These no bake chocolate cookies are soft, chewy and don’t require any baking or cooking. They only need 4 ingredients and don’t contain any wheat flour, eggs, refined sugar, dairy, butter or oil. The cookies are easy to make and you don’t even need a mixer to make them. The cookies also store well.
A stack of five chocolate cookies

These chocolate cookies are a quick snack or dessert. I try to keep a few in the fridge or freezer for whenever I’m craving chocolate.

Ingredients

  • Cocoa powder
  • Almond flour
  • Cashew butter (or peanut butter)
  • Maple syrup

Cocoa powder: The cookies get their rich chocolate flavor from unsweetened cocoa powder. I recommend using Dutch process cocoa powder which has a richer chocolate flavor and is less bitter and acidic.

Almond flour: Superfine almond flour is used to help thicken the dough. Make sure to use superfine almond flour and not regular almond flour or almond meal. Superfine almond flour has a much finer texture so that it melts into the cookie dough.

Cashew butter: This recipes uses natural cashew butter with no added oils. You can substitute with peanut or almond butter with no added oils. I chose cashew butter because cashew butter has a more mild nutty flavor. If you use peanut butter or almond butter, you will taste the peanut butter or almond butter more in the cookies.

Maple syrup: Maple syrup is used to sweeten the cookies, bind the cookies and thicken the dough. When maple syrup is mixed with natural cashew butter, it thickens the cashew butter to a dough-like consistency. I don’t recommend substituting with honey. Honey does not thicken the dough the same way that maple syrup does.

How to Make No Bake Healthier Chocolate Cookies

  • The ingredients are all added to a bowl and mixed until a dough forms. Knead the dough a few times to fully and evenly incorporate the cocoa powder and almond flour.
  • Use a 1.5 tablespoon cookie scoop to scoop the dough. Roll each dough piece into a smooth ball and place onto your prepared baking sheet.
  • Press down on each dough ball until they are about 1/2 inch thick disks. If desired, you can drizzle or dip the cookies in melted dark chocolate. Place the cookies into the fridge to firm up. They are then ready to eat.

Chocolate cookies with a chocolate drizzle

Expert Tips

  • You can substitute cashew butter with peanut butter but your cookies will have a strong peanut butter flavor. Using cashew butter gives the cookies a strong chocolate flavor.
  • You can add a little more maple syrup if you prefer sweeter cookies. I prefer a more bittersweet chocolate flavor and I wanted to keep the cookies healthier, so they are only lightly sweetened.

A bite taken from a chocolate cookie

More Healthier No Bake Cookie Recipes

5 from 2 votes

4 Ingredient No Bake Healthier Chocolate Cookies

These no bake chocolate cookies don't require any cooking or baking. They are just 4 ingredients and you don't need any special equipment to make them. They are soft, chewy and make an easy snack or dessert.
Servings: 12 cookies
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Total Time: 10 minutes
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Ingredients

  • 1/2 cup (128g) unsweetened natural cashew butter with no added oils
  • 1/4 cup (24g) unsweetened Dutch process cocoa powder
  • 1/4 cup (2fl oz/59ml) maple syrup
  • 1 cup (90g) superfine almond flour, use spoon and level method for measuring, see note

Instructions
 

  • Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper.
  • Add all ingredients to a large bowl. Mix with a spatula until a thick dough forms. Not all of the almond flour will initially be absorbed into the dough and that is okay. Once the mixture forms a dough, use your hands to knead the dough a few times to fully incorporate the cocoa powder and almond flour. Your dough should be uniform in color. If you find that your dough is already thick and dry enough (so that you can easily shape the dough) and you still have some leftover almond flour in the bowl, you don't need to add in all the almond flour. You only need to add enough to make the dough easy to shape and work with. Taste the dough and adjust sweetness if needed.
  • Use a 1.5 tbsp cookie scoop to scoop the dough. Roll the dough pieces into smooth balls. Place cookie dough balls onto your prepared baking sheet, spacing them about 1 inch apart, and press down on each ball so that they form thick round disks, about 1/2 inch thick. If desired, you can use the back of a metal spoon to smooth and round the edges of the cookies. If you want to drizzle chocolate over the cookies, do so at this time.
  • Place the cookies into the fridge for about 30 minutes to 1 hour (uncovered) to firm up further. The cookies won't change much but they should firm up enough so they are easy to hold. Store any uneaten cookies in an airtight container in the fridge or freezer.

Notes

  • Almond flour note: If you are using a measuring cup to measure the almond flour, make sure to use a spoon to loosen the almond flour in the bag and then spoon the almond flour into your measuring cup, leveling off the top with a knife. This will help prevent too much almond flour being added. 
  • The amount of almond flour needed may vary a little depending on how much moisture is in your cashew butter and how fine your almond flour is. You only need to add enough to form a thick cookie dough that will hold its form. The dough should not be dry and crumbly. 
  • Sweetness note: The cookies are only lightly sweet. You can add more maple syrup if you prefer sweeter cookies or add a chocolate drizzle on top. If you add more maple syrup, you may need to increase the amount of almond flour to have a workable dough.
  • Optional chocolate drizzle: The optional chocolate drizzle I used is made from 1/4 cup dark chocolate chips melted down with about 1/2 tsp melted coconut oil to keep the chocolate very thin and easy to drizzle. The coconut oil also helps the chocolate stay soft even after it has set/firmed up.
  • I used Amazon Grocery Superfine Almond Flour,* Octonuts pure cashew butter,* Kirkland maple syrup and Rodelle Dutch process cocoa powder* to make these cookies.
  • *These product links are affiliate links. This means I earn a commission from qualifying purchases.
Serving: 1cookie, Calories: 137kcal, Carbohydrates: 10g, Protein: 3g, Fat: 10g, Saturated Fat: 1g, Fiber: 2g, Sugar: 5g, NET CARBS: 8
The nutrition information provided are only estimates based on an online nutritional calculator. This is not a comprehensive list of all the nutrients in the recipe (i.e., does not include vitamins, cholesterol, etc). I am not a certified nutritionist. Please consult a nutritionist or doctor for accurate information and any dietary restrictions and concerns you may have.
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