This Whole30 Cookies recipe is grain-free, gluten-free, dairy-free and sugar-free, making them perfect Whole 30 dessert. These almond butter cookies are a great healthy snack or dessert option for both adults and kids!
Original post written 1/29/18 | Updated 3/6/19
Why This Recipe Works
Hey, Day 15 and I’m on a quest for Whole 30 desserts. Part of me can’t believe I’ve made it this far on the Whole30 program, another part of me wonders what the heck I’m thinking and a different part of me feels amazing.
I flip between these three feelings throughout the day. According to what I’ve read, my sugar cravings should begin to subside soon. So far NO good on that.
I made these Whole30 Cookies that are a combination of almond butter and bananas a few days ago so I could get a teensy taste of that sweetness I love so much. Except there is zero added sugar in these babies. The cocoa gives these healthy cookies a chocolatey zing and the bananas and raisins give a boost to the sweetness.
Considering they are grain-free, gluten-free, dairy-free AND sugar-free, they are pretty amazing. I mean. I’d rather eat all 75 cookies in Cookie Remix first, but these would definitely be number 76.
Recipe Ingredients
Bananas – Use ripe bananas that are starting to brown and mash easily.
Almond flour – Low in carbs and high in healthy fats, binds the cookies together.
Almond butter – A butter alternative that’s a good source of protein and fiber.
Cocoa powder – Delivering that delicious chocolate to the cookie.
Raisins – Natural sweetness delivered in this recipe.
How To Make Whole30 Cookies
Step 1
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper and set aside. In a large mixing bowl (or bowl of stand mixer), combine the ripe mashed bananas, almond flour, almond butter and cocoa powder. Mix until combined. Stir in the raisins.
Step 2
Drop batter by 1-tablespoon chunks onto the prepared baking sheets. Bake in the preheated oven for 10-12 minutes. Let cool and enjoy!
Recipe Notes
- Swap the raisins out for a different dried fruit, but check the ingredients first to make sure no sugar has been added.
- Add chopped cashews, pistachio or macadamia nuts, if nuts are your thing. Avoid peanuts if you are following the Whole30 program. For a finely chopped nut, consider running them through a food processor before adding them to the batter.
- Applesauce (plain, with no sugar added!) or shredded apples or carrots would taste great in these, as well.
- Use ripe bananas for this recipe for best results.
- A sprinkling of sea salt would be a tasty addition to these cookies.
- If you are NOT trying to adhere to the Whole30 program, some chocolate chips would be a delicious sweet addition to this recipe.
- Adding a tablespoon of chia seeds to the recipe would be a deliciously healthy and good idea!
Promise me you won’t write these off at first glance, if you know what I mean.
Can I Replace Almond Butter with Peanut Butter
You can absolutely use almond butter and peanut butter interchangeably in cookie recipes. If you stick with creamy natural peanut butter, the two nut butters have very similar consistencies and also similar nutritional values. However! If you are sticking with the Whole30 program, stick with the almond butter (peanuts are not allowed)!
They taste way better than they look and if you are following the Whole30 program, I promise you will be happy to pop a few of these into your mouth when the sugar cravings hit. Especially if you have a sweet tooth like I do. This is a great recipe and I hope you love it as much as my boys and I do!
Other Delicious Healthy Cookie Recipes
If you aren’t following a specific diet plan, but you’re looking for healthier cookies, check out my 3-Ingredient Peanut Butter Cookies!
If you are doing Whole30 or have done it recently, please leave a comment letting me know how it’s going or what your experience was with it.
FAQ About Whole30
Whole30 is a month long eating program that helps learn to eat whole foods and improve your relationship with food. It’s an intense detox that focuses on whole, minimally-processed and easy to digest foods.
Dessert is not permitted on Whole30 but getting creative and using ingredients that aren’t typical fare to create a treat using approved Whole30 ingredients, sugar free options, you can enjoy something to satisfy that need for a treat.
Anything less than 100% cocoa is not permitted.
There are many benefits to following Whole30. Some of those benefits are increasing your energy, clearing up skin issues, improve your sleep and discover what foods make you feel unwell.
Low Carb Whole30 Recipes
Healthy Foods For Picky Kids
Knowing you can help your kids get the nutrients they need in more than one form is what we want to help you accomplish! We’ve put together a list of delicious foods that our kids don’t see as healthy but allow them to enjoy eating their fruits and/or vegetables in a snack or breakfast item.
- Healthy Breakfast Cookies aren’t just for breakfast and they are deceptively delicious. Kids will never know how healthy they are!
- Homemade Fruit Roll-Ups – Eliminate artificial and unknown ingredients by making your own homemade fruit roll-ups! This is the ultimate snack food for kids. Great for lunch boxes, too!
- Healthy Breakfast Muffins – Enjoy breakfast the healthy way! These breakfast muffins are beyond delicious plus they’re packed with good stuff.
- No Bake Granola Bars are the perfect snack for little ones. There is something comforting about knowing EXACTLY what goes into your kids’ bodies!
Will you help add value to Pip and Ebby?
If you make this recipe and love it, stop back and give it a 5-star rating ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ and leave a comment. THANK YOU!
Whole30 Cookies Recipe
Ingredients
- 2 ripe bananas mashed
- 1/2 cup almond flour
- 1/2 cup almond butter
- 1/4 cup cocoa powder
- 1/2 cup raisins
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper and set aside. In a large mixing bowl (or bowl of stand mixer), combine the bananas, almond flour, almond butter and cocoa. Mix until combined. Stir in the raisins.
- Drop batter by 1-tablespoon chunks onto the prepared baking sheets. Bake in the preheated oven for 10-12 minutes. Let cool and enjoy!
Video
Notes
- Swap the raisins out for a different dried fruit, but check the ingredients first to make sure no sugar has been added.
- Add chopped cashews, pistachio or macadamia nuts, if nuts are your thing. Avoid peanuts if you are following the Whole30 program. For a finely chopped nut, consider running them through a food processor before adding them to the batter.
- Applesauce (plain, with no sugar added!) or shredded apples or carrots would taste great in these, as well. Use ripe bananas for this recipe for best results.
- A sprinkling of sea salt would be a tasty addition to these cookies.If you are NOT trying to adhere to the Whole30 program, some chocolate chips would be a delicious sweet addition to this recipe.
- Adding a tablespoon of chia seeds to the recipe would be a deliciously healthy and good idea!
I doubled this and used a bag of frozen 365 cherries and 2 bananas. So GOOD. Thank you for the inspiration.
Of course! I’m glad you tweaked it and enjoyed them. Thanks for commenting!
Thank you Megan! These cookies saved my life 🙂 They literally brought tears to my eyes, they tasted so good, after being sugar & gluten free. I added a splash of vanilla & a sprinkle of cinnamon. I’ll definitely be making them again.
I’m so glad they were enjoyed. Thank you for commenting!
These are delicious. I doubled the recipe, did 1/2 c coconut flour, 1/2 c almond flour, didn’t add the raisins, added 1 cup unsweetened coconut, 1/2 c sliced almonds, 1 egg, 1 tsp of olive oil. Sprinkled sea salt on the top! Yum!!!
Glad you were able to tweak it to your preferences!
How many calories per cookie?
Hello! I don’t have calorie information on this recipe but I do use a site that I’ve included a link for below. You can add in your ingredients and it provides great detail!
Thank you,
https://www.verywellfit.com/recipe-nutrition-analyzer-4157076
I used coconut flour instead of almond flour and added in coconut and pistachios instead of raisins! They came out delicious!
I also used frozen bananas I had in the freezer, they help make them more moist 🙂
Great recipe, thank you!!
I love those tweaks – thanks for sharing with us!
I don’t think any desserts are compliant even if they’re made with complaint ingredients.
Has anyone made them without the cocoa? Not a huge chocolate fan but trying to still stick to the whole 30 plan
You can omit the cocoa and will stay good. I can’t think of anything that you could replace it with but they’ll still be tasty!
Good luck on the Whole30 – good job sticking to it!
You are correct. SWYPO! Definitely still feeding the sugar dragon.
I made these and they’re delicious. I added 1 egg, a teaspoon of olive oil, raisins and crushed walnuts. AMAZING! the closest thing to a cookie on the whole 30.
Thanks for commenting! I appreciate the changes you tried. Others will enjoy it too! The almonds would be a perfect addition.
Hi! Curious if these freeze well? I’m on my second batch of these yummy cookies and am so grateful for your recipe! These have been a huge hit with all of us on Whole30! I followed some suggestions of other users and made them with 3 bananas and also added chopped walnuts! 🙂
That’s awesome to hear! I love the idea of walnuts, such a perfect addition. These should freeze just fine but they might be a little more delicate after you take them out because they don’t have as much binding them. Thanks for checking in!
THESE ARE AWESOME! I did not add the raisins and sprinkled a tiny bit of Himalayan sea salt on top. Even my husband was shocked at how much he enjoyed them. Thanks for the recipe!
Great idea! Glad that they were enjoyed!
These look great but i thought ANY type of flour was officially ‘Non Compliant?’
Hi Nikky! Straight from the Whole30 website: "..you can have almond flour, coconut flour, tapioca flour, cassava flour and other non-grain-based flours, but it’s context-dependent." So, as long as you’re not over-indulging and using it as an occasional ingredient in recipes, these non-grain flours are just fine! Hope that helps!
Megan
How would these fare swapping the almond for coconut flour? That’s still compliant, right? I’m on day 13 and itching for a sweet treat so I totally feel ya!!
I believe you are still compliant. I haven’t tried it myself but it sounds like a perfect tweak to the recipe to try. Make sure to come back and share how it turns out!
I love these cookies but there is 1 thing that I would change. The cookies are kind of dry so I would put more bananas in
I understand that! I didn’t have a dry version but everyonce in a while I hear that from people and I can see how it could happen. Banana would definitely help. Thanks for checking in!
These cookies are amazing. I didn’t add raisin and I still enjoyed them very much. My 13 year old daughter is in love with the cookies and try to eat them every chance she gets. I try to find healthy recipes that are good all the time becuase I have a huge sweet tooth and I’m so glad that I finally found a recipe that’s good!!!!
I’m so glad you enjoyed them! I appreciate you checking in!
These are much more bread like than cookie texture, but still pretty tasty. question – how would adding some melted ghee or maybe even an egg change the texture/flavor?
do you have any recommendations on where to find 100% cacao chips btw?
thank you for this recipe!
Hi Dee, I haven’t baked with ghee so I don’t know how to direct you there. If you google online, it does say that the result would be changed pretty significantly so it’s not recommended for dessert.
I wanted to make a simple 3 ingredient cookie so I didn’t add any egg to this cookie dough. You could though! It most likely would give you more of a chewy texture.
Thanks for checking in with questions!
Hello! I just made these and they’re pretty tasty! I have one question though…how do you suggest they be stored and how long can they be stored for?
I would store them in an airtight container for 3-5 days.
Yummmm! These are delicious( I made them without raisins because I’m not much of a fan ). I made some plain and some with nuts… I’m trying really hard to not eat the whole pan right now!
I’m so glad you enjoyed them!
I am on the whole30 and we are on day 51
We are loving the program and plan to stay on it
That’s wonderful! It’s awesome when we find a program that fits our lifestyle.
I enjoy finding delicious recipes that fit this menu and will add them here so you can find more great options!
Gluten free baking is so sticky before baking, isn’t it!? When I look at the pics I’m like, ‘yep that’s good old sticky gluten free.’ It looks like a good one to try out though – thanks 🙂
You’re welcome.
I’m on day 28. I’m getting tired of it because I know I’m at the end. I’ve handled going out to eat well and encourage everyone on Whole30 to give it a try. Just be prepared to stalk the menu, ask about substitutions and other questions on how it is made.
And I have enjoyed it. I do cook quite a bit of compliant food outside of the program but it’s the sweets that take me out.