Growing up, my mom and I would bake together during the holidays. This was no ordinary baking—it was marathon baking! We would turn seemingly endless bags, boxes and shakers of sugars, flours and spices into candies, cookies, fudge, pumpkin bread…the list goes on!
Clearly, there are no shortage of decadent holiday recipes on the internet. However, I’m always looking for ideas to make treats that don’t sacrifice taste, but make me feel a bit less guilty about indulging.
This Almond Thumbprint Cookie recipe hits the jackpot. It’s 100% gluten-free, 100% vegan and 100% delicious!
What’s better, these gems are made with whole grains, nuts, omega-3 rich hemp seeds, and minimally-refined oils and sugars.
When baking for the holidays, why not try these and feel just a little less guilty? Did I mention they’re amazing with tea?
Almond Thumbprint Cookies

- Yield: 18 cookies 1x
Ingredients
- 1–1/4 cup rolled oats
- 3/4 cup hempseed (hulled)
- 1 cup almond meal
- 1/4 cup coconut sugar (or dark brown sugar)
- 1/4 cup virgin or extra virgin coconut oil
- 1/4 cup virgin or extra virgin olive oil
- 1/4 cup maple syrup
- ~1/3 cup jam(s) or preserve(s) of your choice
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Line a half sheet pan or 2 smaller cookie sheets with parchment paper or a silpat, if possible. Do not grease the pan(s).
- In a blender, combine oats and hempseed; process, scraping down the sides or tapping as needed, to produce a course flour.
- In a medium mixing bowl, whisk together oat/hempseed mixture, almond meal and coconut sugar; set aside.
- Melt coconut oil in a glass bowl or measuring cup in the microwave until slightly warm and completely liquid. Whisk in olive oil and maple syrup. Stir oil mixture into dry mixture until thoroughly mixed.
- Make tablespoon-sized balls (or use a #40 cookie scoop) and distribute, evenly spaced onto the sheet pans. Press your thumb in the center to make a deep indentation. Place into the oven and bake for 25 minutes.
- Remove pan(s) from oven and place 1 to 1-1/2 teaspoons of jam or preserves into the thumb indentation of the cookie. Return pan(s) to the oven and bake for 12-15 minutes or until jam has heated through.
- Remove pan(s) from oven and cool for 3-4 minutes, then transfer cookies to a cooling rack to finish cooling.
Notes
- Store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 1 week. Alternatively, you can freeze in a single layer on a sheet pan and then transfer to an airtight container for longer storage in the freezer. Make sure to lay frozen cookies in a single layer when thawing so that the jam doesn’t make a mess.
Nutritional Info (per serving): Calories 188, Total Fat 12.3g, Saturated Fat 3.6g, Cholesterol 0mg, Sodium 6.1mg, Total Carbohydrate 15.9g, Dietary Fiber 1.4g, Sugars 8.9g, Protein 4.3g, Vitamin A 0%, Vitamin C 1%, Calcium 3%, Iron 6%
Did you make this recipe? We’d love to hear from you in the comments!
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