Raspberry thumbprint cookies are easy gluten free and low carb cookies with a fruity raspberry jam filling. They are perfect for low carb, Keto and sugar free diets.
Are you a cookie monster?
It’s easy to be one. In my opinion, cookies – and in my case, low carb cookies – are just irresistible. Firstly, they are easy to make. They’re a lot less daunting than a cake, for example. Secondly, they are portable and keep well. Then, they look all cute and petite. And last but not least, they go well with coffee!
I am a serial cookie baker. A couple of highlights I have shared recently include my low carb peanut butter cookies and these low carb coconut shortbread cookies.
This recipe for raspberry thumbprint cookies is a new arrival in the low carb cookies hall of fame.
Seriously, someone should roll out a red carpet!
I am always amazed at how you can achieve a new taste and texture by changing just a small detail in a recipe.
To make basic low carb cookies, you need nut flour, butter, egg and a natural sweetener such as stevia or erythritol. This time, I decided to add cream cheese for a “fresher” taste.
I made these thumbprint cookies in 3 different ways before I arrived at the PERFECT recipe.
I baked one batch with no filling at all. For the purists among you, this is a great pared-down version that ends up deliciously crunchy. Just be patient and wait until they have cooled down. Low carb cookies contain grain free flours such as almond and coconut flour and these tend to be crumbly when hot due to their lack of gluten.
Next, I decided to mix things up a bit and made my thumbprint cookies with two different fillings: a mix of melted butter, cinnamon and sweetener for one half of the batch and a cream cheese filling with cream cheese, cinnamon and sweetener for the other.
Also, both delicious!
For my next cookie batch, I dropped a dollop of easy no-cook sugar free raspberry jam into each thumbprint. This time they were PERFECT!
Baker’s Top Tip
If you don’t happen to have a jar with raspberry jam in the fridge, you could simply mash a handful of raspberries with a touch of sweetener and a sprinkle of chia of xanthan gum and use that instead.
Alternatively, any shop-bought sugar free jam would work. Just make sure it is sweetened with stevia or erythritol and NOT with concentrated grape juice – brands tend to conveniently label products as “sugar free” even though they still contain sugar from other sources. Always check the ingredients and the nutrition label! The sugars in a truly sugar free jam should only be derived from the fruit itself.
I really hope you’ll love these raspberry thumbprint cookies as much as we did.
As you can see in the picture where I’ve taken a bite, the outside of the cookie is browned and crunchy, but the inside below the raspberry filling remains soft and tastes a bit like marzipan. The tartness of the raspberries is the perfect counterpart for the subtle sweetness of the base.
And in case you wonder what I did with three batches of thumbprint cookies? A small selection went into a cookie tin for immediate consumption and the rest is in the freezer, ready for small moments of pleasure in the future 🙂
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Low Carb Raspberry Thumbprint Cookies
Ingredients
- 2 oz / 55g full fat cream cheese
- 2 oz / 55g unsalted butter softened
- 5 tbsp granulated erythritol
- 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 egg medium
- 1 1/2 cup / 150g almond flour
- 1 oz / 30g sugar free raspberry jam
Instructions
- Heat your oven to 180 Celsius / 356 Fahrenheit.
- Mix the cream cheese, softened butter, vanilla extract and erythritol in a food processor or with a hand blender until smooth.
- Add the egg and mix.
- Add the almond flour and mix.
- If your dough feels too soft to handle, simply form a ball, wrap it in clingfilm and cool it in the fridge for 20 minutes (or in the freezer for 10).
- Form small balls in your hands and place on a baking sheet lined with baking paper.
- Press your thumb into the middle of each ball to form an indentation.
- Fill each indentation with sugar free raspberry jam
- Bake for 15 minutes or until lightly browned.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
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Jo says
Hi, instead of jam would peanut or almond butter work in the filling?
Katrin Nürnberger says
Sure, that’s a great idea!
Addie says
Hi, Katrin – I only buy large eggs; will that be a problem?
Katrin Nürnberger says
Hi Addie, I think it should be fine.
Toni says
Love them ,love them. They are amazing
Do you think I could add shredded coconut to the dough.
Katrin Nürnberger says
Yes, that should work well! You’d add a nice crunch.
Sue says
Hi Katrin. Loved these were cookies but I didn’t get a firm enough mixture to make balls…am I getting mixed up between almond flour and almond meal? I haven’t found almond flour in my local supermarket (New Zealand) . Could I use coconut flour instead? I’ve found a couple of recipes where I haven’t got the right consistency and wonder if it’s the almond flour/meal confusion 🙂
Katrin Nürnberger says
Hi Sue, I use what we call ground almonds here in the UK. It’s blanched almonds ground (so no skins). It’s not very finely ground. In the US they’d call it almond flour (from my research, they differentiate between almond flour and super-fine almond flour). Not sure if in New Zealand almond meal is essentially blanched ground almonds or whether it’s got the skins in it too and is therefore even coarser. However, I think the problem may be that your dough was not cold enough? Try cooling it in the fridge before shaping the cookies, once the butter firms up the dough is easy to work with.
Paige P says
I know I’m late to the game here, but I had to tell you how much my boys (ages 6 & 2) and I love these cookies! They helped make and roll the dough. Instead of jam I made a simple little sugar-free buttercream frosting and they are delish! Next time I might get crazy and roll the dough balls in chopped walnuts before baking. Thank you for this recipe!
Katrin Nürnberger says
Love the idea of walnut cookies!! And how great your boys like the cookies. Kids are always the most critical of all!!!
Stephanie says
I’m excited to make these. I’ve got the batter made and in the fridge firming up before I shape and bake. I am wondering how these would freeze after baking??? I’m trying to get my holiday baking done ahead of time!
Katrin Nürnberger says
Hi Stephanie, I have frozen these without problem. Should they collect a little moisture in the freezer, you can always pop them back in the oven for 5 minutes to crisp them up.
Jules says
I do love these. Grew up with Mom making them. I LOVE Swerve sweetener as a replacent and found a local farm that does sugar free jam. Score!!
Katrin Nürnberger says
Perfect! So glad you like the recipe 🙂
Jacqueline says
Hi,
Just made these cookies and they look awful but taste great! My problem was that I used all the proper ingredients in the right order but it didn’t result into a dough. I couldn’t roll it at all ( not even after putting it in de fridge) . What could I’ve done wrong? My egg was definitely bigger and I used a mixer with dough hooks. Could it be that my creamcheese was too thin?
Thanks,
Katrin says
First of all, if they taste great, that’s the most important thing 🙂 It’s possible that your dough was too liquid because your egg was much bigger than the one I used. I don’t think the cream cheese could have been the problem because cream cheese always goes very liquid when mixed, but firms up when cold. And, if possible, always weight your ingredients as opposed to using the cup measurements because it’s more exact.
Donna says
I’ve made these several times and they are delicious. However, when I put my thumb the dough seems a bit sticky and not as firm. The hike pops back up. Any suggestions?
Katrin says
Sounds like your dough is softer than mine. Maybe your butter is too liquid? You could try using room temperature butter. Or cool the dough in the fridge for a bit before making the cookies.
Vickey says
Hi, these sound amazing and easy. Can you use coconut sugar instead of stevia? Thanks
Katrin says
Hi Vickey, I’ve used erythritol in this recipe, but you could use coconut sugar instead 🙂
Laura Mathieu says
Hi,
I’m trying this recipe tomorrow for a friend who’s narcoleptic, I was just wondering how many grams are each cookie? I’m always using a scale when I bake cookies so they all turn out the same and cook evenly. Thank you!!
Katrin says
Hi Laura, my cookies weighed around 15g each.
Carolyn says
What size egg did you use? Mine was 80gm probably too big, it didn’t come out doughy just battery lol.
Katrin says
Hi Carolyn, I get my eggs from a farm, they are mixed. I just measured 2 – one was 61, another one 68 grams. So yes, a bit smaller than yours, but not too much. Dough consistency can also be affected by how fine your almond flour is or how long you leave the cookies in the oven. Were you able to roll your dough into balls like in the video?
Melina says
I made these last night and my husband and I devoured them! They were delicious! I am making them again right now as chocolate chip cookies!
Katrin says
I’m glad you found a winner! The recipe is so adaptable, I’m sure they taste great with chocolate
sue says
I only have confectioners swerve……… will that work?
Katrin says
of course!!! You might need more though, because powdered sweetener weighs less than granulated sweetener. Have a taste of the dough and add if necessary
Sharon says
These cookies are lovely! Thanks for the recipe!
Just one thing though …. I have made them twice and each time stored them in an airtight container but they have gone soft after a day or so. Can you advise how they are best stored to keep them fresher please?
Katrin says
Glad you like them! I think the only way to return them to full crunch is to stick them back in the oven for a minute, or maybe under the grill. Almond flour goods do soften when stored.
Cassie says
Hi. I don’t have any Erythritol, Can I use granulated stevia instead?? Thanks
Katrin says
Absolutely. If your stevia is granulated, it’s probably mainly erythritol anyway 🙂 Often, manufacturers use a mix of erythritol and steviol glycosides, and then call it whatever they want. Just make sure your granulated stevia has the sweetness of 1:1 compared to sugar. I once had a stevia-based granulated sweetener that was twice as sweet as sugar.
Cheryl Evans says
just made these and made my own Jam filling
Katrin says
Fantastic! Thank you for trying the recipe 🙂
Rhonda says
I do not have SF jam and i was wondering if i could use 1/4 of a piece of sugar free candy.. like the Russel Stover peanut butter cups?
Katrin says
That sounds like a great idea. You can fill these cookies with anything you like. I made a cream cheese filling for them once, which was yum, and I also tried them without filling at all. That time I made them flatter so they came out quite crunchy. Both nice. You could even try a dollop of peanut butter in them, or dark chocolate.
Nan says
What temperature should I set my oven to so I may bake some of these cookies? I live in the USA and our ovens don’t go by Celsius over here we go by degrees like set oven to 350 degrees and bake cookies for 8-9 minuets until toothpick comes out clean when using one to test for doneness.
Katrin says
Hi Nan, I always give the Fahrenheit option in my recipes – you must have missed it, it’s right at the top – Heat your oven to 180 Celsius / 356 Fahrenheit.
Cynthia Mathieu says
The sweetener you used looks like light brown sugar. I’ve never seen light brown erythritol before. Is it different in England than in the States? Would it change the flavor if I used white erythritol?
Katrin says
It’s the brown sugar alternative by Sukrin, called Sukrin Gold. You can order it on Amazon or over their website, in both the US and the UK. Using regular white erythritol would taste just as good though. The flavour of the cookies comes from the vanilla extract and the almonds.
Maryann says
Mine are in the oven now, to take to an about to be told t2 diabetic, tonight. U fortunately the bottom element in my oven has blown for the third time since the oven was two… grilled cookies they’ll have to be!
Katrin says
Grilled cookies, that has to be a first! 🙂 They should be fine though at the very bottom. Next time, if you have a microwave, you could also get them started in there and then transfer them for a bit of crunch?
Sarah says
Can I use liquid stevia in this recipe?
Katrin says
That should work, though you might have to add a couple of tbsp of almond flour to make up for the missing solids in the recipe. My liquid stevia has a sweetness ratio of 4 drops per tsp, but do check your bottle, they may not all be the same!
Belinda says
Loving this recipe. The cookies are perfect, crumbly on the outside and soft on the inside. I didn’t have any jam so filled them with a sugar free chocolate ganache. Thank you for the inspiration. I’ll try your jam version next.
Katrin says
What a great idea to fill them with chocolate! Sounds delicious.
Leah says
I was thinking about making cookies today and now I know exactly what I’m going to make. Can’t wait!!! Your recipes are always amazing – I’m looking forward to this one.
Katrin says
Thank you!! Let me know how you get on with this one 🙂
Leah says
They’re a sound success. The hardest thing is not eating them all at once 🙂