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You are here: Home / Desserts / Flourless Almond Cookies from Spain

Flourless Almond Cookies from Spain

March 24, 2014 Updated April 26, 2022 by Lisa 62 Comments This post may contain affiliate links

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Pinterest pin: flourless almond cookies on a glass dish

These Flourless Almond Cookies from Spain are almost too good to be true. They're gluten free, dairy free, and they take just 4 ingredients and 25 minutes to make. And they're totally delicious.

Glass cake plate topped with 20 flourless almond cookies with almond centers and one almond cookie on the table under the plate.

Cooking Light has a terrific cookbook called Global Kitchen. The book is filled with healthy and delicious recipes from all around the world - a book after my own heart! As I paged through, these flourless Spanish almond cookies caught my eye.

I have to admit that the first thing that attracted me to them was how healthy they are.  There's no butter or flour - they're made mostly from almonds.

They bake up crunchy on the outside, soft and chewy on the inside, with a fresh nutty flavor and a hint of lemon.

Close up of 7 flourless almond cookies on a glass plate with three almond decorating the edge of the plate

Spain is one of the worlds largest almond producing countries and desserts made with almond flour are common.  

Almond flour is simply blanched almonds, with the brown skin removed, that are finely ground.

overhead shot of a food processor bowl with ground almonds

Once you grind the almonds for 20 seconds or so, add the egg, sugar, lemon zest and salt, and pulse until you get a sticky dough.

overhead shot of a food processor bowl with ground almonds, lemon zest, sugar and an egg

These flourless almond cookies are also great if you happen to be eating gluten free, dairy free, or if you're looking for a sweet treat for Passover.

raised glass cake plate topped with lots of flourless Spanish almond cookies

close up shot of one flourless almond cookie.

I hope you enjoy the cookies! For more delicious, lightened-up recipes from around the world, here's the link to Cooking Light Global Kitchen  on Amazon.

For more delicious varieties of flourless almond cookies, check out my post: A Trio of Flourless Almond Cookies

Now here's the recipe for Flourless Almond Cookies from Spain. If you try this recipe I hope you'll come back to leave a star rating and comment. I'd love to know what you think!

Print

Spanish Almond Flour Cookies

Flourless Almond Cookies from Spain by Panning The Globe
Print Recipe

★★★★★

5 from 9 reviews

Delicious crunchy nutty almond cookies that are made mostly from healthy almonds. Naturally gluten free and dairy free.

  • Author: Lisa
  • Prep Time: 10 mins
  • Cook Time: 16 mins
  • Total Time: 26 mins
  • Yield: 24 1x
  • Category: Dessert
  • Method: Bake
  • Cuisine: Spanish

Ingredients

Units Scale
  • 2 cups blanched slivered almonds
  • ⅔ cup sugar
  • 1 large egg
  • Zest from 1 lemon
  • ⅛ teaspoon salt
  • 24 roasted salted almonds to top cookies (or use any type of almond you like)

Instructions

  1. Set an oven rack in the center position. Preheat oven to 350ºF. Lightly oil a baking sheet.
  2. Put almonds in the bowl of a food processor fitted with the chopping blade. Process for 15-20 seconds or until they are finely ground. Add the sugar, egg, lemon and salt to the bowl of the food processor and pulse 20-25 times, until the mixture becomes sticky and holds together.
  3. Make 24 dough balls. Pull out about a tablespoon of dough at a time. Squeeze it and roll it. Spread balls out evenly on prepared baking sheet. Press a whole roasted almond down into the center of each cookie.
  4. Bake in the center of the oven for 16 minutes. Cool cookies on pan for 5 minutes. Transfer cookies to wire rack to cool completely. Store in an airtight container for up to 3 days.

Keywords: almond cookies, gluten free cookies

 

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Filed Under: All Recipes, Cooking Light, Desserts, Entertaining, Europe, Quick and Easy, Spain, Vegetarian Tagged With: dairy-free, gluten-free, Holiday, Passover

Reader Interactions

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    Recipe rating ★☆ ★☆ ★☆ ★☆ ★☆

  1. Tzippi Moss

    November 19, 2021 at 1:07 am

    Great recipe. Easy and it's always a hit when we bring it to others as a treat.

    ★★★★★

    Reply
  2. Lynnie

    July 11, 2021 at 8:06 pm

    Keeping it as a favourite. The outside is crunchy like a dry amaretti and the inside is like the moist ones. Love!

    ★★★★★

    Reply
  3. Daria

    May 08, 2021 at 11:32 am

    How can I substitute honey for sugar in this recipe?

    Reply
    • Lisa

      May 08, 2021 at 11:50 am

      Hi Daria, I am not an expert on this but I found an article that will help https://www.thekitchn.com/4-rules-for-successfully-swapping-honey-for-sugar-in-any-baked-goods-230156
      Best of luck with the cookies!

      Reply
  4. Kathryn

    March 12, 2021 at 10:03 pm

    I started with 2-1/4 cups almond flour which made it even quicker without having to use the food processor. I rolled the balls in sliced almonds (because that's what I had) before flattening and dusted a wee bit of powdered sugar on top as they cooled. They were delicious and really pretty too, these pups are gonna be my new go to for giving as gifts to my gluten free friends and will forever get a star role on my Passover table with a thumbprint of jam in place of the almond decor (liberation from stodgy potato starch cakes)!

    ★★★★★

    Reply
    • Lisa

      March 16, 2021 at 7:38 am

      I'm so glad you like the cookies! Thanks for sharing your process - I love your modifications!

      Reply
  5. J. McMillan

    December 07, 2020 at 11:53 am

    Can the almond flour be substituted with hazelnut flour?

    Reply
    • Lisa

      December 07, 2020 at 2:38 pm

      I think these will bake well with hazelnut flour, but I'm not sure how they will taste. Almond flour has a strong, nutty flavor with more savory flavors than hazelnut flour, which is sweeter and mellower. If you try this recipe with hazelnut flour, I'd love to know how the cookies turn out.

      Reply
      • Susan Coleman

        December 18, 2020 at 7:04 pm

        I made them last year with hazelnut as I am allergic to almonds. I loved them! Making them again this year

  6. Zoe

    May 20, 2020 at 9:00 am

    Delicious! For any British people, I used 200g ground almonds, 150g caster sugar, and a medium egg, and mixed it with an electric whisk.

    ★★★★★

    Reply
  7. Ivy

    August 24, 2019 at 8:58 pm

    Hi Liza,

    If I use the whole almond, how many cup I should use for your recipe?

    Reply
  8. Joni Alexander

    June 15, 2019 at 2:03 pm

    Does the dough freeze well? I am going to try to make with monk fruit sweetener.

    ★★★★★

    Reply
    • Lisa

      June 16, 2019 at 8:37 am

      Hi Joni, I've never tried to freeze the dough. I'm guessing you'd be better off baking the cookies and freezing them rather than freezing the uncooked dough. If you end up trying it, I'd love to know how they turn out.

      Reply
  9. Thérèse

    December 18, 2018 at 3:10 pm

    Love the recipe. How much 2 cups of sliver almond give in ground almond? Also may I trade in xylitol for the sugar?
    Thanks

    ★★★★★

    Reply
    • Lisa

      December 19, 2018 at 9:25 pm

      I haven't tried this recipe using xylitol but I assume it would work well being that xylitol and sugar have about the same degree of sweetness. If you try it, I'd love to know what you think.
      As for the almonds, 2 cups of almond flour should work well. Enjoy!

      Reply
    • Jan

      December 21, 2018 at 6:39 pm

      Use 2 1/2 cups of almond flour for the 2 cups of slivered almonds.

      Reply
  10. Monika

    December 17, 2018 at 2:01 pm

    These look delicious and so simple! If I already have almond flour, how much would I use? In other words, how much ground almond does the 2 cups of slivered almonds generate? Thanks!

    ★★★★★

    Reply
  11. Maverick Johnson

    December 13, 2018 at 4:40 pm

    This was a really delicious recipe and was great for my school project.

    Reply
  12. foodtoheart

    November 12, 2018 at 3:40 pm

    not sure who stole this recipes from whom, but in south Italy they've been making this almond cookies since the dawn of times xD
    It doesn't matter I am sure cos either way the important thing is to make the world know this fantastic recipe!:)
    I love these cookie and I bake tons of them each time, almond is my favourite!:) I find that adding a tiny bit of almond essence boosts up the flavour.
    Super delicious cookies and great post:)

    Reply
  13. Mim Bull

    July 16, 2018 at 9:19 am

    FANTASTIC RECIPE!!! I made 2 batches this weekend for a Spanish themed village event, and after my husband eating most of those I made another 3 batches! I tried a little bit of one and it was INCREDIBLE!! My body doesn't handle sugar well so was wondering if anyone had tried making using sweetener (and successfully made them not have the awful sweetener taste!) Any suggestions welcomed before I start experimenting!

    Reply
  14. Albert Bevia

    February 01, 2018 at 12:55 pm

    These are fantastic! easy to make and loaded with a great almond flavor

    ★★★★★

    Reply
    • Lisa

      February 01, 2018 at 4:57 pm

      I'm glad you enjoyed them!

      Reply
  15. nina mayer

    February 06, 2016 at 7:33 am

    Fantastic AND easy!!! I ended up making a second batch of these yesterday only a few hours after the first because we ate too many--and needed more to bring to our hostess last night!

    ★★★★★

    Reply
  16. Kristina

    February 01, 2016 at 11:10 pm

    I love the Global Kitchen cookbook and I LOVE these cookies! this is a childhood favorite, I need to make soon...

    Reply
  17. Maggie

    January 28, 2016 at 10:44 pm

    Can you tell me how much almond flour is required (instead of grinding almonds myself)

    Reply
    • Lisa

      January 29, 2016 at 6:02 am

      Maggie, the recipe calls for 2 cups of slivered almonds, which is 8 ounces. 8 ounces of almond flour is about 2 1/4 cups.

      Reply
  18. Nick

    October 05, 2015 at 9:25 am

    My apologies to the poster of the recipe (Lisa) for the so-called humans who have posted the really stupid and self-centred (almost pathologically so) replies about choc-chip and shortbread. Your recipe sounds nice and I am going to try it, using Stevia instead of sugar (diabetic).

    Reply
    • Lisa

      October 05, 2015 at 11:49 am

      Thanks Nick. I hope you enjoy!

      Reply
  19. Ben

    December 31, 2014 at 4:46 pm

    This is an awesome recipe. I've tried it with a number of variations--my favorite so far being adding 2 tbs fennel seed.

    Thank you for sharing!

    Reply
    • Lisa Goldfinger

      January 05, 2015 at 11:47 am

      Thanks Ben. I love the idea of the fennel!

      Reply
  20. Erika

    December 13, 2014 at 4:46 pm

    You saved my day!! After a disastrous lemon cake failure I needed a replacement recipe just hours before a party. I whipped these up in a hurry, using almond meal instead of slivered almonds (it was all I had in the pantry) and they came out just perfectly. I put a dollop of the leftover lemon icing from the ill-fated cake into the middle of the cookie instead of the whole almond, and it worked a treat.

    Thanks for sharing this simple, delicious cookie. I'll be bookmarking it for another event!

    Reply
    • Lisa Goldfinger

      December 14, 2014 at 9:35 am

      Wow,Erika - so great that you were able to pull off a successful dessert in such a short time! I love the idea of the lemon icing in the middle of the almond cookies!! 🙂

      Reply
  21. Kerry Clark

    August 02, 2014 at 11:04 pm

    Great recipe, cute little cookies. I am going to put in more lemon rind, and less sugar next time. Thank you very much for your low fat recipe.

    Kerry

    Reply
  22. Bryan E.

    March 30, 2014 at 10:41 pm

    Thanks for the giveaway… we are on a continuing quest to tweak our oatmeal-coconut-pumpkin cookie recipe.

    Reply
  23. Mindy

    March 30, 2014 at 9:07 pm

    My favorite cookie recipe is a chocolate chip cookie with a secret ingredient: molasses! Yum.

    Reply
  24. Kristen D.

    March 30, 2014 at 7:17 pm

    my favorite cookies are snickerdoodles!

    Reply
  25. M. Sun

    March 30, 2014 at 7:02 pm

    Trying to enter the cookbook giveaway but all its been doing is loading for the last 15 min. Tried twice. Says there are still five hours before contest closes. Oh well

    Reply
  26. Samantha

    March 30, 2014 at 6:18 pm

    I am an old-fashioned Chocolate Chip Cookie gal!

    Reply
  27. MARIA simon

    March 30, 2014 at 3:52 pm

    I love homemade choc chip cookies and you can actually make them a bit healthier by adding pumpkin instead of the eggs 🙂 comes out very moist thanks

    Reply
  28. Candie L

    March 30, 2014 at 8:55 am

    I do not have any healthy recipes to share but I love peanut butter cookies. THank you

    Reply
  29. Sand

    March 29, 2014 at 11:56 pm

    I love pizzelles.

    Reply
  30. Laurie Emerson

    March 29, 2014 at 10:28 pm

    My favorite cookies are sugar cookies. I have begun to make them with honey instead of white sugar to be a little healthier.

    Reply
  31. alyce poalillo

    March 29, 2014 at 7:11 pm

    I love shortbread cookies and they are not really healthy and I feel if I am going to eat a treat it should be a good one.

    Reply
  32. Carolsue

    March 29, 2014 at 5:54 am

    I like Oatmeal and Raisin cookies as well as gingersnaps and sugar cookies. I can't think of a particularly healthy cookie right off ....

    Reply
  33. Daniel M

    March 28, 2014 at 11:48 pm

    my fav cookies are snickerdoodles!

    Reply
  34. Lorena Keech

    March 28, 2014 at 4:57 pm

    Maybe not the healthiest cookie but we love Oatmeal Raisin

    Reply
  35. Carol at Wild Goose Tea

    March 28, 2014 at 4:08 pm

    I love shortbread cookies made from real butter. I was quite intrigued with this recipe because it's flourless. And the 'from Spain' entices me too. A little teeny mini-vacation---

    Reply
  36. Eugenia Hall

    March 26, 2014 at 4:01 am

    My favorite cookies are my own recipe for oatmeal cookies with diced dried apricots, dried cranberries and toasted pecans.

    Reply
  37. Christine

    March 25, 2014 at 7:51 pm

    love my oatmeal cookies, just halve the sugar in recipe.

    Reply
  38. rhiannon

    March 25, 2014 at 7:27 pm

    toooo many favorite cookies. They're the easiest things to make for last minute company! I like these almond pillow cookies that are made with almond paste (yum). I also like just making brown sugar cookies with walnuts- basically chocolate chips minus the chips. And i sub in half whole wheat flour/half almond flour instead of all purpose, and switch out the white sugar for honey

    Reply
  39. Diane Baum

    March 25, 2014 at 12:46 pm

    lOVE this for my glutten free hubby

    Reply
  40. Daria

    March 25, 2014 at 11:23 am

    Can you use almond meal instead of grinding up almonds?

    Reply
    • Lisa Goldfinger

      March 25, 2014 at 11:28 am

      Yes! Almond meal, almond flour and ground almonds are all the same. Check the ingredients on your bag of almond meal to make sure, but the almond meal I've used, such as Bob's Red Mill, are simply ground almonds.

      Reply
      • Carole

        September 22, 2015 at 7:49 am

        How much almond meal would you use? 1 Cup?

      • Lisa

        September 22, 2015 at 10:39 am

        I would use 1 3/4 cups almond meal.

      • Eleanor

        April 24, 2017 at 5:59 pm

        Thank you that is what I was looking for. Going to start straight away- have lunch with friends, need something nice! Lost my own recipe whilst moving house.

  41. Tari Lawson

    March 25, 2014 at 6:47 am

    I love these cream cheese cookies my mom makes that are filled with cherry preserves and sprinkled with powdered sugar.

    Reply
  42. zoe lee

    March 24, 2014 at 4:53 pm

    I make my daughtet oatmeal "cookies" with just a couple of ingredients: Oats, banana and raisins, almonds or chocolate chips mix them all up, drop them into the oven and then bake. super healthy and delish for a 4 year old, and better than from a box or bag 🙂

    Reply
  43. Hannah

    March 24, 2014 at 12:41 pm

    I love my mom's chocolate chip cookies!!!! Classic and hard to beat with a glass of ice cold milk!

    Reply
  44. Eileen

    March 24, 2014 at 11:44 am

    These look wonderful! They sound like just the thing for my son-in-law. They don't sound too sweet either. I already subscribe to your post via email, and I don't do tweets, Pinterest, etc. I don't see how to enter your contest by just commenting.
    I have made several of your recipes, and can't wait to try the pain au chocolat. I went to Trader Joe's to buy the puff pastry and they only carry it during the holidays, so I'll have to go to another store to get some.
    Thanks for your intriguing recipes.

    Reply
    • Lisa Goldfinger

      March 24, 2014 at 11:51 am

      Hi Eileen, I just added a "leave a comment" option for entering the contest. Thanks for your kind words and I really appreciate your suggestion regarding the contest. Lisa

      Reply
  45. Becky

    March 24, 2014 at 9:42 am

    AND Gluten free!!! Awesome:))

    Reply

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