Recipe first, talk later:
Keto Shortbread Cookies
Equipment
- 2 cookie sheets
- 2 sheets of parchment paper
- 1 large mixing bowl
Ingredients
- 1.5 cups granulated sweetener such as a monkfruit/erythritol blend
- 1 stick (half cup) unsalted butter room temperature
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- 1/2 tsp butter extract optional
- 4 lg eggs
- 4 cups almond flour
- 2/3 tsp cream of tartar optional (makes a fluffier cookie)
- 1/3 tsp baking soda optional (makes a fluffier cookie)
- 1 pinch salt
Instructions
- Heat oven to 350℉
- Cream together the butter and sweetener. Use either a hand mixer or a rubber spatula. I find a spatula is better for this.
- Add vanilla, eggs, and extracts, and blend well with a hand mixer.
- In a separate bowl, sift together the almond flour, baking powder, and salt.
- Fold the dry mixture into the wet mixture.
- Using a 2 oz scoop, form a dozen cookies per sheet, flattening the cookies with the palm of the hand (food service gloves are helpful here) or the back of a spoon.
- If desired, top each cookie with a cherry (omit for keto, obviously), macadamia nut, or anything else you can think of!
- Bake for 15-18 minutes, until just the edges have begun to brown. The cookies will firm up a bit as they cool. Bake one pan at a time for best results.
Notes
I’ve shown you our adorable Advent Calendar before, haven’t I?
It’s become an indispensable tradition in our family. Some people just do a piece of candy or a small gift every day, and I have done that in the distant past. But when you are a low-sugar family, and there are eight children, that way of doing things can get unhealthy or expensive in a hurry. So I usually do activities. There is a food thing here and there, and today it was cookies!
I was going to attempt to make these traditional St. Nicholas Speculaas Cookies with a gluten-free flour, but when I mentioned that to the children, they didn’t like the idea. I think it’s OK to deviate from the plan from time to time. I’ve seen so many people stress out about putting food in their mouth that wasn’t perfect. I don’t want to see my kids with that kind of relationship with food. I just want them to know they always have a choice, and that every choice they make leads to the next one. They’ve come to understand that some foods don’t make them feel as good, even if they do provide a very satisfying experience in the mouth.
Kids want to do the best thing for themselves, if you just teach them how to think about it!
So we went to our go-to keto shortbread cookie. It really is every bit as tasty as a sugar and wheat cookie, and without the blood sugar spike and crash later on. Adding the nutmeg and cinnamon would be a very good idea, but I didn’t think to do that.