These Tigernut Chocolate Chip Cookies have been called “the best gluten-free and Paleo cookies” by many readers! They taste very similar to Nestle Tollhouse Cookies but without any grains, gluten, nuts, or eggs!
Um… I don’t think these Coconut-Free Paleo Chocolate Chip Cookies made with tigernut flour need much of an introduction. They’re basically the chupacabra of grain-free chocolate chip cookies. Coconut-free, egg-free, nut-free, and not loaded with sweeteners or sugar!
Well, first, I’m disappointed in myself for shying away from tigernut flour for so long. The price and my inexperience with it intimidated me. I had tried sliced tigernuts once and didn’t care for the tooth-breaking texture.
Little did I know Organic Gemini Tigernut Flour is the best thing that has ever happened to my sub-par baking skills. It’s light, fluffy, a little grain-y like almond meal + has a nice “whole wheat” flavor with a bit of sweetness. PS: Not sponsored. Just impressed!
Why I’m Loving Tigernut Flour Right Now
— Tigernuts are renowned for their high content of prebiotic fiber which helps good gut guys flourish
— Organic Gemini’s Tigernut Flour is organic, non-gmo & made in a dedicated gluten-free facility
— The sweet, nutty flavor of the product replaced almond flour for nut-free baking
— It makes a nut-free alternative to baked goods for school events
My goal with these Tigernut Chocolate Chip Cookies was to make coconut-free. That’s right – nary a teaspoon of coconut oil in sight. But what’s better than coconut oil for baking? GHEE. Specifically 4th & Heart Vanilla Bean Ghee.
My Tigernut Chocolate Chip Cookies taste like the real deal (my husband brought them to a work Thanksgiving + they disappeared before all the other desserts). The combination of the 4th & Heart Vanilla Bean Ghee with the richness of the extra-virgin olive oil takes these next level.
Why olive oil? The monounsaturated fat in olive oil makes for the perfect (in my opinion) cookie texture when combined with Vanilla Bean Ghee. Soft yet crisp, well-formed but with a fine crumb. Straight out of the oven, these will blow your mind, and you’ll always think “salad dressing + chocolate chip cookies” = good decision.
I’ve only made these cookies as directed below, so I can’t make firm recommendations on substitutions but here are some ideas. I’ll say it once: you cannot replace the Tigernut Flour with coconut flour.
Substitution Theories
— You should be able to replace the cassava flour 1:1 with arrowroot starch for similar results (not exact of course). I haven’t tried this – I’m just assuming based on my past experiences working with the two flours.
— Yes you can use a plain ghee instead of Vanilla Bean. Just don’t use Garlic Ghee. You can probably use softened butter too. This is only a theory.
Okay without further ado friends… ENJOY! And Happy Thanksgiving!
Tigernut Chocolate Chip Cookies
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: :10
- Total Time: 37 minute
- Yield: approx 14 2-inch cookies 1x
Description
Scale
Ingredients
- 1 cup Organic Gemini Tigernut Flour
- 2 tablespoons Otto’s Cassava Flour
- 2 teaspoons gelatin
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/4 teaspoon sea salt
- 1/4 cup 4th & Heart Vanilla Bean Ghee, room temperature
- 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
- 1/4 cup maple syrup
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1/2 cup Enjoy Life Mini Chocolate Chips
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a light-colored cookie sheet with parchment paper.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the dry ingredients until incorporated. Stir in the ghee, olive oil, maple syrup, and vanilla extract until you achieve a smooth dough. Stir in chocolate chips.
- Drop rounded tablespoons of dough onto parchment paper, leaving 2 inches in between each cookie. Using the palm of your hand, gently flatten the cookie to about 1/2-inch high.
- Bake in preheated oven for 8 to 10 minutes, watching closely, until the edges are a light golden brown. Do not overcook or they will turn out too crunchy. Let cool (or burn your mouth on hot chocolate like I do) slightly before serving.
Notes
94 Responses
THESE ARE AS GOOD AS THEY LOOK!! Thank you for not waiting to share 🙂
If I’m subbing vanilla extract for vanilla bean, do you know what ratio I would use as opposed to the 1/4 cup vanilla bean?
Well you can’t replace vanilla extract for the 1/4 cup of Vanilla Bean Ghee. Just use unsalted plain ghee + include the suggested amount (1 tsp) of vanilla extract. You can add an extra 1/2 teaspoon if you’d like to make up for the ghee sub!
Quite decent cookies! I don’t know if it’s only me, but they have a bit of bitter taste from the olive oil. I should have used only butter or ghee.
I didn’t get a bitter taste at all and neither did a lot of other people (50 non-Paleo eaters at my husband’s office + other readers), so it may be your brand of olive oil?
Delicious! I use arrowroot instead of casavva as I just ran out. Subbed butter and coconut oil for ghee and olive oil! I baked 4 cookies and froze the rest. Yum! Thank you for the recipe!
Claudia, I plan on using arrowroot flour as well, was yours the texture/consistency described or did they turn out slightly different? Thanks in advance.
Also, my non paleo eating husband loved them!
Woohoo! That always makes me happy to hear!
FANTASTIC!!!
I doubled the recipe. The first batch out of the oven looked exactly like the picture…rarely happens for me. The second batch didn’t have the cracked top to them. Still tasted awesome! I’m glad to have found another use for the vanilla bean ghee besides hot cinnamon tea and a spoon.
Ooh interesting! Were the batches cooked in succession? Maybe the oven got a little extra hot for the second batch. Baked goods are so finicky!
Well these were fun!! I subbed the full ghee with softened butter. They didn’t turn out exactly like yours, more smooth and very soft underneath (btw I had my oven set to convection bake at 350 for about 9 minutes). Mine came out a touch bitter, my husband didn’t this so, but I think it is my baking soda (similar result with a different recipe, might be the issue with the other poster). Thank you for sharing, I now have my dessert for Thanksgiving!!
Yay! Yes it’s crazy how we can all use the same ingredients and it still turns out just a bit different! I’ll never quite understand that about Paleo baking but if they taste good that’s what counts! It may be your baking soda or your brand of olive oil. Some people have used coconut oil in place of olive oil.
Hello! Thanks for posting your recipes! Does it matter what type of gelatin to use? I have Great Lakes – both the green (collagen hydrolysate) and red/orange canisters. Thank you!
Yes use the red can which is gelatin – green is “collagen” in recipes!
Do you think I could use all olive oil? Or sub lard for ghee? We can’t do dairy or coconut.
I wouldn’t use all olive oil – they may end up really crispy. It would be best to sub a solid fat for the ghee like palm shortening or lard, yes!
I am excited to make cookies that “Santa” (me) can actually eat! Do you think you could use an egg instead of the gelatin?
Yes that should be fine! Tell Santa hello for me 🙂
These, and many of your other recipes, have saved my life. That you can make a small batch of these and share them with your family while warm really helps me stop from overindulging, but I still feel completely spoiled. I feel so much less deprived because of this recipe, the stromboli recipe, and many more. I love that they aren’t ridiculously involved with a zillion ingredients, and that they just COME OUT RIGHT. All your recipes. Every time. If you can follow simple instructions, you can make awesomely delicious healthy stuff with your recipes. I made the honey chicken tenders with pineapple dipping sauce for a family gathering so I would have something I could eat. I made three batches. Everyone loved them. Everyone loved these cookies at Thanksgiving (I made four batches!). My kids can’t tell the difference between your recipes and their “regular” food, and I cook so much more for people because of you! I feel like a better mom. I am really, really grateful.
What brand of Olive Oil do you use? 🙂
I like Thrive Market’s EVOO
These were so good!!! I can’t have ghee or cocoa just yet, but I subbed in coconut-palm shortening and toasted coconut flakes. Worked perfectly. They were a little bit sweet for my taste (maybe because I haven’t had sweets in several months), so next time I may cut down on the maple syrup. Thanks so much for sharing!
Our palettes really adjust when we haven’t had sweets in awhile – that’s for sure! Those sound like delicious subs!
I’m excited to try these. My usual paleo chocolate chip cookie recipe used almond flour, and almonds no longer agree with my daughter. Would avocado oil be okay to use in place of the olive oil? I don’t use olive oil much as I’m not big on the flavor, so I don’t actually have any currently. Planning on making them tomorrow while my daughter’s at school.
Yes avocado oil should work and some people are using coconut oil (but the cookies will spread more). Happy baking!
Ok, just finally got around to making these, and OMGee they are so good! (I did use avocado oil instead of olive or coconut, I also used regular ghee with just a tad extra vanilla extract). Even my son loved these, and he doesn’t eat paleo at all. He usually turns his nose up at things I make that don’t use traditional ingredients like regular flour. Only one problem now, I used the last of my tigernut flour and will now have to order some more so I can make these again. Definitely not lasting long in my house. Thank you for the awesome recipe.
Thanks for the awesome recipe. I had to modify it to make it more AIP friendly (without the chocolate chips, ghee, or vanilla) but they still turned out to be the best cookie I’ve had this year. Finally, a cookie that was sweet enough and had the perfect cookie texture.
Hi Gina, what did you sub in? Just getting into the AIP life. Thanks in Advance!
These were PERFECT. I agree with the other commenters. Thanks for such a stellar recipe. My friends and I meet for a weekly Sunday dinner, and baked goods are a challenge for us because most of us are grain free, I am egg-free, and another friend is allergic to coconut. This makes Paleo baking really difficult. This is a LIFE SAVER. Yummmmm. I have made it two weeks running, always doubling the batches. Also, I make your Speedy Shanghai Stir Fry from your book almost every week. Thanks for making healthy eating so delicious, quick, and easy.
I am so happy they were able to accommodate so many different allergies – woohoo! I love that stir-fry recipe too – shockingly spicy with the ginger! xo
These are seriously the bomb!!! I always double the recipe, but they just don’t last long in our household (just my hubby and me)! 🙂
Any recipe of yours that I have tried have been incredible. I would love to try this one as well but cannot have cassava flour. Any substitutes? Btw, I absolutely LOVE your new recipe book. Truly the best AIP recipes I’ve ever seen or eaten. Thank you so much!
Thank you, Candy! Hmm… you could try tapioca or arrowroot starch in it’s place – the result may be a little different though!
Can you use coconut oil instead of olive?
Yes but measure it melted!
This is the first chocolate chip cookie since going AIP two years ago– the best damn cookies of my life! Thank you so much:)
Girl, you were DUE! Happy to be part of your chocolate chip cookie reunion!
Just made these with arrowroot instead of cassava and palm shortening instead of ghee. Amazing!!
I’ve had these pinned for FOREVER! I had a bag of OG Tigernut flour in my pantry for ages and was so pumped when you posted this! My hubs scraped out a few vanilla bean pods to replace in the vanilla bean ghee and the extract. These came out amazing!! I’m hardly ever successful using gelatin in recipes and was pumped how great these came out. Hubbie loved them too!!
Fresh vanilla bean sounds amazing!
These are absolutely amazing!! I followed the recipe to a tee but subbed coconut shortening for the ghee and coconut chips for the chocolate chips. They were delicious but completely flat once cooled. Was it the substitutes that did it?
Yes the coconut shortening will do that!
Thanks for taking the time to reply! I tried it again with coconut oil instead of coconut shortening and they worked out perfectly! Yay!!!
These cookies sound delicious. I would love to make them!
Since I can’t use ghee, maple syrup or gelatin:
– Do you think I could sub coconut oil for ghee?
– And if I leave out maple syrup, what should I use instead? (no sweetener; well, the only exception might be homemade applesauce 🙂
– I already read that I can use one egg in place of ghee
Thank you very much for your help!
You can use softened (not melted) coconut oil for ghee. If you leave out the maple and use applesauce, the cookies will CERTAINLY be a different texture and taste – just a fair warning! Hope they turn out okay with those subs – I can’t guarantee a tasty cookie without any added sweetener 🙂
Thank you so much! These are the only baked treats my son has been able to eat since we found out he has sensitivity to tree nuts, sesame, sunflower, coconut, eggs, oats, chia, peanuts, bananas… Tigernut, cassava, flax and gelatin have been lifesavers!
His birthday is coming up…have any tigernut/cassava cake recipes?
Thank you again!
Oh that makes me so happy to hear!! I don’t have any cakes without coconut flour unfortunately but if I come across anything I’ll let you know!
I used butter instead of ghee and rice bran oil instead of Olive oil they are the BEST cookies I ever tasted!! Will bake these always, Thanks for the AMAZING recipe
Your subs sound delicious! Thanks for sharing!
I have a dairy allergy and after reading all your posts, I made these substitutions: red palm oil for the ghee (cookies spread out too much with regular palm oil), reduced the olive oil by 1 Tbsp, and increased the Cassava Flour by 1 Tbsp. Oh and I ground the Tigernut Flour a bit more in my coffee grinder. Deeelish ! And no more grittiness.
Sounds wonderful, Deb! Thanks for sharing!
These are amazing! I added alcohol free vanilla extract because I only had plain ghee. Just about to make them for the second time because we went through them so quickly. Thank you so much for this recipe!
You’re welcome – pretty sure I made two batches in a row the first time I made them too 🙂
Amazing recipe! Thank you for sharing ? I subbed 3 tbsp of coconut oil at room temperature for ghee and added Vanilla and they turned out great! Will definitely be a staple in our home
What can I use instead of the gelatin? Would ground flax seed work?
You could certainly try a flax or chia egg!
These cookies taste like the real thing. I make my own carob chips to use in, them because I am on aip and haven’t reintroduced chocolate yet. My whole family loves them and can’t tell they are healthy. I’ve made these 4 times now and they are just as awesome every time! Thanks for this wonderful recipe that is so easy and delicious!
Thank you – I’m so glad you all love them and a great reminder for me to make them again!
Chocolate chip cookies were my favorite dessert before going paleo. Since going paleo 8 years ago, no chocolate chip cookies have passed the tasted right.
These, however, are AMAZING! My 15 year old son said they are best cookies I’ve ever made.
I also have Hashimoto’s and it’s nice to have a treat now and then. By the way, I love your cookbook.
Thank you for creating delicious recipes.
These are delicious!
Wow!!! Thank you so much for this recipe! It really hit the spot! Will be making again soon (like probably tomorrow!). Thanks so much!
You are my new best friend!!! Ohhh my gah theses are so good!
These are the best Paleo chocolate chip cookies and I love how easy they are. I didn’t tell my husband what they were made of, but he ate several in a row and his eyes lit up when I asked if he liked them. I used a bit of extra vanilla since I didn’t have any vanilla ghee (will fix that soon!). Thank you for this egg- and coconut free recipe!!
What a glowing review – thank you for sharing!!
What is a good substitute for ghee? (And butter)
Try palm shortening!
So I was really worried about these. The dough tasted REAL weird, and I thought “oh man, did I just waste all these ingredients?” But oh. My. Gosh. So so so good!!!!! Definitely one of my favorite chocolate chip recipes. I can’t wait to see what they taste like tomorrow too.
OMG!! These. Are. CRAZY!!! Perfect for me as I’m hugely sensitive to coconut, have almond and egg allergies and LOVE cookies! You are masterful when it comes to baking; for the past 4 years I’ve been following your recipes and you never disappoint. What a blessing you are to those of us in the dietary-challenged community! Thank you xo
Thank you so much, Judith! I don’t even consider myself a baker but I do know a good cookie when I taste one <3
This is such a great cookie base! To make it AIP, I subbed compliant shortening for the ghee, and carob chips for chocolate. Also made great AIP ginger snaps subbing some molasses with the maple syrup and adding spices. The surface cracks look perfect. Thanks Alaena!!!
I have everything except the gelatin. Can I use an egg? Would it be too “wet” then?
I’ve had readers replace with an egg!
Saw these and had the mixing bowl out in two seconds flat! They are DELICIOUS! I used butter instead of ghee. So nice to have an allergy friendly treat that didn’t taste like suntan oil! Thank you!!!
Delicious!! Glad they work with butter too!
What AIP option can I substitute for the ghee, besides coconut oil?
palm shortening should work!
These are SO GOOD! They taste like the real deal!! I subbed soft (but not melted) coconut oil for ghee and they turned out perfect! Thanks so much for the great recipe!
Yessss! So glad that sub worked for you!
This looks so good! Do you use this cookie base for any other kinds of recipes?
I’m going to create some other recipes using this base – yes! Stay tuned 🙂
Thanks for sharing! Do they keep long?
A few days for sure!
TRULY YUMMY! Wow!
Doubled recipe & followed recipe exactly except 50/50 on olive oil & melted coconut oil❤️ DELISH‼️
These are great! Deliciously soft and they set very well! I did sub a few things but they still worked out great (I used palm shortening with some vanilla bean powder instead of ghee, avocado oil instead of olive oil, and homemade carob chips instead of chocolate chips.) The best part was how easy they were to make! They came together very quickly but still gave the full chocolate chip experience!
I made these today for my son. I have tried several alternative flour recipes with results that were lacking. I am by no means a good cook or Baker. My son moaned when he tasted these. He hugged me and I just cried. He was diagnosed with EoE a month ago and he has been on a strict elimination diet. I used organic palm shortening for the ghee and avocado oil instead of olive oil, but everything else was the same. You have no idea how much joy these brought him (and me!). Thank you!!
This comment brought me so much joy to read. Sending you and your son lots of love! xo