In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Set aside.
In a large bowl, use an electric mixer to beat the sugar, eggs, almond butter, butter or coconut oil, and vanilla until well combined. Add the flour mixture and beat just until combined. Stir in 1½ cups of the chocolate chips. The dough will be thick and sticky like brownie batter. Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and refrigerate for 2 hours or until firm enough to roll into balls.
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
Roll the dough into 1½ inch balls and place 3 inches apart on the baking sheet. Press the remaining chocolate chips onto the top of the balls. Bake for 8 to 11 minutes or until the tops of the cookies are no longer wet in the middle. Let cool completely on the baking sheet. Store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 4 days.
Notes
You have a choice between using buckwheat flour and whole wheat flour for these cookies. If you use buckwheat, the result will be a cross between a cookie and a brownie. If you use whole wheat, they're more like a traditional chewy and fudgy cookie.
The buckwheat version will be very soft when they come out of the oven, but they will firm up as they cool.
Raw sugar or coconut sugar may be substituted for the brown sugar.