These Chocolate Coconut Protein Cookies are a healthy, nutritious way to satisfy that sweet tooth. Naturally gluten-free and vegan, they're also full of healthy fats and fiber too!
When it comes to cookies, I'm definitely on the flat and chewy side of things. Some people like cakey cookies, other people like thing and crispy. Me? It's all about the gooeyness.
So when these Chocolate Coconut Protein Cookies came out of the oven looking like the perfect texture, I knew we had a winner. And boy, was I right.
These might just be my favorite cookies to date!
The base is almond butter, which gives these cookies a really amazing nutty flavor (obvi) and helps with that nice gooey texture.
I also wanted to make sure these cookies were healthy and could double as an afternoon snack, so I decided to turn them into protein cookies. Similar to my healthy peanut butter blossoms (which this recipe is semi-based upon), I used one scoop of my favorite grain-free protein powder.
I know not everyone is a fan of protein powder, so if you want to leave that out, I think you could substitute 2 tablespoons of quinoa flour instead and it should work out just fine. You just won't have quite as much protein.
But that didn't feel like enough to me, so I also threw in a few extra goodies.
How to add more protein to your cookies
Hemp is awesome because they're very high in protein, as well as soluble and insoluble fiber making them awesome for your gut.
Chia, which is also high in protein, contains omega-3 fatty acids which are critical to our health but aren't something our body naturally produces.
Flax (which is what we're using for our egg replacer), is another seed that is high in protein and good for gut health, and just like chia, it contains omega-3s, fiber and tons of trace minerals.
And then to round it all out, we had to have a little fun, right? We're folding in some flaked coconut and chocolate chips!
Let's also chat about the nutrition breakdown of these protein cookies quickly.
They've got about 150 calories, 10 grams of healthy fats (all from our nuts and seeds), as well as just 11 grams of carbs and 5 grams of protein.
Compare that to a traditional chocolate chip cookie and we're looking real good ????????
I'd say these cookies definitely pass the test. They're sweet and decadent, perfect for dessert, but also healthy, low in sugar and make and excellent afternoon treat.
So next time you're craving a classic chocolate chip cookie, whip up a batch of these babies instead. They're super easy to make – did I mention they use just one bowl and 10 ingredients?! – and they will make your house smell seriously amazing!
Looking for more healthy cookie recipes? Try some of these!
- Gluten-Free Raspberry Thumbprint Cookies
- Healthy Chewy Ginger Molasses Cookies
- Double Chocolate Chip Quinoa Cookies
- Coconut Oil Chocolate Chip Cookies
Chocolate Coconut Protein Cookies
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup almond butter
- 1/4 cup maple syrup
- 1 flax egg 1 tablespoons flaxseed meal + 3 tablespoons water
- 1 scoop vanilla protein powder
- 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/4 teaspoon sea salt
- 2 tablespoons hemp hearts
- 1 tablespoon chia seeds
- 1/4 cup coconut flakes
- 1/4 cup chocolate chips
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350ºF. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside.
- Beat together the almond butter, syrup and flax egg until smooth and creamy. Beat in the protein powder, baking soda and salt.
- Fold in the coconut flakes, chocolate chips, chia and hemp seeds.
- Scoop about one tablespoon of dough onto the baking sheet and gently flatten with your hands. Repeat until all dough has been used.
- Bake for 13 – 14 minutes until the cookies are lightly golden brown. Cool on the pan for 5 minutes then transfer to a wire rack to finish cooling.
Video
Nutrition
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These look delish! I never think about putting protein powder in my cookie recipes but I love how I feel when I’ve had enough protein so I should give it a try! Pinning 🙂
Hope you enjoy them!
Hey Alyssa! I have these baking in the oven! I just wanted to let you know that there are no directions for the hemp hearts and chia seeds in the recipe. 🙂
Thanks so much!
Protein cookies from Lenny and Larry’s, Bhu Foods, and Munk Pack are always my favorites. These homemade bad boys look wonderful! So easy to make, and you can add whatever you want. BONUS!
These were okay. But I did use hemp protein powder because that’s all I had. May have made a difference. Directions don’t say when to add the chia seeds and hemp hearts. Also how many cookies is the nutrition count based on? I got twelve cookies.
I think the hemp powders don’t have any sweetness or flavor to them which might make the cookies taste a bit blah and borning. I’ll make sure to update the ingredients! And yes, nutrition is for 12 cookies (1 cookie each).
Absolutely delicious! I made them to take on the plane. A healthy alternative to a muffin at the airport. I folded the chia and hemp in with the coconut and chocolate. My family loved them.
So glad you all enjoyed them!! They’re one of my FAVE cookie recipes 🙂
Hi Alyssa, I hope to try this recipe. Although I am curious what chocolate chips did you use in order to say that this recipe is vegan?
I use Enjoy Life 🙂 they’re free from the top 8 allergens!
I just made these last night. OMG are they good. We only had cookies and cream protein powder but it worked. And I used sunflower seed butter as I am allergic to nuts. And they are still amazing. Will be hard not to eat these all in one go haha
So happy you enjoyed them!! They’re one of my faves too 🙂 xox
Was having such a bad craving for chocolate this week. I stumbled upon this recipe and thank God because these cookies are amazing! Just what I needed. Also thank you SQ.
I love peanut butter so I made it with PB instead, didn’t have vanilla protein powder but I have Bob’s red mills chocolate protein powder so i used that, didn’t have help hearts so left it out and didn’t have coconut flakes but had sliced almonds so i used those.
The cookies came out soooo good! Had a couple for breakfast and I am satisfied! My baby and fiance loved them. So 2 thumbs up!
Thank you sq!
Arent’ they the best?! These are probably one of my absolute FAVE cookies on the site 🙂 So glad you enjoyed them! xo
I was wondering if you can double the recipe, or even triple the recipe for the Chocolate Coconut Protein Cookies without affecting the original textures and taste?
Absolutely!!!
Can you add quantity information to your nutrition information? Is this 145 calories per cookie? We are on a very strict daily calorie count per day.
It is, yes!
would this work with collagen peptides instead of protein powder and a real egg instead of the flax sub? thanks!
I think so, yes! The flavor might be a little less sweet with collagen, but I think it should still work 🙂
Love this recipe! I love to use the flax egg as a substitute, but for my husband, would it be equivalent to just use one regular egg? Thanks so much!
Yep!!
Quick question is it baking powder or baking soda? The link on the ingredient list takes me to baking powder. Can I use that instead? Thank you!
You can!
Hey I am bot vegan so can I use chocolate whey protein here?
Sure!