There are many ways to replace butter in vegan cookies. Today, we'll show you how to do it using avocados!
As usual, we want our recipes to be accessible to everyone. Therefore, our vegan avocado cookies are also sugar-free and gluten-free.
Avocados are kings in vegan and keto diets, due to their high level of wholesome omega-3 fats and low carbs.
Contrary to the unhealthy saturated fats from butter, avocado fats are excellent for your heart. At the same time, this fatty fruit can be a binder just as powerful as regular butter.
And avocado is a fantastic substitute for butter in baked goods. You can make no-butter muffins with avocado or even healthy waffles with avocado.
Moreover, it gives the cookies a light green tone that makes them stand out. You can accentuate this colour further by using matcha powder, for extra cool points.
Like we always say: vegan is good. But healthy vegan is better.
That's why we replaced all sugars in the recipe with zero-carb sweetener erythritol. This makes the recipe perfect for people on a low sugar diet, weight-loss diet, or even folks with diabetes.
The low amount of sugars coupled with high healthy fats from avocado makes this recipe a great candidate for the keto diet as well.
All you have to do is to replace oat flour with almond, or coconut flour and you'll have keto and vegan avocado cookies!
Finally, we always think of our dear readers with gluten intolerance. That's why we used oat flour instead of wheat.
If you don't have such an impediment, you can replace oat flour with wheat flour in a 1:1 ratio.
All of this gives us wholesome avocado cookies bursting with fibres (15% of your RDI), healthy fats (only 5 grams), and small traces of natural sugars (less than 2% of your RDI).
Follow our simple steps below and get these cuties on your plate in only 30 minutes!
Can I turn these avocado cookies into energy balls?
As these oatmeal cookies are flourless and prepared with ingredients that can be eaten raw, you can certainly enjoy them as energy balls.
Oats, avocado, chia seeds, and Goji berries don't need cooking so this recipe is great to make power bites.
Just remove the baking powder from the ingredient list and skip the baking step. Then, simply roll the cookie dough into balls, leave them to set in the fridge, and you're good to go.
Check out our vegan white chocolate balls, chocolate truffles, cashew bites, or blueberry almond balls for extra tips or inspiration.
What makes these avocado cookies so healthy?
These wholesome biscuits as incredibly healthy as they pack raw plant-based ingredients and are prepared without eggs, butter, or refined sugars.
Each cookie packs fibres from oats, proteins from chia and pumpkin seeds, unsaturated fats from avocado and hazelnuts, and antioxidants from Goji berries. A single serving has only 120 calories and provides 15% of your RDI for fibres, less than 2% of your RD for sugars, and only 5 grams of fats.
Without having to give up on taste, this recipe helps you prepare nutritious cookies from scratch that will satisfy your sweet tooth and make you feel full for long without energy crushes.
What can I use instead of erythritol?
To keep this recipe sugar-free, we have used zero-calorie erythritol, but you can swap it with other sweeteners. You can replace it with the same amount of maple syrup, coconut sugar, or raw honey - if you aren't vegan.
Below we have also listed other excellent sugar substitutes for preparing low-sugar baked goods like cookies, muffins, and cakes.
Applesauce - as in our gluten-free digestives
Blended date paste - check out these gooey rosemary brownies
Mashed bananas - as in our mango coconut cookies
Chopped dried fruit such as cranberries, raisins, or apricots as in these sweet potatoes cookies.
How can I make these cookies low-carb and keto?
In this recipe, we have used jumbo rolled oats which are a fantastic gluten-free replacement to wheat flour in baked goods.
However, if you're following a ketogenic diet or cutting down on carbs, you can swap oats with the same amount of almond meal or coconut flour. These low-carb flours add richness and flavour to the cookies. However, you might need to add a splash of milk, like almond milk, to get the right dough consistency.
Check out keto pecan sandies, "cream cheese" cookies, or pumpkin scones to see how we've used these tasty keto-friendly flours
What does avocado do in baking?
As avocados are 70% fats - good unsaturated fats -, they're perfect for replacing butter when baking vegan desserts and sweet treats. You can use mashed avocados in ratio 2:3, so if the recipe calls for 300g of butter, use 200g of ripe avocado.
Thanks to their fat and water content, they keep the dough moist and less crumbly. It's not only about the flavour but also about the nutritional value.
Avocados have no cholesterol and fewer fats and calories than butter. So you'll have deliciously chewy cookies with three times fewer saturated fats and fewer calories compared to all-butter ones.
What can I add to the cookie dough?
In this recipe, we have boosted the avocado cookies with Goji berries, hazelnuts, and pumpkin seeds, but you can use other dried fruits, nuts, or seeds.
Great alternatives include raisins, as in these applesauce cookies, or dried cranberries as in these avocado muffins, or dried mangos as in these cookies.
Alternatively, you can transform these biscuits into a chocolatey heaven, adding melted chocolate, cacao powder, or chocolate chips.
Ingredients
| Chia Seeds | 1 tbsp |
| Water | 3 tbsp |
| Hazelnuts | 50 g |
| Pumpkin Seeds | 30 g |
| Rolled Jumbo Oats | 170 g |
| Baking Powder | 1 tsp |
| Erythritol | 50 g |
| Avocado | 1 |
| Matcha Powder (optional) | 1 tsp |
| Goji Berries | 50 g |
Step 1
Let's start by preparing the vega chia "egg".
In a bowl, combine the chia seeds with water and leave them to soak for 10 minutes. After this time, the mixture should have a thick and gel-like consistency.
Meanwhile, dry toast chopped hazelnuts and pumpkin seeds in a skillet, or roast them in the oven at 160°C (320°F) for 10 minutes.
Toasted nuts and seeds are much more flavourful than plain ones, but if you're in a hurry, you can skip this step and add them to the cookie dough right away.
Step 2
Blitz half of the rolled oats into a flour-like powder in a food processor.
In a mixing bowl, add the prepared oat flour, the remaining half of oat flakes, baking powder, erythritol, and a pinch of salt.
Give it a quick stir to distribute the baking powder evenly (1).
Then, peel the avocado and remove the pit. Mash it with a fork or a potato masher, or blend it in the food processor.
Incorporate the "chia-egg", mashed avocado, toasted nuts, pumpkin seeds, matcha powder, and Goji berries into the oatmeal mix.
Work the ingredients until they come together into a soft and compact dough (2).
If the cookie mixture is too moist, then add some more oat flour, or if it's too dry, add a splash of plant-based milk.
Step 3
Lay a baking tray with parchment paper or use a baking silicone mat.
For each cookie, pinch off a handful of dough, roll it in between your palms, and flatten it down on the tray pressing with your fingertips.
Repeat this step until you have used all the avocado and oatmeal mixture.
Remember to leave some room in between the cookies as they will slightly expand when baking.
Step 4
Bake the cookies for 11 minutes at 200°C (390°F) for static ovens or at 180°C (355°F) for fan ovens.
As the Goji berries can burn quite quickly, we recommend you cover the tray with foil or parchment paper for the first 7 minutes. Then remove it, and finish baking the cookies.
Finally, transfer them onto a wire rack to cool down evenly.
Tips
If you have time, leave the cookie dough to set in the fridge for 15 to 30 minutes. This way, it will be easier to handle the biscuits, and they will also keep their shape better when baking.
Pre-soak the Goji berries before adding them to the cookies dough to get a chewier result.
For more vegan treats with avocado, check out our vegan avocado banana muffins or our avocado oatmeal waffles.