vegan chocolate chip cookies recipe

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took me forever

After having gone vegan, I made it my personal mission to find a replacement for each and every food that I had to reluctantly give up. Sometimes "depriving" yourself of something is great and healthy (say, cigarettes or hydrogenated fats), but sometimes it's just plain unnecessary. For instance, why go without chocolate chip cookies when you don't actually have to?

So over the years, every time I got a hankering for something my tasted buds reminded me they were missing, I'd start experimenting. This became easier over time—like when I realized how amazingly versatile cashews are—and I accepted each challenge as it presented itself to me. Some of them were tricky (to say the least), but eventually my dogged persistence would pay off and my taste buds would reap the rewards. Plus, the praise raining down on me from my family was pretty sweet, too.

One of those quiet cravings was for some scrumptious chocolate chip cookies. Not the dense and cakey version like I'd been making, but a delectable melt-in-your-mouth version that I was pining for. The catch was? They had to filled to the brim with soft sweetness while, at the same time, remaining devoid of refined sugars, added oils, or anything else on my hit list. It felt like it took me forever to strike it rich with these guys, but my diligence did eventually pay off. Again. These cookies are a huge hit in my home, and I hope they'll be equally welcome in yours! For your convenience, this post also includes my chocolate chips recipe as well as chia eggs and flax eggs. Now let's get baking!

vegan chocolate chip cookie recipe

Cookie Ingredients

• 1 cup organic rolled oats

• 1 cup organic raw cashews

• ½ teaspoon baking soda

• ½ teaspoon cream of tartar

• 10 organic Medjool dates (pitted & soaked until soft)

• ½ cup chocolate chips

• ½ cup water

• ¼ cup organic unsweetened applesauce

• ¼ cup organic almond butter

• ¼ cup chia egg or flax egg

• 2 teaspoons organic vanilla extract

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350°F

2. Using a small coffee grinder, grind both the rolled oats and the cashews into flour. Add the flours, baking soda, and cream of tartar to a mixing bowl; stir well to combine.

3. Add the softened dates, water, almond butter, applesauce, chia egg, and vanilla to the food processor; process until smooth.

4. Add the wet mixture to the dry ingredients and mix again until thoroughly combined. Stir in the chocolate chips.

5. Drop the cookie batter onto a parchment-lined baking sheet (I get 16-20 cookies out of this recipe). Bake for 10-12 minutes or until the cookies are cooked throughout and the bottoms are lightly browned.

Optional: In place of the chia or flax egg, use 2 tablespoons arrowroot powder + 3 tablespoons water. Mix the two together thoroughly before adding to the food processor for blending.

Optional: In place of the dates, use ¼ cup maple syrup.

Optional: In place of the water, use a plant-based milk of your choice.

cookie notes

Originally, all of my baked goods were made with chia (or flax) eggs, but as of late, those nutrient-dense seeds seem to be slightly irritating to my body. The arrowroot/water mixture is what I found to replace them and what I use in all recipes now. While it does make for a deliciously moist cookie that holds together quite nicely, the health benefits of both chia and flax are definitely superior (unless intolerant, of course!).

As you probably guessed, both the chia egg and flax egg are vegan substitutes for bird eggs; ¼ cup of chia or flax egg is equal to 1 egg. I have found chia and flax to be interchangeable when it comes to using them in recipes, and they provide a host of health benefits!

chia egg recipe

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons chia seed

• 1 cup water

Directions

1. Using a small coffee grinder, grind the chia seeds thoroughly and pour them into a small bowl along with the water; whisk immediately.

2. Let the mixture sit for 5 minutes to thicken.

3. Store any extra chia egg in a covered container in the refrigerator for up to one week.

flax egg recipe

Ingredients

• ¼ cup flax seed

• 1 cup water

Directions

1. Using a small coffee grinder, grind the flax seeds thoroughly and pour them into a small bowl along with the water; whisk immediately.

2. Let the mixture sit for 5 minutes to thicken.

3. Store any extra flax egg in a covered container in the refrigerator for up to one week.

chocolate chips recipe

Ingredients

• ¼ cup organic cacao butter (equal to about 24 wafers)

• ¼ cup organic cacao powder

• ⅛ - ¼ teaspoon SweetLeaf stevia powder

• ½ teaspoon organic vanilla extract (optional)

Directions

1. Melt the cacao butter over low heat until completely melted. Add in all of the other ingredients and whisk until smooth.

2. Spoon the batter into chocolate chip molds and freeze.

   
   

chocolate chips notes

Don't have a cute little chocolate chip mold? Simply line a small, lightly-greased baking sheet with parchment paper and pour the melted chocolate mixture over the sheet. Place the sheet in the freezer until the chocolate has hardened. Once hard, remove from the freezer and chop into bit-sized pieces (move fast, this recipe melts quickly!). Store chips in the freezer.

I use the low end of stevia in my chips because we're all fans of dark chocolate in my home! Adjust according to your taste buds, and if it's your first time using stevia, go lightly! A little goes a very long way.

These chips will soften quickly at room temperature, and melt in hot temps.

vegan for the win

And that's a wrap. I just baked a batch of these vegan chocolate chip cookies (recipe) today and they're just as awesome as I remember. If you have any questions, or if you've also made some and love them as much as we do, please drop a comment below! And for more healthy, vegan recipes, don't forget to subscribe! Hope your day is an awesome one :)

Much love and many thanks for reading,

Melinda