Update: I’ve created a video to show you how to make these gluten free and vegan chocolate chip cookies.
The other day I received a call from Kelly about a potluck at my children’s school. This superwoman who doubles as first grade room parent and I spoke about taking the “luck” out of potluck.
During our chat, we touched on the significance of children breaking bread together and sharing in the most important part of the meal – dessert! To accommodate the different dietary needs of the first graders in my son’s class, I developed a dairy-free, gluten free chocolate chip cookie recipe.
Kelly and I enlisted five moms to bake these tasty cookies for the potluck and I’ve posted the recipe here for them.
Chocolate Chip Cookies (Dairy Free/Gluten Free)
Ingredients
- 2½ cups blanched almond flour (not almond meal)
- ½ teaspoon celtic sea salt
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ cup grapeseed oil
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
- ½ cup agave nectar
- 1 cup chocolate chips
Instructions
- Combine dry ingredients in a large bowl
- Stir together wet ingredients in a small bowl
- Mix wet ingredients into dry
- Form 1 inch balls and press onto a parchment paper lined baking sheet
- Bake at 350°F for 7-10 minutes
- Cool and serve
* Please note: Bob’s Red Mill almond flour does not yield successful results when used in this recipe. For more information regarding this matter please see my FAQs.
Eden says
I made these the other night and everyone scarfed them down. I’m quickly beginning to cook a whole new way thanks to your yummy recipes.
Pamela says
Hi Elana,
I am prepared to be your biggest fan, but I am having a problem with both of the recipes that I’ve tried, these choco chip cookies with grape seed oil and the flapjacks. First let me say the flavor in both was amazing. But the consistency of the flapjacks was like water. I had to practically burn them to get them stable enough to turn over, but many just folded over into a sloppy mess. It was very frustrating and I almost stopped cooking them. But I did cook all of them and my husband and kids ate every last one.
For the cookies, I was so excited I made a double batch the first time. Again, the mixture was runny. I could not roll them into balls. I did not need to flatten them, as they oozed all by themselves and some ran off the pan while baking. I was certain I made a mistake. So the second time I made one batch, but the results were the same. The batter does not look like the firm batter you are confidently rolling into balls on the video. But the flavor was so good, and I am desperate for gluten, dairy free. So I ground one cup of raw oats and three tablespoons of raw flax seeds into flour and added it to the batter. These did need to be flattened or the center would not cook and came out raw. The flavor was good, the consistency better, but I adored the flavor of the original recipe. I don’t have your flair for experimentation- what would you add to bulk up these cookies- or can I cut some of the oil so they are not so runny?
Okay, am I crazy? Why won’t these recipes work for me?
Monica Kuretza says
I made these cookies twice, both times they spread out like little thin pancakes. (They still tasted yummy, but looked horrible.) The second time I used coconut oil instead of grapeseed and put the batter in the fridge, same result. I thought it must be because I was using ground pecans and walnuts instead of almond flour, but after reading these comments, I wasn’t alone.
SOLUTION:
I fixed it by increasing the nuts to 3 cups (I still ground pecans and walnuts because of my son’s sensitivity to almonds.)
I also added 1 egg and 1 T coconut flour. I decreased oil to a little less than 1/3 cup (I subbed Eath Balance dairy free soy free spread, softened.) I also used cocoa nibs instead of chips and honey instead of agave. In between batches I put the dough in the fridge.
I dropped the dough by the tablespoon onto the parchment paper then greased my hands with the Earth Balance spread and flattened the cookies so they wouldn’t stick to my hands. I cooked them for 10 minutes, and they look EXACTLY like the ones in the picture and my son loves them. :)
elana says
What brand of almond flour were you using when the cookies spread out like thin little pancakes? That could be a clue to the pancake mystery.
elana says
Chrissy-
Thanks so much for your kind words and yes, I will sign you up!
Elana
Chrissy says
No, I used to live in Co Springs, and my sister recently moved from Boulder to the springs after 7 years there. I was just there a month ago and I googled gluten free restaurants and that one came up… then I saw the link on your side bar and put them together! I went to a really cool place for lunch with my sis in Boulder… it had this covered outdoor patio and I had this mexican pulled chicken thing with a homemade corn cake/tortilla thing that was divine… makes me want to book a flight out and go have that for lunch, swing by O! for pizza and cookies for dinner and hop back on a plane to come home! We have NO GF restaurants (other than chains) here in Nashville. I loved CO, and I thought your comment on the grain-free granola was TOO funny (using the term on your friends… I knew some very “crunchy granola” people when we lived there! LOL!).
Anyway, I am LOVING your website and experimenting with all these new recipes! I have baked with almond meal before… used the BRM, another one from some web site that I ordered, and made my own in the vitamix… and you are totally right about the one you use. I ordered the 5lb bag last week and I am amazed at how much better the baked goods turn out. The cookies are gone, except for maybe 5 or 6 that I did not bake yet and I am planning some muffins or your bread with cinnamon and nutmeg for tomorrow! I have yet to purchase the grapeseed oil though… so I am using butter. I am not CF as well, so its fine by me… as long as I dont eat the whole batch and start storing it all up for the winter! ;)
I also copied your glass jar idea and found a dozen quart size jars at the hardware store for just under $11! I filled up about 7 of them with nuts, granola, coconut flour, etc… they look so pretty! I dont know why I didnt think of that before!
If you ever do publish a cook book… sign me up for the first printing!
elana says
Hi Chrissy,
I guess you live in Boulder if you’ve seen my cookies at the pizza place (O! Pizza). Those are made with grapeseed oil, no butter–the recipe above. Thanks for your comment and I’m glad you and your mom liked the macadamia caramels.
Elana
Chrissy says
I made the other choc. chip cookies last night with the butter… they are wonderfully amazing! I am wondering… since those taste EXACTLY like what I remember a chocolate chip cookie tasting like… how is the flavor of these with grape seed oil instead? How do you make them for the pizza place? The classic recipe? Those are just TOO good. I actually refrigerated most of the dough and I am making a couple at a time just for ME! I was just amazed by the recipe! I made it right from your instructions (only added a little more vanilla… no reason other than habit… I always add extra vanilla!) and they were fabulous. I took some over to my mom (who eats mostly grain-free and never eats refined sugars) and she thought they were wonderful, too! She also accused me of lying about the ingredients in the macadamia caramel candies… she thought for sure I was trying to poison her with milk maid caramels or at the very minimum large quantities of brown sugar mixed in!
So, if you have an answer on the taste of these with grape seed oil, I would appreciate it! Its too bad there is no “safe” butter flavoring to add…
Steph says
Thanks so much for the wonderful cookie recipe. I am just beginning to try to cut out wheat and dairy. I had to substitute the almond flour for affordability and because it’s what I already had in my pantry. Bob’s Red Mill gluten free All Purpose Baking Flour substitutes nicely. The cookies were light, a little crumbly, but oh so lovely.
erina says
Thanks for the recipe. I wanted to let you in on a little shortcut I often use for CChip cookies. Gluten Free Pantry yellow cake/cookie mix can be used too. I just follow the cookie recipe on the box then add 2 TBSP peanut butter (for taste) and a cup of CChips.
I also love there Borwnie mix, It’s even better if you also add a cup of CChips (I add nuts for protein to this too.)
My 6 and & 7 year old boys, and their class mates love these.
Roxanne Butler says
How much of the gluten free pantry mix and butter did you use?
Elana says
Karen, thanks for your great comment; I am so glad that you like these cookies and I hope you enjoy the other recipes on my site! Let me know how it goes.
Elana
Karen says
Thank you Elana! Your chocolate chip cookies are amazing! You are a lifesaver! I recently had an allergy test that determined I am allergic to wheat, dairy, sugar (cane), and yeast (a tough combo for someone who loves ALL baked goods!). The only thing I needed to substitute in your recipe was the chocolate chips – and I found an alternative at Whole Foods (SunSpire grain sweetened chocolate chips with no cane sugar or wheat – I highly recommend them!) I LOVE these cookies and I cannot wait to make them again this weekend! AND I am looking forward to trying your other recipes!
Thanks again!
Karen
Sunny B says
Karen,
I used to LOVE those grain sweetened chocolate chips and came upon them when my daughter was being treated for a kidney issue with a wheat free, sugar free, dairy free diet. Because she is allergic to dairy, and because I try to limit sugar in our diets anyway, these quickly became a staple in my kitchen-even after her treatment was completed.
I was heartbroken last year after being diagnosed with celiac’s to discover I could no longer enjoy these chocolates! The barley used to sweeten them is a key gluten producer…while I hate to add to your dietary difficulties, I strongly recommend you verify it is simply wheat you need to avoid, and not gluten all together. This can make a world of difference for you.
Take care!
Sunny
Shaina says
We use the Enjoy Life brand chocolate chips which are free of the top 8 allergens. I highly recommend them!
Sunny B says
Shaina,
Thank you! I will definately give these a try.
Sunny
Marilynn says
I use the Enjoy Life brand chocolate chips because my grandson can not have dairy, soy keep them on hand all the time.
Fairycakemother says
Try Silver Spoon if you can get it. It’s sugar made from sugar beet, not sugar cane.
Zanne says
FYI — Sugar from sugar beets is genetically modified — it’s best to avoid!
Kristy says
I also had blood work done due to severe eczema and the results showed gluten, dairy, egg, corn, almonds, and peanuts. I was wondering if there was a way to make these cookies without using the almond flour. Thanks so much, Kristy
Kendrah says
A friend of mine is gluten-free and I am corn free (as well as everything else free due to extensive food allergies…ha-ha). I didn’t have the almond flour so I made gluten-free flour using the following recipe:
2 cups rice flour
2/3 cups starch (I used arrowroot starch because it was on-hand)
1/3 cup tapioca flour
1 teaspoon guar gum (as a substitute for xanthum gum which is from corn)
I also make my own vanilla extract to be sure the alcohol used is not from corn (I’m pretty sensitive).
I took that mix and measured out the 2.5 cups for this recipe! After baking, the cookies were a bit crumble-y…but that could be becuase I used Bob’s Red Mill flours??
It might be a recipe for you to start from and experiment with!! I’m sure I’ll modify it in the future…
Hope that helps :)
Karen Carlisle says
the almond flour. Can I buy almonds and make the flour myself or is there more to it?
Manya says
I too was disappointed to see that the sunspire ones use barley to sweeten them. I have been using the enjoy life ones, but honestly they still have sugar. I may have to start making my own darn chocolate! lol.
Luna says
I have looked into the SunSpire ones but they’re NOT gluten-free. The grain sweetener is made from barley, that contains gluten… :( also EnjoyLife brand is gluten free but not sugar-free