Keto Copycat Thin Mints

Vegan keto cookies made without almond flour or coconut flour

These Keto Thin Mints do not include almond flour or coconut flour and are, instead, made with a combination of chia seeds, ground sunflower seed meal, unsweetened cocoa powder, and monk fruit sweetener, making them both nut-free and refined sugar-free. They’re also vegetarian-friendly and vegan-friendly as they do not contain eggs or dairy.

Keto thin mints recipe FAQs

Before you begin making this recipe, read over the answers to these commonly asked questions and look through the step-by-step instruction photos.

What ingredients are required?

Cookies:

• Ground chia seeds
• Water
• Ground sunflower seed meal
• Unsweetened cocoa powder
• Salt
• Xanthan gum
• Gluten-free baking powder
• Coconut oil
• Classic monk fruit sweetener
• Peppermint extract
• Pure vanilla extract

Chocolate Coating:

• Sugar-free dark chocolate chips
• Coconut oil
• Peppermint extract

Are there any ingredient substitution options?

• Ground Chia Seeds: If you only have whole chia seeds on-hand, simply pulse them in a food processor until ground. Alternatively, ground flax seeds should work here, although I have not tested this, so I cannot say for sure; but, this is typically a substitute that works.
• Ground Sunflower Seed Meal: You can make your own homemade ground sunflower seed meal by pulsing sunflower seeds in a food processor until they turn into a flour. If you eat nuts, almond flour should work fine here at a 1:1 ratio substitution. Coconut flour will not work.
• Gluten-Free Baking Powder: You can replace this ingredient by making your own baking powder using baking soda and cream of tartar. For the 1/4 tsp of baking powder this recipe calls for, you will need to use 1/16 tsp baking soda and 1/8 tsp cream of tartar. Cream of tartar can be found at your grocery store with the spices. This substitution will make your recipe grain-free.
• Coconut Oil: Butter can be substituted in at a 1:1 ratio for coconut oil. This substitution will lead to the recipe no longer being dairy-free or vegan.
• Classic Monk Fruit Sweetener: You can use Lakanto Golden Monk Fruit Sweetener, erythritol, or Swerve at a 1:1 ratio. I would not suggest using liquid stevia or powdered stevia here.

Where can ground sunflower seed meal be purchased?

I buy my ground sunflower seed meal from Amazon (this is the exact brand of sunflower meal that I use). If you’d prefer to not purchase it pre-ground, you can make your own at home by grinding up raw sunflower seeds in a food processor until they turn into a flour. Be careful to not over-blend as this will yield sunflower seed butter (similar to peanut butter).

What is monk fruit sweetener? Where can it be purchased?

Monk fruit sweetener is like sugar, but does not contain any net carbs. It incorporates into recipes at a 1:1 substitution ratio for traditional sugar. You can read more about why I use monk fruit sweetener my recipes is this post.

I purchase monk fruit sweetener from Lakanto’s website and have it delivered. If you also want to go this route, you can use discount code REALBALANCED at checkout for 20% OFF your order.

If you’d rather find and purchase monk fruit sweetener in-store, many grocery stores, especially specialty stores and Costco, carry Lakanto products.

Can this recipe be made coconut-free?

Yes. Coconut oil is used in both the cookie and chocolate coating of this recipe and it can easily be replaced with butter. Sub in unsalted butter at a 1:1 ratio for coconut oil to make this recipe coconut-free.

How many net carbs per serving?

Each Thin Mint contains just 3.6 grams of net carbs. The recipe will yield 12 servings in total and 1 cookie is equivalent to 1 serving.

What diets is this recipe compliant with?

• Keto and Low-Carb: One cookie contains just 3.6 grams of net carbs.
• Gluten-Free: This recipe is gluten-free. It can be made grain-free by substituting in a combination of baking soda and cream of tartar for gluten-free baking powder, which is described above in the Ingredient Substitution section as well as within the Notes section of the recipe card.
• Nut-Free: These cookies are made without nut products like almond flour or almond butter.
• Coconut-Free: This recipe can be made coconut-free by substituting butter in for coconut oil. Note that this substitution will lead to the cookies no longer being dairy-free or vegan.
• Dairy-Free: This recipe does not require any dairy ingredients.
• Egg-Free: These cookies are made without eggs.
• Vegan and Vegetarian: These low carb cookies are vegetarian- and vegan-friendly.
• Refined Sugar-Free: These cookies are made with monk fruit sweetener and do not contain any refined sugar.

How to store these cookies?

Refrigerator Storage: Store cookies in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 1 week.

Freezer Storage: Store cookies in an airtight container in the freezer for up to 2 months.

How to make these keto thin mints

Cookies: To a small bowl, add chia seeds and water. Set aside for 10 minutes to allow seeds to swell.

In a separate large mixing bowl, whisk together dry ingredients.

Add wet ingredients, including soaked chia seeds. Using a spoon, mix all ingredients together until well-combined and a dough is formed.

In mixing bowl, using your hand, roll dough into a ball and transfer mixing bowl of dough to refrigerator until firmed up, about 15-20 minutes.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees and line baking sheet with parchment paper.
Lay out 2 pieces of equal-sized parchment paper, one on top of the other. Remove mixing bowl of dough from refrigerator and place dough between pieces of parchment paper.

Using a rolling pin, roll dough into thin even-layer.

If you have any trouble with rolling the dough, it’s likely because it chilled a little too long in the refrigerator; simply let it sit at room temperature for a few minutes to warm slightly before rolling.

Using a circle cookie cutter, cut dough into cookies.

Transferring each cut cookie to a prepared baking sheet. After using up all of dough, gather dough scraps, re-roll, and cut with cookie cutter again. Do this as many times as necessary until you’ve cut 12 cookies.

Transfer baking sheet to oven to bake for 10 minutes. After baking, remove baking sheet from oven and allow to cool at room temperature for a few minutes before transferring individual cookies to a wire rack to fully cool. Keep parchment paper-lined baking sheet out as you will need this again.

Chocolate Coating: Following the double boiler method, to a heat-proof bowl, add chocolate chips and coconut oil. To a large pot, add just enough water to fill the bottom of the pan, but not too much that the water will touch the bottom of the bowl you plan to melt the chocolate in.

Over medium heat with the bowl of chocolate atop the water, simmer the water, which will lead to the chocolate melting. Using a spoon or rubber spatula, stir occasionally until chocolate chips have fully melted.

Remove pot from heat and remove bowl of melted chocolate from atop pot. Stir in peppermint extract.

Final Steps: Allow melted chocolate in bowl to cool slightly before dipping baked cookies in one-by-one to fully coat cookies in melted chocolate.

Transfer cookies to prepared baking sheet before transferring baking sheet to the refrigerator until fully set, about 30 minutes.

Serve and enjoy!

Looking for more nut-free keto cookies?

If you enjoy these keto thin mints, you will love these other low-carb cookie options:

• Low-Carb Chocolate Cookies
• Nut-Free Chocolate Chip Cookies
• Keto Snowball Cookies