It's so easy to make these keto butter cookies! They are crisp on the outside and deliciously soft and buttery in the centre. My gluten free keto spritz cookies require only 6 ingredients and are ready in less than 25 minutes.
Butter cookies are a very traditional type of shortbread biscuit. They have a high butter content, which make the dough soft enough to be piped rather than cutting or shaping it by hand.
In my home country Germany we would call this type of butter cookie "Spritzgebäck". It's a popular Christmas cookie, but it's also enjoyed all year round as a classic afternoon biscuit.
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I made this recipe 3 times before I arrived at the perfect ingredient ratio. Here are all the reasons why you will love it:
🌟 Why You'll Love This Recipe
- Texture. Crisp on the outside and deliciously soft on the inside.
- Flavor. Delicate and ultra buttery, with lovely notes of almond and vanilla.
- Gluten-free. This recipe uses almond flour, which is grain free.
- Keto friendly. Only 0.8g net carbs per cookie.
- So pretty. I'll show you how easy it is to pipe them!
Ingredients
Let's take a look at the ingredients.
Almond Flour - I always use ground almonds in my recipes, which is equivalent to regular almond flour in the US. Super-fine almond flour should work just as well, but you may need 2 tablespoons less.
Butter - It is important that your butter is room temperature. Take it out of the fridge at least 30 minutes before baking.
Powdered Sweetener - I used powdered Bocha Sweet, but a powdered erythritol monk fruit sweetener, pure erythritol, xylitol or confectioners swerve will also work. I don't recommend using allulose because the cookies won't crisp up as well.
Vanilla Extract - An absolute essential for flavor. Make sure you choose a sugar free one.
Egg Yolk - Adding the egg yolk helps with the structure of the cookie.
Xanthan Gum - Optional. I added it to ensure the cookies have a sturdy texture.
Instructions
This section contains step-by-step instructions and photos that show how to make this recipe. See the recipe card for full information on ingredients and quantities
Blend the butter, egg yolk, vanilla extract and powdered sweetener until smooth, fluffy and airy.
You can use a bowl and hand mixer here, or a food processor like I did. If the butter is nice and soft, it's even possible to simply use a fork.
Combine almond flour and xanthan gum, add to the butter mix and blend until combined.
Fill the low carb cookie dough into a piping bag and pipe onto a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.
Important! Don't pipe the cookies too flat or they may become fragile. Also, leave space between the cookies as they will spread a little.
Bake for 10-12 minutes or until lightly browned on the ridges.
Let cool fully before touching. Almond flour cookies are very fragile when hot, but crisp up as they cool.
Equipment
Piping Bag - Choose a sturdy piping bag. I have made the dough as soft as it can be, but it does need to be pressed out of the nozzle.
Cookie Press - This is a good alternative to a piping bag.
No equipment - You won't be making keto spritz cookies since there's no piping, but you'll still make totally delicious Keto Butter Cookies. Simply scoop the dough with a spoon and shape it into round cookies.
Variations
Egg Free: The most basic sugar free butter cookies require just 4 ingredients - almond flour, powdered sweetener, vanilla and butter. You could roll this kind of dough into a log, chill it in the fridge or freezer and then slice.
Coconut Flour: Not recommended. Coconut flour is more brittle than almond flour and the cookies would crumble without at least 1 full egg.
Chocolate chip butter cookies: Add sugar-free chocolate chips such as Choczero or Lily's.
Dairy free: Use a vegan butter or coconut oil as a substitute.
Flavor options:
- Use 1 teaspoon of almond extract or orange extract
- Add lemon extract or the zest of lemons and 1 tablespoon of lemon juice
- Add an optional sprinkle of salt
- add 2 tablespoons of cocoa powder for chocolate cookies
Toppings And Decorations
Here are a few variations I can think of for these shortbread cookies:
- Dip half of the baked cookie in melted sugar free chocolate
- Sprinkle with chopped nuts or coconut chips
- Top with granulated sweetener before baking
- Instead of piping, scoop cookies onto the baking sheet or silicone mat and press a criss-cross pattern on top with a fork
Storage
Store in an airtight cookie jar or container for up to 1 week. I found they were especially delicious on day two - delicate, crisp and utterly buttery.
It's possible to make the cookie dough ahead of time and freeze it for up to 3 months. When you're ready to bake, defrost to room temperature and proceed with the recipe.
More Keto Cookie Recipes
I love baking cookies so much that I have written an entire cookbook about it! Check out the Keto Cookies ebook here.
Here are more easy sugar free cookie recipes:
Tried this recipe? Give it a star rating below!
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Recipe
Keto Butter 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.
Equipment
Ingredients
- 2 cup almond flour or ground almonds, 200g
- ¾ cup butter room temperature, 170g
- ⅓ cup powdered sweetener 55g, use ½ cup for a sweeter cookie
- 1 egg yolk large
- 2 teaspoon vanilla extract sugar free
- ⅛ teaspoon xanthan gum optional
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 180 C electric / 160C fan / 350 F.
- Blend the butter, egg yolk, vanilla extract and powdered sweetener for about 1 minute until smooth, fluffy and airy.
- Add the almond flour and xanthan gum and blend until combined. Taste the dough and adjust sweetener to taste.
- Fill the cookie dough into a piping bag and pipe onto a cookie sheet lined with baking paper. Make sure you don't pipe them too flat or they may become fragile. Also, leave space between the cookies as they will spread a little.
- Bake for 10-12 minutes or until lightly browned on the ridges.
- Let the cookies cool fully before touching. They are very fragile when hot, but crisp up as they cool.
Dana
These are awesome. I've been doing keto for a while but I only eat berries for "sweets".
I've kind of burned them, but still taste great 🙂
Thank you for this great recipe!
Sarah in CA
could I make these as drop cookies?
Katrin Nürnberger
You mean to spoon the dough onto the cookie sheet? Yes, that would work.
Carol Pierce
Pretty tasty. I put a thumbprint in mine before baking. Added sugar free strawberry preserves after! My husband is a diabetic & loved the sweet treat he was able to have!
Barbara
The flavor of these cookies was delicious. However I think I may have piped them out too high as it took longer for them to brown and they were very dry. Next time I’ll make them shorter. Best news is I put them in the refrigerator and the next day they were delicious with hot tea.
A_Texas
I forgot about how many test cookies I have to put down to make a decently pretty spritz cookie. But after a few trial presses I got them going. Great recipe but needs salt. I'll probably add 1/2 tsp the next batch.
BJ
Can this be eaten unbaked? (Raw cookie dough)
Katrin Nürnberger
Yes, I would. Here in the UK raw eggs are safe to eat, as long as they comply with the British Lion scheme (which over 90% of eggs do). If you are concerned about consuming raw egg, make my sugar free cookie dough instead.