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Chewy Apricot Cashew Cookies – 100% Fruit Sweetened

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If you love chewy cookies then I’m about to bless you with one of my very best cookie recipes.

These are the chewiest, most delicious, most healthy cookies I’ve ever had. And they have zero added sugar. They are entirely fruit-sweetened! The dates and apricots lend their sweetness and the chewy factor while the cashews add an earthy nuttiness and some good fats and protein.  

A plate of chewy apricot and cashew cookies.

These cookies are awesome for a quick pick-me-up snack for adults or children and they make a quick grab-and-go breakfast if you need to get out the door in a hurry. I have no doubt that this recipe will be at the top of my list for the rest of my life. Really, it’s that good! Now, go get bakin’!

This recipe uses my date sweetening method you can read about on the Natural Sweeteners page.

Recipe yields 22 2-ounce cookies

1 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup cashews
8 large dates
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 cup (~22) dried apricots
1/2 cup butter
1 tablespoon vanilla
1 large egg

Preheat your oven to 325°F.

Start by adding the flour, cashews, and pitted dates to your food processor bowl with the blade attachment. Process these ingredients until they are a sandy consistency. Add the baking powder and baking soda and process again until thoroughly combined.

Dates and cashews in a food processor.

Next, add the apricots to the food processor bowl and pulse them into the sandy mixture. The apricots should be no bigger than pea size.

Apricots added to a date cashew mixture in a food processor.

Now, add the butter, vanilla, and egg into the food processor bowl (unconventional, right?!?) and pulse it until the dough comes together and pulls away from the sides of the bowl.

Scoop the dough onto a parchment-lined baking sheet using a 2-ounce scoop. Flatten each cookie with a slotted spatula.

Bake the cookies for 17 minutes or until golden brown. Let the cookies cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes before transferring them to cooling racks.

A pile of baked apricot cashew cookies on a plate.

This is the most unconventional recipe I have ever written and it is one of the best. Go figure!

Joyce Huegel

Saturday 11th of June 2022

I want to make your sourdough cinnamon raisin bread, but I have no idea what kind of maple syrup to buy, My friend swore that pure maple syrup was the best, but when I had pancakes at her house it was like water and it made the pancakes look like they had been soaked in water. I didn't like it at all. I am also trying to keep my sugars down as I am diabetic. Since I have been switching everything I can over to sourdough I have actually started losing weight and digestive issues have all but disappeared. Your recipes have been great for me and I really appreciate them more than you can know. One of our favorite recipes is your cheddar cheese crackers, I bake two batches at a time but have to hide them from my husband and put a few in the cracker bin at a time. He ate almost a whole batch in one sitting. My grandkids came for a visit and gobbled down a double batch in a day and a half. When looking for a recipe I now go to your site first, Everything I have made of yours is fabulous! Thank you for all of your hard work and for helpng so many people.

Joyce H. Athens, Alabama

Butter For All

Sunday 12th of June 2022

Hi Joyce!

It's feedback like this that keeps me going! Thank you!

Because you are diabetic, I would suggest a different sweetener all together. Maple syrup is very quickly metabolized and you would probably feel better with a sweetener that enters the blood stream more slowly. Have you ever used Date syrup or coconut nectar? I think either of these would work really well for you!

Let me know if you try these!

Courtney

Elizabeth

Thursday 1st of November 2018

Can you recommend a GF flour substitute? Preferably Paleo like almond flour etc?

Butter For All

Friday 2nd of November 2018

Hi Elizabeth!

I have never made them with almond flour but I think that it would be an excellent substitute! If you have it, you might add a little cassava flour (maybe 1/4 cup cassava, 3/4 cup almond) to help the cookies hold their shape and not get too crumbly! Please let me know how your creation turns out!

-Courtney

Nessa

Wednesday 4th of October 2017

I don't have dates... can I use 1/4 cup of raisins instead?

Butter For All

Wednesday 4th of October 2017

Hi Nessa, You can certainly try! I think it sounds like a smart substitute. Prunes might work also! I'm sure it will change the flavor a little bit but if you don't mind then give it a try! Please let us know how they turn out! -Courtney