These Keto Sugar Cookies have a soft and chewy center, a slightly crisp edge, hold their shape well, and have a choice of a sweet buttercream frosting or an icing that sets. No one would ever guess they’re Keto, Paleo, Gluten-Free, And Dairy-Free!
I am in LOVE with these keto sugar cookies!!! Here’s why I love them so much:
- they are not bland in any way! Even though I love them with frosting, you can totally eat them without and still thoroughly enjoy them
- they are soft, tender, and buttery with a slight crunch on the edge
- and lastly, they can be made ahead of time
2 Keto Sugar Cookie Versions
I have 2 versions for these cookies.
VERSION ONE: The first version is similar to the beautiful soft Lofthouse sugar cookies sold at most grocery stores with the colorful frosting, sprinkles, and sold in a clear plastic container.
They are big, soft and tender, but also have a slight crunch on the edge. They can be rolled into shapes, however, they do slightly spread.
If you stick to basic shapes, though, such as a circle, heart, star, candy cane, etc… they’ll be fine.
VERSION TWO: The second version is more of a typical cut-out sugar cookie. They hold their shape well while having a soft and chewy center and a slightly crisp edge.
What’s the difference in the 2 cookies? 3/4 tsp. xanthan gum, that’s it!
It’s only one small ingredient but it drastically changes the texture of cookies from a big, soft and tender cookie to one that holds its shape with crispy edges and a soft and chewy center.
Expert Tips
I do have a few tricks to get a perfect sugar cookie:
- Don’t over bake them! If you over bake them they will be crunchy and not soft and tender in the middle. You want to pull them out of the oven when the edges are just barely starting to brown and the center looks under baked. They will seem very soft when you first pull them out of the oven, but they will set up nicely once they cool.
- Allow the dough to rest in the fridge or freezer until thoroughly chilled. If the dough isn’t chilled, it will be very hard to roll out and work with. Chilling also keeps the butter cold and prevents the cookies from spreading. If your dough starts to warm after you’ve rolled it a time or two, you can pop it in the freezer for just a bit to get it cold again.
- Don’t roll them out too thin. If you roll them out too thin they will easily over-bake and become crunchy. They need to be around 1/4 inch thick, or even just a tad thicker when you roll them out to get a nice, soft, tender center.
- Don’t frost them until they’ve completely cooled. If you frost them too soon the frosting will melt off!
Easy Keto Sugar Cookie Steps
Start by creaming together slightly softened (not melted!) butter and Sweetener of choice. Non-dairy butter, such as Earth Balance, will work fine if you’re dairy-free.
For the sweetener, I prefer to use granulated Swerve or Lakanto Sweetener. They are both Keto-friendly and taste remarkably like regular sugar! However, any granulated sweetener will work.
Beat in some vanilla, an egg, almond flour, coconut flour, baking powder, xanthan gum (if using), and salt until the dough comes together. (As a point of reference, I used xanthan gum in the pictures)
Then, place it in a baggie or wrap it in plastic wrap and let chill in the freezer around an hour or the fridge at least 2 hours, or until thoroughly chilled.
Place the dough on a piece of parchment paper, cover with plastic wrap, and roll out until about 1/4 inch thick or slightly thicker. Use cookie cutters to cut into shapes.
Remove the excess dough from around the shapes and very carefully transfer to a parchment-lined cookie sheet, leaving about 2 inches space between each cookie.
Repeat with remaining dough until all cookies are cut-out.
Bake for 8-11 minutes, or until the edges are just starting to brown.
Once cooled, eat as as-is or frost and decorate as desired.
Looking for more dessert recipes? You may like my Keto Fudge, Keto Cinnamon Rolls, or Gluten-Free Palate’s Gluten-Free Pie Crust Recipe!
If you’ve tried these Cut-Out Keto Sugar Cookies or any other recipe on the blog please let me know in the comments below!
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Cut-Out Keto Sugar Cookies {Paleo}
Ingredients
- 1 1/3 Cup Blanched Almond Flour very finely ground
- 1 Tbsp Coconut Flour
- 1/8 tsp Sea Salt
- 1/2 tsp. Baking Powder
- 3/4 tsp xanthan gum optional, see notes below
- 1/4 Cup Butter (can use non-dairy) slightly softened but not melted
- 3/4 Cup Swerve Sweetener or granulated sweetener of choice
- 1 Large Egg room temperature
- 1 tsp. Pure Vanilla
Buttercream Frosting:
- 3/4 Cup Butter (can use non-dairy) slightly softened but not melted
- 3/4 Cup Powdered Swerve or Powdered Sweetener Of Choice
- 1-2 Tbsp. non-dairy milk, heavy cream, or coconut cream optional, as needed to thin
- 1 tsp. vanilla extract
- Sprinkles, Food Coloring (natural of course!), and decorations as desired
Icing That Sets And Can Be Used To Decorate With:
- 1 1/4 Cup Powdered Swerve or powdered sweetener of choice, as needed
- 1/2 tsp Pure Vanilla
- 1 Tbsp. Room Temperature Water plus more as needed
- Sprinkles, Food Coloring (natural of course!), and decorations as desired
Instructions
- Cream together the softened butter and sugar until it just comes together, about 30 seconds.
- Add the egg and mix well. Then, add in the vanilla.
- Add the almond flour, coconut flour, baking powder, salt, and xanthan gum (if using). Mix until dough comes together
- Transfer to a plastic baggie or wrap in plastic wrap and place in freezer 45 minutes to an hour or the fridge for at least 2 hours, or until dough is thoroughly chilled.
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- Place the dough on a large piece of parchment paper and cover with plastic wrap. Use a rolling pin to roll dough around 1/4 inch thick or slightly thicker.
- Use cookie cutters to cut out shapes then remove the excess dough. Carefully transfer them to a parchment lined baking sheet, placing them about 2 inches apart.
- Bake 8-11 minutes, or until the edge of the cookies just barely start to brown.
- Transfer to a cooling rack to cool completely. Frost, if desired.
Buttercream Frosting:
- With a handheld or stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the butter until creamy - around 2 minutes
- Add the powdered sweetener, pure vanilla, and non-dairy milk or cream. Beat on low speed until incorporated - around 30 seconds.
- Increase speed to high and beat 3 full minutes, or until ultra-creamy and smooth. Add additional powdered sweetener if too thin or additional cream if too thick. If frosting is too sweet, add a pinch or two of sea salt.
Icing That Sets:
- Whisk together all of the icing ingredients in a medium bowl. It should be thick, but if it's too thick add water as needed to thin. If you get it too thin add more powdered sugar to thicken. If not using right away, cover and keep in the fridge for up to 2 days. Icing sets and hardens after 12 hours.
Video
Notes
- Nutritional information includes buttercream frosting.
- The Xanthan Gum: If you omit the xanthan gum, the cookies will be big and soft with a slight crunch on the outside and will not hold much of a shape. If you add the xanthan gum the cookies will hold their shape and have a soft and chewy center with a slight crunch on the outside, however, they will not be big and soft.
- Don't overbake! If you over bake them they will be crunchy and not soft and tender in the middle. You want to pull them out of the oven when the edges are just barely starting to brown and the center looks under baked. They will seem very soft when you first pull them out of the oven, but they will set up nicely once they cool.
- Allow the dough to rest in the fridge or freezer until thoroughly chilled. If the dough isn't chilled, it will be very hard to roll out and work with. Chilling also keeps the butter cold and prevents the cookies from spreading. If your dough starts to warm after you've rolled it a time or two, you can pop it in the freezer for just a bit to get it cold again.
- Don't roll them out too thin. If you roll them out too thin they will easily over-bake and become crunchy. They need to be around 1/4 inch thick, or even just a tad thicker when you roll them out to get a nice, soft, tender center.
- Don't frost them until they've completely cooled. If you frost them too soon the frosting will melt off!
- For grain-free baking powder, combine 1 part baking soda with 2 parts cream of tartar and 2 parts potato, arrowroot, or tapioca flour
- Leftover cookies can be stored at room temperature in an airtight container for 3 to 5 days or can be frozen up to 3 months.
- To bring the butter to room temperature, I love this tutorial from Sally’s Baking Addiction on how to soften butter quickly for perfectly softened butter.
- I have also successfully made these using 1 1/4 Cup Blanched Almond Flour, NO coconut flour, 1/3 Cup of Arrowroot Flour, and 3/4 tsp. xanthan gum with the rest of the ingredients the same.
Nutritional information is approximate and may vary.
These are AMAZING! I added zest from a small lemon in the batter as well. My whole family loves them!
YAY Jesica, I’m so excited you liked them!! I’ll have to try adding some lemon zest next time, thanks for the tip 🙂
-Cassidy
I had pretty much given up on the keto cookie. I had just enough almond flour left to try this recipe. I made it with Swerve Granular and no xantham gum. The dough was wonderful to work with. I just rolled them into balls and made a thumbprint with the back of a measuring spoon and filled with jam. They smelled like cut out cookies I made as a little and my husband and I though finally, a winner! I plan to make a few batches of dough and freeze to bake when we want a treat. Thank you!!
YAY Kimberly, I’m so excited you liked them!!! I keep some dough in my freezer too ?
-Cassidy
Cassidy, they’re so good! You totally nailed this recipe. Have a very blessed New Year!
Thank you so much Kimberly, I’m excited you liked them!!!!
-Cassidy
Honestly these look just like the ones “mom used to make”! Sugar cookies are a Christmas must are they not? These look great!
Thank you so much Jules!!!
These look so fun and festive! Love those crispy edges and soft centers!
I’m making these today!!!! Yum
YAY! Let me know how they turn out!!!
-Cassidy
I love that Lakanto sweetener! these look fantastic!
Thanks Kristina, I love Lakanto too!!1
-Cassidy
Sugar cookies are a must this time of year! These look simply delicious.
Thanks so much! …Yeah, I’ve already made about 5 batches and have several more batches to make in the next few weeks 🙂
-Cassidy
I am so excited to try this recipe! Soft cookies (pre-keto) were my favorite. My Nanny always made soft cookies and frosted them when I was growing up and I’m so nostalgic about them because of that. I will be making these for Christmas Day to share with the loved ones in our home!
Oh YAY Shelby!!! Please let me know what you think of them! I hope they are at least comparable to ou Nanny’s 🙂
-Cassidy
These sound great! I would love to try making these with Bobs Red Mill egg replacer, I’m sure it would work out great 🙂 Looks so tasty.
Thanks Jenna, I think an egg replacer would probably work too! If you give it a shot let me know if it worked and how they turned out!!!
-Cassidy
Just wanted to say that I have made these cookies over 2 dozen times over the last three years and they have never failed me. Anyone who tries them, loves them! Wishing you and your family a Happy Holidays and Happy New Year!
Aw, thank you SO much Naomi! I’m happy you like them 🙂 Have a great week!!!!!!
-Cassidy
Hi Anonymous!
I’ve have only used white sugar in this recipe (bad I know!) so I don’t know if coconut palm sugar will work or not. But I’d imagine it would work fine if you sift it and will probably just make the cookies a bit darker in color. If you use the coconut sugar let me know they turn out!
Thanks,
Cassidy
These look amazing! Can’t wait to try them as I haven’t had a good soft sugar cookie in a long time.
I do however have one question. What type of sugar can we use for these? Will coconut sugar be ok or does it have to be literally, white sugar? Thanks!
I tried these today and they are absolutely delish!
Thank you SO much for posting this. This is my first Christmas being gluten and dairy free and I wasn’t sure how I was going to make it without my sugar cookies. So THANK YOU! Your site has helped me out SO many times. 🙂
I can’t wait to try these with my kids over the Christmas holidays. They are going to freak out! I wonder if we could even use Christmas shaped cookie cutters… Thanks for sharing!