Salted Caramel Thumbprint Cookies (Gluten-Free, Paleo + Vegan)
6 Ingredient Salted Caramel Thumbprint Cookies made healthier with vegan caramel, dark chocolate & a gluten-free paleo shortbread cookie base! Perfect for the holidays or whenever you have a cookie craving!
Okay, can we talk about these salted caramel thumbprint cookies for a minute? I mean WOW I can’t think of a better combination. Dark chocolate, salted caramel, shortbread cookies, flaky sea salt…yes, please!
This is probably the best addition to your holiday cookie tray or would even make a great DIY gift! I also enjoy them year-round because they are too good to only have one month out of the year 🙂
Not to mention they’re gluten-free, paleo, refined sugar-free, and filled with the easiest vegan caramel. I could honestly talk about these cute thumbprint cookies all day and guarantee you’re going to love them as much as me :)
Ingredients for salted caramel thumbprint cookies
While these cookies contain three main parts: the base, caramel filling, and chocolate drizzles, there are only 6 total ingredients required! You’re going to love how easy these are to whip up 🙂 Here’s the breakdown:
- Blanched Almond Flour: You need finely ground almond flour for the shortbread cookie base! Make sure you get flour and not almond meal, as this will affect the texture.
- Melted Coconut Oil: To help bind the cookie dough! You’ll also use coconut oil for the vegan caramel sauce.
- Maple Syrup: I love using maple syrup to sweeten to keep these refined sugar-free! Maple also adds a cozy flavor to the caramel sauce.
- Creamy Almond Butter: a little almond butter for the caramel sauce to create a rich texture. Feel free to sub peanut butter if needed like we did for my homemade twix bars!
- Dark Chocolate: for the drizzle on top!
- Sea Salt: the best pairing to homemade caramel sauce 🙂 I like using flaky sea salt, like Maldon.
Tips for the best homemade thumbprint cookies
- Chill the dough: when preparing the cookie dough you’ll first shape the batter into a large ball, cover with plastic wrap, and place in the fridge. It’s important to chill for 30 minutes to get a soft, tender shortbread cookie texture.
- Use refined coconut oil: if you want to avoid a slight coconut flavor, make sure your coconut oil is refined vs. unrefined.
- Set in the refrigerator: Once the cookies are done baking and you’ve filled them with caramel + dark chocolate, it’s important to place them in the fridge to firm up! You’ll keep any leftovers stored in the fridge as well to maintain shape and quality.
What makes these cookies healthy?
Besides being full of simple, nourishing ingredients, these salted caramel thumbprint cookies are so flavorful and tender! My good friend Monica could not get enough of the buttery shortbread base and rich caramel combination… So what makes them healthier than the typical thumbprint cookie?
- Refined sugar-free
- Grain-Free + Paleo
- Gluten-Free
- Full of healthy fats
- Lightly maple sweetened
- Melt in your mouth DELICIOUS!!
Here’s what you need to make these Salted Caramel Thumbprint Cookies:
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Salted Caramel Thumbprint Cookies (Gluten Free, Paleo + Vegan)
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 10 minutes
- Total Time: 30 minutes
- Yield: 15 cookies 1x
- Category: Dessert
Description
6 Ingredient Salted Caramel Thumbprint Cookies made healthier with vegan caramel, dark chocolate & a gluten-free paleo shortbread cookie base! Perfect for the holidays or whenever you have a cookie craving!
Ingredients
- 1¼ cup (120g) blanched almond flour
- ¼ cup (50g) coconut oil, melted
- 2 tablespoons (42g) maple syrup
For the caramel
- 3 tablespoons (42g) creamy almond butter
- 2 tablespoons (25g) coconut oil, melted
- 2 tablespoons (42g) pure maple syrup
- Pinch of sea salt, to taste
For the drizzle
- 2 oz. dark chocolate, chopped or chips
- Flaky sea salt
Instructions
- In a medium bowl, mix together the almond flour, melted coconut oil, and maple syrup and shape into a ball. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes or up to 24 hours.
- Preheat the oven to 375ºF and line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a Silpat baking sheet.
- Form 15 balls with the dough, about 1 tablespoon each. Make an imprint in the center of each cookie with your thumb.
- Bake for 10-12 minutes for until light golden brown around the edges. Remove from the oven and use a small teaspoon to press down lightly on the thumb imprints again, to make sure theres room for the filling in case they puffed or spread in the oven at all. Transfer to a cooling rack to cool completely.
- In a small bowl, whisk together the almond butter, melted coconut oil, and maple syrup until smooth. Fill each thumbprint with the caramel.
- Place chocolate in a microwavable bowl and microwave for 30 seconds. Stir until smooth. Put the melted chocolate in a small zip bag, snip the corner, and drizzle over the cookies. Sprinkle with flaky sea salt, to taste.
- Place cookies in the refrigerator to set. Keep stored in the refrigerator.
Notes
Use refined coconut oil if you don’t want any coconut flavor.
Recipe adapted from my Jam Thumbprint Cookies.
Keywords: cookies, thumbprint, caramel, chocolate, vegan, gluten free, paleo
Yum! I’m getting ready to do some cookie making this weekend. I seriously cannot wait. I love the comfort food this time of year!
Me too! Thanks so much, Megan.
Mmm that restaurant in your building sounds delicious! Now it’s making ME hungry! :) And these cookies look so good, Rachel! I love the salted caramel and drizzle of chocolate. My kind of thumb print cookie!
Haha thanks Gayle! Thanks so much :)
Rachel your cookies are gorgeous! You make the best cookies! Love them and I need to try these asap! How fun that you have a restaurant in your building. I would eat there all the time. It probably would not be a good thing for me. So happy you’re loving your new apartment and getting used to everything in SD. Hugs friend!
That sounds like a great restaurant, but I’d much prefer to stay home and eat these cookies nonstop ;) I mean who can resist a thumbprint cookie – especially one with caramel filling!!
That restaurant sounds awesome! These cookies look mouthwatering! Love the combination, pinned :)
Oh my gosh I’d overeat at that restaurant too. Yum! These thumbprints look amazing. They’re a cookie I love at Christmas, but I’ve very rarely made them myself. These would be a hit at any get together!
They’re so easy, you’ve got to try them! Thanks so much Amanda.
These cookies look awesome! Salted caramel and chocolate are always perfect together- these are the most gorgeous holiday cookies :)
A healthier version of cookies with caramel AND dark chocolate?! I need these in my life now!
These are the cure-all of cookies! Soft, sweet and delicious, and perfect for absolutely anyone. MUST try these!
I adore thumbprint cookies and these are gorgeous! Love that chocolate drizzle!
Hi I tried making these last night but was having trouble with the dough – it was lacking moisture so the mixture would not bind and I could not form a ball, not to mention form them into smaller balls to then make a thumbprint in them. They kept crumbling! What am I doing wrong/what can be done to fix it? This looks like a delicious recipe. Am I supposed to be using a stand mixer? Thank you for your help!
Hi Diana – How odd! Sorry you’re having trouble. I’ve never used a stand mixer for this, so that shouldn’t be a problem. Was the almond flour you were using blanched and finely ground? Sometimes if it’s too mealy, it can make the cookies crumble and not come together into a smooth dough. I’ve made these cookies a bunch and haven’t had that issue – I’d try adding a bit extra maple syrup to help bring the dough together. Hope this helps!
Are u able to substitute butter for the coconut oil?
I haven’t tried it but it should work!
Tried to make these today…. what a disaster! Left my dough in the fridge overnight and of course, it was rock solid this morning. Left it out for a while to get it soft enough to form into balls. Dough spread a lot and the cookies are just a crumbled mess. Curious where I went wrong as I’m not new to baking but I havent used almond flour too much. I feel like the recipe should say that if you leave the dough too long it will get super hard, etc.
Hi Elle, sorry you had trouble with these. I’ve never had the dough get super hard after leaving it in the fridge…is it possible you added too much almond flour? That could havw caused the dough to be a lot thicker and the cookies to be crumbly.
Allergic to tree nuts peanuts and eggs. Can you use different flour (wheat)? What amounts?
Not sure if that would work, but I’d try subbing an equal amount of regular all purpose flour.
Hi Rachel, just wanted to ask if the almond flour could be substituted for gluten free plain flour?
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Hi Saara, I haven’t tested it that way so can’t make any guarantees, and every GF flour blend is different, but it should work!
Hi! Just wanted to say that I made these for a gluten and dairy-free friend (minus the chocolate drizzle) and they were (in the words of Mary Berry) ABSOLUTELY SCRUMMY! Thank you so much for posting!
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So glad that they were a hit! Thanks for sharing, Anya :)
Can I use peanut butter instead of almond butter?
Definitely! Any nut butter will work.
These cookies turned out so so well! My family loved them too! I was a fan of the short ingredient list and the fact that they’re vegan as well. Thank you for all the wonderful recipes Rachel! Your photos always look mouth-watering so it’s hard to choose which recipes to make :)
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So thrilled to hear you’re a fan of the cookies! Thanks for the feedback Elizabeth, hope you find many more recipes you love :)
Can we sub almond meal with something else? Have an allergic kid at home. Thanks! Hi
Hi Rhonda, absolutely! You could try using oat flour to keep it nut-free for your family. For the caramel filling, sunflower seed butter works well to keep it nut-free.
Hi Rachel,
When I made these cookies, I had a lot of the caramel left over. Any suggestions on how to use it?! Also, I only got 12 small cookies. Thanks!
Hi Jessie, it makes a great ice cream topping, you can dip fruit into it, use it to sweeten coffee, drizzle over pancakes or waffles…yum! Yield can always vary based on how large you made them, and they are pretty small cookies.
I started assembling ingredients about an hour ago, and cookies are out of the oven and decorated, including the 30-minute rest in the refrigerator. It was easy to assemble, and I hope my non-vegan guests will like them as much as I do.
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So glad they were so easy and delicious for you, Linda!!
Had the same problem that a couple other people had where it seemed like the dough was lacking a binder and just fell apart on me the whole time, I wonder if it can be an altitude thing? Besides that it is absolutely delicious.
Hi Fern! Honestly, it may be an altitude thing because I’ve never had that issue, but I’ve always lived at sea level so I don’t know much about baking at altitude, unfortunately!
i feel like i always get this backwards – is the coconut oil in this recipe measured before or after melting?
Hi Heather, measuring when it’s melted is generally more accurate. I always measure by weight for the most accurate measure, if you have a kitchen scale! Just updated the recipe to include those measures.