Perfect Keto Snickerdoodle Cookies Recipe

This easy keto snickerdoodles cookie recipe will have you reaching for one more! Surprise your family with the soft, fluffy texture and proper chewiness of regular snickerdoodle cookies without all of the carbs. If you’re a fan of sugar cookies and cinnamon you’ll love this low carb cookie recipe.

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The holiday season is the time I shine and so can you. I test my low carb recipes for weeks before sharing them because nobody wants to deal with a recipe fail at Christmas. Holiday baking should be fun! Feel confident including these snickerdoodle cookies, keto pecan sandies or sugar free oatmeal cookies on your holiday cookie tray. Dazzle your friends at the next cookie exchange!

The Ever-Popular Snickerdoodle Cookie

Snickerdoodles are tender buttery sugar cookies with a characteristic fluffy-but-chewy texture and a cinnamon sugar coating. They’re easy to make and one of the few recipes for which you’re guaranteed to have all of the ingredients on hand. Snickerdoodle cookies are popular all year, and for good reason!

The difference between a regular snickerdoodle cookie recipe and a keto snickerdoodle recipe is more than the difference in carbs. To get a good sugar free cookie recipe with low carb ingredients you need to forget everything you know about making regular cookies.

Keto Snickerdoodle Cookie Ingredients

The challenge of low carb baking is getting familiar texture from gluten free and sugar free ingredients. Keto desserts and keto cookies never have the exact texture as the “real thing”, but come pretty darn close. The trick is finding gluten free ingredients that mimic the binding powder of gluten.

For these keto snickerdoodles we need almond flour, oat fiber, low carb sugar, butter, salt, baking soda, cream of tartar, xanthan gum, vanilla, stevia and an egg. For those new to gluten free baking and low carb ingredients, some of the items will seem strange. I assure you they each have a purpose and combine to give the best possible result.

ALMOND FLOUR: The best low carb keto cookies start with finely ground blanched almond flour. Don’t be tempted to use whole ground almond flour with the skins – it doesn’t bake the same way. Almond flour is available everywhere now. Look for it in the baking aisle or bulk bins at your local grocery, Walmart, Trader Joe’s, Costco, health food store or even Amazon.

OAT FIBER: Oat fiber is the ground papery husks of oat groats and virtually pure fiber. Oat fiber helps keto baked goods achieve a more standard taste by cutting the flavor of almonds. It fluffs-up recipes like coconut flour but doesn’t absorb quite as much liquid. Although a higher total carb count compared to coconut flour, it’s offset by its fiber content returning a net carb of zero.

CREAM OF TARTAR: Snickerdoodle cookies wouldn’t be the same without it. Cream of tartar is a naturally derived potassium product of the wine industry. It’s an acidic baking aid (tartaric acid) used to boost the leavening action of baking soda. It causes snickerdoodles to raise quickly in the oven and slump upon cooling, forming characteristic surface wrinkles.

XANTHAN GUM: Xanthan gum is a white powdered thickener and binding agent. Gluten free baking recipes need something sticky to help bind ingredients together. When xanthan gum particles absorb moisture they swell producing a thick gel. This property enhances texture, serves as an ingredient binder and thickens batters, sauces, ice cream and smoothies. A small package lasts several years.

LOW CARB SUGAR: The sweetener of choice for low carb keto diets is erythritol, a naturally occurring sugar alcohol. Erythritol is not digested so it contributes zero calories or carbs. Since erythritol is less sweet than sugar, it’s combined with enough stevia, monk fruit or chicory root fiber to measure 1:1 with sugar. (Read more about the best low carb sweeteners and how to use them.) Like other sugar alcohols, erythritol produces a cooling effect upon melting so I use the least amount possible and bump sweetness with stevia glycerite.

How to Make the Best Keto Snickerdoodle Cookies

In the low carb cookie world, texture is king. Unfortunately, many low carb and keto cookie recipes result in cake-like cookies or cookies that crumble apart with the first bite. To get the best keto snickerdoodle cookie the right procedure is as important as the right ingredients. Spending a few extra minutes is all it takes.

First, fluff-up the almond flour with a whisk to break up any lumps BEFORE measuring. Don’t pack the almond flour into the measuring cup. Level it off with a straight edge. Then, measure all of the dry ingredients (except the low carb sugar) into a small bowl and whisk to combine.

Next, cream the butter and low carb sugar until light and fluffy. Although the erythritol won’t dissolve completely, the simple act of creaming the ingredients produces micro-bubbles which improve texture. This step should take about two minutes. Look for the color of the butter to lighten considerably and the mixture to almost double.

Add the cold egg, vanilla and stevia glycerite to the butter and sugar and mix to combine. The mixture will break (separate) but that’s normal. Add all of the dry ingredients to the butter and sugar and beat until combined. Cover and chill for 1 hour.

Preheat oven to 350F. Meanwhile, line a cookie sheet with parchment. Scoop the cookie dough with a cookie scoop (I have a 2 tablespoon scoop) and place onto the cookie sheet two inches apart. Roll each portion into a ball and roll in a mixture of cinnamon and low carb sugar. Flatten cookies to 1/3 inch because they don’t spread.

PRO TIP: To flatten cookies quickly and easily. Cut off the zipper end of a quart zipper-loc freezer bag. Cut along the seams of the bag to make two pieces of plastic. Place one on a cookie and press down with a flat bottomed glass or cup measure. Repeat. Wash to reuse over and over. This works better than a piece of waxed paper or cling film.