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These Keto Cookies With Cream Cheese Remind Me Of A Bakery Treat
I first tested these keto cookies because a reader asked me if she could add cream cheese to my almond flour shortbread cookies. After a few tweaks, the result turned out even better than I expected. The cream cheese added moisture, structure, and a subtle richness that reminded me of a bakery treat, not just a “keto substitute”. Here’s why you’re going to love these cream cheese cookies:
- Extra buttery and more tender than other keto cookie recipes – Many of you know I have dozens of options in my keto desserts archive, but these particular low carb cookies hit different. The combination of cream cheese and a touch of sour cream made the texture more delicate, buttery, chewy, and almost a little creamy… basically the opposite of dry. Even the next day.
- Versatile shortbread flavor with a hint of tang – These keto cookies taste a lot like vanilla shortbread, just a little more tangy. They’re delicious on their own, or can be a versatile blank canvas for more flavors and add-ins.
- Easy to make – They come together in one bowl, using just 6 simple staples that you probably have if you bake keto treats regularly.
- Very keto friendly – At just 1.7 grams of net carbs and 110 calories a pop, this is the kind of cookie that fits into your macros for a keto diet effortlessly. They’re also gluten-free.
If you’re looking for a simple, versatile keto cookie recipe for everything from holiday meals to cookie swaps to your everyday tea and coffee sidekick, you just found it. Make it with me!
“I make these cookies every week. My husband and I love them because they are just the right amount of sweet… not too much and not too little. These soft cookies do not crumble easily, which I find to be a problem with some low carb recipes. They only take me 30 minutes to make from start to finish (including cleanup). When making the recipe, I bump up the Besti Monk Fruit Allulose blend to 1/2 cup as suggested for a sweet cookie, and also include the optional 1 tablespoon of sour cream. We will usually eat one cookie after supper, which is all that is needed to satisfy your sweet tooth.”
-Stephanie
Ingredients & Substitutions
Here I explain the best ingredients for my keto cookie recipe, what each one does, and substitution options. For measurements, see the recipe card.
- Wholesome Yum Blanched Almond Flour – The flour you choose makes a huge difference in the end result. Many brands are very coarse and will leave your cream cheese cookies grainy. This one I use is super fine (the finest I’ve ever tried), which will get you that delicate crumb. Unfortunately I don’t recommend substitutes here — definitely not coconut flour.
- Besti Monk Fruit Allulose Blend – I’ve been baking these keto friendly cookies since 2017, and I’ve tried them with just about every keto sweetener under the sun! Besti (which I started using in 2020) gets me by far the best result, with a chewy, tender texture that doesn’t dry out and no aftertaste whatsoever. Sometimes I add a few tablespoons of Besti Brown to get a brown sugar flavor. Other sweeteners I’ve tried (including erythritol, and other brands of monk fruit and stevia) leave the cookies more dry and can have an aftertaste. (In fact, some older comments complain about dryness, because this recipe used to use erythritol — this issue is fixed if you use Besti!) If you still want to substitute, check my sweeteners conversion calculator for the correct amounts.
- Butter – I use this grass-fed unsalted butter for most of my low carb cookie recipes.
- Cream Cheese – I recommend full-fat for the best flavor, but light cream cheese will work. (P.S. Cream cheese makes lots of great low carb recipes, so grab extra to make my low carb cheesecake and cream cheese pancakes!)
- Sour Cream – I originally started adding this when readers complained that my older erythritol-sweetened version was dry, and it helped, but I love the addition even more now that I use Besti. It’s optional, but makes the texture so much better.
- Egg – For structure. A flax egg or other egg substitute should work if needed.
- Vanilla Extract (for flavor) & Sea Salt (for balance)
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How To Make Keto Cookies
I have step-by-step photos here to help you visualize the recipe. For full instructions with amounts and temperatures, see the recipe card.
- Cream the butter, cream cheese, and Besti. Combine them in a large bowl and use a hand mixer to beat together, until pale yellow and fluffy.
- Add the other wet ingredients. Add the vanilla, salt, egg, and sour cream (if using), adding gradually and beating in between ingredients. The mixture should be a little frothy.
- Add the almond flour. Beat until a soft dough forms. If you want to add any mix-ins, this is the time!
- Scoop. Use a cookie scoop (I use this size) to spoon the cookie dough onto a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Flatten each ball with the palm of your hand or the bottom of a jar.
- Bake and cool. The keto cookies are done when they’re golden on the edges. Let them cool completely before enjoying. I like to dust them with powdered Besti using this dusting wand (pictured below).
My Tips For The Best Low Carb Cookies
- Use room temperature ingredients. Softened butter and cream cheese are crucial to cream properly, and you don’t want to shock them with a cold egg later, either.
- How I soften butter and cream cheese fast: Pour boiling water into a stainless steel bowl. While you let it sit for a few minutes to heat up, cut the butter and cream cheese into pieces and arrange on a plate. Empty and dry the metal bowl and place it upside down over the plate. The residual heat will soften the butter and cream cheese in just a couple minutes.
- How to bring eggs to room temp fast: I just place them in a bowl of warm water for a few minutes, until they no longer feel cold.
- This is my favorite hand mixer for all my keto cookie recipes. It’s super powerful and even comes with handy storage. You can use a stand mixer if you have one, though.
- I highly recommend a cookie scoop. This dough is very soft and fairly sticky, so the scoop is super helpful. Besides, it makes all your low carb cookies the same size, so they bake evenly.
- These precut parchment paper sheets are so handy. They fit perfectly with this baking sheet, which I’ve had for years and love. Much easier than wrestling with paper from a roll that won’t stay put!
- Keto cookies don’t flatten or spread the way wheat flour cookies do. So, make sure you flatten them to your desired thickness before baking. I usually do about 3/8 inch thick. Also, since they don’t spread a lot, having the cookies about 1 to 1.5 inches apart is sufficient.
- If the dough is too wet and sticky to flatten easily, chill it in the fridge for 30 minutes. I also find it helps to wet my hands to flatten, so the dough doesn’t stick to them.
- Be careful not to overbake. I look for golden edges, but the center should still be soft when you remove these low carb cookies from the oven.
Keto Cookies (1.7g Net Carbs)
By
Sweet, buttery keto cookies with just 6 ingredients and 1.7g net carbs! These low carb cream cheese cookies are fast, easy, and satisfying.
Instructions
[ See step photos See my tips ]Tap on the times in the instructions to start a kitchen timer.
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Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (177 degrees C). Line a large cookie sheet with parchment paper.
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Use a hand mixer or stand mixer to beat together the butter, cream cheese, and sweetener, until it's fluffy and light in color.
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Beat in the vanilla extract, salt and egg. Beat in sour cream, if using (optional).
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Beat in the almond flour, 1/2 cup (64 g) at a time. The dough will be soft. If it sticks to your hands when you touch it, refrigerate for 30 minutes.
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Use a medium cookie scoop (about 1 1/2 tbsp, 22 mL volume) to scoop balls of the dough onto the prepared cookie sheet. Flatten with your palm.
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Bake the keto cookies for about 12-15 minutes, until the edges are lightly golden. Allow to cool completely in the pan before handling (cookies will firm up as they cool, but are intended to be soft).
Did you make it? Leave a review or tag me @wholesomeyum on Instagram!
Maya’s Recipe Notes
Serving size: 1 cookie
- Tips: Check out my recipe tips above to help you get the best texture in these keto cookies and work with the dough more easily.
- Variations: Don’t miss my recipe variations below to get ideas for mix-ins, flavors, toppings, and even a dairy-free version.
- Storage: Keep the cookies in an airtight container for 4 days at room temperature or a week in the fridge.
- Meal prep: Make the dough ahead to refrigerate or freeze. If frozen, thaw overnight before baking.
- Freeze: These cookies keep well in the freezer for at least 3 months.
- Note on nutrition info: I didn’t include the sour cream since it’s optional, but it doesn’t make a huge difference in the numbers, since it’s a small amount across the entire batch.
📖 Want more recipes like this? Find this one and many more in my Keto Ebook Bundle!
I provide nutrition facts as a courtesy. Have questions about calculations or why you got a different result? Please see my nutrition policy.
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Cream Cheese Keto Cookies Recipe
Recipe Variations
Like I mentioned above, these keto cookies are so easy to customize! Here are some fun ways to change them up:
- Mix-ins – Toss in sugar-free chocolate chips (this is my favorite brand), chopped nuts, dried cranberries, poppy seeds (amazing with the lemon zest I suggest below), or even fresh blueberries.
- Flavors – I used classic vanilla extract, but you can experiment with almond extract or even more exotic options. A teaspoon or two of lemon or orange zest adds a lovely flavor, as well.
- Toppings – After the low carb cookies cool, slather them with my keto cream cheese frosting, sugar free chocolate frosting, or even a drizzle of sugar-free caramel syrup (which will harden in the fridge). Top with sugar-free sprinkles if you like!
- Dairy free version – It’s not quite the same, but you can use butter flavored coconut oil instead of butter and plant-based cream cheese instead of regular. My go-to replacement for sour cream is coconut cream with a splash of lemon juice and pinch of salt.
More Keto Cookie Recipes
I’ve made so many low carb cookies over the years that it’s hard to narrow down a few favorites, but here are some that I’ve been loving lately:
730 Comments
Journa Liz Ramirez
0It turned out to be fluffy and delicious! YUM! Highly recommended!
Dana
0Love how quickly these tasty cookies come together! That means I can make them pretty much anytime we are craving a little treat and still be guilt free!
Glenda
0A good recipe to have on hand for the holidays! Thank you so much!
Steve
0Cookies made from cream cheese are supposed to be refrigerated after being out for 2 hours. Since these have cream cheese, they would need to be refrigerated, right?
Wholesome Yum D
0Hi Steve, Yes, you can store them in the refrigerator.
Susan
0Very good, haven’t eaten cookies, bread etc. in over a year. My husband and I loved them.
Ayami
0This was sooo good!!
Elizabeth Fortney
0These cookies were horrible. They went straight in the trash. Totally flavorless.
Susan Thomas
0Agree. Mine had the same fate, which is a real shame given how expensive almond flour has become. I’m a very experienced baker, and the dough was way too dry. I think adding more butter and cream cheese or either reducing the flour is the way to go. I’m eager to try again, as so many others had good results, and the recipe certainly sounds delicious on paper. I’m really enjoying this site, btw.
Wholesome Yum D
0Hi Elizabeth, Sorry this recipe didn’t meet your expectations. I would love to help you troubleshoot, did you follow the recipe exactly as written?
Michelle Seamer
0So yum! I may have undercooked them – I made about 15 cookies and left them in for about 15-16min. I only let it cool for about 5min before trying one so it was still warm and soft. But SO YUM! I had never heard of Monk Fruit sweetener before but was pleased to find it at Coles (Australia) but it had erythritol in it too (whatever that is). The end result was so yum!! I also made it with almond meal – which I accidentally bought instead of the flour but … STILL SO YUM! I hope I can limit myself to one a day.
DIane
0Confused…Video shows adding egg WHITE, not whole egg. Recipe says add 1 egg. Which is it? 1 whole egg or just the egg white. Thank you!
Diane
Wholesome Yum D
0Hi Diane, This recipe has been updated recently to include the whole egg. I recommend using the recipe as written in the recipe card.
Sharon
0I don’t have almond flour. I’m using coconut… its all I have… for sweetener I’m using Stevia in the raw.. we shall see.
Wholesome Yum D
0Hi Sharon, Coconut flour is usually not a suitable substitute for almond flour.
Christine
0Great recipe. I make Italian Ricciarelli cookies at Christmas and these are so close. I use 2 tsp of orange zest and pure almond extract instead. They are amazing.
Cindy
0These turned out great! Thanks for the recipe!
Jessica
0This did not cook at all lol
Wholesome Yum D
0Hi Jessica, I would love to help you troubleshoot the issues that you had if you can be a little more specific on what you mean by did not cook at all.
Doug
0You show servings as a gauge on how much to make. What is a serving?
Wholesome Yum D
0Hi Doug, The serving size is 1 cookie and the recipe makes 24 servings.
Karen
0Allergic to almond flour what can I substitute?
Wholesome Yum D
0Hi Karen, They might work with sunflower seed flour but I have not personally tried that.
blessedmar
0I used half sunflower seed ‘flour’ (I grind them myself) and half tigernut flour. They turned out great. I will not hesitate to use all sunflower seed ‘flour’ when I make them again as tigernut flour is very expensive. I like to think of these little cookies as golden nuggets. lol It is a great base cookie and I will be experimenting with other flavors. The best part for me was mixing this up with my 5 year old grandson who bakes with me. I am teaching him how to grind seeds and how to use alternate sweeteners. He loves to eat what we cook.
Shad Chancey
0YUM!! These turned out FANTASTIC! Thanks for the recipe! Any other good Keto dessert recipes I should try?
Maya | Wholesome Yum
0So glad you liked them, Shad! I have lots of other keto dessert recipes here.
Madison Lyn Burchett
0I don’t want to be rude, but I made this recipe to the t, other than using stevia instead of allulose, and they were absolutely awful… i’m trying again and using less vanilla because all I could taste was straight nasty vanilla extract.
Maya | Wholesome Yum
0Hi Madison, Sorry to hear your cookies didn’t turn out. Unfortunately, swapping out the sweetener is not following the recipe to the T. 😉 The sweetener makes a big difference in both flavor and texture, and stevia would definitely have an aftertaste, that is likely what you are tasting. It could also be, if you used a low quality vanilla, that the flavor of that was not the best. I link the ingredients I use and recommend on the recipe card, and hope you’ll have the chance to try the recipe as written.
Pippy
0I really don’t mean to be rude, but these are absolutely disgusting! I have tried so many different low carb cookie recipes that everyone swears by and they are all disgusting. I’m trying to figure out how anyone finds these recipes appetizing in any way.
Gail Caruso
0I completely agree!
Mrs. Valerie
0Thank you for the recipe! If I want to use honey, how much should I use? Would I need to make any other adjustments since I’d be using a liquid sweetener? Gracias~
Candida Schleining
0I made this as given and I love my cookies. I love the tangy flavor ? and how crumbling they turned out.
Wholesome Yum D
0Hi Valerie, I do not test any recipes using honey so I can’t speak to the adjustments that would be needed.
Rose
0I used marscapone for the cream cheese and added extra marscapone in place of sour cream. Used 2.5 tbls stevia for the sweetener, so a bit less than stated. Added 1 tsp almond extract along with the stated vanilla. I also added 1/2 tsp baking powder. The mix was soft and pliable, so not as dry and dense as expected. I baked at 177C in my Vortex Airfryer, directly on the lift out tray, for 10 mins, turning half way through. They are quite golden brown and definitely cooked through. Taste good warm so I’m looking forward to tasting the cold version to see the texture.
Karen
0I like the cookies but am having an issue with the bottoms getting too dark. I’ve tried shortening the cooking time to 12 mins, lowering the temp to 325 but had the same result. They look perfect from the top, the edges are just starting to get golden but the bottoms are burned and don’t taste good. I have to cut the bottoms off to enjoy the cookie.
Deb Giesler
0I cooked mine for 8 min. They were great.