I have to admit, I have been dying to share this low carb cream cheese cookies recipe with you! It just isn’t that often that I come across healthy recipes that are this mouth-watering and deliciously addictive.
These creamy and sweet low carb cookies are absolutely winning in the dessert category, and when you realize these are actually LOW CARB desserts??? Insane!
These lush little gems are one of my favorite low carb recipes and I know you’re going to love them too!
Let’s dive in!
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What I Love About This Low Carb Cream Cheese Cookies Recipe
This velvety low carb cream cheese cookies recipe REALLY melts in your mouth. Plus:
- Super easy to whip up – this recipe is kid and clutz friendly! And if you’re a pro, you’ll be done in no time.
- Easy and inexpensive ingredients! Cream cheese, butter, almond flour, and a few small additions come together for incredible bite-sized cookies!
- Satisfies your sweet tooth for something creamy and chewy, without the carbs!
Recipe Notes
Ready to whip up some easy and delicious cookies? Check out my few tips and tweaks to make baking this low carb cream cheese cookies recipe error-free:
Ingredient Notes
These baking basics will get this low carb cream cheese cookies recipe in your hands in no time!
Almond flour – this flour is made from ground almonds and comes in a variety of coarseness. For baking like this, you’ll want to use the finest grind available — my faves are Bob’s Red Mill or Trader Joe’s brand.
This amazing flour is naturally gluten free and low carb, and is super useful for low carb baking and cooking.
Xanthan gum – This is a unique binder that is important with cooking with low carb flours. It replaces some of the properties of traditional flour, and we need it here in these cookies to help out the almond flour.
Erythritol – this special ingredient is a dupe for sugar! It’s plant-derived and doesn’t affect blood sugar at all, making it great for cooking low carb.
Tools To Make
You’ll need a few tools to make this dessert, but no worries! They’re pretty basic so you probably have them on hand already!
- Electric mixer – You can use a handheld or stand mixer for this task – you just want a tool that’ll be able to whip these ingredients together quickly and thoroughly. Have you tried whipping cream cheese by hand? It’s not easy, friend!
- Baking sheet – This cookie sheet is different from a rimmed sheet in that it’s totally flat. This allows you to slide cookies off onto wire racks for cooling, giving them the perfect cook time. But if all you have is rimmed, never fear. This low carb cream cheese cookies recipe is pretty resilient.
- Zester – this fine grater is used to specifically get the zest, also called flavedo, off of citrus. This is where much of the scent and flavor are stored, and adding it to recipes gives a really beautiful hit of that citrusy essence! Make sure to leave the bitter white pith behind. If you don’t have a zester, you can also use the small side of a cheese grater, just watch your fingers.
Storing Tips
Store this scrumptious low carb cream cheese cookies recipe in the fridge, just make sure they’re in an airtight container or bag.
Can You Freeze Them?
Freezing these cookies will extend their shelf life and is a great way to hide them out of sight if you need a little help with portion control. Keep them in an airtight container, and thaw in the fridge when you’re ready for some tempting after-dinner healthy desserts!
Recipe Variations
Have a special request? Let’s see what we can do! Check out this list of variations on this low carb cream cheese cookies recipe.
What Kind Of Low Carb Flour Can I Use?
Low carb flours are tricky things! I specifically designed this low carb cream cheese cookies recipe to work with almond flour which is a pretty good 1-for-1 substitute for regular flour. You could also use this in these almond flour shortbread cookies.
If you’d rather use coconut, try these easy and addictive coconut flour cookies.
What Are Some Mix-Ins?
You’ll notice there are some delicious hunks of cream cheese mixed into this mouthwatering low carb cream cheese cookies recipe. You could also add some chopped low carb nuts like walnuts, almonds or hazelnuts (kinda like low carb oatmeal cookies).
OR, mix in some low carb chocolate for low carb chocolate chip cookies with cream cheese — yum!
Can I Add Spices (Cinnamon, Nutmeg, Etc.)?
This cream cheese is bold and forgiving, so it can definitely handle you spicing it up a bit. Try ginger for a gingerbread taste (or try these low carb gingerbread cookies).
You can also add brown erythritol and cinnamon to these for cream cheese-based low carb snickerdoodles.
Can I Top These With Frosting Instead of Glaze?
My friend, you can top these cookies however you like. If you would rather have a frosting, I recommend the one I made for these almond flour sugar cookies. A word of warning – don’t lick the bowl! This stuff is utterly addictive.
Can I Add Peanut Butter?
I like where your heads at! I wouldn’t add any PB to this particular low carb cream cheese cookies recipe because the cream cheese plays the same role (ingredient-wise), but there are options for healthy peanut butter cookies!
Try these chewy almond flour peanut butter cookies or these fluffy low carb peanut butter cookies.
Low Carb Cream Cheese Cookies
Print Recipe Pin RecipeIngredients
Cookies:
- 7 Tablespoons Unsalted Butter unsalted at room temp
- 5 Ounces Cream cheese 4 ounces at room temperature, 1 ounce frozen
- 1 Teaspoon Vanilla
- 1/2 Teaspoons Kosher Salt
- 1 Teaspoon Xanthan Gum
- 1 Cup Swerve or Lakanto (see sweetener notes below) confectioners
- 1 Egg Yolk
- 1 3/4 Cups Almond Flour
Frosting (Optional! Tastes just as delicious without them, but it allows you to decorate the cookies):
- 1 Egg White
- 1 Cup Swerve or Lakanto (see sweetener notes below) confectioners
- 1/4 Teaspoon Vanilla
- Water as needed
"Sprinkles" (Your options include...):
- Lemon/Lime zest
- Low Carb Chocolate shavings
- Freezer dried berries (raspberries, blueberries, etc.) broken into small pieces
Instructions
Cookies:
- Using an electric mixer in a large bowl, combine the butter, vanilla, 4 ounces of cream cheese, salt and xanthan gum until creamy (about 1 minute)
- Add erythritol and flour, and combine until they form a dough.
- Add egg yolk and combine just until it's mixed in.
- Remove cream cheese from the freezer and cut into 1/4" cubes.
- Stir the cubes into the dough using a spatula.
- Place dough in the fridge for 1 hour.
- Preheat oven to 350 F.
- Roll the dough into 1" balls, and spread out evenly on the baking sheet.
- Press the tops of the dough to form round discs.
- Bake in the oven until the tops become lightly golden (but not brown), about 18 minutes.
- Allow cookies to cool on cookie sheet for 5 minutes before transferring them to a wire rack.
Frosting:
- Meanwhile, use an electric mixer to beat the egg white and vanilla until frothy.
- Add erythritol and beat for 5-7 minutes -- you'll know it's done once glossy peaks have formed.
- If the icing seems too "thick" to spread, stir in 1 teaspoon of water at a time until it has reached a spreadable consistency. You don't want to add too much, or the icing won't thicken!
Assembling
- Prep your "sprinkles".
- Once the cookies have cooled, spread icing over the top.
- Before it sets, sprinkle any toppings on top of the cookies.
- Allow icing the harden slightly before serving, and enjoy!
Lindsey's Tips
Nutrition
More Healthy Cookies Recipe
Looking to make a whole smorgasbord of healthy cookies? Take a look at this list! There is a cookie favorite in here for everyone!
- Breakfast Cookies
- Low Carb No Bake Cookies
- Low Carb Snowball Cookies
- Low Carb No Bake Peanut Butter Cookies
- Almond Flour Chocolate Chip Cookies
Conclusion
Get ready to fall in love with these luscious low carb cream cheese cookies. Comment below with your favorite time to grab a little sweet and healthy snack!
