These keto pizzelle are the sugar free version of the popular crisp Italian waffle cookies. They are fun and delicious, and great for making other treats like keto stroopwafels!
I first created this keto pizzelle recipe back in 2015. But some readers were having a bit of trouble with the recipe so I decided to re-visit it recently. And now they are better, and more crispy, than ever.
But I need to be honest with you – I don’t actually like pizzelle all that much. I just find them rather bland. I am ducking for cover as I say this because I can see people all over the country throwing sharp objects at my head. I hear so many say all the time that this waffle cookie is their favourite Christmas cookie.
I just can’t quite see the appeal. Even when I make low carb, grain-free pizzelle such as these. They are good but they aren’t really cookies, in my humble opinion. They’re just really flat sweet waffles with a little added flavoring.
Which is I had some fun turning them into keto stroopwafels with my sugar-free caramel sauce. Now that is tasty stuff! And now you’re getting two delicious recipes in one… how awesome is that?
Updated keto pizzelle recipe
So what did I do differently this time around?
Well I ditched the cream cheese, for one thing. I had based my original recipe on my keto almond flour crepes, which uses cream cheese as a binder. But that didn’t go over that well with the pizzelle purists, and some people had trouble with the batter sticking and not always crisping up.
I also did a fair bit of research this time. I looked at traditional pizzelle recipes like this one, and took what I know about baking with almond flour to modify the recipe for keto and sugar-free.
So now they have a lot more butter and a bit of baking powder, both of which are in traditional recipes. You can also flavor them in a number of different ways. Anise is a classic, as is almond extract. Plain vanilla appeals more to my kids and works well for turning them into stroopwafels.
But because almond flour simply doesn’t behave the same way as regular flour, I had to take one extra step to get the best keto pizzelle. They don’t quite crisp up right off the iron, so I popped them in a warm low-temp oven for 10 to 20 minutes. Once they cooled, they were perfectly crisp!
What the heck are stroopwafels?
Just an aside, in case you’ve never heard of them: stroopwafels are Dutch waffle cookies with a caramel filling. You’ve probably seen them in specialty grocery stores or gotten them on planes, and they are delicious.
The waffle cookie base is actually quite different than pizzelle, as they are often made with yeast, and they are smaller in size. But the overall effect is the same so I took a few of my leftover keto pizzelle and used them to sandwich my caramel sauce. Divine!
Do you need special equipment for these cookies?
Yes, I’m afraid you do. And while I am the queen of baking equipment, I try not to purchase items that have only a single use. But I’ve had so many requests for keto pizzelle over the years that I broke down and purchased a pizzelle maker.
But after working on this recipe again and making a few batches, I realized that this kitchen gadget may be more useful than I first thought. While I may not like plain pizzelle that much, I can see how they might be used in a number of other recipes, such as the stroopwafels, and potentially even cannoli.
I also used my blender to whip up the batter. Almond flour is never going to be as fine as regular flour, so a blender or a food processor can get the batter more smooth and homogeneous. You can stir it all together in a bowl but I really think a blender or a food processor improves the cookies.
Tips for making Keto Pizzelle
If you love and miss pizzelle, you are going to love this recipe! Here are my best tips for getting it right:
- Whip up your batter and let it sit to thicken up a bit while you heat up the pizzelle press. This takes 5 to 10 minutes so it’s the perfect amount of time for letting the batter sit.
- It takes a bit of practice to get the amount and placement of the batter right. I found that a slightly heaping tablespoon was about right and it’s best to place it just behind the center of the pizzelle shape. Then slowly close the lid, allowing the batter to press forward to fill the shape.
- Don’t cook them too long! They can go from a beautiful light golden brown to overcooked in a matter of seconds. I found that I prefer them to come off early, when they are still quite light in color, as they have better flavor.
- They will be REALLY soft and flexible when they come off the iron. This is normal and they firm up as they cool. But to get them really crisp, you need to let them hang out and dry out in a warm oven.
- Your pizzelle usually come off the iron with extra bits attached that overflowed each pizzelle shape. Simply take a sharp knife to cut around them and remove those extra pieces. Keep the extra pieces, they are delicious as a snack!
- This recipe works with the ingredients I have listed. You can sub out the Swerve but it MUST be another erythritol based sweetener if you want crisp cookies. Other sweeteners like allulose and BochaSweet don’t crisp as well.
How to store your keto pizzelle
If you think they are going to be eaten within 5 days, just leave them on the counter, uncovered. They stay more crisp that way. If you live in a humid environment and they get a bit soft, you can warm them in the oven again to crisp up.
I honestly have not tried freezing pizzelle. They are a delicate, crisp cookie and I think they are best made fresh.
If you do want make the keto stroopwafels, do know that the cookies get less crisp as they sit with the caramel sauce on them. So I recommend prepping the pizzelle and the caramel sauce, and then making up the sandwich cookies as needed.
Disclosure: Many thanks to our friends at Bob’s Red Mill for sponsoring this post.
More delicious keto holiday cookies
- Keto Cut Out Sugar Cookies
- Keto Gingerbread Men
- Keto Snowballs
- Keto Butter Pecan Cookies
- Soft Keto Peppermint Cookies
- Keto Chocolate Peppermint Snowballs
Keto Pizzelle
Ingredients
- 4 large eggs
- 2/3 cup Swerve Sweetener
- 1 to 2 tsp extract of choice, (anise, almond, or vanilla)
- 1/2 cup butter, melted
- 2 cups almond flour
- 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 1/4 tsp salt
Keto Stroopwafels
- 1 recipe keto pizzelle
- 1 recie Sugar-Free Caramel Sauce
Instructions
- In a high powered blender or food processor, combine the eggs, sweetener, and extract of choice. Blend a few seconds to combine. Through the whole in the lid, slowly drizzle in the butter with the blender on low speed.
- Once all of the butter is comined, add the almond flour, baking powder, and salt and blend 30 seconds to combine. Let rest to thicken while heating the pizzelle maker.
- Preheat the oven to 200F and line several cookie sheets with wire cooling racks.
- Heat pizzelle press according to manufacturer's directions. Grease very lightly (if you have a non-stick press, you may only need to grease once at the beginning).
- Use one slightly heaping tablespoon for each pizzelle, and place just behind the center of the the flower or waffle pattern (this helps when you close the press because the batter gets pushed forward). It may take you a few tries to get the amount of batter and the placement just right.
- Close the lid slowly to allow the batter to spread, then lock the lid in place. Cook until just barely golden brown, about 30 to 60 seconds. You can peek at them and see if they are cooked yet and then reclose the lid.
- Use a rubber spatula to remove the pizzelle from press and place in a single layer on the cooling racks. At this point they will be very soft. You cut off any of the edges that went outside of the pizzelle pattern, before they get crisp.
- Place the cookie sheets in the oven and let the pizzelle stay inside for 15 to 20 minutes to crisp up.
- Repeat with the remaining batter.
Keto Stroopwafel
- Spread 1 keto pizzelle with about 1 1/2 tbsp of keto caramel sauce. Top with another pizzelle. Repeat with remaining cookies and caramel sauce.
- These are best served when freshly made, as the caramel sauce can cause the cookies to soften.
Nutrition
Disclosure: Many thanks to our friends at Bob’s Red Mill for sponsoring this post.
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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You just made this girls day! I am always so sad there is no sugar/wheat free versions. I grew up eating these, something my grandma made every year. Now I have to go buy an iron to make them!
I can’t tell you how excited my daughter is going to be when she sees this recipe. This is the ONE memory she has of MY grandmother … making pizzelles for her on the stove top with the manual pizzelle iron … 2 round metal plates on long handles connected with a hinge.
Love your recipes and have several of your books! The ones I don’t have are on my Christmas list!
My questions is, I wondered if this recipe would work in a Dash Mini Waffle Iron? I don’t have a Pizzelle iron.
Well it’s based on my keto pancakes/waffles so it should but I don’t know how crisp they will be.
You could also make krumkake, which are Scandanavian. They have a special krumkake iron, but the only difference between it and the pizelle iron is the design it makes on the cookie. You roll them around a cone-shaped wooden roller to make a cone and then fill them. You could use them as ice cream cones, too. And they’d certainly work for cannoli. You’d wrap the cookie around a cannoli tube and let it cool before you fill it. And, there’s no reason you couldn’t make a savory batter and use the cone maker or cannoli tube to fill with spiced up cream cheese or other filling to make appetizers or canapes. With some imagination, I suspect this is a way more useful tool than it appears to be. 🙂
Do you think that this recipe can be used in a Krumkake iron? I have been trying (without success) to make a low carb Krumkake for years. Thank you!
Sounds like they are similar so I would think so.
No way! Pizzelle?? You are truly amazing, and I can’t wait to try this recipe! Being Sicilian, pizzelle (we used to say “pizzelles”- how stupid were we?) were a huge Christmastime staple! Are you sure you’re not a little bit Italian?
Since you’re not only the baker, but the chemist, [and I’m just throwing this out there with only having enough keto-knowledge to be dangerous] would you ever add any vital wheat gluten or any of the other keto “magic powders” to get the almond flour to behave more like regular flour? Listen, I’m totally not here to mess with perfection, as these pizzelle, in your pics look really perfect! Thank you so much! My sister & husband’s collective minds will be blown when I wow them with pizzelle!
I have used this to make low-carb cheese chips. I use thinly sliced provolone sprinkled with with everything but the bagel (feel free to try your favorite cheese with your favorite seasonings) cook them until slightly brown. Serve them with a low-carb chip dip!
I am also wondering if I could use a cornmeal extract to create a tortilla for tostadas. Or maybe garlic for a thin crust pizza. Problem is I hate to cook or create my own recipes! So if you ever find yourself with nothing better to do… hint, hint, hint! I so prefer your recipes any day!
You can use marscapone instead of cream cheese. It’s not as sweet, but it’s soft and mixes well with low carb recipes.
Can these be made without a pizeele maker? I used to buy them at Ross with only three carbs in the regular ones and now I can’t get them anymore. They were such a nice treat. Lo carb is even better.
I think my friend has a pizelle maker. I guess I could ask her if we could have a cooking day at here house.
I don’t see a good way of making pizzele without a maker. Sorry
This recipe did not work out for me. I followed it exactly and it stuck and fell apart in my pizelle maker. I tried oiling it and the same thing happened . In an effort to salvage the batter I tried to make pancakes. It worked out ok but with a lot of effort. Not sure what went wrong…
Honestly very hard to say without being in your kitchen with you…
Wondering if those that are having pizzelle sticking difficulties are using uncoated plates. I have used uncoated pizzelle maker and those without sticking issues use a nonstick pizzele lmaker. I use one without nonstick for classic pizzelles without difficulty but there’s so much butter in classic pizzelles….not so with this recipe..Carol
Carolyn I’m a huge fan of yours!!! I love your recipes. Pizzelles are a regular cookie in our pantry, traditionally we make them all the time during the holidays .. they are a great snack with that espresso in the afternoon. But, I am not a huge fan of cream cheese. What is the reason for the CC? Can these be made without it? Do you have recipe that does not take any cream cheese? These are not usually made with CC so I’m wondering can it be substituted with something else?
There is no sub here. When making my crepes, I noticed how crispy they got around the edges and cream cheese really helps hold them together.So I tried it with the pizzelles and it worked as well.
Can I substitute for the coconut flour? eg oat flour
You can certainly try!
WOO HOO I’m buying a pizzelle maker! I’m making cannoli’s with Keto ricotta cream and sugar free chocolate chips! Or Anise flavored cookies? Or hazelnut cream filled cookie tubes? Or Pizzelle drizzle with SF ganache or melted chocolate sprinkled with pistachios? How about cones for Keto ice cream! Oh, yeah!
Please tell me what the reason is for using almond milk vs. milk?
Cow’s milk is much higher carb than almond milk. 12g per cup rather than 2g per cup.
Hello All, I can’t have alcohol sugar so I did use coconut sugar in my batch with a little stevia. Turned out great. I love them.
I have a very old pizzelle iron,I had issues with them sticking but found butter worked the best instead of putting oil on the iron.
Thank you for the recipe!! so excited I can eat pizzelles again!
So glad it worked!
Can you make chocolate Keto pizzelles.