
Katrin
I have not tried that myself, but why not? I think it should work fine. You might need to add a few more minutes to the baking time - just take it out when it looks and smells good!
Melissa
Decided to try this recipe out tonight since it was the only dessert recipe I had all the ingredients for. I used monkfruit for the sweetener and it was great! I will make again when I get a sweet tooth. Thank you!
Katrin
Perfect! I love it when I find a recipe I like and everything is in the cupboard! Happy days 🙂
Tanya
Made these last night. Thank you for my new go-to sweet treat! I used pecans, added a little vanilla and sea salt, and skipped the cinnamon. So quick and delicious!
Katrin
That's great! Using pecans with vanilla and salt sounds delicious
Josette Duran
I made these. The cookies were more "drop" than balls as I could not resist adding some vanilla which made the mixture looser. Also drizzled a little melted chocolate on top while cooling. Will try with my favorite macadamia nuts next. Very good, super simple recipe. Thank you!
Kevin
Awesome recipe and I love this site, saving to favorites now!
Katrin
The erythritol I used is a 1:1 sugar replacement. So you would have to use a similar amount of sugar. You could also try honey!
Taryn
I can't wait to try these! They look amazing.
Katrin
They are almost too good to share! Mine are in the secret Mama cookie jar
Stacey
These look so good, yet so simple to make!
Sarah
These look lovely! I loved reading your post, as well!
Katrin
Thank you Sarah, that's so nice to hear 🙂
Kim | Low Carb Maven
I'm glad your car made it without breaking down, but then you might have had an extended-holiday, which doesn't sound too terrible to me! I'm so glad that you did try all of those yummy treats because now we reap the benefits of your lovely recipes! I love the simplicity of this one and can't wait to try it. #kisses and bliss forever!
Georgina
These look SO good! I bet they would work with pecans too (although less traditional!)
Katrin
Using pecans sounds like a great idea. I was also thinking they would be great dipped in chocolate!