Deliciously tender almond flour cookie cups filled with low carb lemon pastry cream. A divine keto Easter treat! This post is sponsored by Bob’s Red Mill.
My kids love Easter almost as much as they love Christmas and for the life of me I can’t figure out why. We don’t really go to any services and I keep a pretty tight lid on the Easter candy. There is some but not a lot and we fill the plastic eggs with other fun things instead. And while I might let them have a few chocolate eggs, I don’t let Peeps anywhere near my house (ugh!). I’m honestly not wild about the day myself. Perhaps it’s the required filling and hiding of aforementioned plastic eggs. And you never know what the weather will be like at that time of year. Could be beautiful, in which I will need to hide them outside and be on tenterhooks, hoping my kids don’t trample the flower beds. But if it has to be inside, I then watch in horror as they tear the house apart. They love the thrill of the chase, I guess. Me, I’m over it.
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What I do love is coming up with recipes for Easter dinner or Easter Brunch. And always always Easter dessert. Because that’s what every celebration revolves around for me. Dessert. Not even eating it so much, which of course I enjoy, but the actual making and creation of it. The prepping, the baking, the presentation. The whole she-bang. And then, you know, the eating part doesn’t suck.
I was casting around for what I wanted to make this year and I kept seeing these pretty little cookie cups on Instagram, filled with cheesecake or whipped cream or pastry cream. Who doesn’t love sugar cookies, after all? I love them, my kids love them, and we love them all the more when they aren’t actually made with sugar. Can we even call them sugar cookies? Is that allowed? Well, they are sugar c00kie-esque so I am going with it. And since lemon is so timely for Spring and Easter recipes, I wanted lemon sugar cookie cups filled with a rich lemon pastry cream.
My low carb, sugar-free sugar cookies wouldn’t be what they are without Bob’s Red Mill low carb flours. It still sometimes astonishes me that almond flour and coconut flour can be made to look and taste like regular flour. Sure, it takes some ingenuity and I flatter myself that I have some of that. But really, it is remarkable. Kind of makes you think that wheat became the go-to flour for baking purely by historical accident. If we’d realized earlier that grinding up nuts and coconut could lead to just as tasty treats, maybe we’d all be a lot healthier. And gluten-free to boot!
Cook’s Notes: I tried the cookie cups both with and without liners in the muffin tins. I like the look of the smooth sides better, but the ones in the parchment liners released much more easily.
- 2 cups almond flour
- 2 tbsp coconut flour
- 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 6 tbsp butter softened
- 1/2 cup Swerve Sweetener
- 1 large egg
- 2 tsp grated lemon zest
- 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 cup whipping cream
- 3 egg yolks
- 6 tbsp confectioner’s Swerve Sweetener
- pinch salt
- 2 tbsp butter cut into two pieces
- 1 tbsp lemon juice
- 2 tsp lemon zest
- 1/2 tsp lemon extract
- 1/4 tsp xanthan gum
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Preheat the oven to 325F and grease a 12 cavity muffin pan very well (or line with parchment or silicone liners).
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In a large bowl, whisk together the almond flour, coconut flour, baking powder, and salt.
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In another large bowl, beat the butter with the sweetener until well combined. Beat in the egg, lemon zest, and vanilla extract, then beat in the almond flour mixture until the dough comes together.
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Roll the dough into 12 even balls and place in the prepared muffin pan. Press evenly into the bottom and up the sides of the muffin cups.
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Bake 20 to 25 minutes, or until the cups are puffed and the edges are just golden brown (they won't be completely firm to the touch yet but they shouldn't be mushy either!).
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Remove from the oven and re-shape the cookie cavities with the end of a wooden spoon. Let cool in the pan for 15 minutes, then gently loose with a knife and transfer to a baking rack (if you baked them in parchment or silicone liners, they will be easy to remove).
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Bring whipping cream to a simmer in a medium saucepan over medium heat. In a medium bowl, whisk egg yolks with sweetener and salt.
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Slowly whisk about half of the hot cream into the yolks to temper, then return the yolk/cream mixture back to the saucepan and cook until thickened, 4 to 5 minutes more, whisking constantly. Watch it carefully and do not let it curdle.
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Remove from heat and whisk in butter, lemon juice, lemon zest, and lemon extract. Sprinkle the surface with xanthan gum and whisk vigorously to combine. Spoon into the cups and refrigerate until set, about 2 hours.
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Garnish with fresh berries and lemon slices.
Serves 12. Each serving has 3.07g NET CARBS.
Food energy: 266kcal
Total fat: 24.68g
Calories from fat: 222
Cholesterol: 93mg
Carbohydrate: 5.56g
Total dietary fiber: 2.49g
Protein: 5.64g
Many thanks to Bob’s Red Mill for partnering with me to bring you this recipe.
More great low carb keto Easter Recipes:
Rosemary Garlic Grilled Leg of Lamb
Jenn says
Thank you for this! I’ve been craving a taste of spring after a looong (and continuing winter here in Atlantic Canada). Too bad it’s storming (again), I just need the lemons to make this today. Putting this on my list for the weekend. As always, great writing and perfect photos! You’re my go-to for lc recipes 🙂
Carolyn says
It’s been a long winter here too…very wet, with our fair share of snow. It feels like we haven’t seen the sun in months! If we do, it’s only for an afternoon and then we are back to dreary cold drizzle.
Candace @ Cabot says
I love my desserts luscious and lemony. These fit the bill perfectly! And they’re so dainty. No guilt here.
Tory says
Thank you for these, Carolyn. They make me think of my mom, whose birthday was around Eastertime. And wow, did she love lemon! You know I’ll be making them in her honor! 🙂
Carrie says
You are on a ROLL lately! These look amazing and I will be trying them right away. And thanks for being such a great BRM partner!
Cathy says
Could you make them in ramikinss or into a pie shell and/or make a pie type dessert instead of individual? Just a thought!
Carolyn says
You bet! It will probably take the pastry cream longer to firm up, though.
stacy varon says
Just when I thought I couldn’t love you more!
If I make these in my mini muffin pan, would it make 24, or more than that? I have only used the mini once and don’t know if they’re 1/2 size or 1/3 size or something else.
Carolyn says
I find that my mini pan is smaller than half of my regular so 12 doesn’t quite become 24. More like 28.
That said you could just bake up the extra dough and smear with the extra pastry cream! 😉
Jen R says
Now I want to know what you put in your Easter eggs. I don’t mind buying the candy for my kids but they never eat it all and I’m sick of wasting so much. Then I think we have too many little toys laying around and I have no idea what to put in their baskets 🙂
Carolyn says
Tattoos, stickers, bouncy balls, that sort of thing. 🙂
J J McClanahan says
We did a mix of candy, small fruits like one whole strawberry or packets of fruit roll ups or whatever, loose change and then quite a few ‘joke’ eggs with things like dried beans/paper clips/an obviously old happy meal toy from the bottom of the toy box. Fun for elementary school age, obviously not for toddlers.
Jen R says
Hah! I probably have to wait a couple years for the joke eggs. I think my 5 year old would not handle that well 🙂 But I love your other ideas. Thanks!
linda says
Might you experiment with some different flours? What about Cassava or Tiger Nut? Love what you do!
Betty says
Beautiful! I’ve traditionally made these with white flour when I owned a tearoom, but went grain-free, gluten-free and sugar-free 2 years ago. Boy was I sad thinking I had to give up all my favorites. You can’t imagine how excited I am to see this recipe. You are a baker after my heart! Can’t wait to make these!
Carolyn says
Hope you love them!
Mary says
yum. don’t know much about what xanthan gum is or what it does. Is there a substitute or is it completely necessary?
thanks!
Carolyn says
It’s a thickener that doesn’t add carbs. In this recipe, you might be okay without it.
Jenny says
Do you have a brand of xanthan gum that you like to use? I want to buy some and I know it will last a while, but I want to get one that is your tried and true, because, your recipes always work when I follow them to the letter. Thank you! 🙂
Jenny says
I’m sorry, I just saw that link to Bob’s Red Mill. Thank you, I’ll go with that one!
Carolyn says
I have a bag of Bob’s (as you already saw), I put it in a glass jar in the freezer and literally it will last 2 years!
Koshie Graham Wyatt says
Looks like I’m running to the grocer tomorrow!
Carolyn, here’s a small (typing?) tip for you: Instead of having to type out “degree” for a temperature, try pressing and holding the “option” key on your keyboard while pressing the “zero” button. First depress the option key, hold it, and press the “0” key. You should get the degree symbol. Doing this gives me 350º typed out easily! I hope it works for you.
Thanks for all you do for us!
Koshie says
Looks like I’m running to the grocer tomorrow!
Carolyn, here’s a small (typing?) tip for you: Instead of having to type out “degree” for a temperature, try pressing and holding the “option” key on your keyboard while pressing the “zero” button. First depress the option key, hold it, and press the “0” key. You should get the degree symbol. Doing this gives me 350º typed out easily! I hope it works for you.
Thanks for all you do for us!
Janet says
Oh yum! I love lemon treats, and these look delicious! If I make these in a silicon pan do I still need parchment liners?
We used to hide those eggs too, way back when, but the dog would always bring them back to you.
One year we had a bad storm so we made Easter bonnets out of paper plates, ribbons and tissue paper flowers.Good memories!
Thanks
Carolyn says
If you’re using silicone, I see no need for the parchment liners.
janet says
thanks
Karen says
Freakin’ looks SOO yum. So pretty, too. Adding to my list for Easter. BUT – need to do a dry run this weekend, for quality control purposes, of course. =))
Jackie Maike says
Ok, weird question! This recipe looks amazing! But I have a question…..Does Coconut Flour taste like conconut? I can not stand the taste of coconut. People always tell me………ohhhh, you can not taste it and will try to trick me and I take a bite and run and throw it up! So can one omit the coconut flour and replace it with something else?? Thanks!!
Carolyn says
If you’re that worried, use another 1/4 cup almond flour. But in this recipe, it is so little you really shouldn’t be able to taste it.
Kathy says
I picked up a bag of THM oat fiber that I saw in a store but don’t know how to use it. Can you substitute it for coconut flour in recipes?
Crystal says
Hi ! I always LOVE cooking with your recipes.
Now my daughter has to be dairy free. Do you think if I tried it with the “cream” from the top of a can of full fat coconut milk it would form up and taste ok?
Thanks for all you do!
Carolyn says
Yes I think that should work. I’ve found that as long as I don’t get too much of the “water” in there, coconut cream makes a good replacement.
Jackie says
Thank you so much. A question if I can’t use swerve could I use Virtue sweetener instead and how much? Virtue is 1/4 cup equals 1 cup of sweetener. Thanks
Carolyn says
Swerve = cup for cup with sugar so you would use 1/4 the amount. I have never heard of Virtue so I can’t say how it will do in this recipe.
Jenny says
I made these cups yesterday and didn’t have enough swerve to make the pastry cream. :(. However, I did have enough to make the cups. Now what should I put in them? Ahhh… I had the ingredients for a chocolate ganache and so I left out the lemon zest and extract, subbed in almond extract. The cups were amazing and the chocolate ganache in them took them over the top. I will make the lemon ones soon! Thank you!!!
Carolyn says
YUM! Funny part is, I was thinking of making something similar with chocolate ganache…
Carrie says
I made these and took them into work. They were a huge hit!! The sugar cookie portion has a great texture and the lemon curd is the perfect offset for it. Absolutely delicious!!
Carolyn says
So delighted to hear it!
stacy says
Made it, loved it. Had a little accident when the rack slipped out of my hands and about 2/3 of them ended up in a sloppy heap on the floor. So heartbreaking.
I don’t know why it is that LC baking seems to taste better the next day when traditional sugar and flour goodies are best straight from the oven, but these were excellent when I had one with my coffee this morning. I did use the mini muffin pan and put some in the freezer for portion control-I hope they freeze well.. I put some blueberries in a few of them before topping them with pastry cream, and they were good both ways. Next time I think I’d like to trade orange for lemon, put a dab of chia seed raspberry jam in the bottom and top with chocolate ganache.
Thank you for another out of this world recipe. Your recipes make this way of eating one I can really see sticking to for life.
Carolyn says
Oh no, so sorry the ones fell to the floor!
Audrey T. says
I made the pastry cream today. It’s chilling right now. I actually made half of the batch lemon and half of it vanilla. The small bits I sampled were delicious. I’m not sure exactly where the cream will end up yet. Maybe just in my tummy. Hehe.
Casty says
Hi Carolyn. I made these last weekend and they were DELICIOUS!!! They didn’t come out as pretty as yours….how did you make those cups so perfect? Can you do a video perhaps???? lolol thanks
Carolyn says
I will consider it! Not sure how they are perfect, I just pressed them up the sides.
Deb says
Made these for Easter treat. Wonderful cookie crust and just the right level of lemon tartness! I doubled the recipe and ended up with a lot of leftover filling (good problem to have!) Appreciate a baked treat recipe that doesn’t sacrifice taste. Truly yummy! (15-17 minutes baking time to acheive golden doneness for the cookie cups).
Michelle says
I made these last night for a dinner party. They were so good! I used strawberry on top instead of raspberry because that’s what I had. They are so pretty! I also made them in mini muffin tins and used a tablespoon sized measuring spoon to spread out the dough and it was the perfect size!
Kay says
I made this today, and they were ok. The crust was nice: a tiny bit chewy and with hints of lemon. I added extra lemon zest to the filling, as well as a little extra lemon juice, as I enjoy a TART lemon dessert. Still, very little lemon flavor, so I added MORE lemon zest. This never got the lemon flavor I was hoping for. I love this idea, though, so may try and make it again, but will decrease the cream and add extra lemon juice in an attempt to get a more prominent lemon flavor.