Gluten-Free Vegan Chocolate Crinkle Cookies
You’ll want to make a double batch of these Gluten-Free Vegan Chocolate Crinkle Cookies – one for you, and one to share! These paleo-friendly cookies are perfect for lunchboxes, the holidays, or even a weeknight dessert – thankfully, they come together quickly!
Is it holiday cookie season yet??? I might be getting a little bit ahead of myself, considering it’s still the first week of September and it’s still in the 80s here in San Diego. But I can’t help myself! Kids are back in school, it’s officially Fall, and that means that holiday cookie season isn’t that far off.
I don’t know about you, but fall is holiday cookie testing period around here. You know I love alllll the gluten-free cookie recipes! Plus all the vegan cookie recipes too ;) We’ve got to make and test all the cookies to see which ones are deserving enough to be the star of your holiday cookie platters. And these Gluten-Free Vegan Chocolate Crinkle Cookies? They’re definitely worthy of being the star.
Why are Gluten-Free Vegan Chocolate Crinkle Cookies SO good?!
These are a fan favorite around here because they are so. dang. easy. to make! If you bake gluten-free/vegan regularly, you probably already have all the ingredients on hand, too. The result of your little bit of effort makes a cookie that is:
- Insanely chocolatey with a fudgy, brownie-like texture
- Crispy, thanks to the sugary crackle crust
- Buttery, despite being fully dairy-free and vegan
How to make CHOCOLATE CRINKLE COOKIES
1: whip together your coconut oil, cashew butter (or other nut butter), and coconut sugar until nice and fluffy
2: add the flax egg and vanilla extract– you could use 1 regular egg + 1 egg yolk if you don’t want to make a flax egg
3: add your dry ingredients and stir until it’s all combined, and then add lots of chocolate chips
4: CHILL your dough for at least 30 minutes. it will make it way easier to roll into balls and you won’t get covered in sticky chocolate dough. don’t skip this one!
5: scoop your chocolate dough into balls and roll them in raw turbinado sugar (or for a more classic look, go with organic powdered sugar). bake until puffed and crackly, and then eat one warm –> **most important step**
These Chocolate Crinkle Cookies are my idea of cookie perfection, and I hope you adore these beauties as much as I do. The sugary crackle crust makes for the perfect added texture, and breaking through it into that fudgy, brownie-like center? Heaven on earth. These are perfect for lunchboxes, weeknight desserts, holiday cookie platters, gifts, or wherever else life calls for chocolatey cookies. Enjoy!
Here are some other healthy cookie recipes you’ll love:
- Paleo Chocolate Chip Cookies –> the OG favorite around here!
- Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies –> for the PB lover in your life!
- Soft Gingerbread Cookies –> to fill out the rest of your holiday cookie platter!
Gluten-Free Vegan Chocolate Crinkle Cookies
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 10 minutes
- Total Time: 20 minutes
- Yield: 12 cookies 1x
- Category: cookies
- Cuisine: dessert
Description
You’ll want to make a double batch of these Gluten-Free Vegan Chocolate Crinkle Cookies – one for you, and one to share! These paleo-friendly cookies are perfect for the holidays and come together quickly.
Ingredients
- 3 tablespoons (37g) coconut oil, softened with a texture similar to softened butter
- 3 tablespoons (48g) creamy cashew butter, or nut butter of choice
- ½ cup coconut sugar
- 1 ½ flax eggs (1.5 tablespoon flax meal + 4 tablespoons water, whisk and let set for 10 minutes)
- 1 ½ teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1 ½ cups (148g) blanched almond flour
- ¼ cup cacao powder
- ¾ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon sea salt
- ½ cup vegan chocolate chips
- ⅓ cup raw turbinado sugar or coconut sugar (to roll the cookies in – you can also use organic powdered sugar for a more traditional look)
Instructions
- In a large bowl, stir together the coconut oil, nut butter, and coconut sugar until fully combined, about 1 minute.
- Beat in the flax eggs, then stir in the vanilla extract.
- In a separate bowl, whisk together the blanched almond flour, cacao powder, baking soda, and salt. Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and stir together until completely combined.
- Place dough in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes before forming balls to make it easier to work with – you can leave the dough in the fridge, covered, for up to 48 hours.
- When you’re ready to bake, preheat oven to 350°F.
- Place the turbinado sugar in a small bowl to roll the cookies in.
- Use a small cookie scoop (mine fits 1.5 tablespoons of dough) to make cookie dough balls, roll into a ball with your hands, and then roll each dough ball in the sugar mixture. Place the cookies 2 inches apart onto a parchment-lined cookie sheet.
- Bake for about 10 minutes in the preheated oven, or until they’ve puffed and cracked. Let cool completely on the cookie sheet.
- Store in an airtight container for up to 5 days.
Keywords: chocolate, crinkle, cookies, vegan, gluten free, paleo, dessert, christmas
For Paleo, can I roll the balls of dough in coconut sugar instead? This sounds yummy!
Hi Deb – yes, absolutely!!
Tried these with tahini and they turned out great! Fantastic recipe, excited to share with everyone :)
★★★★★
So thrilled you’re loving them, Jessica! Thanks for the feedback.
Hi! I’ve never made a recipe of your’s that I haven’t LOVED! Would I replace 1.5 flax eggs with 1.5 chicken eggs? Just want to double-check before I make them tonight! Thanks!
Hi Carla, yes that should be fine! I’d use 1 egg plus 1 yolk :) enjoy and thanks for the love!!
Thanks for the quick reply! (And I also just read your suggestion about the egg in the directions. Oops! Sorry I missed that!)
★★★★★
No worries! Happy to help :) enjoy!
Delicious! Might be my new favorite Bakerita recipe yet!!
I am anxiously waiting for her cookbook :)
★★★★★
This makes me so happy! Thank you so much for the love, Liz!
Easy to bake with a toddler (and she can lick the spoon), and extremely delicious for even the non-paleo eaters at home. Thank you for such reliably awesome recipes!
★★★★★
So thrilled it was a hit with you and your family, Iris!
These are amazing. I skipped the sugar at the end but they were still SO GOOD. Used Hu chocolate so totally refined sugar free. Thank you for this delicious recipe!
★★★★★
So glad you loved them Kelly! Thanks for the feedback.
Delicious! Great cookie texture and perfectly dark. Left out the chocolate chips – perfect chocolatey bitterness without being two sweet!
★★★★★
So glad you’re loving them, Devi!
Rachel do these get flattened before baking or do they go into the oven as balls? I’ve read the whole post and don’t seem to see it mentioned and want to be sure because I know this can be an important step! Can’t wait to make these!
Hi Vanessa, oooh you’re right – usually flattening a tiny bit with your palm doesn’t hurt to make sure they spread well :)