Name: Gluten-free Almond Thumbprint Cookies
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 15 min
Total time: 25 min
Ingredients: 1 ½ cups almond meal; ¼ cup arrowroot powder; ¼ cup ground flax seeds; 1 teaspoon baking powder; ¼ teaspoon sea salt; ⅓ cup smooth almond butter; ⅓ cup pure maple syrup; ½ teaspoon almond extract; ½ cup no sugar jam*

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Perfectly soft, chewy delicious vegan almond thumbprint cookies filled with raspberry chia jam. A delicious holiday cookie, gorgeous and tasty for your annual cookie swap and ready in just 30-minutes. They’re also gluten-free, vegan and refined sugar-free so wrap them up and bring them to the holiday party as a fabulously healthy hostess gift!

This post has been updated from the original posted December 20, 2017.

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Ingredient Notes
How to make them
Debra’s Pro Tips
📖 Recipe

Almond Thumbprint Cookies are delicious, nutritious, easy to make and also stunning…yup, everything on your cookie wish list….just a few swaps away from a traditional thumbprint cookie, in all the best ways!!

They’re perfectly chewy, jammy and satisfying. Amazingly sweet with no refined sugar plus the nutty taste and texture is just right.
These gorgeous cookies will be the star of holiday dessert table. A fierce competitor for the top spot with my Vegan Ginger Cookies.
Be a superstar when you make these for your annual cookie swap. Bonus points if you’re willing to share and wrap these up as gifts!
I make these cookies filled with raspberry chia jam all year round and cranberry chia jam when fresh cranberries in season. They’re exactly what I want in the evening with a cup of tea and healthy enough for a grab and go breakfast too.

Almond thumbprint cookies filled with cranberry chia jam, a glass of milk, some fresh cranberries sprinkled around and a plate of cookies in the background.

Ingredient Notes

Almond Flour: Widely available at grocery stores and online. First choice: souper fine ground blanched almond flour. You can find it reasonably priced Trader Joe’s and Costco.
Arrowroot powder: a less refined choice over cornstarch.
Ground Flax: Rich in fiber, high in Omega-3s and perfect for vegan and grain-free baking.
Almond Butter: Use creamy almond butter, with only almonds, no additional ingredients. Substitute with peanut butter, sun butter or tahini to accommodate allergies.
Almond Extract: I like the extra almond flavor. OK to omit if you don’t have, or substitute with vanilla extract.
Sea Salt: Omit, if your almond butter contains salt, or if you’re on a low sodium diet, skip the salt. I like the way salt brings out the nutty flavor of the flax, and almonds, so I appreciate the little bit in this recipe.

How to make them

Preheat oven to 350 and prepare large cookie sheet with unbleached parchment.

Almond Butter, Maple syrup and almond extract in a large glass bowl.

Step 1: Mix wet ingredients. Combine almond butter, maple syrup and almond extract in a medium sized bowl.

glass mixing bowl with almond meal, flax meal, arrowroot, baking powder, mixed into maple syrup and almond butter for thumbprint cookies.

Step 2: Add dry ingredients, almond meal, ground flax, arrowroot, baking powder, sea salt to the bowl. Mix thoroughly, until

Large rimmed baking sheet, lined with parchment paper, filled with rows of cookie dough rolled into balls. Some of the cookies have a thumbprint indent.

Step 3: Roll batter into 1″ balls and place on rimmed baking sheet lined with unbleached parchment paper. Use your thumb, or the back of a spoon to make an indent into each cookie ball, to put the filling.

Large rimmed baking sheet, lined with unbleached parchment paper, lined with neat rows of thumbprint cookies. Half are filled with cranberry jam, there is a small glass dish of jam with two spoons in it, for filling the remaining cookies.

Step 4: Fill with jam. Use two teaspoons to drop 1 teaspoon of jam into each cookie indent. I used Homemade Cranberry Chia Jam.

Tray of Thumbprint cookies filled with cranberry chia jam.

Step 5: Bake for 13-15 minutes, until cookies are set and beginning to brown. It is OK for cookies to be soft, they will firm up a bit more as they cool.

Wire rack with thumbprint cookies filled with bright red jam cooling.

Step 6: Let cookies cool completely on a wire rack before transferring for storage.

Debra’s Pro Tips

Unbleached parchment paper with thumbprint cookies filled with bright red chia jam.

Make the jam ahead, or even use store bought jam to save time.
Make the cranberry chia jam yourself to save money.
Let the cookies cool completely before storing or freezing.
A dollop of melted chocolate is a great filling option too.
If you’re packaging these up for the annual cookie exchange, use a small piece of unbleached parchment paper between layers to avoid the jam shmearing.

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📖 Recipe

A white plate piled with thumbprint cookies filled with bright red cranberry chia jam.

Gluten-free Almond Thumbprint Cookies

Author: Debra Klein

Gluten-free thumbprint cookies filled with raspberry or cranberry chia jam. No sugar, low carb healthy cookies that are absolutely delicious and perfect for the holidays.

4.99 from 50 votes

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Prep Time 10

Cook Time 15

Total Time 25

Course Dessert

Cuisine Grain-Free

Servings cookies

Calories 94 kcal

Equipment

Ingredients

Instructions

Make Cookies

Preheat oven to 350 and line a rimmed baking sheet with unbleached parchment paper.
In a medium sized bowl, combine almond butter, maple syrup and almond extract. Mix until smooth.
Add almond meal, arrowroot powder, ground flax, baking powder and salt and mix well. It will be kinda crumbly, but you should be able to press together between your fingers.
Roll the dough into golf ball sized rounds. You will have 18-24, depending on size.
Use the back of a teaspoon or your thumb to make an indent in each. Fill with 1 teaspoon jam.
Bake for 13 minutes, until cookies are set and beginning to brown.
Let cool for about 10 minutes and then transfer to a rack to cool completely before storing.
Store cookies in the fridge in an airtight container for up to 1 week, or in the freezer for up to 3 months.

Notes

Raspberry Chia Jam Recipe:

1 cup frozen raspberries
2 teaspoons water
1 tablespoon maple syrup
½ teaspoon lemon juice
1 Tablespoon chia seeds

Place berries, water, maple syrup and lemon juice into a small saucepan. Bring to simmer and then cook over low heat for about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Use the back of a wooden spoon to mash any berries that don’t fall apart. Turn off heat, stir in chia seeds and let sit for.10 minutes to thicken. Stir again. Store in the fridge for up to a month.

You could also use cranberry chia jam, or a store bought jam…be sure to read the label to know what the ingredients are before buying.

Nutrition

Serving: 1cookieCalories: 94kcalCarbohydrates: 14gProtein: 3gFat: 8gSaturated Fat: 1gPolyunsaturated Fat: 7gSodium: 59mgFiber: 3gSugar: 8g

Note

The nutrition calculations were done using online tools. To obtain the most accurate representation of the nutritional information in any given recipe, you should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients you used. You are ultimately responsible for ensuring that any nutritional information is accurate, complete and useful.

Did you make this recipe? Please leave a review below, then snap a picture and tag me @dkhealthcoach or use hashtag #dkhealtcoach on Instagram so I can see it!!

Categories

Cookies Gluten Free Grain Free Hanukkah Holidays No Oil Rosh Hashanah Thanksgiving Vegan

Comments

4.99 from 50 votes (42 ratings without comment)

Almond Thumbprint Cookies with Chia Jam

Ingredient Notes

How to make them

Debra’s Pro Tips

📖 Recipe