Low-Carb Cinnamon Stars

These stars are inspired by some cookies made by nearby bakery which we treat ourselves to each year at Christmas.

They have a rich, cinnamon-y flavour, and the original cookies are made with brown sugar and a little molasses. I use Sukrin Gold here to recreate that taste in these keto-friendly holiday cookies.

I make psyllium husk powder by adding some husks to a food processor and blitzing until it resembles a powder. You obviously need to do this in larger quantities than what this recipe calls for, but it stores well in a sealed jar. The psyllium husk powder helps the ingredients to bind better — you could omit it and still bake these healthy grain-free cookies, although I can't guarantee they will be easy to cut out, and they may have a slightly crumblier (but still delicious!) texture.

They are quite similar to German Cinnamon Star Cookies, also known as Zimtsterne. Compared to my keto cinnamon stars, which have a crumbly-crisp texture, traditional Zimtsterne cookies include egg whites and omit butter resulting in a soft, chewy and lightly crisp texture. You can even decorate these cookies with my simple keto-friendly glaze.

Tips & Substitutions:

For a dairy-free alternative you can substitute the butter with palm shortening which is made from palm oil. Beware that the standard practice for harvesting palm trees to produce palm oil destroys tropical forests and habitats of endangered species! Always opt for sustainably sourced palm oil and palm shortening such as Tropical Traditions.

Step-by-step

1. Remove the butter from the fridge and let it sit to bring to room temperature.

   

2. In a bowl, mix the almond flour, coconut flour, salt, cinnamon, vanilla and psyllium husk.

   

3. In a separate bowl, mix the brown sugar substitute and softened butter until creamed, either with a beater or by hand with a fork.

   

4. Beat in the egg, and then incorporate the almond flour mixture until it forms a dough.

5. Wrap the dough in plastic wrap, and refrigerate for an hour. Meanwhile, preheat oven to 160 °C/ 320 °F (conventional), or 140 °C/ 285 °F (fan assisted).

   

6. Remove the dough from the fridge, and roll out between two sheets of grease proof paper to about ³/₄ cm (¹/₃ inch) thickness.

   

7. Use a star-shaped cookie cutter to cut out star shapes, and place carefully on a lined baking tray. Repeat until the dough is all used up, re-rolling where necessary. If the dough starts to get too soft and delicate at any stage, place back in the fridge for 10 – 15 minutes.

   

8. Sprinkle with the extra Sukrin Gold, and bake 12 – 15 minutes or until just starting to brown.

   

9. Remove from the oven and cool on the tray 10 minutes, before moving to a rack to cool completely.

   Store in an airtight container at room temperature up to a week.

   

Recipe

Low-Carb Cinnamon Stars

★★★★☆4.5 (49 ratings)

Holiday cookies don't have to be unhealthy! These crispy keto cinnamon star cookies are made of ground almonds ...

Hands on

25m

Overall

1h 40m

Servings

26

1.1 g

Net carbs

2 g

Protein

7 g

Fat

75

kcal

1 serving2 servings3 servings4 servings5 servings6 servings7 servings8 servings9 servings10 servings11 servings12 servings13 servings26 servings52 servings78 servings104 servings

US + metricMetricUS

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Ingredients makes 26 cookies

• 2 cups almond flour (200 g/ 7.1 oz)
• 2 ¹/₂ level tbsp coconut flour (20 g/ 0.7 oz)
• ¹/₂ cup brown sugar substitute such as Sukrin Gold or use Swerve or Erythritol (80 g/ 2.8 oz)
• ¹/₈ tsp sea salt
• 1 tsp psyllium husk powder
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon, or more to taste
• ¹/₂ tsp vanilla powder or sugar-free vanilla extract
• ³/₄ stick butter at room temperature (85 g/ 3 oz)
• 1 medium egg
• 1 tbsp brown sugar substitute such as Sukrin Gold or use Swerve or Erythritol, for topping
• Optional: decorate with keto-friendly cinnamon glaze from our Glazed Anise Holiday Cookies

Instructions

1. Remove the butter from the fridge and let it sit to bring to room temperature.

2. In a bowl, mix the almond flour, coconut flour, salt, cinnamon, vanilla and psyllium husk.

3. In a separate bowl, mix the brown sugar substitute and softened butter until creamed, either with a beater or by hand with a fork.

4. Beat in the egg, and then incorporate the almond flour mixture until it forms a dough.

5. Wrap the dough in plastic wrap, and refrigerate for an hour. Meanwhile, preheat oven to 160 °C/ 320 °F (conventional), or 140 °C/ 285 °F (fan assisted).

6. Remove the dough from the fridge, and roll out between two sheets of grease proof paper to about ³/₄ cm (¹/₃ inch) thickness.

7. Use a star-shaped cookie cutter to cut out star shapes, and place carefully on a lined baking tray. Repeat until the dough is all used up, re-rolling where necessary. If the dough starts to get too soft and delicate at any stage, place back in the fridge for 10 – 15 minutes.

8. Sprinkle with the extra Sukrin Gold, and bake 12 – 15 minutes or until just starting to brown.

9. Remove from the oven and cool on the tray 10 minutes, before moving to a rack to cool completely.

   Store in an airtight container at room temperature up to a week.

Nutrition per cookie

Carbs 6%Protein 11%Fat 83% of calories

Net carbs

1.1 g

Total carbs

5.3 g

Fiber

1 g

Sugars

0.5 g

Protein

2 g

Fat

7 g

Saturated fat

2.1 g

Calories

75 kcal

Sodium

16 mg · 0.68% RDA

Magnesium

21 mg · 5.36% RDA

Potassium

57 mg · 2.87% EMR

Nutrition by ingredient

Per cookie	Net carbs	Protein	Fat	kcal
Almond flour (blanched ground almonds, almond meal)	0.7 g	1.6 g	4 g	45
Coconut flour, organic	0.1 g	0.1 g	0.1 g	3
Sukrin Gold, brown sugar substitute	0.2 g	0 g	0 g	0
Salt, sea salt	0 g	0 g	0 g	0
Psyllium husk powder	0 g	0 g	0 g	0
Cinnamon, spices	0 g	0 g	0 g	0
Vanilla powder, dried (from vanilla beans, vanilla pods)	0 g	0 g	0 g	0
Butter, unsalted, grass-fed	0 g	0 g	2.6 g	23
Egg, whole, fresh, raw (free-range or organic eggs)	0 g	0.2 g	0.2 g	2
Sukrin Gold, brown sugar substitute	0 g	0 g	0 g	0
Total	1.1 g	2 g	7 g	75

Serving size cookie

• Gluten free
• Dairy free
• Nightshade free
• Pork free
• Avocado free
• Fish free
• Shellfish free
• Beef free
• Pescatarian
• Vegetarian