Soft, chewy and chocolatey, these chocolate amaretti cookies are sure to become a fast favorite!
This rich chocolate variation of my popular amaretti morbidi cookies will delight your tastebuds. A few tablespoons of cocoa powder transforms these little almond cookies into rich, brownie-like bites of heaven.
The infamous amaretti strike again.
This time in the form of dark chocolate.
The result is soft and chewy and richly chocolate (surprisingly so for just a few tablespoons of cocoa powder), reminiscent of an almond-scented brownie.
I mean, amazing is what they are (dare I say this is my favorite variation yet? Of course, I said that about the last batch too… but then again, I’m totally a sucker for anything chocolate).
Much like the other variations, the chocolate amaretti use the same base recipe with the addition of one single flavoring ingredient, in this case, Dutch-processed cocoa powder. Everything else about the recipe is virtually identical.
It’s amazing how the addition of one ingredient can make for such a wildly different cookie!
(Be sure to click through/scroll down to see the recipe video!)
I’ve realized, the more times that I make these cookies (and the darker in color the flavor variations get) that they look better with more powdered sugar.
When I first made the original amaretti cookies, I barely dusted them with sugar (it was more to keep the dough from sticking to your hands as you rolled it). But when I made the raspberry cookies next, my favorite ones were the more thickly-dusted cookies that really made the color of the cracks pop. Even more so with the matcha, and now the chocolate.
While they might look like your classic sugar-dusted chocolate crinkle cookie, they most certainly aren’t, with a strong almond flavor and a marzipan-like chewy texture these cookies are much. much better. (In my opinion at least.)
A few tips for perfect amaretti:
– Double up your baking sheets. This insulates the bottoms of the cookies and lets you bake them slightly longer without burning the bottoms, resulting in a chewier exterior. If you only use one baking sheet, you’ll probably want to take them out after 25 minutes or so.
– Whip your egg whites to medium-soft peaks. The tip of the egg white should slump over and look something like an eagle’s beak. Over-beating your egg whites might cause the cookies to spread out more.
– Always sift your almond flour! I have found these cookies vary quite a bit depending on what brand of almond flour you use (I like Bob’s) but sifting will ensure that only the finest grains are used.
– Use a small cookie scoop (#60 size, which holds about 15 grams or 2 teaspoons of dough) to portion out your balls of dough, ensuring all your cookies are the exact same size.
– Dust your palms with powdered sugar before you start rolling; then the cookie dough won’t stick! Dust with sugar, roll dough into a ball, roll ball in powdered sugar, then lightly roll it between your palms again (this last step will remove the excess sugar and get your hands dusted and ready for the next one).
– Store your cookies in an airtight container to keep them from drying out. They’re still nice and chewy after 5 days, although they’re so good that I highly doubt they’ll last that long.
Want to see how these little beauties are made (along with the original, matcha and raspberry variations?) Check out the video:
Now I ask, is 4 variations enough? Or should we keep up the amaretti momentum with even more flavors?
Maybe a citrus variation, like lemon or blood orange, or even something more floral, infused with lavender or rose water? Espresso? Or, how about we go boozy (you know I love my boozy baking!) with a splash of amaretto or maraschino liqueur?
Seriously y’all, I might be posting Amaretti morbidi for years to come. Now that I’ve got amaretti on the brain I don’t think I can stop.
Chocolate Amaretti Cookies
Soft and chewy almond cookies with dark chocolate cocoa powder make for a rich and almost brownie-like cookie.
Ingredients:
- 2 cups (180g) almond flour or very finely ground almonds, sifted
- 1 cup (200g) granulated sugar
- 3 tablespoon (15g) Dutch-process cocoa powder powder
- pinch salt
- 2 large egg whites (about 60 grams)
- 1/4 teaspoon lemon juice
- 1/2 teaspoon almond extract
- confectioners’ sugar, as needed
Directions:
- Preheat oven to 300 degrees F. Stack two matching, heavyweight, light to medium colored cookie sheets one inside the other (stacking two cookie sheets together keeps the bottoms of the cookies from getting too brown). Line with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat.
- In a large bowl, whisk together almond flour, sugar, cocoa and salt until evenly incorporated.
- In a mixing bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, whisk egg whites and lemon juice until they hold soft peaks.
- Add beaten egg whites and almond extract to dry ingredients and stir until mixture forms a soft, sticky dough, kneading with your hands if necessary. No need to be gentle here, we’re not making macarons. ;)
- Lightly dust your hands with powdered sugar. Use a small cookie scoop to portion dough into 1-inch balls. Roll into a smooth ball, then roll in powdered sugar. Arrange on parchment or silicon-lined baking sheets, leaving 1 inch of space between cookies.
- Bake for 30 to 35 minutes until tops are cracked and bottoms are just starting to darken (if you are NOT using doubled cookie sheets your cookies will brown much quicker, and will likely only need 25 minutes, so watch them closely). Remove from oven; let cool a few minutes, then transfer to wire racks to cool completely.
- Cookies will keep at room temperature in an airtight bag or container for up to 5 days.
Did you make this recipe?
Let us know what you think!
Leave a Comment below or share a photo and tag me on Instagram with the hashtag #loveandoliveoil.
Delicious and oh so easy to whip up! This is my go-to recipe now when I need to use up egg whites.
I made these and while they taste good (crunchy on the outside/soft on the inside), however, the cookies didn’t seem to rise much and almost no cracks. When they were done, they looked almost the same as when I put them in to bake. Any idea what may have happened?
thanks,
N.
Reducing the sugar will definitely result in less spreading and cracking. Also sometimes the almond flour, depending on how fresh or moist it is (drier flour won’t crack as much) can affect this. You can make up for that by adding maybe 1/2 teaspoon of water to the dough, or 1/8-1/4 teaspoon of baking powder to help them puff a bit more.
AMAZING !!! I always come back to this recipe,it’s perfection . I use the Nielsen Massey almond extract , Valrhona cocoa powder, and C&H bakers sugar and they come out so so good every time . Big thanks for these amazing recipes. 5 stars *****
Can you please tell me if I can use Lakanto Monk Sweet granulated sugar in place of white sugar? Same with powdered sugar…. These look so good, I’ve been wanting to make these for my husband who is diabetic. Thank you!
I don’t recommend sugar replacements for this recipe, sorry!
Looks really yummy! I don’t have almond essence, can I replace with vanilla? Or just skip it? Thank you
Ok to just skip it. It enhances the natural almond flavor (which isn’t very strong using almond flour alone).
I made the cookies exactly like the recipe but the cookies did not rise at all and the powdered sugar just melted. They would not cook. I had to through all of them away.
But this recipe does not have baking powder, how are they supposed to rise?
The only thing I did different was that I substituted the granulated sugar for erythritol and monk sugar.
Could this have made a difference, I was very disappointed?
I would appreciate a reply
The cookies don’t ‘rise’ rather they soften and spread just a bit which is where the cracks come from. I’d say the sweetener is definitely the issue here, I do not recommend sugar replacements in this recipe. Try it again with regular sugar (and regular powdered sugar on the outside) and they should come out perfectly!
I’ve made these cookies (almond and chocolates),on numerous occasions. They always come out the same…delicious! But, I did cut back on the sugar (used 3/4). This recipe is a keeper.
I have made your Amaretti cookies with various flavorings numerous times. I originally found your recipes while searching for gluten free options for a family member. But I wanted you to know that I donated a batch to Sugar Fest, a benefit for our local museum, and won first place in the gluten free category. I substituted 2T cocoa powder and 1T instant coffee and called them Chocolate Espresso Amaretti Cookies.
such an easy recipe and the cookies are absolutely delicious!!! thank you!!
I have made this recipe a number of times and it is simply fabulous. I made a slight variation the last time by using 3/4 the amount of cocoa and substituting 1/4 the amount in instant coffee, and this was simply wonderful. I think they are always better a day or two after they are made because the outside of the cookie becomes harder while the inside remains chewy.
These are excellent, thank you! I used carton egg whites and it worked.
Hi, thank you for a fantastic recipe. They taste divine . I keep having the same problem. The cookies spread and don’t remain as yours do. Any suggestions would be appreciated.
Thank you!
Is it possible to freeze these?
For the freshest cookies, I recommend freezing the unbaked dough balls. You can then bake them straight from frozen (add a few minutes to the overall time).
Not sure about the amount of cocoa, 15g (1 tbsp) or 45g (3 tbsps)? You mention 3tbsp (15g)?
15g is what 3T of cocoa weighed for me – measure by weight if you want to match exactly what I did. :)
About the amount of cocoa, 15g (1 tbsp) or 45g (3 tbsps)? You mention 3tbsp (15g)?
I was so excited about these cookies! The only change I made was to use monkfruit sugar and powdered monkfruit sugar. Not only did they not spread out, they retained their ball-shape.🤔 The dough was soft and sticky but only sticky to itself. I didn’t need to dust my hands. Could that be the problem? The egg whites came from our own chickens but maybe the eggs were old. It’s also raining.🤷🏻♀️ They taste pretty good, though.
I cannot speak to the effect monkfruit would have on this recipe. However I find a little bit of water added to the dough can sometimes help the cookies spread more. Start with a teaspoon or so and see if that helps. Luckily they taste great no matter what they look like!
Made the matcha ones today, with the only change being a 25% reduction of sugar, and they were fantastic. Going to try these chocolate ones next.
And probably experiment with coffee – I’ve been making coffee meringue cookies by folding instant coffee granules into the meringue after it’s ready. Wonder if that’ll work for these?
OMG! Best cookies ever. I made them and they vanished. Thank you for sharing your great recipe.
My son-in-law is Italian, he said he’s going to make me my own kitchen, (with a Murphy bed for quick naps) then I can do nothing but bake amaretti cookies for him….too funny. Thanks again! Laureen
These are amazing! There was no almond flour at the store so I used hazelnut flour. Delicious! These will be a special family treat for years to come.
#soninlawapproved👍 Followed recipe exactly and I was a bit hesitant because I wasn’t going to double up my baking sheets. The dough wasn’t as sticky as I thought it would be. Perfect crackle, perfect chewiness and balance of chocolate to amaretti.
I made these cookies several times for my father-in-law. We both love them, very easy to make and taste great.
Does anyone know if these freeze well or if the dough will freeze well ?
Amaretti dough freezes beautifully! Add a couple minutes to the bake time if baking directly from frozen (no need to thaw first).
Where do I find the video please?
I also experimented a little and used some roasted soy bean powder for dusting instead of powdered sugar. In Korea we use it for rice cakes that are very sticky, and I find it adds a nice savory flavor to the amaretti cookies.
Thank you for introducing these cookies. I really like them especially there’s no butter needed. I’ve tried the original recipe successfully, even added jam for some colour. However, the dough for the chocolate version seemed a bit sticky & I added another 1.5 tbsp of almond meal. The cookies became a bit hard on the outside but still chewy inside. Rolling them into balls was messy too. I’ll stick to the original version next time or maybe try out the raspberry version.
Thank you Lindsay, I just wanted to ensure that the addition of other flavors will not make the dough more damp/wet, especially for an infused tea flavor as I don’t see a way to add a dry ingredient in this case !! Maybe an advice ? :) thanks a lot, Hafsa
Your cookies are just FABULOUS, thank you so much for sharing the recipe with us.
I’m wondering whether you have other new Amaretti recipes as you mentioned infused teas and orange :)
Thanks a lot
Hafsa
You can see all the flavors I’ve done so far here: https://www.loveandoliveoil.com/?s=amaretti
The recipe is super easy to adapt yourself if you want to branch out to other flavors!
I just noticed that this chocolate variation has 1/4 cup less almond flour than the original recipe and raspberry variation. (Which I absolutely love!!) Is there a reason for the reduction? I want to make sure I get these right. Thanks!
It has less to account for the extra cocoa powder (otherwise the dough would be quite a bit stiffer/drier).
These were great! Simple easy to follow recipe. I didn’t double up on the baking sheets but used a double layer of parchment paper instead, baked for 30min and they came out perfect, exactly as pictured. They weren’t as chocolatey as I had hoped, but they had the chewy texture I wanted. I had better results with this recipe than with the King Arthur Flour one too. Will definitely use this recipe again.
These were fantastic – made them for Passover and the whole table loved them. Adults, kids, everyone. Easy to make and real crowd pleasers! Thanks!
Sorry for the silly question
Mine didn’t flatten out they renown’s the shape of a ball and also the icing sugar melted did you re coat these once cooled
I did add a little Nutella in the centre maybe that caused the difference
They aren’t supposed to flatten. The balls usually ‘slump’ a little bit, but they will still be ball shaped. I used a pretty thick coating of powdered sugar so it stays on through baking.
This is a lovely recipe! I made them today and my kids have eaten them all. I’ve had almond flour sitting in my pantry for months, now I know what to do with it 😁.
Can I freeze these cookies?
I find this recipe very forgiving: I accidentally mixed in the sugar with the egg whites, and purposely used 5o g less of sugar (and 50 g more of almond flower) , and the cookies still came out great!
These are absolutely delicious – thinking of gifting these for Christmas. Any thoughts on how well these will do if frozen?
Oh my word!!!!!! These cookies are fantastically satisfying and pretty for Christmas.
The texture of the cookie makes it so chewy and powdered sugar on the outside yields complimentary sweetness!!! Ive included these in my Christmas this year.Thank you!!!!!
Great recipe!
Any ideas on how to reduce the amount of sugar in it? By replacing it? Or it is just impossible for these amaretti maybe
Thanks a lot!
I just made these last night and they were delicious! I also experimented a little and used some roasted soy bean powder for dusting instead of powdered sugar. In Korea we use it for rice cakes that are very sticky, and I find it adds a nice savory flavor to the amaretti cookies.
What an interesting idea! I’ll have to track down some soybean powder, it sounds like a great variation!
I made these and they were terrific, I’m gluten free so it was nice to have a sweet I could eat.
I also made them substituting the almond flour and almond extract with hazelnut flour and hazelnut extract- I live in Oregon so it’s a local version. The hazelnut is a bit less sweet ( almonds must make sweeter flour)
Thanks so much for this great recipe!
I love the idea of a hazelnut version! I just made some with pistachio flour which is amazing as well (it was also noticeably less sweet than the almond – I think almond flavor enhances the perception of sweetness even if the exact same amount of sugar is used). I wonder what other nut flours we can find?!
I love this recipe!! I made it last night for a get-together and they were perfect. My friend with celiac could eat them and I could also – I am watching my high cholesterol. The almond flavor was just enough to be delicious but not too much.
yumm!!..Love the Receipe.
These cookies are my favorite!
I would love to put in a request for the next flavor variation: mocha!!
I made the raspberry version of these over the weekend and received so many compliments. I made them a bit bigger so ended up with 18, but they were absolutely wonderful and stayed fresh for the 3 days that they lasted!
really like that you’re using dark chocolate with these, thank you
I’m so sorry , you are right…its just that I have been looking at so many recipes trying to get ready for a big bake sale we are having at a craft fair… I and several other ladies were asked to bake enought cookies, cakes, and pies for this 2 day craft fair..and we were looking for something different to go we the usual cookie, cakes, and pies that we usually bake….I guess I wasn’t paying attention to the “i” at the end and read it as Amaretto instead of Amaretti….again I apologize…
I hope you don’t mind if we use your recipes for your Amaretti cookies for the craft fair…they do sound like they would be a big hit..I hope so anyway…the money we make will be used to help the seniors and children in our community..
One of the things we are looking for was more gluten free dessert recipes…and this one is..
Thank you…
By the way if you were to add Amaretto to your Amaretti cookies how much would you add?
Sorry again for the misunderstanding…
I love Amaretti cookies and this chocolate version sounds amazing!
CITRUS!!!! PLEASE!
You call them Amaretti cookies…didn’t see any Amaretti in the recipe…did o miss something?
Amaretti is an almond-flavored Italian cookie… these are made from almond flour and will certainly have an almond flavor to them. Are you thinking amaretto?
these look so very pretty. i love the dusting of icing sugar over them. and i love chocolate! good stuff. cheers sherry
Hi there! I tried out this recipe twice and both times, the result was sensational. Thank you so much for such an easy to follow recipe.
Can I use regular dark cocoa powder (i.e. Hershey’s Special Dark Cocoa Powder) in place of Dutch process?
I have not tested it personally but I think you should be ok since there is no baking soda/powder in this recipe. I’d go with the special dark for flavor alone. ;) Do let me know if you try it!
I would like to know how many cookies you get from the recipe?