Paleo Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Cookies

My favorite kind of cookie has always been the chocolate chip oatmeal cookie. There is just something about the hardiness of the oats, combined with the dark chocolate chunks that is just so perfectly satisfying! I wanted to find a way to make my favorite cookie without all the sugar. These paleo chocolate chip oatmeal cookies checks all the boxes!

What makes Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Cookies Paleo?

Almond Flour:

Almond flour contains less carbohydrates, less processed sugar, and more healthy fats than wheat flour. It is also gluten free, and provides plenty of prebiotic dietary fiber. That means that almond flour can aid in weight loss!

With all of the numerous pros to baking with almond flour, it is obvious why this is a great healthy alternative to wheat flour. But of course, with every pro there are bound to be a some cons.

The main con being that baking with almond flour is not always as straight forward as a 1-for-1 substitution with wheat flour. This is due to the fact that almond flour contains more oil than wheat flour. Which makes sense, because it is a nut after all!

In this recipe, we use a little unflavored protein powder. Because there is no gluten, the protein powder helps the cookie rise during baking.

Monk Fruit:

Monk fruit is a low glycemic, zero calorie, all natural sugar substitute. Because of this, it is a great candidate for the Paleo diet.

Baking with monk fruit is simple, as it is a direct 1 for 1 substitute for sugar. This means there is no guess work when baking. Thanks for keeping it simple, Monk Fruit!

Also, unlike most sweeteners, monk fruit will not cause a spike in blood sugar levels. There are even some studies illustrating that it can help to lower blood sugar levels.

Dark Chocolate:

High quality dark chocolate is loaded with antioxidants called flavanols. Because of the lower sugar content, it is a great candidate for those on the paleo diet.

The general guideline is the darker the chocolate the better. High cocoa content means more soluble fiber and healthy minerals.

How to Bake Paleo Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Cookies

Preparing the Dough

Always weigh your ingredients:

You will have much more success in baking if you weigh out your ingredients. Of course, I learned this lesson the hard way!

The reason weighing is beneficial is because everyone measures a cup of flour differently. Do you use the scoop and level technique? Or do you pack in as much as possible up to the cup line? Or even worse, do you eyeball it?

Baking is more science than feel. When a recipe calls for a cup of flour. It works best with a cup of flour. Unlike with cooking (where improvising can often improve the meal) baking is an exact science. To make things more exact, use a digital scale!

Preparing the Ingredients

Dry ingredients:

• 2 cups of blanched almond flour.
• 1 teaspoon of baking soda.
• 3 teaspoons of baking powder.
• 1 scoop of unflavored protein powder
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1.5 teaspoons of ground cinnamon.
• 3 cups of rolled oats.
• 10 ounces of dark chocolate chunks.

Wet ingredients:

• 1 cup of monk fruit sweetener, and 1 cup of swerve brown sugar (or alternative).
• 1 cup of softened butter.
• 2 whole eggs.
• 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract

Baking Paleo Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Cookies

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
2. While the oven is heating, line a cookie sheet with parchment paper.
3. Mix together the butter, monk fruit sweetener, brown sugar in a medium bowl.
4. Then, stir in the eggs and vanilla extract.
5. In a separate bowl combine almond flour, baking soda, baking powder, protein powder, salt and cinnamon.
6. Mix in the oats.
7. Then, fold in the dark chocolate.
8. Cover and refrigerate for 1 hour.
9. Using an ice cream scooper, scoop out dough and place on baking sheet. (at least 2 inches apart.)
10. Cook in oven for 8 to 10 minutes.
11. Remove and allow to cool in pan for 5 minutes.
12. Transfer to a cooling rack, and let the cookies cool completely before serving!

Tools for Paleo Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Cookies

The key to making Paleo Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Cookies (and baking in general) is to be exact. To be more exact, we use a digital food scale to weigh out the ingredients.

There are hundreds of cheap digital food scales that will work great. I picked up the following food scale which works perfectly for me.

In order to mix the ingredients, you will need either a stand or hand mixer. You can’t go wrong with this Kitchen-aid Artisan Stand Mixer. But a hand mixer will also work just fine for this recipe!