The Best Gluten-Free Chocolate Chip Cookies that are chewy, gooey, crispy around the edges with perfect texture. Made with coconut sugar, these cookies are lower glycemic and you’d never know they’re gluten-free!
If you’re looking for a gluten free chocolate chip cookie recipe that tastes exactly like regular chocolate chip cookies with amazing gooey, chewy texture, you’ve found it!
This simple recipe yields the best results each and every time!
While I’ve shared numerous chocolate chip cookie recipes on this site, these are the closest in texture and in taste to regular cookies.
I thought it would be impossible to beat my Soft Chewy Gooey Paleo Chocolate Chip Cookies, which I’ve made approximately 17,000 times.
But alas, these cookies are even better.
They’re so sultry, gooey yet crispy, sweet with a salty counterbalance, absolute buttery perfection. I can barely put into words my love for these cookies.
Let’s discuss the ingredients needed to make the absolute best gluten-free cookies!
Ingredients for Gluten-Free Chocolate Chip Cookies:
Unsalted Butter: Softened butter generates the most luscious, creamy and delightful chocolate chip cookies with that iconic flavor. If you’re dairy-free, use 7 tablespoons of softened coconut oil instead of the butter.
Coconut Sugar & Pure Maple Syrup: Taking the place of white sugar and brown sugar in traditional chocolate chip cookies, I like using a combination of coconut sugar and pure maple syrup to make the cookies refined sugar-free.
Coconut sugar is dryer than brown sugar, which is why I like combining it with a little pure maple syrup.
If you normally bake with regular sugar, replace the coconut sugar and pure maple syrup with brown sugar. For sugar-free cookies, use your favorite granulated sugar-free sweetener.
Egg: One egg helps fluff up the cookies and keeps them held together nicely. If possible, place the egg on the counter 15 minutes before you begin making this recipe to bring it to room temperature.
Vanilla Extract: A splash of vanilla brings warm flavor to these cookies, giving them that rich full flavor we all love.
Gluten-Free Flour Blend: Pick your favorite gluten-free all-purpose flour blend. I use Bob’s Red Mill’s Gluten-Free 1-to-1 Baking Flour, but most GF blends should work. I love that gluten-free blends already contain leavening agents like xanthan gum and starches so that you don’t have to use multiple different kinds of flour.
Do note that there is some variation in the absorbency of various gluten-free flour brands so if the cookie dough seems overly sticky, add another tablespoon or two of flour. If it seems too dry, add 1 to 3 tablespoons of additional melted butter, or until the batter appeared soft and sticky but not overly wet.
Baking Powder: The leavening agent in these cookies, baking powder helps the cookies rise and ensures they don’t spread out during the baking process so that they are nice and fluffy.
Sea Salt: A pinch of salt enhances all of the flavors in these cookies. Don’t skip it!
Chocolate Chips: The star of the show here! Use chocolate chips you have used in the past and love.
Optional Recipe Adaptations or Additions:
- Mix up to 1/2 cup of chopped raw walnuts or pecans into the cookie dough for nutty chocolate chip cookies.
- Use any type of chocolate chips you like, including dark chocolate chips, semisweet chocolate chips, white chocolate chips, peanut butter chips, butterscotch chips, sugar-free chocolate chips, etc.
- Add 1/2 teaspoon of ground cinnamon to the cookie dough if you love cinnamon in your baked goods (I do!).
- For a vegan option, use coconut oil or vegan butter spread instead of butter and one flax egg instead of the chicken egg. The cookies won’t turn out as fluffy, but they will still taste great. You can also make my grain-free Paleo Vegan Chocolate Chip Cookies for an egg-free version.
- For keto cookies, make my Keto Chocolate Chip Cookies with Coconut Flour.
Well, let’s bake them already!
How To Make Gluten-Free Chocolate Chip Cookies:
Cream together the softened butter (or ghee), coconut sugar, pure maple syrup, and pure vanilla extract in a stand mixer until well-combined and creamy. Note: if you don’t have a stand mixer, use a medium bowl with an electric hand mixer.
Beat in the egg until combined.
Add the dry ingredients – gluten-free flour, baking powder, sea salt, and cinnamon (if adding) to the wet ingredients. Turn the mixer on medium-high to high speed and beat until a thick dough forms. Add in the chocolate chips and beat until combined.
Refrigerate the dough at least 30 minutes before preheating the oven to bake.
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F and line a large cookie sheet with parchment paper or spray with cooking oil.
Drop the gluten free cookie dough onto a parchment-lined or sprayed baking sheet and press extra chocolate chips into the dough if desired. Bake for 8 to 11 minutes (I go with 9 minutes on the dot) or until the cookies are slightly golden brown around the edges. For crispy edges, bake for 11 minutes.
Remove from the oven and sprinkle with flaky sea salt if desired. Allow cookies to cool 8 to 10 minutes before devouring. If you’d like, you can transfer them to a cooling rack after they have been out of the oven for a few minutes to let them cool all the way.
Store cookies in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 1 week, or in a zip lock bag in the freezer for up to 3 months.
What Do These Cookies Taste Like?
Like 10,000 technicolor unicorns dancing on your tongue.
You know the recipe on the back of the Nestle Toll House semi-sweet chocolate chips bag? These chewy chocolate chip cookies taste like that.
Mostly because I derived this recipe from that one, but also because a great gluten-free flour blend is nearly indistinguishable from a regular all-purpose flour.
Plus, coconut sugar tastes similar to regular sugar, but has a caramel-y essence to it. You could compare it to a drier version of brown sugar.
What Type of Gluten-Free Flour Should I Use?
I always use Bob’s Red Mill’s Gluten-Free 1-to-1 Baking Flour (not sponsored) for any recipe that calls for regular flour. It’s an incredible blend made mostly with rice flour (which bodes super well with my digestive system).
It is also the closest to regular all-purpose flour I’ve ever seen. I have used it in every single way you could possibly use AP flour – even for thickening sauces. Point is: I love that flour in these cookies!
If you’re familiar with making your own flour blends, you can use a combination of brown rice flour, oat flour, and potato starch.
Looking for grain-free cookies? Make my Coconut Flour Cookies or my Almond Flour Chocolate Chip Cookies with Walnuts.
I like making large cookies, so for me, this recipe makes 12. Feel free to adjust the size of the cookies. Do note that the nutrition facts are based off of large cookies (a 12-cookie batch).
Double the batch to double the fun and make these gluten free chocolate chip cookies on the next rainy day!
If you’re looking for more gluten-free cookie recipes, try these out!
More Gluten-Free Cookies:
- 5-Ingredient Peanut Butter Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies
- Healthy 6-Ingredient Apple Oatmeal Cookies
- Gluten-Free Cowboy Cookies
- 3-Ingredient Oatmeal Cookies
- Gluten-Free Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies
Get your goo on!
The BEST Gluten-Free Chocolate Chip Cookies
Ingredients
- 1 stick 1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened*
- 1/3 cup coconut sugar**
- 1 1/2 Tbsp pure maple syrup
- 1 large egg
- 2 tsp pure vanilla extract
- 1 cup gluten-free flour
- 3/4 tsp baking powder
- 1/4 tsp sea salt + more for sprinkling
- 1 cup sugar-free chocolate chips***
Instructions
- In a stand mixer, cream together the butter, coconut sugar, pure maple syrup, and pure vanilla extract until well-combined.
- Beat in the egg.
- Add the gluten-free flour, baking powder, sea salt, and cinnamon (if you’re adding it). Turn the mixer on medium-high to high speed and beat until a thick dough forms. Add in the chocolate chips and beat until combined.
- Refrigerate the dough at least 30 minutes before preheating the oven to bake.
- When you're ready to bake the cookies, preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
- Drop dough onto a parchment-lined or sprayed baking sheet and bake for 8 to 11 minutes (I go with 9 minutes on the dot).
- Remove from the oven and sprinkle with sea salt. Allow cookies to cool at least 5 minutes before devouring.
Notes
Nutrition
I originally shared this recipe on July 22, 2019. I updated the photos and added information to the post, but the recipe itself remains the same.
This post contains affiliate links, which means I make a small commission off items you purchase at no additional cost to you.
Want to try these TODAY! I only have salted butter. Should I omit the seasalt? We usually half the amount of salt in recipies yet always use salted butter.
Thank you!
Hi Janelle! I sometimes use salted butter in my cookie recipes and love the way it turns out. I would do exactly as you mentioned – reduce the salt and you can always add more if need be 🙂 Hope they turned out great! xo
Is there a way to forgo tho regular sugar, and only use maple syrup and brown sugar? What made my mom’s cookies great was the brown sugar, but I’m now gluten free and am trying to lower the processed sugars. She also used the recipe on the back of the bag, but just increased the brown sugar and lowered the white. I know if I did it this way, I’d have to take out some moisture. But thing is, nothing I’ve found tells me WHAT moisture to take out. As in, moisture from what. I definitely want to keep the eggs too.
Hi Danielle,
If I’m understanding correctly, it sounds like you’d like to replace the coconut sugar with brown sugar, is that correct? If so, simply omit the coconut sugar and use 1/3 cup of brown sugar (packed). Hope this helps!
I just did these and OMG THANK YOU SO MUCH! The best!!!
I’m so happy you like them, Teresa!! xo
Can u use coconut flour? If so, how much?
nice cookie, I don’t like the fully loaded sugar versions anyway, too sweet, so thank you
Any suggestions if not using Bob’s? Brown rice flour mixed with almond flour?
I love these cookies! What is so awesome is that they stay soft and yummy days after they are baked. This is now my go-to choc chip cookie recipe!