This Protein Cookie Recipe is an easy homemade high-protein recipe to eat as a post-workout snack or breakfast. Plus, these cookies are also dairy-free, egg-free, and gluten-free! So forget the store-bought protein cookies and make a batch of these crunchy vegan protein cookies!
I love baking with plant-based protein powder! It’s such a great way to add protein to your daily meals without even noticing it, like my Protein Donuts, Overnight Oats with Protein Powder, or Protein Powder Banana Bread.
So after sharing my peanut butter protein cookies last year, here’s another delicious protein powder cookie recipe for you to try. A vanilla chocolate chips protein cookie made with almond flour.
Ingredients and Substitutions
All you need to make these crunchy, protein-loaded cookies are:
- Plant-Based Protein Powder – I used vanilla pea protein powder. Since my protein powder contains vanilla flavor, I didn’t add any vanilla extract to the recipe. However, if you are using plain protein powder, I recommend adding 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract along with the wet ingredients.
- Almond Flour – These are vegan, gluten-free protein cookies, and I choose to use almond flour as a low-carb, high protein flour. Another option is to use homemade oat flour.
- Melted Coconut Oil – or melted vegan butter.
- Unsweetened Almond Milk or any plant-based milk you have at home.
- Unrefined Cane Sugar or coconut sugar, or sugar-free erythritol. Any granulated sweetener works in this recipe. However, I don’t recommend using a liquid sweetener for these cookies.
- Baking Powder – To give them a bit of rise.
- Chocolate Chips – This is optional. You can replace the dark chocolate chips with a sugar-free version for keto protein cookies or swap them for chopped nuts.
How To Make This Protein Cookie Recipe
These high-protein cookies are made with only 6 simple pantry ingredients and one bowl.
- First, preheat the oven to 350°F (180°C) and line a cookie sheet with parchment paper. Use coconut oil to lightly oil the paper on the cookie sheet – this prevents the cookies from sticking to it. Set aside.
- In a mixing bowl, stir all the dry ingredients: protein powder, sugar, almond flour, and baking powder. If lumps are forming, break them with your fingers.
- Now, stir the wet ingredient into the bowl: almond milk, melted coconut oil, and vanilla extract if used.
- Stir halfway, then fold in the dark chocolate chips. The batter should be wet, and soft but hold well if squeezed in your hand.
- First, grease your hands generously with coconut oil, or the batter will stick to your finger.
- Divide the batter into 7 even cookie dough balls. Roll each ball between the palms of your hands, and regrease them between each ball if too sticky.
- Place each cookie dough ball on the cookie sheet, leaving 1 thumb of space between them.
- Slightly flatten the top, not too much to prevent the cookies from breaking on the sides, and also, the thicker, the moister the protein cookies will be at the center.
- Bake for 12 -15 minutes at 350°F (180°C) until the cookies have a nice golden brown color on the sides and top.
- Remove the tray from the oven, don’t touch the cookies yet. They are ultra-soft, and that’s normal! These cookies need to cool down for 20 minutes on the cookie sheet. They will firm up and harden gently, so don’t touch them. They are very fragile when out of the oven.
- After 20 minutes, the cookies should be crispy and ready to transfer to a cooling rack.
Texture
These protein cookies are crispy on the edges, soft and moist in the center, with delicious crunchy bites of chocolate chips in the middle. They are also very fulfilling, with 9 grams of protein per cookie.
Storage
These protein cookies store very well in a sealed cookie jar at room temperature for up to 1 week. Keep the jar sealed from the air to enjoy a crispy cookie every time. You can also freeze leftover cookies in zip lock bags and thaw them at room temperature the day before.
Allergy Swaps
Below I listed some ingredients swaps options if you have any food allergies:
- Nut-allergy – replace the almond flour with the same ratio of sesame flour, sunflower seed flour, or homemade oat flour.
- Sugar-free keto option – replace the sugar with the same amount of sugar-free granulated keto sweeteners like erythritol or allulose. Also, swap the regular chocolate chips for a sugar-free stevia-sweetened chocolate chip brand.
- Coconut-free – replace coconut oil with melted vegan butter.
Frequently Asked Questions
Whey protein powder is an animal-based protein powder. Therefore, we haven’t tested this protein powder in the cookie recipe. However, the replacement of pea protein powder with whey protein powder in baking works most of the time with a 1:1 ratio.
Note that for many, whey protein powder dries out protein-based recipes.
If your dough is too dry and too crumbly, add more almond milk, one teaspoon at a time, until you can squeeze the dough between your hand and form a cookie dough ball.
This recipe doesn’t end when the cooking is done! The cooling down-time is essential. As mentioned in the recipe, these are egg-free protein cookies, and therefore, they firm up on the cookie sheet at room temperature. Take the tray out of the oven and don’t touch the cookies at all. Let them for 20 minutes on the cookie sheet to cool and firm up.
No, coconut flour is 4 times more liquid absorbent, and, therefore, wouldn’t work in this recipe. The cookies will end up dry, crumbly, and won’t hold their shape.
Yes, any plant-based protein powder made from soy, hemp, or pea protein works with the same ratio. You can also use chocolate protein powder to make chocolate protein cookies.
More Protein Powder Recipes
I love baking with protein powder, and below are my top protein powder recipes for you to try.
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Protein Cookie Recipe
Ingredients
- ½ cup Almond Flour
- ½ cup Pea Protein Powder
- ⅓ cup Cane Sugar - or coconut sugar or erythritol if keto
- ½ teaspoon Baking Powder
- 6 tablespoons Almond Milk
- 3 tablespoons Melted Coconut Oil - or vegan butter
- ⅓ cup Dairy-Free Dark Chocolate Chips
Optional – add if you use unflavored protein powder
- ½ teaspoon Vanilla Extract
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F (180°C). Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper. Oil the paper with coconut oil. Set aside.
- In a mixing bowl, whisk the dry ingredients together until evenly combined and no lumps show: protein powder, sugar, almond flour, and baking powder.
- Stir in the liquid ingredients: melted coconut oil, almond milk, and vanilla extract if used. Fold in the chocolate chips halfway. The dough should be soft, slightly wet, but not crumbly. It should hold if squeezed in your hand. If crumbly, add more almond milk 1 teaspoon at a time until it reaches the perfect texture.
- Generously grease your hands with coconut oil. Divide the cookie dough into 7 even cookie dough balls. Roll each ball between your hands and place them onto the cookie sheet leaving 1 thumb of space between each.
- Slightly flatten the top of each cookie – I like to keep them thick, they spread a bit in the oven.
- Bake for 12-15 minutes or until the sides and top are slightly golden brown. The cookies will be extremely soft, and that's normal, don't touch them yet!
- Remove the cookie sheet from the oven and place it at room temperature for 20 minutes. Don't move the cookies. They are super soft, and they will harden when cooling down.
- After 20 minutes, the cookies are hard and ready to transfer onto a cooling rack.
Storage
- Store for up to 1 week in an airtight cookie jar at room temperature or freeze for later and thaw the day before.
Can I substitute almond flour with wheat flour
No, it’s not a 1:1 swap. You can use oat flour in this recipe.
i have a lot of keto brown sugar so was looking for a recipe that lets me use that and makes crunchy cookies. so without sacrificing that texture i want to inquire if i can make these 2 changes:
– use regular whey protein powder
– use peanut butter instead of molten coconut oil
I don’t think these will work. Whey powder absorbs a lot more moisture than plant-based protein powder. And peanut butter is also much dryer than coconut oil.
So if you were to do that, the cookies would be very, very dry
can you sub the pea protein with something else
You need protein powder and any plant-based varieties will work. I didn’t try other options so I can’t recommend more I am sorry
In your print version the baking powder amount is still not there. Luckily it mentions baking powder in the print version of the recipe, so I went back to the website and found the amount I needed.
It should show up now, it just take time for the cache to refresh and shows in the printing version when we make an update. Enjoy
Ηi! I can’t see the quantity for the baking powder. Any suggestions?
Sorry for that, the recipe has been updated for you