If you love the delicate flavor of almond, you’ll love these classic almond cookies made with almond flour, almond extract, and sliced almonds!
Crispy, Chewy Almond Cookies
In these almond cookies, you get lots of almond flavor in three different forms.
First, almond flour stands in for some of the usual wheat flour. If you’re not familiar with almond flour, it’s essentially ground blanched almonds. You can buy it, or you can get out your food processor and make it yourself.
Next comes almond extract. Instead of tasting (and smelling) nutty like you might expect, almond extract has a delicate cherry-like flavor and aroma. This is because almond extract comes not from the almonds we eat, but bitter almonds. It has the same compounds as the pits of stone fruits, which is why its flavor is so similar.
To top everything off, I like to add a few sliced almonds to the top of each cookie before baking. That, of course, adds more almond flavor, but it also adds a nice little crunch as well as offering some aesthetic appeal. Don’t be afraid to crowd the almonds on top of the unbaked cookies. The cookies will spread nicely as they bake, and the almonds will spread with them.
Now let’s get down to the real business here, and talk about the end result. These almond cookies are crunchy but also a little bit chewy and, not surprisingly, full of almond flavor. Without any other flavors competing for attention, that simple almond flavor really shines.
Are These Chinese Almond Cookies?
These cookies are quite similar to Chinese almond cookies, but they’re not exactly the same; Chinese almond cookies have more (whole) eggs and they’re made with granulated sugar, while this version is made with brown sugar. But, when compared with Italian almond cookies (ricciarelli), this recipe is definitely closer to the Chinese kind.
What You’ll Need
Scroll down to the recipe card below this post for ingredient quantities and full instructions.
- All-purpose flour – Learn more: How to Measure Flour
- Almond flour – Be sure to buy the more finely ground almond flour, not almond meal, which is coarser.
- Baking soda
- Salt
- Unsalted butter – Learn more: Unsalted or Salted Butter: Which is Better for Baking?
- Granulated sugar
- Light or dark brown sugar
- Egg yolk – If you can’t stand throwing away perfectly good egg white, you can freeze it for a recipe that calls for the white and no yolk!
- Almond extract
- Sliced almonds
What Can I Use Instead of Almond Extract?
Almond extract is really a key player in this recipe; almond cookies just aren’t the same without it. That said, if you’re in a pinch, you can use vanilla extract instead. Just know that the end result won’t have that classic almond cookie flavor.
How to Make Almond Cookies
Here’s what you’ll need to do to make these perfect, buttery almond cookies at home.
Prepare. Preheat your oven to 350°F and line your baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone liners.
Mix the dry ingredients. Whisk the flour, almond flour, baking soda, and salt in a medium bowl.
Mix the wet ingredients. Use an electric mixer on medium speed to beat the butter, sugar, and brown sugar until the mixture is light and fluffy. Beat in the egg yolk and almond extract.
Combine the wet and dry ingredients. Reduce the mixer speed to low and slowly beat in the dry ingredients until just combined.
Form the cookies. Drop tablespoonfuls of dough onto the prepared pans, leaving about 3 inches between cookies. (I recommend using a cookie scoop for even portioning.) Flatten each cookie to about 1/2-inch thick and press the almonds onto the tops.
Bake. Bake one pan of cookies at a time for 12 to 14 minutes, or until the edges are lightly browned and the tops appear set.
Cool. Let the cookies cool on the pans for 5 minutes, then transfer them to a wire rack to finish cooling.
Tips for Success
Here are some simple hints and tips for perfect almond cookies.
- Let the butter soften almost to room temperature. Set it on the counter at least an hour before you plan on baking; when it’s soft, it will incorporate into the rest of the ingredients more easily. Keep in mind that butter begins to melt at 68°F, so don’t let it come all the way to room temperature.
- Lightly spoon the almond flour. By now, you probably already know not to scoop the all-purpose flour out of the bag with your measuring cup, but the same goes for almond flour. Use a spoon to fill your measuring cup, then sweep the excess off of the top with a butter knife. Better yet, measure by weight for accuracy.
- Save some for the next day. If you can bear to wait, these cookies are even better the day after they’re baked.
How to Store
Store almond cookies in an airtight container for up to 5 days.
Can This Recipe Be Frozen?
You can freeze these almond cookies in a freezer bag or airtight container for up to 2 months. Let them thaw at room temperature before serving.
Video Tutorial: Almond Cookies
Almond Cookies
Almond Cookies feature almond in three different forms for an absolutely delightful cookie!
Ingredients
- 1 cup (120g) all-purpose flour
- 3/4 cup (75g) almond flour
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 3/4 cup (170g) unsalted butter, softened
- 1/2 cup (100g) granulated sugar
- 1/4 cup (50g) firmly packed light or dark brown sugar
- 1 large egg yolk
- 1 teaspoon almond extract
- sliced almonds, for topping the cookies
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F. Line baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone liners.
- Whisk together the flour, almond flour, baking soda, and salt. Set aside.
- Using an electric mixer on medium speed, beat the butter, sugar, and brown sugar until light and fluffy. Mix in the egg yolk and almond extract.
- Reduce mixer speed to low. Gradually add the flour mixture, mixing just until combined.
- Drop the dough by tablespoonfuls onto the prepared pans, leaving about 3 inches between cookies. Flatten each cookie to about 1/2-inch thick.
- Sprinkle the top of each cookie with sliced almonds.
- Bake, one pan at a time, 12 to 14 minutes, or until the edges of the cookies are lightly browned and the tops appear set.
- Cool on the pans for 5 minutes. Then transfer the cookies to a wire rack to cool completely.
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39 Comments on “Almond Cookies”
Hi Jennifer,
May I freeze the dough?
Thanks!
Yes, the dough should freeze just fine, Millie. I’ve got some tips for freezing cookie dough if you’d like.
Thank you!!!
These cookies reminded me of my childhood. My mom used to make the most amazing cookies of so many types. Thank you so much for that walk down memory lane xx
Thank you! It’s wonderful how something as simple as a cookie can bring back memories. There are a few kinds that do that for me, too!
These cookies are absolutely delicious! I’m having a hard time not eating them all ! They’re crispy yet tender and have a wonderful almond flavor. I’m in love 💕
I’m so glad you liked them, Krista!
Use the leftover egg white to brush the tops before adding almonds and baking. Gives a wonderful shiny finish.
Thanks for the tip, Sandy!
Hi Jennifer!!!
Can I just use only Almond flour, insted if mixing it with all purpose flour?? Trying to avoid regular flour!!
Thank you!!
Hi, Angie. I can’t say for sure without trying it, but generally speaking, that’s not usually a 1:1 substitution and takes some tinkering to figure out just how to make it work in different recipes. My guess is that the flavor would be fine, but the texture could be a problem. I’m not sure they’d hold together well without any wheat flour. If you should try it, let me know how it works.
Thank you Jennifer!! 😬
Dear Angie,
When it comes to figuring out how to substitute ingredients for ingredients King Arthur Flour online customer service it’s a wonderful place for this kind of knowledge.
As long as the weight of the flour is the same amount any substitute will work by weight.
King Arthur has a flour weight chart that is available for reference online. (No 2 charts are identical because no 2 flour harvests are identical still there close enough that it will not be a problem and if you average 3 charts together from source that you trust that’s close enough in the ball park that it really should be ok.) What one wants to avoid is adding 2 cups by wait over what it should have been. A few Tables or .5oz or even 3oz is fine it’s when the change is 5oz that should start to ??? however 5oz is still no reason for backing out just add extra baking powder and baking soda to help compensate because your increasing the density at that point and the adding double baking powder and baking soda will help with balancing that added density.
Also if it’s a texture that dose bother you for one reason or another you can substitute starch for flour.
Potato starch is the most nutritious and will not have skins. (Potato flour has skins and thus has fiber yet not 100% a starch)
Arrow root is the strongest.
Tapioca starch is the weakest and least nutritional.
That said starch can be substituted at a 1:1 however arrow root I start with .5 and then go up from there.
🙂 I hope that this information is helpful.
Flour conversion cheat sheets are nice to have and you will figure out your preferred weight chart as one plays around with them. ☺️
Should I refrigerante the dough before baking?
Hi, Miriam. No, the dough doesn’t need to be refrigerated.
These cookies turned out amazing
I’m glad you liked them, Debbie!
THx jenny ;P
How many cookies do this be making???
Hi, Josie. The yield is at the top of the recipe. You should get about 30 cookies.
All I can say is WOW..
Delicious!!!! I will definitely make these again!!! I didn’t press them down and they turned out perfect! I put mine in for 12 minutes and they were done!
So glad you liked the cookies, Paige!
These cookies were easy to make and delicious! I followed the recipe exactly. I will be making these often.
I’m so glad you liked the cookies, Denise!
Thank-you Jennifer for this recipe. I have been wondering why my almond cookies don’t taste as good as I remember them tasting……..because I omitted the almond flour!! Your recipe refreshed my memory of how I used to make them. I never used the brown sugar though and you have a few more tweeks…can’t wait to try them…thank-you again.
You’re most welcome, Elizabeth! I’m so glad you enjoy the cookies!
I would like to roll out the dough and cut with cookie cutters. How should this recipe be adjusted to accomodate this?
Hi, Alexis. This cookie dough isn’t designed to be rolled and cut. It may work well enough, but I wouldn’t recommend it.
Love this recipe! However I think my sheet pans are too small. What size sheet pan should I use?
Hi, Liza. I usually bake cookies on a half sheet pan. There’s one of my favorites linked under the recipe.
Hi Jennifer, can I use oil (eg canola) instead of butter, and if yes, what is the quantity to use? Will the texture be affected?
Hi, Selene. I’ve not tried that, so I can’t say for sure how it would affect the outcome. There aren’t any no-fail rules for substituting oil for butter, so it would probably take some experimenting to get it right. I would likely start by using about half of the volume of butter as oil.
Great cookies! Thanks for the recipe!! Excited to share them with my almond loving dad. Any recommendations on how to store them?
Hi, Julie. They should keep tightly covered at room temperature for 3-5 days.
Maybe I did something wrong, although I followed the recipe carefully using the gram measurements, because these cookies turned out very greasy, leaving a thin oily smear on the baking parchment (and my fingers when eating!) and spreading out into wafer thin layers. The taste was sort-of okay, if a bit too sickly, and the texture wasn’t a chewy as I was expecting.
I think I’ll stick to macaroons:
125g ground almonds
175g caster sugar
1 tbsp cornflour
2 medium free-range egg whites
½ tsp vanilla extract
10 split almonds or 1 tbsp flaked almonds, to decorate
Hi,
what can i substitute the egg yolk with? Apple sauce?
Hi, Kathi. I’ve not made these cookies with any kind of egg substitute, so I don’t know for certain. You might find this helpful: Egg Substitutes in Baking.
Turned out amazing! I paired with almond milk and it’s soo good.
These look absolutely delicious! I am going to try to bake these for Fathers Day this year. Thank you for sharing!