Last week, with sweltering temperatures threatening to break the triple digits, I waited until almost dusk to head out on my afternoon walks. I usually blitz through the park at the end of the street, past the excitedly shouting kids chasing each other around the playground, to reach the quiet solitude of the empty residential streets beyond.
As I powered through on Wednesday night, focusing on my cell to dial my mom’s number, a familiar voice broke through my concentration and stopped me mid-pace. “Wave hi to Amy!”
I turned towards the play structure and spotted the only two figures in the park: my old boss’s wife and their 15-month-old daughter. The little girl giggled from the baby swings, while the mother raised her hand in a friendly greeting. I smiled and clicked off my phone, turned around, and strolled over to say hello.
Despite my original intention of arriving home before the slew of sporting events started airing on TV, I ended up chatting with her for 20 minutes! As my first time seeing Baby A since last summer, her full head of hair and big toothy grin completely tugged at my heartstrings. I just couldn’t leave!
The little girl kept bringing her hands together in the baby sign language motion for “more,” so her mom continued to gently push her the entire time we talked. Occasionally, Baby A would stretch out her tiny hand to reach towards me, and I’d hold out my palm for her to touch in a soft high-five. Such a precious gift in my busy evening!
These Cinnamon-Spiced Coffee Cookies are also a sweet treat! With the flavor of my old boss’s favorite drink acting as the backdrop and paired with the warmth of cinnamon, these cookies taste like the aromas lingering in the air of a coffee shop as the baristas sing out the melodic beverage names. Made with entirely wholesome ingredients, these soft and chewy sweets are something you can feel good about eating—they’re clean-eating friendly and skinny too!
This healthy cookie recipe is one of the easiest you’ll ever make. You don’t even need a mixer! Just whisk the dry ingredients in one bowl, the wet ingredients in another; then stir them together. You’ll have fewer dishes to wash without the mixer, which is always a good thing in my kitchen!
To avoid pulling out a mixer, you’ll use melted butter instead. Even though I’ve included it in most of my other clean-eating cookie recipes, do NOT substitute coconut oil! Unlike butter, coconut oil’s melting point is too low to dissolve the instant coffee crystals, so they stay very solid and refuse to incorporate. Learn from my mistake: only use butter (or a good-quality margarine like Earth Balance Buttery Spread).
Even in the butter and egg mixture, the instant coffee crystals still take a while to dissolve. I whisked for 3-5 minutes before they full incorporated! The instant coffee tends to clump onto your whisk or fork, so occasionally scrape it off with a spatula to help it dissolve faster. If after 5 minutes, you still see a small lump or two in your bowl, it’s okay to throw out those tiny blobs. You should still have enough coffee flavor without them!
Note: Instant coffee and coffee grounds are not the same thing. Instant coffee is regular coffee that has already been brewed then converted to a solid concentrated form. It’s usually found near regular coffee grounds in the grocery store.
Chilling is mandatory for this cookie dough. Because of the extra liquid from the maple syrup, the dough is incredibly sticky after initially mixing everything together. If you immediately popped it in the oven, it’d spread out into one gigantic cookie on the baking sheet! (Remember these?)
So plan ahead and chill the dough for at least 30 minutes. For the cookies in these photos, I left the dough in the fridge for 30 minutes then shaped it into rounded, almost spherical mounds on the baking sheet. They basically looked as tall as they were wide! Use your favorite silicon spatula to shape the dough; it will still stick to your fingers after chilling if you try to roll or touch it.
Here’s my secret to extra soft & chewy cookies: slightly underbake the dough; then leave the cookies on the warm baking sheet to cool after removing them from the oven. The centers continue to cook through without the outsides turning crisp and crunchy. It’s my favorite cookie-baking trick and helps them stay soft for an entire week!
With their light hint of maple and cozy cinnamon, these soft and chewy Cinnamon-Spiced Coffee Cookies are an irresistible treat any time of day! Slowly nibble on one in the morning with your steaming latte, or serve up one over cold vanilla ice cream in the evening and dive in with a spoon.
Just suggestions, of course! Not like I’d know from personal experience or anything… ♥
These extra soft and chewy cookies taste just like the tantalizing aromas in a coffee shop! Warm cinnamon, earthy coffee, and a hint of maple combine into an irresistible cookie flavor. Store any leftovers between sheets of wax paper in an airtight container for up to a week.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, cinnamon, baking powder, and salt. In a separate bowl, stir together the butter and instant coffee until the instant coffee has partially dissolved. Add the egg, whisking until the instant coffee fully dissolved, and scraping off the instant coffee from your whisking utensil with a spatula as necessary. (This may require 3-5 minutes. If there is still a clump of coffee crystals after that time, discard it.) Stir in the vanilla and maple syrup until thoroughly incorporated. Add in the flour mixture, stirring just until incorporated. Chill the dough for at least 30 minutes.
- Preheat the oven to 325°F, and line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a Silpat.
- Drop the dough into 12 rounded scoops on the prepared baking sheet. (If chilled for longer than 1.5 hours, flatten slightly.) Optional: Lightly sprinkle the tops with a little extra cinnamon. Bake at 325°F for 12-14 minutes. Cool on the pan for at least 15 minutes before transferring to a wire rack. (If the cookies threaten to break apart when transferring after 15 minutes, let them cool completely to room temperature on the baking sheet.)
Note: Do NOT substitute coconut oil for the butter! The instant coffee crystals do not dissolve in melted coconut oil. For a dairy-free version, try a good-quality margarine like Earth Balance Buttery Spread.
Would it work the same if I used ground coffee beans instead of instant?
If you used ground coffee, the cookies would end up with flecks of coffee throughout instead of a smooth, clean coffee taste, and they’d have a slightly grittier texture since ground coffee doesn’t dissolve like instant coffee. I hope you enjoy the cookies if you try them Ashley!
Hi!! These look absolutely gorgeous, and I think i’m going to try and bake them tomorrow! Quick question – do you think that they will work/taste the same eggless? Thank you 🙂
Cookies generally need an egg or egg replacer for binding. Ener-G is my favorite egg replacer. It’s a shelf-stable powder, and 1½ teaspoons of Ener-G whisked with 2 tablespoons of warm water is the equivalent of an egg. It’s worked in basically every recipe I’ve tried! 🙂 I hope you enjoy the cookies Tash!
I tried these and did something wrong. They taste wonderful!! But they are flat and I could barely get them off the cookie sheet. Plus I had to add another cup of flour!? Without it they looked like pancake batter. I have no idea where I went wrong but they taste so great U am going to figure this one out. Any advice? Thanks 🙂
Oh no!! I’m glad you enjoyed the flavor Laurie, and I’m happy to help get these issues sorted out. 🙂 You used just the instant coffee crystals (not prepared with water!), correct? How long did you chill the cookie dough?
Hi Amy
Can I substitute granulated or brown sugar in place of the maple syrup?
Yes! You’ll need ½ cup (96g) of brown sugar + ¼ cup of milk (any type!) to replace the maple syrup. I’m excited to hear what you think of these cookies, Sue!
Ohhhhh these look soooo tasty, making them right now! Question: would almond flour work as a substitute for flour [taste & texture wise] & if so, 1c 2tbsp would still be the correct amount?
I can’t wait to hear what you thought of these cookies, Phoenix! If you’d like to substitute almond flour, I’d actually recommend using a bit more. Almond flour isn’t as absorbent as wheat-based flour, so you’ll need more to achieve the same cookie dough consistency and the same baked cookie texture. I’d recommend starting with an extra 2 tablespoons. If your cookie dough still seems wetter compared to the original batch, then add a bit more almond flour, 1 teaspoon at a time, until the texture and consistency looks the same. 🙂