20 Cookie Recipes Without Butter - MyRecipes (2024)

Credit: Linda Pugliese, Hector Sanchez; Styling: Heather Chadduck Hillegas, Buffy Hargett Miller

No butter? No problem! These 20 tasty cookie recipes come together with absolutelyno butter or margarine. Some use cooking oil for moisture (like these easy 3-Ingredient Easter Cookies and these absolutelydecadentOlive Oil Chocolate Chip Cookies) and others rely on egg whites (like these impressive-yet-simple Basic Vanilla Macarons). No matter what you're looking for, you'll find it in this collection of butterless cookie recipes.

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Olive Oil Chocolate Chip Cookies Recipe

You’ve probably heard of olive oil cake, and if you’ve ever tasted one, you know how much rich character olive oil can bring to a dessert. And that’s certainly the case for these anything-but-average chocolate chip cookies. With their crispy edges and perfectly gooey center, they’re downright dreamy.

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3 Ingredient Cookies Recipe

There’s no reason to wipe out your pantry supplies when this effortless, 3-ingredient cookie recipe exists. Plus, boxed cake mix yields the softest, fluffiest cookies that everyone will enjoy.

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3 Ingredient Easter Cookies Recipe

These Easter cookies feel festive, but you only need a handful of ingredients that you've already got on hand.

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Cake Mix Sandwich Cookies with Strawberry Buttercream Recipe

No one will believe these impressive (yet low-effort) spring treats start with a boxed cake mix. The strawberry buttercream filling for these sandwich cookies uses both fresh and freeze-dried berries in order to deliver a potent punch of vibrant strawberry flavor.

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Lemon Cake Mix Cookies Recipe

Nobody will know you used boxed cake mix and Cool Whip for these irresistible, buttery cookies. These were a hit in our test kitchen, especially with their soft texture and crisp bottoms.

SL- Spritz Cookies (Large)

Spritz Cookies Recipe

Light, tender, and not too sweet, these spritz cookies are exactly what you look for in a classic Christmas cookie. These delightful treats are delicate in texture, but rich and buttery (even though they're made with shortening) in flavor, offering a satisfying, melt-in-your-mouth bite.

Basic Vanilla Macarons

Basic Vanilla Macarons Recipe

To make these light Meringue cookies, gently fold the almond flour mixture into the egg whites, but be careful not to overmix. The end result is a light and fluffy vanilla treat.

Oatmeal-Molasses Cookies

Oatmeal-Molasses Cookies Recipe

Just like Grandma used to make–soft and chewy with just the right amount of sweetness.

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Waffled Cookie Brownies Recipe

Why choose between a waffle, a cookie, and a brownie, when you can have the best of all three? This recipe is great for kids who aren’t quite ready to cook using the stovetop or oven. Try it with different baking mixes and cookie combos to create your ultimate dessert.

Flourless Chocolate Peanut Butter Cookies

Flourless Peanut Butter-Chocolate Chip Cookies Recipe

These flourless cookies are a dream if you're going gluten-free, especially with the perfect pairing of peanut butter and chocolate. Our readers can't get enough of this easy recipe: "These are awesome," says one 5-star review. "So yummy and really easy to make!"

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Air-FriedCookies Recipe

You may not believe it, but you can make perfectly crispy-on-the-outside, gooey-on-the-inside cookies with some help from your air frier. This method is also useful if your oven is taken or you only need to make a small batch.

Gluten-Free Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies

Gluten-Free Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies Recipe

You probably have everything on hand to make these chewy, chocolaty peanut butter cookies. To fit the cookies on a single sheet pan, divide cookies into 5 rows of 4. Pressing the cookies flat helps them bake quickly and get lovely crisp edges; otherwise they'll be too round and undercooked.

Pumpkin-Orange Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Cookies

Pumpkin-Orange Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Cookies Recipe

If you're a fan of pumpkin desserts, look no further than thesefestive cookies. Fresh-squeezed orange juice and orange zest givethese naturally colored pumpkin cookiesa bright and crisp edge to compliment the deep fall flavors found in pumpkin, cinnamon, and nutmeg. The milled flaxseed in this recipe provides a binder in place of usingeggs and also provides some healthy omega-3's.These cookies are gluten-free, egg-free, dairy-free, and caneasily bemade vegan by using vegan chocolate chips, and just as well can also be madenut-free by subbing the almond milk for water or regular milk.

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Chewy Ambrosia Biscotti Recipe

Make someone's Christmas extra merry by treating them to a batch of these biscotti with their favorite coffee or tea.

Iced Gingerbread Biscotti

Iced Gingerbread Biscotti Recipe

Be sure to let the cookie logs cool after the first bake so they slice cleanly and don't crumble.

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Two-Ingredient Macaroons Recipe

Requiring only two ingredients, these easy coconut macaroons are almost too good to be true. Whip up a batch in just 20 minutes for sweet and simple treat.

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Peanut-Chocolate Macarons Recipe

Most French-style macarons are made with almonds, but these chocolate ganache sandwich cookies shine with peanuts.

Elsa's Chocolate-Dipped Macaroons

Elsa's Chocolate-Dipped Macaroons Recipe

These macaroons are the most delicious we've ever tasted in the Sunset Test Kitchen. The recipe comes from Karen Dannenbaum of Topanga, California, who inherited it from her mother, Elsa, an outstanding cook. Of all the recipes Elsa left behind in her handwritten notebooks, "this was one of her best, and a family favorite," Dannenbaum says. She also included an option for double-dipping the cookies in melted white chocolate over the dark. We loved them as-is, but if you'd like to double-dip, feel free!

Donna's Molasses Cookies

Donna's Molasses Cookies Recipe

"This recipe is from my mother-in-law's box of typed 3- by 5-in. cards, handed down from her mother," says Beryl Schwartz of Ojai, California. "Nothing reminds us of the holidays like the aroma of molasses wafting through the house!" Schwartz adds cloves and ginger for extra spice and rolls the cookie balls in turbinado sugar for crunch.

Chewy Ginger Cookies

Chewy Ginger Cookies Recipe

Fresh ginger and black pepper bring a kick to this classic cookie. Prep tip: Swirl a liquid measuring cup with a thin coat of vegetable oil before measuring molasses for the most accurate (and least sticky) result.