Chewy vegan ginger cookies, full of holiday spices and molasses. These are everybody’s favorite cookie and they are so easy to make! 1 bowl!
You wouldn’t believe how many times I’ve tested these cookies and gotten it SO wrong. I actually meant to post these last year, but I just couldn’t get it right, so I thought I’d wait. Well, I started recipe testing weeks ago for these babies, and finally, after a marathon cookie-baking couple of days last week, I nailed it!
These Vegan Ginger Cookies are incredibly chewy and irresistible. They’re full of molasses, brown sugar, and delicious holiday spices like ginger, cinnamon and nutmeg. I think you are going to LOVE them.
My first several tries were just too puffy and cake-like, not what I was going for! But these are so perfect -So, so chewy, coated in sugar and rich with flavor. Swoon.
Let’s make some cookies!
How do you make Vegan Ginger Cookies in 1 bowl?
The best thing about these delicious cookies is how easy they are to make, in just 1 bowl!
First, cream together the vegan butter and brown sugar in a large bowl.
Then, add the molasses and vanilla and beat to combine.
Next, you’re going to add 2 cups of the flour. Sprinkle the baking soda, salt, ginger, cinnamon and nutmeg on top of the flour. Mix on low speed until combined, then add the rest of the flour and mix. The dough will be thick, but not dry.
Once you’ve preheated the oven to 350 and prepared your baking sheets with parchment paper, scoop out 2 tablespoons of the dough, roll into a ball and then roll in the sugar to coat completely.
*For smaller cookies, use 1 tablespoon of dough.
Place on the prepared sheets, and bake for 11-12 minutes, until you see cracks forming on top. The cookies will appear very soft, but they will firm up as they cool.
Let the cookies cool for 10-15 minutes and then enjoy!
These Vegan Ginger Cookies are so perfect for sharing with friends, neighbors or co-workers. Everybody loves them!
Substitutions:
You may be able to sub coconut oil for the vegan butter, but I haven’t tested it. You would want the coconut oil to be semi-firm, not melted. Don’t sub with canola oil; been there and it ruined the cookies!
You could sub whole wheat pastry flour for the all purpose flour, or maybe a gluten free flour mix, though I haven’t made them gluten free myself.
Instead of regular granulated sugar, you could roll the cookies in turbinado sugar. Either way is fun and tastes good, but I prefer using a fine organic sugar.
Want more Vegan Christmas Cookies?
Vegan Ginger Cookies
Ingredients
- 1 cup vegan butter, softened to room temperature
- 1 1/2 cups packed brown sugar
- 1/2 cup molasses
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
- 3 1/4 cups all purpose flour
- 1 tablespoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 tablespoon ground ginger
- 1 tablespoon cinnamon
- 1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
- 1 cup sugar, for rolling
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line 2 large baking sheets with parchment paper.
- In a large bowl with a hand mixer, beat the softened vegan butter and brown sugar together until creamy. Add the molasses and vanilla, and beat in until smooth. Scrape the sides as needed with a spatula.
- Add 2 cups of flour to the bowl, then sprinkle the baking soda, salt, ginger, cinnamon and nutmeg on top of the flour. Mix on low speed to combine. Now add the remaining 1 1/4 cups flour and mix until incorporated. The dough will be quite thick, but not dry.
- Fill a small bowl with the cup of sugar for rolling.
- Scoop out about 2 tablespoons of dough for large cookies (1 tablespoon for small cookies), roll into a ball, then roll each ball in the sugar until completely coated.
- Place on the prepared baking sheets, and bake for 11-12 minutes, until they begin to crack on top. They will look very soft, but they firm up a lot as they cool. If you over bake, they will be crispy.
- Let cool for 10-15 minutes, then enjoy!
Notes
- For better cracks in the cookies: After a few minutes in the oven, sprinkle a little bit of cold water (I just flick it in the pan with my hands, about a teaspoon) on the pan. Cracks will form! (I learned this from my grandma)
- This recipe makes 36 large cookies, or about 48 small cookies. You can always cut the recipe in half if you don't want that many. They are perfect for sharing with friends, neighbors or co-workers!
- Make sure to correctly measure your flour, or the cookies may not turn out right. To do this, use a spoon to scoop the flour into a measuring cup. Don't pat the flour down or tap the cup. Use a knife to level off the top of the cup.
- If you want crispier cookies, like gingersnaps, simply bake these a bit longer, 14-15 minutes, and they will be quite crisp!
Nutrition
12/22/18- I found after further recipe testing that it was unnecessary to chill the cookie dough before baking the cookies, so I removed that step, making this recipe even easier!
This is my favorite holiday cookie of all time! I have made them with vegan butter, butter and coconut oil. They turn out delicious no matter which you use.
Was making these for my daughter –her favorite–vegan ginger snaps. The batter was not at all thick. I remeasured and remade. Same result. Is the batter supposed to be refrigerated first? It certainly could not be rolled into balls! What happened?
I’m not sure how your batter isn’t thick; with over 3 cups of flour to a cup of butter and 1/2 cup of molasses, it should be thick. Are you sure your measurements are correct? Are you accidentally melting the butter (it should be softened)?
Light and chewy. Perfect amount of spice. Didn’t change a thing. Will definitely make these again.
Oh dear. I posted a bad review on these cookies. I should have paid attention to the pictures that went with the recipe. I made a big mistake. I would have seen the batter was much softer than mine. I just knew it had to be me…sure enough it was. I only put in 1/2 the amount of butter that the recipe calls for. 🙁 I wasn’t used to the brand of butter and I put in one wrapped “stick” of butter. Nora’s recipe calls for 1 cup. One stick of this butter is only 1/2 cup. So sorry. I remade today. These cookies are wonderful!
I’m glad to hear they worked out well for you this time around, with the correct amount of vegan butter. The sticks can vary these days, so good to double check! 🙂
First time making vegan cookies myself. My only add was: a heaping tablespoon of unsweetened applesauce. (& a little more flour to compensate for that) Wonderful!!! Thank you so much.
These were so good and a huge hit with family and friends! We had to make two additional batches just to see if they were as good as the first one! Interestingly, the second batch was accidentally made with melted, not softened butter. The cookies came out less sugary and a bit moister. It’s been fun comparing the two—both incredibly delicious. Nora never fails.