Sweetly spiced, crispy keto speculoos cookies are a must-bake low carb treat. Made famous by the Biscoff brand, these Dutch spice cookies get a sugar-free, gluten-free makeover.
You may never have heard of speculoos, but chances are good you’ve heard of Biscoff brand. Well, consider these crispy spice cookies the keto version of Biscoff. But so much better.
How do I describe these delicious keto cookies? They are like thin shortbread with plenty of cinnamon, cardamom, and cloves. And they are not to be missed!
They look rather unassuming, as cookies go. But one bite of these buttery crisp shortbread, and you understand instantly why they’re so popular in Europe.
All that warm spice exploding in your mouth transports you straight to the famed Christmas markets.
(This post was originally published in June, 2012.)
What are speculoos cookies?
Speculoos are spiced shortcrust cookies traditionally baked around St. Nicholas’ Day (December 6th) in Belgium and the Netherlands. Speculoos is the Belgian term and Speculaas is the Dutch term for these cookies.
They are usually quite thin and crispy, and perfectly seasoned with a combination of spices. And they often come stamped or in pretty shapes like the traditional Dutch Windmill Cookies.
Lotus Bakeries created the brand name Biscoff for the American market. And they gained huge popularity through their partnership with Delta Airlines.
These keto speculoos are just as tasty, with all the same delicious spiciness. And they’re easy to make too. They may just become your new favorite keto Christmas cookies!
Ingredients for keto speculoos
Similar to shortbread, these cookies are totally egg-free. You will need:
- Butter
- Sweetener (must be erythritol based!)
- Vanilla
- Spices including cinnamon, cardamom, cloves, and nutmeg or mace
- Almond flour (see FAQ for nut-free suggestions)
- Baking soda
- Salt
Using the right sweetener
The outcome of your keto speculoos depends heavily on the sweetener you use. I featured these cookies in a recent YouTube video, showing the difference sweeteners make.
People often assume that all keto sweeteners work the same way, and make substitutions based on what they prefer. And when their cookies come out soft and not crisp, they think the recipe is to blame.
The ONLY sweeteners that will produce a crisp cookie are erythritol based, like Swerve or Lakanto. Any amount of allulose and/or BochaSweet, and your cookies will be soft and cake-y.
Traditional speculoos cookies take brown sugar, but I found that Swerve Brown made them a little less crisp than Swerve Granular. And allulose made them totally soft and floppy!
Watch my video to see how the different sweeteners change the keto speculaas cookies.
The Ultimate Guide to Keto Sweeteners breaks down the properties of various sweeteners in great detail. I recommend reading it!
More tips for making keto speculoos cookies
- Use properly softened butter. Make sure it’s soft but not melted and beat the sweetener in until it’s nicely creamed. Then beat in the vanilla and the spices.
- Use finely ground almond flour. Speculoos cookies should be thin and crisp, and the dough needs to be quite cohesive to roll out properly. Coarsely-ground nut meal makes cookies more gritty and crumbly.
- Baking soda vs. baking powder. These cookies aren’t meant to rise so don’t add any baking powder. But a bit of baking soda helps them brown nicely in the oven without making them rise.
- Cut them as desired. There are so many possible ways to cut speculoos cookies, from circles and hearts to stars and rectangles. I cut some of mine free-hand with a fluted pastry wheel, but this rectangular cookie cutter would work well too.
- Let them cool completely. As always with keto cookies, they won’t be truly crisp until they are completely cool.
Frequently Asked Questions
Coconut flour is not a good substitute for these cookies. But you can try using sunflower seed flour. You will need to add a tablespoon of acid, like lemon juice or vinegar, to offset the green reaction that occurs between sunflower seeds and baking soda.
I haven’t tried but I imagine that softened coconut oil or palm shortening would work well. If you can tolerate ghee, that’s another great option.
Please refer to the section “Using the right sweetener” to understand how sweetener substitutions will affect your keto speculoos cookies.
It is important to understand that most “monk fruit sweeteners” are really erythritol with a little monk fruit to make them sweeter. True monk fruit is a highly concentrated extract that is hundreds of times sweeter than sugar. It’s a bit of a marketing gimmick, to be honest.
Read the ingredient list on your sweetener package. If the only ingredients are erythritol and monk fruit, then yes, you can use this. If it has even a little allulose in it, your cookies won’t crisp up properly.
Carolyn recommends:
- Silicone liners are the best way to protect the bottom of you cookies from getting too dark
- This small Ateco offset spatula is my favorite kitchen tool! Perfect for spreading frosting and wiggling under cut-out cookies.
- Don’t skip the cardamom! It helps give speculoos cookies their classic flavor.
Keto Speculoos Cookies Recipe
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup (113.5 g) butter, softened
- 2/3 cup (121.33 g) Swerve Sweetener
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 1/2 tsp (1.5 tsp) ground cinnamon
- 3/4 tsp (0.75 tsp) ground cardamom
- 1/2 tsp (0.5 tsp) ground cloves
- 1/2 tsp (0.5 tsp) ground nutmeg
- 2 1/2 cups (280 g) almond flour
- 1/2 tsp (0.5 tsp) baking soda
- 1/4 tsp (0.25 tsp) salt
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 325F and line two baking sheets with silicone mats or parchment paper.
- In a large bowl, beat the butter and sweetener together until creamy, about 2 minutes. Beat in the vanilla and the spices.
- Add the almond flour, baking soda, and salt and beat until the dough comes together. Divide the dough into to even discs.
- Dust a work surface lightly with almond flour. Place one disc on the work surface and cover with parchment paper. Roll out to 1/8 to 1/4 inch thick as evenly as possible.
- Cut the cookies into desired shapes with cookie cutters or a pastry wheel. Wiggle an offset spatula carefully under the cookies to loosen them from the work surface. Place on the prepared baking sheets. Gather the scraps and re-roll to get as many cookies as possible. Repeat with the second disc of dough.
- Bake 10 to 15 minutes, or until they are golden brown (how long depends on how thinly you rolled the dough). Remove from the oven and let cool completely on the pans. They will still be soft to the touch but will crisp up as they cool.
- If they don't crisp up completely, place back in a warm (200°F) oven for another 10 to 15 minutes.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutritional Disclaimer
Please note that I am not a medical or nutritional professional. I am simply recounting and sharing my own experiences on this blog. Nothing I express here should be taken as medical advice and you should consult with your doctor before starting any diet or exercise program. I provide nutritional information for my recipes simply as a courtesy to my readers. It is calculated using MacGourmet software and I remove erythritol from the final carb count and net carb count, as it does not affect my own blood glucose levels. I do my best to be as accurate as possible but you should independently calculate nutritional information on your own before relying on them. I expressly disclaim any and all liability of any kind with respect to any act or omission wholly or in part in reliance on anything contained in this website.
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This is my new favorite holiday cookie!!! Making them again tonight. These are awesome!!
So glad to hear it!
I made this recipe tonight.
I am waiting for the batch of Speculoos cookies to cool
They are definitely crisp!
I only had cardamom seeds and ground them to add to the recipe.
Worth the effort!
Hi Carolyn, I do not have any cardamom is there any thing I can use to substitute? I would love to make this recipe.
You can just add a bit more of the other spices.
Thank you for sharing, Just made these an the flavor is really nice. I didn’t have cardamom but used 1/2 teaspoon Allspice instead. It works beautiful. Can’t wait too have them with my coffee in the morning.
These were so buttery and delicious, the perfect treat with coffee!
These cookies were the perfect blend of buttery goodness and holiday spices! An instant new favorite.
So excited! I had all the ingredients to bake these cookies on hand. They just came out of the oven, and they’re delish!
When I was stationed in Germany I would buy Spekulatius Cookies which are basically the same thing, they turned out great! Kudos to you and thank you. Merry Christmas!
Could I use THM baking blend in place of the almond flour?
I’m sorry, I don’t use it so I cannot advise. But I do know it’s a lot more dry and it could make your cookies very crumbly.
Best cookie recipe ever!!! Remind me of spiced Moravian cookies. Is there a way to make them vanilla or lemon flavored?
I am sure there is! Obviously don’t do the spices and use just extract. For lemon, try adding some grated lemon zest too.
Do you have any ideas on how to stop the dough from sticking to a cookie press? They are absolutely gorgeous, but I can only get one or two – even after freezing the rounds – before they stick like the Dickens!!!
p.s. Delicious!!!
What kind of cookie press? Like a stamp? Try brushing it with oil lightly.
Ok. I officially give up trying to make keto almond flour cookies. I was so excited for these and I studied this recipe like I was going to be tested on it. I followed every instruction and tip, and yet these came out so bland and tasteless. They taste like slightly sweetened almonds but that’s it. I have a ton of baking experience and I’ve had success with Carolyn’s cakes, muffins, and other desserts, but I have yet to find a a low carb cookie recipe that works. I’m going to try decorating them with some icing to see if that helps. It’s just such a bummer because the cost of the ingredients is always more than regular flour and sugar cookies.
Okay so it sounds to me like it’s not the recipe but something going on with your tastebuds and the sweeteners or almond flour or something. These are far from bland so I just don’t quite know how to address it for you, but you’re not tasting things the same way other people do. Do keep in mind that we all experience sweeteners differently… I have to think that’s the main culprit here.
I just made these and they are amazing! I may have a hard time restraining myself from eating them! I used gingerbread men cookie cutters and they are so cute! My house smells delicious too.
Wonderful!
My fluted round cookie cutters arrived yesterday so made these beautifully spiced cookies this morning. They rolled out thin and baked up slightly crisp! Perfect to eat with tea or coffee. Going to try truffles next. Just got some hazelnuts from T. Joes and waiting on hazelnut extract from Amazon. Also need to pick up some Hazelnut oil from the grocery store. So many good recipes to try, thank you for doing the hard work. Makes my holiday baking guilt free!
So glad you like them!
These remind me of Springerle cookies. But Springerle is lighter in color. Anyone know of a recipe for them? My new obbession! Want to make a keto version sooo bad!
I read the recipe and didn’t see my answer. Do you think these can be frozen after baking?
Yes, absolutely.