Making almond joy cookies means you can enjoy the sweet dreamy deliciousness of your favorite Hershey’s candy without running to the store. These little babies are like the perfect blend of almond cookies and chocolate chip cookies rolled into one.
Making this recipe yields some of my favorite fruit cookies of all time which is quite possibly the-perfect-cookie. Actually, they’re not so many cookies as they are tasty little rays of sunshine.
These sweet decadent sensations make the day just a little brighter in under 30 minutes because sometimes you just feel like a nut!
Try almond butter cookies and almond joy bars next!
What I Love About Almond Joy Cookies Recipe
- Chewy coconut cookie
- Ready in under 30 minutes
- Really easy to make
- Simple wholesome ingredients
- Drizzled in sweet chocolate
Almond Joy Ingredients + Recipe Notes
- Shaping: You’ll have to flatten each cookie with wet fingertips to prevent sticking or you can use a simple hack.
- Put all the little cookie balls on the pan spaced 2 inches apart and cover with wax paper. Then gently press the bottom of another cookie pan on top of the wax paper to evenly flatten all your cookies simultaneously. This will also keep them uniform, so they bake evenly.
- Sweetened Flake Coconut –Flaked coconut is larger and wider than shredded coconut and it’ll give your almond joy cookies more substance. If you can only find shredded coconut, that will work too but it may change the texture of your cookies a little.
- All-Purpose Flour – All-purpose flour is just regular ‘ole plain flour. It only makes a difference if it’s bread flour because bread flour has leavening agents in it. The little bit of flour in this almond joy chocolate cookies recipe keeps any liquid from settling at the bottom of the cookies.
- Sweetened Condensed Milk – This helps develop that sticky chewy coconut texture we’re duplicating from the candy bar we all remember and it’s crucial to the recipe.
- Salt – Don’t skip the little pinch of salt. It may seem counterintuitive, but this tiny amount actually reduces bitterness and intensifies the sweet factor.
- Chocolate Chips – Oh, here’s the yummy! You’ll need to divide the chocolate chips because half will go in the almond joy cookies recipe and the other half will be melted and drizzled on top to ‘glue’ the almond in place. Choosing semi-sweet chocolate chips or milk chocolate chips is up to you.
- Almonds – You’ll need close to 30 whole almonds and nearly a cup of chopped almonds. The chopped almonds add a little extra crunch to this almond joy chocolate chip cookies recipe and if you have the time you can toast them for the added crunch factor.
- Vanilla Extract
- Coconut Extract
How To Make Almond Joy Cookies
- Mix together coconut, flour, salt, almonds, and 1 cup of chocolate chips.
- In a small bowl mix together vanilla extract, coconut extract, and sweetened condensed milk
- Stir in to the coconut mixture.
- Scoop and shape the dough.
- Drop onto the prepared baking sheet.
- Flatten cookie dough with your fingers and bake.
- Drizzle the melted chocolate chips and decorate it with whole almonds on top.
***See the full instructions below.
Storing + Freezing + Make-Ahead
- Storing your almond joy cookies is easy if you hide them! Seriously though, they’ll stay fresh in an airtight food-grade container with a secure lid. I like to slide them into the fridge to speed up the setting process before prepping them for storage since these babies really need to cool on the cookie sheet.
- How Long Can You Keep This? These will stay fresh up to 4 days when stored properly but they’ll get gobbled up long before that.
- Can You Freeze This? Oh yeah, you can freeze ‘em. It may be the only way to save some for later! This almond joy cookies recipe does tend to stay a little sticky so it’s best to freeze them in a single layer.
- If you’ve got to double up on the layers, put some wax paper in between to keep them from sticking. You’ll also want to ensure that your cookies cool completely before freezing them.
- Make-Ahead Tips: I love that these can be ready in less than half an hour. I always make up a big batch of these guys for holiday parties and when family comes to town. Everyone seems to love them, and they don’t take very long at all.
- Food Safety: If you’d like more info on food safety check out this link.
More Nutty Cookies
- Butter Pecan Cookies
- Pistachio Cookies
- Pecan Shortbread Cookies
- Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies
- Toll House Cookies
Almond Joy Cookies
These decadent almond joy cookies are the sticky sweet reincarnate of the coconut candy Hershey’s pumps out by the truckload, only better!
Servings: 24 -30 Cookies
Ingredients
- 1 (14-ounce) bag sweetened flake coconut
- 2/3 cup all-purpose flour
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 3/4 cup almonds chopped
- 2 cups chocolate chips divided
- 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1/2 teaspoon coconut extract
- 1 (14-ounce) can sweetened condensed milk
- 24-30 whole almonds
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F (177°C) and line cookie sheets with Silpat mats or parchment paper.
- In a large mixing bowl, mix together coconut (1 bag), flour (2/3 cup), salt (1/4 teaspoon), almonds (3/4 cup), and 1 cup of chocolate chips.
- In a small bowl mix together vanilla extract (1 1/2 teaspoons), coconut extract (1/2 teaspoon), and sweetened condensed milk (1 can). Stir in to the coconut mixture.
- Scoop out a golf ball size ball of dough and drop it onto the prepared cookie sheet, 2 inches apart. Flatten cookie dough with your fingers (dip them in water or spray them with nonstick cooking spray to prevent sticking).
- Bake for 10-12 minutes or until the edges of the cookies are golden brown.
- Place the remaining 1 cup of chocolate chips in a small microwave-safe bowl. Microwave on 50% for 30 seconds, and stir until completely melted. Spoon melted chocolate into a small ziplock. Cut off one corner and drizzle each cookie with chocolate. Top each cookie with one whole almond in the melted chocolate.
- Allow the cookies to cool completely and set. Store in an airtight container.
Fans Also Made:
Notes
- Shaping: You’ll have to flatten each cookie with wet fingertips to prevent sticking or you can use a simple hack.
- Put all the little cookie balls on the pan spaced 2 inches apart and cover with wax paper. Then gently press the bottom of another cookie pan on top of the wax paper to evenly flatten all your cookies simultaneously. This will also keep them uniform, so they bake evenly.
- Sweetened Flake Coconut –Flaked coconut is larger and wider than shredded coconut and it’ll give your almond joy cookies more substance. If you can only find shredded coconut, that will work too but it may change the texture of your cookies a little.
- Sweetened Condensed Milk – This helps develop that sticky chewy coconut texture we’re duplicating from the candy bar we all remember and it’s crucial to the recipe.
- Salt – Don’t skip the little pinch of salt. It may seem counterintuitive, but this tiny amount actually reduces bitterness and intensifies the sweet factor.
- Chocolate Chips – Oh, here’s the yummy! You’ll need to divide the chocolate chips because half will go in the almond joy cookies recipe and the other half will be melted and drizzled on top to ‘glue’ the almond in place. Choosing semi-sweet chocolate chips or milk chocolate chips is up to you.
- Almonds – You’ll need close to 30 whole almonds and nearly a cup of chopped almonds. The chopped almonds add a little extra crunch to this almond joy cookies recipe and if you have the time you can toast them for the added crunch factor.
Nutrition
Serving: 1/24 of the recipe | Calories: 253kcal | Carbohydrates: 32g | Protein: 3g | Fat: 12g | Saturated Fat: 7g | Cholesterol: 9mg | Sodium: 76mg | Potassium: 103mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 24g | Vitamin A: 35IU | Vitamin C: 0.1mg | Calcium: 32mg | Iron: 0.6mg
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In step 3 of your instructions it looks like 91 1/2 teaspoons, instead of 1 1/2 teaspoons.
Thank you Marty! I just fixed typo!!! 🙂
So easy and so good! I didn’t do the last step with decorating the cookies with the chocolate drizzle and the almond so instead added a few more chocolate chips and used slivered almonds instead of chopped. I didn’t even flatten them out to cook and they came out great! I love easy recipes and when the results are this good, it’s even better! Thank you for sharing!
You’re so welcome! I’m very happy you enjoy these <3
Can these cookies be frozen if so how long can they stay in the freezer?
Hi Carleen. Yes, they can! Stored in a single layer in a covered airtight container for up to three months. <3
i want to make for Xmas and ship to my daughter , will the chocolate harden or are they to messy to ship?
Hey Mary! Honestly, these wouldn’t be my first choice to mail. That said, the chocolate topping doesn’t have any shortening or corn syrup in it so when it is at room temperature it’s fairly firm. I guess my worry is because the chocolate is piped on as a thin ribbon, it can get soft if it gets too warm. Who know the temperature of the mailroom!!
Can these be frozen?
Hey Anna! Yes they can!
Seriously??? Is each cookie over 2,000 calories????? Thanks!
Ooops! Sorry about the error. We’re having a lot of challenges with our new nutrition program! Will fix that asap <3