Decadent Vegan Chocolate Chunk Cookies
Vegan Chocolate Chunk Cookies
Dairy-free, egg-free cookies made with plant-based ingredients, loaded with rich chocolate chunks. They're chewy, sweet, and perfect for anyone craving a classic cookie without the animal products.
Equipment
- 1 Stand Mixer Optional
- 1 Whisk Optional
- 1 1/2 Cup Dry Measuring Cup
- 1 1/2 Teaspoon measuring spoon
- 1 plastic Spatula
- 1 Sifter Optional
- 1 Oven
- 1 Cookie Scoop, either a 3 oz, 1.5 oz, or 1 oz.
- 1 Scale Optional
Ingredients
- 1/2 Cup Unsalted Vegan Butter Or, 115 grams
- 1/2 Cup White Granulated Sugar Or, 100 grams
- 1/2 Cup Light Brown Sugar Or, 100 grams
- 2 Teaspoon Vanilla Or, 10 ml
- 1/4 Cup Aquafaba (Chickpea Juice) Or, 60 ml
- 2 Cup All-purpose Flour Or, 300 grams
- 1/2 Teaspoon Baking Soda Or, 2.5 grams
- 1/2 Teaspoon Salt Or, 2.5 grams
- 1 Teaspoon Instant Coffee Or, 5 grams
- 3 Ounces Dark Chocolate Or, 85 grams
- Flaky Sea Salt (Optional)
Instructions
- If you have a stand mixer, place 1/2 cup of butter, 1/2 cup of white sugar, and 1/2 cup of brown sugar into the bowl. Using the paddle attachment, cream the butter and sugar until they have thoroughly mixed and are a pale brown color. This step helps air get into the dough, ensuring a light and fluffy texture, as well as dissolving the sugars a bit to guarantee a smooth, uniform product. It should take about 2 minutes.
- While the butter and sugars are mixing, start sifting the dry ingredients and measuring the chocolate.
- Sift together the 2 Cups of flour, 1/2 teaspoon of baking soda, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1 teaspoon instant coffee. Set to the side.
- Check the butter and sugar mixture. It should have no obvious butter streaks and shouldn't look grainy. The sugars should have dissolved a bit, and the butter should be one uniform color, a light brown.
- Turn off the mixer and scrape the sides and paddle of the mixing bowl to make sure everything looks uniform. If it looks right, add the 1/4 cup of Aquafaba (Chickpea liquid) and the vanilla.
- Once the Aquafaba and vanilla have mixed in, turn the mixer off, scrape the sides again, and add the dry ingredients. Turn the mixer back on carefully, otherwise, the dry ingredients might fly out of the bowl, and it can make a big mess. I usually use my spatula to press the dry ingredients into the wet a bit before turning my mixer back on to prevent this.
- As the mixer is running, have your chocolate nearby. I like to use very dark chocolate, because I think it cuts through the sweetness nicely.
- Once most of the dry ingredients are mixed in, but you can still see a bit of flour, add your chocolate and mix for a few more seconds. The rest of the flour should mix in, and the chocolate should be distributed evenly. Turn off the mixer.
- Scrape the sides of the bowl and paddle again, checking to see if there is any flour or butter that did not mix into the dough. If there is a small bit, you can use your spatula to fold it in. If there is a lot at the bottom, it is probably because the paddle does not reach the bottom of the mixing bowl. You can use your spatula to bring it to the top and then turn the mixer back on to blend it in.
- Once you have a nice, even dough, you can start scooping and shaping.
- For large cookies, use a 3-ounce scoop, for medium, a 1.5-ounce, and if you want small cookies, a 1-ounce.
- You can get 12 large, 24 medium, or 36 small cookies with this recipe.
- Scoop the dough out of the bowl, scraping the top off on the side to make sure you have an even amount of dough in each cookie. If your cookies are different sizes, it will affect baking and cooling time.
- Roll the scooped dough into a ball and set it onto a baking sheet lined with parchment paper or a plate. You will be resting the dough in the fridge, so use whatever will fit.
- Once all of your dough is scooped and rolled, place it in the fridge to chill for 15 minutes. Resting the dough like this firms the butter back up, and helps to prevent the cookies from over spreading.
- You can sprinkle flaky sea salt over the top of the rolled dough before resting, but this is completely optional.
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit, or 176 Celsius.
- Once the oven is heated and cookies have rested, bake for around 12 minutes, or until cookies are golden brown on the edges and soft in the middle. You should be able to lightly lift the edges of the cookies without them crumbling or squishing. If you want the cookies to be crunchy, bake them until they are golden on the top and firm in the middle.
- Let cool for about 10 minutes on the baking tray, then move to a plate or a wire rack to cool completely. Or, you can enjoy now with a nice cup of coffee.
Notes
- This recipe can be made with dark, milk, or white chocolate. Feel free to also add nuts or dried fruit. If you take away the chocolate and instant coffee, it is a great basic scooped sugar cookie recipe and can be mixed and matched with toppings.
- If you do not have a stand mixer, this recipe can be made with a whisk. It will take a bit longer, but the steps are the same.
- This dough is very freezer-friendly, just roll into balls and place into a freezer-safe container lined with parchment paper. Make sure there is parchment between each layer of dough if you are stacking them. Put aluminum foil on top and cover with a lid. The dough will keep in the freezer for up to 3 months.
- The easiest way to get Aquafaba is by using the liquid drained from a can of cooked chickpeas. You can make your own, but it’s a bit more complicated, and you cannot guarantee having a good Aquafaba the way you can when using already cooked chickpea (Garbanzo Bean) or other starchy legume from a can.
- Adding your chocolate while you can still see a bit of flour and only mixing for a few seconds ensures you do not overmix your dough, which would result in a tough cookie.
- This dough is not safe to eat raw, despite the lack of egg. But, it can be turned into edible cookie dough very easily, by baking the flour at 350 Fahrenheit, or 176 Celsius, for about 10-15 minutes to ensure there is no bacteria. Then, make the dough as directed and enjoy.
- Instead of Aquafaba, you can use an egg replacer. Just follow the directions on the packaging for the equivalent of 1 egg.
- Resting is not 100% necessary, but it does ensure soft, chewy cookies. The resting process ensures the gluten in the flour relaxes a bit and isn’t tough, and also that the butter firms back up so that they don’t spread more than we want.
Nutrition Facts
Serving Size1Cookie
Servings12
Amount Per Serving
Calories250
% Daily Value *
Total Fat13g
20%
Saturated Fat6g
30%
Trans Fat0g
Cholestrol0g
0%
Sodium50g
250%
Total Carbohydrate35g
Dietary Fiber2g
4%
Sugars22g
111%
Protein3g
Wow! These vegan chocolate chip cookies are at the next level! Perfectly soft, just the right chew, and packed with rich chocolatey goodness. No one guessed they were vegan… they vanished in minutes!
Super easy recipe to follow and super delicious. Among the best cookies I’ve ever made.