This keto vanilla wafers recipe uses 5 ingredients (not counting salt) and tastes so much like the original with only 1 gram of carbs per cookie. You can easily adapt it to make it paleo or vegan!
Do you love Vanilla Wafers, or ‘Nilla Wafers? They may seem like plain, boring cookies, but I loved them. There was something so addicting about those light and crispy cookies, and they weren’t too sweet so you could eat a whole bunch in one sitting. Well, today, I’m bring you homemade vanilla wafers in low carb, keto form and they taste just like the original!
Keto Vanilla Wafers Recipe
While these may seem like simple keto cookies (only 5 ingredients!), I actually had to test them out several times because I really wanted to get the texture just right: light, flaky, and crispy, while being soft in the center.
Making these keto vanilla wafers without eggs was key to making them get to that perfect texture that’s soft and crispy at the same time. Eggs are great for creating moist and chewy cookies, but that’s not what you are going for in these homemade vanilla wafers! You want them a bit more sturdy, especially if you’ll be using them in another recipe like banana pudding, as a cake crust, or even just enjoying them dunked in almond milk or coffee like me.
Easy Substitutions to Make These Into Vegan or Paleo Vanilla Wafers
These simple keto cookies can easily be adjusted to make them vegan or paleo-friendly with simple adjustments and substitutions. I know not everyone needs or wants to be low carb, and would rather not purchase extra ingredients like Swerve (my favorite 0 carb sweetener), so here’s how you can make these keto vanilla wafers paleo and/or vegan!
For paleo vanilla wafers: All you have to do is replace the sweetener with coconut sugar, which most people have in their pantry if they regularly cook and eat paleo. That’s it! The rest of the ingredients will stay the same. Keep in mind that replacing Swerve with coconut sugar may result in darker cookies, because coconut sugar imparts a deep, amber color in baked goods.
For vegan vanilla wafers: Replace the sweetener with coconut sugar like for paleo vanilla wafers, AND replace the ghee with the same amount of coconut oil. Ghee gives these homemade vanilla wafers that rich and buttery flavor that’s present in the original version of these cookies, but using coconut oil will still yield delicious results!
Things to Note About This Keto Vanilla Wafers Recipe
- Make sure to use blanched almond flour, NOT almond meal. Almond meal will yield crumbly cookies that won’t hold together well.
- These easy and simple keto cookies won’t spread much during baking. Make sure to flatten them lightly before putting them in the oven. I used the bottom of a bowl to do this.
- If you decide to make them paleo or vegan and use coconut sugar instead of Swerve, keep in mind that the cookies will turn out darker than you see in the photos. It won’t affect the flavor though!
- The baking time will be affect the texture of your homemade vanilla wafers. I found that 25 minutes was great if you want to enjoy the cookies alone. If you are making them to add to a dessert recipe that adds moisture to the cookies, bake them for full 30 minutes so they crisp up further.
- You can store them in an airtight container. Keep in mind that they’ll soften a bit after a day of storage, but will still be delicious!
I honestly couldn’t stop eating these once I made them and they really do taste so much like the original. I hope you enjoy this keto vanilla wafers recipe, and make sure to leave a review below if you end up making them!
Other recipes you might love…
- Nut-Free Cassava Flour Chocolate Chip Cookies
- AIP & Paleo Sugar Cookies
- Cranberry Pistachio Paleo Chocolate Cookies
- Paleo Chestnut Chocolate Chip Cookies
Keto Vanilla Wafers (Vegan & Paleo Option)
Ingredients
- 2 cups blanched almond flour
- 1/3 cup Swerve Granulated or coconut sugar for paleo
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1/4 tsp sea salt
- 1/2 cup ghee or coconut oil for vegan, melted
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 325 degrees F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- In a large bowl, combine almond flour, Swerve (or coconut sugar), baking powder and sea salt, and mix together.
- Add ghee and vanilla extract and mix until a dough forms.
- Scoop 1 tablespoon at a time and drop them on the prepared baking sheet, and flatten lightly with the bottom of a bowl. These cookies won't spread much.
- Bake for about 25 minutes or until golden brown on the edges. If you are using them in another dessert recipe, bake for 30 minutes so they crisp up.
- Cool for at least 30 minutes before enjoying or transferring to a cooling rack. The cookies will be too soft to handle at first, but will harden as they cool.
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Yes! Just bake them for the full 30 minutes so they firm up. 🙂
Can you use honey instead of sugar
I wouldn’t. It would add too much liquid and alter the recipe. I would use any other granulated sugar.
How can you sub out the almond flour? My boys are allergic to almond flour but can do coconut. Any suggestions?
I’ve never tried with any other flour. You can maybe try cassava flour but I can’t guarantee results. Subbing with coconut flour entirely will make the cookies too dry so I wouldn’t suggest that.
Would have to add extra baking powder and egg, not sure how much.
Jean, I hope I´m not stepping on toes here. Found this version with coconut flour from a trusted blogger : https://www.sugarfreemom.com/recipes/sugar-free-grain-free-vanilla-wafers/
These were wonderful. Easy too.
So glad you enjoyed!!
Can you substitute Kelly Gold butter for ghee/coconut oil?
Yes!
Have you tried using this recipe as the crust for a cheese cake? Just wondering. I’m assuming I’d bake the cookies first and then crumble in the bottom. What do you think?
I haven’t but it should work. I would bake the cookies for the full 30 minutes, and then crumble to use for the crust.
I liked these very much. Simple, one bowl, very tasty. In my oven they burn if baked that long, so I check at 16 minutes.
Third time I was out of vanilla, so I added a tube of orange ZipFizz and an egg. Also very tasty, baking 18 minutes.
So glad you liked them! Yes, every oven is different so it’s a good idea to check early. Thanks so much!
Hello! I am making these yummy cookies right now. My dough is crumbly. I used almond flour not meal. Do you have any suggestions?
I just saw this, sorry for not responding sooner! How did it turn out? It might be the brand of almond flour that’s a bit drier. You can try adding a bit more ghee until it reaches the right consistency.
Can I use regular butter instead?
Yes, that should work!
I just made these. It never became a dough. Was very crumbly. I just kind of formed the crumbles into a cookie shape. Just took them out of oven and they are just crumbles. Did the dough need more liquid?
I used almond meal even though the recipe strictly said not to hihi because that was all I got 🤭 it’s not really like a cookie but it’s still so yummy. My almond flour is on the way so I’m gonna try this recipe again when my order arrives.
Is it 86 calories per cookie?
yes!