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Perfectly sweet, a little salty, and ready in 25 minutes, these chewy date cookies make the best mid-day treat or gift for friends. And to contrast with that chewy texture, they’re packed with crunchy pecans and almonds for a truly loaded cookie.
save this recipe!Yeah, yeah, chewy chocolate chip cookies are delicious. But have you ever tried chewy date cookies? These treats are just as sweet as the chocolate chip classic, but dates contain loads of nutrients (think fiber, protein, potassium, and healthy, natural carbs).
Dates are packed with antioxidants, making them the perfect addition to any sweet treat. When paired with pecans and almonds, they provide the perfect touch of sweetness to create a sweet, crunchy, chewy cookie. They’re a must for this year’s holiday cookie exchange!
Reader rating
“I made these today to take to an elderly friend tomorrow who lives a good homemade cookie with her coffee, I know she’s going to love these! I’ve already ‘sampled’ three! I couldn’t stop at just one.” —Yvonne
here’s what you’ll need
This is an overview – jump to the recipe for exact measurements!
- Butter and Sugar: The base of any great cookie is butter and sugar. This recipe uses unsalted butter, white sugar, and brown sugar. As they are whipped together, air pockets are created in the butter, and then the sugar fills those gaps. As it bakes, the sugar solidifies, creating structure.
- Egg: Eggs add some protein and help with structure. I’ve also included a vegan egg substitute option below!
- Almond Extract: This ingredient really gives these cookies that nutty flavor! In a pinch, you could use vanilla extract instead.
- Dry Ingredients: All-purpose flour, baking soda, and salt are all you need for this cookie. Salt helps to amplify the flavor of these cookies, and it also helps to keep the dough tender!
- Chopped Dates: Feel free to use any variety of dates you like. I usually try to find pitted dates, so I don’t have to remove all the pits.
- Nuts: I use a combination of chopped pecans and almonds for this recipe. Peanuts, cashews, or pistachios will work too.
Let’s make them!
Chewy date nut cookies are great in a pinch – they only require ten hands-on minutes of work. (Jump to the recipe for the full printable recipe!)
Step 1: Heat The Oven
First, preheat the oven to 350°F (176°C).
Step 2: Soften The Butter
Place the butter in a microwave-safe bowl and heat it in 10-second bursts until soft (but not melted).
Step 3: Mix The Wet Ingredients
In a large mixing bowl, beat the softened butter and sugars together. Add the egg and almond extract, beating briefly to combine.
Step 4: Mix The Dry Ingredients
In a separate bowl, stir the flour, baking soda, and salt together.
Step 5: Combine The Ingredients
Add the dry ingredients to the bowl with the wet ingredients, folding to combine. Then, fold in the chopped dates, pecans, and almonds.
Step 6: Roll and Bake
Next, roll the dough into 18 large balls and place them on a parchment lined baking sheet. Bake for 8 to 10 minutes, until the cookies look puffy and are just barely golden. Do not over bake.
Step 7: Squish
Finally, while the cookies are still soft, lightly flatten each one with a spatula. Allow them to cool before removing them from the sheet and serving.
Vegan-ize These cookies
Wondering how to skip the dairy and eggs? Here are some alternatives!
- Butter: You can replace the butter with your favorite plant-based version. I recommend using vegan butter sticks (rather than spread) to achieve a similar consistency.
- Egg: You can replace the egg by creating a chia egg! Simply mix one tablespoon of chia seeds with three tablespoons of water. Allow it to sit and form a “gel,” and then add it to the batter where it calls for the egg.
Chewy Date Cookies (With Almonds & Pecans)
Ingredients
- ¾ cup unsalted butter, 1 ½ sticks, 171 g
- ½ cup white sugar, 100 g
- ½ cup light brown sugar, 100 g
- 1 large egg
- 1 tsp almond extract, 5 mL
- 1 ¾ cup flour, 210 g
- 1 tsp baking soda
- ¾ tsp salt
- ¾ cups chopped dates, 120 g
- ¾ cups chopped pecans, 120 g
- ¾ cup chopped almonds, or use more pecans, 120 g
Instructions
- Prep: Preheat oven to 350°F (176°C).
- Butter: Place butter in a microwave safe bowl and heat in 10 second bursts, until butter is soft but not melted.
- Wet Ingredients: In a large mixing bowl, beat together softened butter and sugars. Add the egg and almond extract, beating briefly to combine.
- Dry Ingredients: In a separate bowl, stir together flour, baking soda, and salt.
- Combine: Add dry ingredients to the bowl with the wet ingredients, folding to combine. Fold in chopped dates, pecans, and almonds.
- Bake: Roll the dough into 18 large balls and place on a parchment lined baking sheet. Bake for 8 to 10 minutes, until cookies look puffy and just barely golden (do not over bake).
- Squish: While cookies are still soft, lightly flatten each with a spatula. Allow to cool before removing from the sheet and serving.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information calculated by Sarah Bond, degreed nutritionist.
did you make this?Leave a comment below and tag @liveeatlearn on social media! I love seeing what you’ve made!
These were really good, I was afraid to try them because there wasn’t too many reviews and I’m super picky and have only like two cookie recipes in my rotation, which includes Emma’s soft sugar cookies, and the Doubletree chocolate chip recipe. I follow this recipe but added chopped almonds and vanilla, and substituted the white sugar for whole earth, monk fruit, and erythritol. The cookies are so good I like the proportions of nuts and dates to flour and sugar, it feels a little bit healthier than other cookies. Great recipe and I’m adding to my regular rotation. Thank you!
I’m so happy you loved them, Kristen! Thanks for dropping in to leave such a thoughtful review! 🙂
Delicious!! I was worried that the dates I had were too dry so I splashed them with a little water (aka white wine) @ 1/2 tsp and used some really good vanilla ( not Mc cormick) instead of the almond and they came out so good!!!!
These look so amazingly yummy 😋 but I have a few health issues and I know I could substitute on the sugars but do you have a suggestion for flour?? If I used almond flour would it wreck it? 🤔 Thank you!
I haven’t tested with with a gluten-free flour, but I’d probably go with an all-purpose GF blend rather than almond flour!
These cookies are fantastic! What a classic, crowd-pleasing recipe.
I had to extend the bake time because after 10 mins in a 350F oven (with thermometer) the centres were still raw. 12-13 mins worked well for me (I’m at sea-level in the PNW.)
Also, I didn’t have almonds or almond extract, so I used only pecans and vanilla. Looking forward to trying the almond version next time!
These cookies are ridiculously moreish!
I had to make a few subs based off what I had in the pantry (1/2 cup macadamia oil instead of butter, vanilla extract instead of almond, walnuts instead of pecans, and all brown sugar), but it still worked really well.
Thanks, Sarah!
Yay, so glad the cookies were a hit Sofia!
I made 20 cookies and baked 10 minutes. They are almost raw and very sweet. I’m not sure how other people are getting these to work at the time and temperature. Very disappointing.
Hi Cyndi! I always recommend having a second manual thermometer in your oven just so you can double check the temperature. Oftentimes ovens can be a little lower than expected. With that said, you can always leave these in for a few extra minutes until they’re the correct consistency! (You can toss the batch you made back in and cook them for a few more minutes.)
Now that I’ve had time to try to salvage these I’m changing my rating. I put them back in the oven for 10 and 13 minutes (in two batches). The longer time are the best. The taste is good, still sweeter than we like but good with tea or coffee.
For the record I always keep a thermometer in my oven. I assume the people who love this as written are raw cookie dough fans.
Can you freeze the dough before cooking?
I haven’t tested freezing this dough, but I think it would work!
I used plant based butter becasue i had some to use up.These came out delicious!
Thanks for letting us know how it went with the plant-based butter substitute. So thrilled to hear that you loved it! Happy eating!
Have you tried using gluten-free flour with these cookies?
We haven’t tested this one with gluten-free flour. I would love to hear how it goes if you try it out!
I just made these cookies and they’re the best I’ve ever had! I didn’t include the nuts, I reduced white sugar to 75 grams, and increased almond extract to 7grams. I made smaller cookies, and 12 minutes was perfect. I’ll be making these for the rest of my life, so thank you!
Thanks for making my day with your comment Jennifer!!