Vegan chocolate chip cookies - crispy round the edges, chewy in the middle, loaded with chocolate chips and really easy to make; these cookies will become your new favourite recipe!
I had one of those days at the weekend where you just don't know what you are doing with yourself. I didn't want to do any of the things that needed to be done round the house so instead I was just faffing about doing nothing at all.
To pull myself out of the mood I decided to bake some cookies; and that ended up turning into a testing session to perfect my vegan chocolate chip cookies recipe.
And here is the result - perfectly soft and chewy cookies with crisp edges and plenty of chocolate chips. They are also really quick and easy to make so you are no more than twenty minutes away from warm freshly baked cookies!
I used mostly brown sugar for the best flavour, along with vanilla bean paste (though extract will do just fine too). In place of the egg I added a spoonful of cornflour to help bind the cookies together; with a little bit of soy milk to help moisten.
For the butter replacement you really need to use a dairy free spread that comes in a solid stick rather than the spreadable kind in a tub which has too high a water content for baking.
In the UK I use Stork block or Naturli Vegan Block (Vitalite also make a solid block one but I haven't tried it yet). In the US I think that Earth Balance buttery sticks would be the correct product to use.
I prefer to use chopped chocolate in my cookies rather than chocolate chips, but either is fine.
I've kept the batch size quite small - the recipe will make eight cookies; but because there are no eggs involved it is easy to double the recipe to make sixteen if eight isn't enough. Or you can even halve the recipe to make just four cookies.
How Long Will They Keep?
The cookies are incredible when eaten warm from the oven, but will also keep well for a couple of days in an airtight container (if you manage not to scoff them all straight away that is!).
Can They Be Frozen?
Yes, the unbaked cookies can be frozen. Once you have made the dough, divide it up and shape into balls. Place them spaced apart on a tray in the freezer then transfer to a ziplock bag once frozen. They can be baked straight from frozen but may need a minute or two longer in the oven.
If you prefer soft and cakey cookies to crisp and chewy ones like these vegan chocolate chip cookies then why not give my vegan pumpkin chocolate chip cookies a try?
And if you are a fan of peanut butter then you will love my vegan peanut butter chocolate chip cookies!
If you tried this recipe why not tag @domestic_gothess on Instagram and hashtag it #domesticgothess
*All images and content on Domestic Gothess are copyright protected. If you want to share this recipe then please do so by using the share buttons provided. Do not screenshot or post the recipe or content in full.*
Vegan Chocolate Chip Cookies Recipe:
Vegan Chocolate Chip Cookies
Ingredients
- 55 g (¼ cup) vegan butter/margarine (The solid block kind NOT spreadable - I use Stork block or Naturli Vegan Block) softened
- 75 g (⅓ cup + 1 rounded Tbsp) light brown soft sugar
- 30 g (2 rounded Tbsp) caster sugar
- ½ tsp vanilla bean paste/extract
- 1 Tbsp non-dairy milk
- 100 g (¾ cup + 1 Tbsp) plain (all-purpose) flour
- ½ tsp baking powder
- 5 g (½ Tbsp) cornflour (cornstarch)
- 80 g (3 oz) dairy free dark chocolate chopped (or use chocolate chips)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 180°C/350°F/gas mark 4 and line a couple of metal baking sheets with baking paper.
- Place the vegan butter, brown sugar and caster sugar in a bowl and whisk with an electric mixer until fluffy. Whisk in the vanilla bean paste and milk.
- Sift together the flour, baking powder and cornflour and add to the bowl. Mix in until well combined then add the chocolate and stir through. The dough should be fairly stiff.
- Divide the dough into eight portions and roll each into a ball. Place them well spaced apart on the baking trays and flatten very slightly.
- Bake for 10-15 minutes until pale golden, be careful not to overbake them, they will firm up as they cool. If they haven't spread much during baking, give the tray a hard tap on the countertop.
- Leave to cool on the tray for 10 minutes then transfer to a wire rack to continue cooling. Enjoy straight away or store in an airtight container once cool.
Notes
- For the best results make sure that you follow the recipe closely. As always, I highly, HIGHLY recommend using the gram measurements (with a digital scale), rather than the cup conversions. Cup measurements are simply not accurate enough for baking and I cannot guarantee the best results if you use them.
- Please use a BLOCK butter/margarine, NOT the spreadable kind in a tub. It has too high a water content and therefore your cookies may not spread properly.
- If your butter is not very salted you can add a good pinch of salt to the dough.
- Use a metal baking sheet, not glass or ceramic.
How Long Will They Keep?
The cookies are incredible when eaten warm from the oven, but will also keep well for a couple of days in an airtight container (if you manage not to scoff them all straight away that is!).Can They Be Frozen?
Yes, the unbaked cookies can be frozen. Once you have made the dough, divide it up and shape into balls. Place them spaced apart on a tray in the freezer then transfer to a ziplock bag once frozen. They can be baked straight from frozen but may need a minute or two longer in the oven.
Emma Tickner
These are lovely, especially whilst still warm.
A great recipe, easy to whip up and no fancy ingredients.
Chinelle
Made these yesterday. Love the fact that all there are no fancy ingredients. I baked mine for a bit too long, so they were more like shortbread, but still delicious! Will definitely make these over and over again.
Laura
Mine melted into cookie puddles in the oven, delicious cookie puddles.. I notice this recipe didn't advise refrigerating the dough like many do, should I have refrigerated? (I'm English so used grams, stork etc)
Hannah
Hi Laura, I never find it necessary to refrigerate the dough for this recipe though they are thin cookies rather than puffy ones. Cookies are the kind of thing where the results can be very variable however; things like the water content of the butter, absorbancy of the flour, humidity levels, temperature, baking sheet etc can all really affect the outcome. You can certainly try refrigerating the dough first to see if that works better for you, it definitely wouldn't do any harm, this is just my "quick and easy" cookie recipe which is the main reason I skip the refrigeration. You could also try my oil based cookie recipe or chunky chocolate pecan cookies, both of which require an overnight refrigeration. https://domesticgothess.com/blog/2021/03/05/olive-oil-chocolate-chip-cookies-vegan/ https://domesticgothess.com/blog/2022/04/20/chunky-chocolate-pecan-cookies-vegan/
Dhara Patel
Can I replace light soft brown sugar with brown sugar
Hannah
Hi Dhara, yes that's fine.
Teresa
I just love all you’re recipe I was wondering if the chocolate chips cookies I can use oil instead of butter. Have a blessed day.
Hannah
Hi Teresa, thank you! This one can't but I have a different recipe that is made using oil (I use olive but any kind of oil should work): https://domesticgothess.com/blog/2021/03/05/olive-oil-chocolate-chip-cookies-vegan/
Teresa
I want to thank you so for the recipe I can’t wait to try it I will make it this weekend I am so excited just love ❤️ all your recipes. Have a great weekend.
Teresa
I want to thank you so much for the chocolate chip oil cookies , and for all your help and wonderful recipes. Have a wonderful weekend.
Meizhen
I dont have cornflour/cornstarch. Do you think i can replace all purpose flour to cake flour?
Hannah
Hi Meizhen, I would just swap the cornflour for more plain (all-purpose) flour, though cake flour should work ok as well.
Emma
This recipe is brilliant! I did it in the morning making 8 which all got eaten so made a triple batch in the evening and did half size cookies for the kids lunch boxes! Loved them!!!
Lorna Farquhar
Recipe is great. Easy ingredients and easy to follow. My cookies seem to keep coming out very cracked! Not sure what I'm doing wrong!
Liz
Could you easily convert these to gluten free? Of so how much xantham gum would I need to add?
Hannah
Hi Liz, I haven't tried making them gluten-free I'm afraid, If you give it a go I would try 1/8th teaspoon xanthan.
Caitlin
really yummy! they did take quite a bit longer than the suggested time to bake though - at 15 mins they were too soft to take out the oven without breaking. they're also weirdly oily to the touch?? but still the yummiest vegan cookie/biscuit I've baked so far 🙂
Kat
these cookies are lovely! I followed the recipe exactlyand just added a bit of flaky salt on top when they were fresh out of the oven. perfect crispy-outside, soft-inside cookies! Thank you!
Keri l Daily Dish
These turned out great! Thank you !
Louise Lucilla
Hannah this recipe is the best one I've tried EVER. My son's girlfriend is vegan and she ate ALL the cookies I baked yesterday. I froze a batch of dough and baked it this morning and scoffed the lot..before she comes round. Thank you so much. I am now one of your biggest fans and recommend you to my friends.
Melissa
I followed the directions exactly, weighed everything out, but I’m sad to say these turned out badly. The dough was dry and the cookies didn’t spread. Maybe it’s because the flour measurement is nearly twice the butter? Once baked they tasted really strongly of flour. I was really hoping these would be great!
Hannah
Hi Melissa, sorry to hear these didn't turn out for you. I'm not sure what went wrong if you did weigh everything out accurately, it may be down to a difference between brands of ingredients, what kind of butter did you use? Half fat to flour is a pretty standard ratio for cookies, particularly vegan ones. Without the egg to stabilise most vegan bakes require less fat than the non vegan version. I make these often and they always turn out perfectly, and many readers have made and loved them as well.
Ruth Middleton
I have just produced an emergency batch of these wonderful cookies for unexpected guests. I received so many compliments about them! I substituted half oat flour and half gluten free flour and they were lovely! Thank you so much!
Chinelle
Just made these with flora spread , rice flour and orange extract. Oh my! Chewy, easy to make and delicious.
Natalie
This recipe is brilliant. I love baking and due to dietary restrictions I have turned to a mainly plant based diet. This recipe was easy to follow and quick to make. I used vegan orange chocolate and the cookies are delicious!
Liz
I’ve had a few disasters with. Egan chocolate chip cookies but these turned out amazingly. They are like Subway cookies and got big thumbs up. I used Stork block + moo free baking drops. Next time I might add a little more flour to be a bit more doughy and tad less crisp but that’s personal preference. Great recipe!
Jodi Bones
Can I pop the batter in the fridge and cook them later? I have just made a batch however the little one NEEDS to comb my hair :')
Hannah
Hi Jodi, yes the dough will keep in the fridge for up to a couple of days.
Felix
I used baking soda instead of baking powder. A bit of a drastic change...BUT they still came out amazing! Best vegan cookies by far, didn't even last a day in the house. Will make agian.
Gerhart
The look of the finished cookies was less than desirable and did not spread even after I had “flatten[ed them] very slightly.” I bake bread and used my scales to weigh all ingredients. It was hard to determine how good the cookie was because it was overwhelming “chocolate chip” which I believe can also be scaled back a bit to reduce sweetness. I am planning to rebake the cookies sans chocolate chips to see how good of a basic cookie recipe it is. Overall they tasted like really sweet chocolate chip cookies (which i know is how they’re advertised) and I plan to experiment some with the recipe, and believe with some adjustments can be better for me and my vegan granddaughter. Thank you for the recipe.
bradley stoll
Mine didn't spread out much, either. So, took them out after about 10 minutes and hit the bottom of the pan on the countertop pretty firmly a few times. I then put them back in for 3 minutes. I actually like the way they turned out. I will add, next time I might flatten them down a bit more. before baking next time. Of course, they are sweet...that a lot of sugar for so few cookies. Might I suggest you use dark vegan chocolate? That tends to be not as sweet.
Sugandha
Hi.. I made these cookies and they were so yum... However, they were a little too dense and cakey.. I felt that 5g corn starch was probably the reason. I felt it was too much while adding it.
V
PERFECT COOKIES EVERYTIME! My go to recipe.
Margaret Amos
I made theses yesterday like you said they did not last long defo going to make them again
Lauren
I made these yesterday, the family love them! I did them at 180C fan but I was wondering for future reference when you write in your instructions 180C if that is fan or not. Hope that makes sense haha, again a lovely recipe thank you 😀
bradley stoll
I made a double batch of these last night. The only change I made was to replace cornstarch with arrowroot powder, as I don't like using anything with "corn" in it. Oh, and I used regular granulated sugar instead of caster sugar, and baked them for 13 minutes. My life partner said these were the BEST chocolate chip cookies she's ever had in her life. I agree...but I realize my voice might be clouded by knowing who made them:). I brought a dozen into school for students who are vegan and one student has already asked me for the recipe. Thank you!
Katie Lloyd-McMahon
These are great. Followed the recipe exactly. I do a double batch and freeze half so I can just pop a couple in the oven when we fancy something sweet. Mine tend to puff a little when cooking so I give them a good tap on the counter when they come out of the oven and they flatten out perfectly.
Will definitely be using the base recipe to try other flavours/varieties.
Sarah
I don’t usually leave comments on blogs but this time I just had to. These are by far the best vegan cookies I have ever made and I bake a looot of cookies. I followed the gram measurements and while they are oily to the touch (like good cookies should be) the ratio of butter to flour was perfect. I also add a little flaky salt to the top 🙂 and lately I’ve been replacing the vegan milk with coffee for some extra flavor. Thanks for this wonderful recipe !
Lilly
These were great, awesome texture and flavor. Definitely need a pinch of salt either in the dough or on top though!
Millie
Thanks for the great recipe!
I made these with the following substitutions based on what I had at home and available at Australian supermarkets. I also used the gram measurements.
Nuttelex (was in a tub and was fine) instead of stick margerine
Rapadura sugar instead of brown
Raw sugar instead of caster
Oat milk
Stoneground wholegrain flour
Arrowroot flour instead of corn flour
I also let the dough cool in the fridge for 2 or more hours which helps to make them more chewy!
Richard
These cookies are divine, literally perfect
ARNAB
Good recipe.
Vanessa
I made these yesterday but they didn’t brown like shown in the picture and tasted a little underbaked despite being in for over 12 minutes.
Hannah
Sounds like they needed a little longer in the oven, baking times are only ever an estimate and will vary depending on your oven.
Claire
Hey Vanessa, did you you vegan butter? Or margarine? I use butter every time and never had a bad batch x