I have been on a mission to make a perfect low FODMAP chocolate chip cookie for more than two years. When I first started the low FODMAP diet I tried a couple cookie recipes and was very disappointed. Since then I have been trying to adapt my favourite recipe from the Joy of Cooking. I’m pretty sure I have now tested at least two dozen versions of this recipe. I have been so determined to get it perfect, plus I really love cookies. Now I can confidently say these are the best low FODMAP chocolate chip cookies!
Whether you like your cookies soft or crispy I think you will enjoy this recipe. These cookies are soft and gooey, but still lightly browned on the bottom and firm enough to dunk in milk or tea. It is also very easy to adjust the recipe to make them crispier or softer to match your preferences.
My biggest struggle with these cookies was preventing them from spreading out thin while cooking. Thin cookies lead to very crispy cookies. Gluten helps to hold the dough together, which is part of the reason gluten-free baking can be tricky.
I wanted to bake cookies that were soft and like what you could buy at a bakery. Luckily all of my trials finally paid off! I knew I had finally got the recipe right when I brought these to a potluck and heard some exclaim “These are gluten-free?!!”
I’m happy to be able to share my secrets for baking delicious cookies! Here are my top tips for making soft low FODMAP and gluten-free cookies:
1. Parchment Paper
Not only does parchment paper let you skip greasing the pan, it also helps keep the cookies from browning too much.
2. Lower Temperature
Cookies are often baked at 350˚F. I found that these cookies do best at 325˚F. Higher temperatures led to crispy cookies and lower temperatures led to soft but crumbly cookies.
3. Xantham Gum
Xantham gum acts as a gluten-replacer in the flour. The cookies will hold together better and spread out less. Cookies that spread out a lot will get crispier. Guar gum can also be subbed 1:1 for xantham gum.
4. Almond Flour
Using some almond flour in your rice flour blend helps to add moisture and fluffiness. Almond flour is low FODMAP at 1/4 cup.
4. Soften Butter
Don’t make the mistake of warming up your butter in the microwave until it melts. The more the butter melts the more the cookies will spread. Try to plan ahead and let your butter soften at room temperature for 30 minutes or more. If you forgot to soften your butter you can still use your microwave, just use a low heat and check the butter approximately every 15 seconds.
6. Chill Dough
Take the time to put the dough in the fridge or freezer for at least 10 minutes. Chilling prevents the dough from spreading out lots.
7. Don’t Over Cook
I find that it is better to slightly undercook these cookies than overcook. As soon as the middle of these cookies firm up take them out of the oven and let cool.
8. Cool on Pan
After you remove your cookies from the oven the cookies will be very fragile. Make sure to let them cool on the pan for about five minutes. If you try to pick them up right away they will just fall apart.
What if you are thinking “Hey, I like my cookies crispy!!” That’s okay, I understand! Sometimes I crave a crispier cookie for tea dunking. To make these cookies a bit crispier I would recommend increasing the oven temperature to 350˚F.
If you want your cookies extra soft and gooey try baking them at 300˚F. These cookies will fall apart easily so make sure to let them cool on the pan for longer than five minutes.
And yes, I am a dietitian, but that isn’t going to stop me from sharing my awesome, buttery, sweet cookies. The low FODMAP diet is tough to follow. It’s even tougher when you can’t eat your favourite foods. I know cravings can be intense and it can be hard to not give up and grab a high FODMAP treat from your favourite bakery. Hopefully this recipe will prove that you can still eat lots of your favourite foods and treat while on this medical elimination diet.
This recipe is low FODMAP at a serving size of 3 cookies or less per serving. Some people have additional digestive symptom triggers. If you find that sugar or fat triggers your symptoms you may want to stick to just one cookie.
Adapted from the Joy of Cooking.
The Best Low FODMAP Chocolate Chip Cookies
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup butter softened
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 1/2 cup packed brown sugar
- 1 large egg
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 1/2 cup white rice flour
- 3 tbsp sweet/glutinous rice flour
- 3 tbsp tapioca starch
- 1/2 tsp xantham gum
- 1/4 cup almond flour
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 3/4 cup chocolate chips
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 325˚F. Cover a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Place butter in a bowl at room temperature for 30 minutes. Alternative: heat butter in the microwave on low until just softened but not melted.
- Cream the butter and sugars together in a large bowl using a fork until well combined. Beat in the egg, salt and vanilla.
- In a second bowl whisk together the flours, xantham gum, almond flour and baking soda. Slowly mix the flour mixture into the butter mixture until just combined. Stir in the chocolate chips.
- Chill the dough in fridge or freezer for at least 10 minutes.
- Drop spoonfuls of the dough onto the baking sheet. Bake cookies for approx. 10 minutes until just lightly browned on the bottom and still soft (but not liquid-y) on top. Allow to cool for 5 minutes on the sheet and then transfer to a cooling rack.
Notes
- Low FODMAP at 3 cookies or less per meal/snack. Eat in moderation as a treat due to the high sugar and fat content.
- Have a nut allergy? The almond flour helps these cookies to stay soft. If necessary you can sub it out with sweet rice flour. However the cookies may be crispier. You could try also baking at a lower temperature (300).
- There are two ways to freeze these cookies. You can freeze them after they are baked and cooled. Or you can roll the raw dough into balls, place on a plate and put in the freezer for 20 minutes, and then transfer into a ziploc bag in the freezer. Then when you want fresh cookies bake the frozen dough for 2 minutes longer than the usual time.
- Don't have access to lots of gluten-free flours? I have also successfully made these cookies using Bob's Red Mills 1-to-1 Gluten Free flour (which is rice flour not bean flour based) and almond flour. Use 3/4 cup and 2 tablespoons of the gluten-free flour blend in place of the white rice flour, sweet/glutinous rice flour and tapioca starch. However I do prefer the recipe as listed above.
Want more low FODMAP snack ideas? My Quick and Easy Snacks E-Book has 12 delicious recipes that are simple to make. All of the recipes are low FODMAP and gluten-free. Included is a helpful guide to making healthy and filling low FODMAP snacks. As a bonus, there is also a printable list of 54 snack ideas – you can print it off and keep it in your kitchen! The list is divided into four sections: sweet snacks, sweet n’ salty snacks, savoury snacks and crunchy snacks. Click here for more details!
I have a few other cookie recipes on this blog! Check out these easy 3-Ingredient Peanut Butter Cookies and these Healthy Banana Oat Cookies.
Do you like your cookies soft or crispy?
I can’t have sugar. How much stevia would replace the sugars in this recipe. Can’t do dates either..
Hi Leann! I do not bake with stevia so I do not know. On the container it should say how much stevia is needed to sub for sugar. However I am not sure if stevia would work well as a substitute because sugar is important for texture as well as flavour. Perhaps these “healthy cookies” would be a better option for you to try: https://laurenrenlund.com/recipe/low-fodmap-banana-oat-cookies/
When you say ‘sweet rice flour’ it’s equivalent in NZ is glutinous rice flour, correct?
Yes it is. Thanks for reminding me I will add that into the recipe 🙂
When you say ‘sweet rice flour’ it’s equivalent in NZ is glutinous rice flour, correct?
These turned out probably better than any chocolate chip cookies I ever made pre-FODMAP diet… soo good!! I also really appreciate that you broke it down into the different flours, since I haven’t found any pre-made flour mix that is safe where I live! Thanks!
So happy you loved them!! 🙂 Thanks for leaving a review!
I am a little confused as I thought butter was high fodmap. Is it not?
Butter is low FODMAP! I actually have an entire blog post about why butter is low 🙂 https://laurenrenlund.com/2017/03/23/is-butter-low-fodmap-dietitian-qa/
Can these be made without rice flour?cant have rice or gluten 🙁
I’ve only made these cookies with rice flours. I’m sure there are other cookies online that are gluten and rice free. I also have “healthy banana oat chocolate chip cookies” on my blog which are just bananas oats and chocolate chips
Hi there- any chance I could substitute the egg?
Hi Carly, yes you can substitute with one “flax egg” – mix 1 tbsp ground flax with 3 tbsp water in a small bowl and let it sit for at least 5 minutes until thickened.
Can you tell me if these are still safe during the elimination phase?
Yes all of my recipes are safe for elimination
Thanks Lauren for the recipe… I tried it and turned out awesome. It tastes like regular chocolate chip cookies. However, is it possible to decrease the sugar? They tasted sweeter than I’d like them to be…
Happy to hear you enjoyed them! This is definitely a sweet treat recipe. You could try lowering the sugar, however the texture of the cookie would likely change.
If you are looking for lightly sweet cookies I have two healthy cookie recipes on my blog:
https://laurenrenlund.com/recipe/low-fodmap-banana-oat-cookies/
https://laurenrenlund.com/recipe/low-fodmap-healthy-carrot-cookies/
This sounds great. I thought chocolate with dairy is considered moderate fodmap. Have you tried any dairy free chocolate chips, and if so, any favorite brands? I’m only two weeks into low fodmap diet and still experimenting.
thanks
Milk chocolate is low FODMAP at 15g. I haven’t personally tried any dairy free brands but I have heard good things about Enjoy Life in the low FODMAP facebook groups. The facebook group Low FODMAP Recipes and Support is great for asking for product recommendations 🙂
Hi,
I replaced the rice flours with Bobs red mill but didnt put xantham gum in. The cookies spread out so much they barely hold together! I guess Im supposed to add the xantham in as well?
Thanks!
I also noticed that as they cooked a clear fatty liquid formed around the baking dough (I guess the butter) and the cookies then spread out into the fat. When they cooled I had to treat them like bacon and pat them down with paper tower because of how greasy they were! Is that normal?
Thanks
I’m an idiot, I used a cup of butter. I thought they tasted way too buttery..
Oh no! That’s frustrating. Baking is tough because a small change can make a huge difference! Once I totally forgot to add the butter to a recipe, whoops
Hi Lauren,
Do you have a tip for replacing Xanthum gum? I think it gives me issues so I try to avoid it.
Thanks!
Karen
Hi Karen,
Xantham gum isn’t essential but it can be very helpful with baking. If you don’t use any gums you could try adding a small amount of flax seeds or chia seeds mixed with a bit of water, they can help with binding. Also if you make sure to chill the dough for at least 2 hours in fridge (1 hour in freezer) so it’s completely cold that can help a lot with preventing spreading.
Thanks Lauren! That’s just what I did. They still spread but were delicious. : )
I read that Coco is high fodmaps. So how can one consume chocolate chips that have cocoa in them? Not to mention I heard almond flour is high fodmaps as well.
I recommend using the Monash University Low FODMAP Diet app, it has the most up to date information on foods and FODMAPs. I use to app to update my FODMAP food chart, available here http://www.laurenrenlund.com/introduction-low-fodmap-diet/
Milk chocolate is low FODMAP at 15g.
Almond flour is low FODMAP at 1/4 cup.
http://www.laurenrenlund.com/2017/10/17/are-almonds-low-fodmap-dietitian-qa/
I followed the instructions exactly and they spread and were super thin and not done. Next time I will bake them at 350°.
I’m sorry to hear the recipe didn’t turn out well, I hope next time they are much better.
I made these today–so good? Used Splenda blends and margarine instead of butter and sugar and they were still wonderful. These are a keeper!
That’s great! Glad the substitutions went well 🙂
Id love to try these but am trying to reduce my sugar intake. Would coconut sugar be a good substitute?
I have never tried with coconut sugar and would not know if it would change the texture. Coconut sugar actually has the same amount of sugar per teaspoon as white sugar (4 grams) so it would not be an effective swap if you are looking to decrease sugar intake. Here is a recipe that does not have added sugar: http://www.laurenrenlund.com/recipe/low-fodmap-banana-oat-cookies/
Just made these ! 7 minutes and they are perfect! Thank you so much for this delicious recipe!
Yay I’m so glad they turned out well! 🙂
Hi Lauren. Can i substitute the almond flour for any other flour? I cannot eat dry fruits, they all make my belly bloat
Many thanks
Hi Rute, you can try replacing the 1/4 cup almond flour with 2 more tbsp white rice flour, 1 tbsp tapioca starch and 1 tbsp sweet white rice flour!
I have made these nearly 8 times in the last two months. They are absolutely the best cookies I have ever tasted, hands down. I used almond meal in place of almond flour once (because it’s all I had on hand) and the cookies were pillowy and tall. What a delightful surprise! I still prefer them flat and chewy, but I thought I would share a textural variation. Amazing recipe! Thank you!
Thanks for your very kind words and sharing your variation! I will have to try it next time I make a batch 🙂
I’m so glad I found your website via pinterest. Made these cookies with Enjoy Life dairy free gluten free chocolate chips & coconut oil instead of butter & they were delicious!! So great to find a sweet treat to eat while going through the elimination phase. Thank you!
Thanks for letting me know that they turned out well! 🙂
Do you think I could sub sugar with maple syrup?
I would not recommend because it was add a significant amount of liquid to the batter
These cookies turned out great! Thank you so much!! I was wondering how you recommend storing them? Do you refrigerate or can you leave them in a cookie jar ? 😉
Thanks again !!
I usually leave a few on the counter in a container and freeze the rest! Freezing helps them stay super fresh 🙂
We love this cookies and make them regularly or keep a log of the dough in the freezer 🙂 I was thinking about making a oatmeal raisin version by subbing the chocolate for raisin but not sure how to add the oat/increase liquids, to keep balance. I wondered if you had any ideas?
Any idea of calories/cookie? They are yummy!