Vegan Chocolate Chip Cookies

February 8, 2021April 19, 2022 What Jessica Baked NextLeave a comment

A classic bake made vegan. Soft and chewy vanilla cookie dough packed with gooey dark chocolate. These are the BEST vegan chocolate chip cookies you’ll ever make!

I have a treat for you today if you love chocolate chip cookies as much as I do. In my opinion, there’s really nothing better than a plate of homemade cookies fresh from the oven, sitting on the countertop ready to be eaten.

If you’ve been looking for a great vegan cookie recipe, then your search is over, as today I’m sharing the BEST Vegan Chocolate Chip Cookies you’ll ever taste!

As I mentioned in this blog post, as of the start of 2021 I’m now following a vegan diet. I’d been vegetarian for a couple of years and decided the next step for me is embracing a totally plant-based diet. There are so many amazing vegan foods available, so we’re absolutely spoilt with the selection of choice we have and recipes we can veganise!

I get asked why I’ve decided to go vegan, there are many reasons but here I hope to inspire you too to delve into vegan baking and cookery with the new style of recipes I’m going to be sharing.

I’ve been on the quest to find lots more vegan recipes I can share on my blog. As I’m still very new to vegan baking, I want to showcase basic vegan baking recipes to start with. In the future I’d like to diversify and share vegan cakes, cupcakes, more cookies and some savoury recipes too. My sister has also made us some yummy vegan bakes, including Millionaire’s Shortbread and Banoffee Pie which we’ve all thoroughly enjoyed!

With my vegan baking, I’ve already mastered Vegan Brownies and Vegan Banana Bread, next after those I wanted to discover a great vegan cookie recipe. I was skeptical when testing out vegan cookie recipes, the first time I baked vegan cookies they didn’t look too promising, but after letting them cool on the baking trays and tasting them we couldn’t stop eating them. The only problem with the first batch of cookies is they spread a lot in the oven and joined up on the baking trays. They were thinner and crispy, but I prefer a slightly thicker and chewier cookie with crispy edges.

You wouldn’t even know these cookies are vegan. They taste just like a classic chocolate chip cookie without dairy or eggs.

My taste testers couldn’t even tell these were vegan and they happily demolished the cookies within a couple of days!

This cookie dough is so simple to make and you can make it all by hand. However, you can use an electric hand mixer or a stand mixer if you have either of those in your kitchen.

So let’s have a quick rundown of how to bake these cookies!

Start by taking softened plant butter (I recommend block plant butter instead of using a vegan baking spread as that has too high water content for baking) and mix that with (dark or light) brown sugar until creamy and super fluffy. Using all brown sugar adds a delicious caramel flavour and keeps the cookies super chewy. Now add the soya milk (or another plant milk of your choice) and the vanilla extract. After you’ve mixed the wet ingredients together, now add the sifted dry ingredients and mix until a cookie dough forms. The last step in preparing the cookie dough is folding through the dark chocolate chips/chunks until distributed.

You don’t have to chill the cookie dough, but I always chill my cookie dough in the fridge for at least 30 minutes so it’s less sticky and easier to roll when I’m ready to bake the cookies.

The cookies are best enjoyed fresh from the oven, once they’ve cooled for about 10-15 minutes they’re still slightly warm and the chocolate is ultra gooey. As they cool and time goes on, the chocolate in the cookies will harden a little but the cookies will remain chewy and soft textured.

You see that bowl of dark chocolate in the photos? It was the perfect snack to munch on while taking photos of these cookies. I just couldn’t stop my hand reaching for them and the cookies…

Next time I bake these cookies I might try adding some different flavourings, inspired by these Chunky Milk Chocolate Pecan Cookies I’ll add some toasted pecans to my next batch. The choices of add-ins are absolutely endless, you can add orange zest, desiccated coconut, spices like cinnamon or ginger or chopped up salted pretzels.

Whether you follow the recipe below exactly or add your own flavour spin, I really do hope you enjoy baking these incredible vegan cookies!

(Makes 18-20)

Ingredients:

112g (1/2 cup) vegan butter – use block plant butter not a spread

200g (1 cup) dark or light brown sugar

60ml (1/4 cup) plant milk – I like using soya milk

1 tablespoon vanilla extract

250g (2 cups) plain flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

1 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda (baking soda)

2 teaspoons cornflour (cornstarch)

1/2 teaspoon salt

175g (1 cup) vegan dark chocolate chips/chunks, plus extra to press into the tops of each cookie

Method:

In a large mixing bowl cream the softened plant butter with the sugar until creamy and fluffy.
Now add the plant milk and vanilla extract and mix to combine.
Place a sieve over the top of the mixing bowl and sift all the dry ingredients (flour, baking powder, bicarbonate of soda, cornflour and salt) and mix until a dough starts to come together.
Stir through the chocolate chips/chunks until evenly distributed throughout the dough. Cover the bowl and leave the dough in the fridge to chill for 30 minutes – this an optional step but I find it makes rolling the cookie dough easier, you can skip this step and roll the cookie dough straight away.
Preheat oven to 180°C / 160°C Fan / 350°F / Gas Mark 4. Line two large baking trays with baking parchment or silicone baking mats. Divide the dough into 18-20 equally sized pieces – I weigh mine to be exact (aim for 45g portions). Place the balls of cookie dough out on the baking trays and leave room between each piece of cookie dough to allow the cookies to spread.
Bake the cookies for 10-12 minutes or until they’ve turned a light golden colour. Once the cookies are out of the oven press a few extra chocolate chips/chunks into the tops of each cookie if desired.
Allow the cookies to cool completely on the baking trays – as they cool they’ll firm up.
Once the cookies are cooled store them in an airtight container. The cookies will keep for up to 3 days, but like most baked goods they’re best enjoyed on the day of baking. Try the cookies with a glass of plant milk or scoops of vegan chocolate or vanilla ice cream for a delicious vegan dessert!

Recipe from Loving it Vegan

I recently baked these cookies again for Easter, changing the recipe slightly by adding toasted hazelnuts to the cookie dough and rolling the cookie dough into larger pieces (100g portions) to make chunkier NYC-style cookies and baking longer. I then decorated with a dollop of vegan chocolate hazelnut spread (but melted chocolate works too) and topped with some dairy-free mini eggs.

How cute are these cookies?! It was also the perfect excuse to use my new bunny cupcake stand, which I absolutely love!

Keep up to date with me on:

Like my Facebook page here

Instagram: @whatjessicabakednext

Twitter: @jessbakednext

Pinterest: @jessbakednext

Baking · Biscuits and Cookies · Chocolate

White Chocolate Cookies

October 11, 2018October 7, 2021 What Jessica Baked Next3 Comments

Soft and cake-like cookies filled with white chocolate chips. This is a sponsored post in partnership with Bacofoil®. All views and opinions are my own.

I’m sure everyone is enjoying the return of The Great British Bake Off this year. So far I’ve loved seeing all this years bakers show-stopping creations, however something I’ve noticed is how many baking disasters there have been as a result of bakes sticking to the baking tins and trays.

Although it makes good TV viewing, it’s not something I want to experience in my kitchen. I have had in the past my fair share of this common problem with standard baking papers, until I discovered Bacofoil® Non-Stick Baking Paper.

If you were thinking all baking paper is the same, then it’s time to think again!

Bacofoil® Non-Stick Baking Paper is different to other baking papers I have used, this is because it has an innovative and unique Non-Stick textured surface, with little dimples, which means there is less surface area in contact with the bake so the food bakes evenly and just slides off making cake mess and cookie disasters with the baking papers I normally use a thing of the past.

It is also non-stick on both sides. The baking paper can be used for several batches of the same recipe being baked on the same baking tray/s. Once you’re done with your recipe, all you need to do is throw away. In the past I have used silicone baking mats, however these are usually quite expensive and I find they’re hard to clean properly.

The baking paper is multifunctional too! Not only can it be used to line cake tins and baking trays for savoury or sweet recipes, it can also be used to make tulip muffin cases, to roll out pastry or sugar-paste icing and you can even make a piping bag out of it for drizzling chocolate or icing.

To test out Bacofoil® Non-Stick Baking Paper I baked my favourite bakery-style chocolate chip cookies using delicious white chocolate and vanilla to flavour them. Cookie dough is notorious for being sticky and this cookie dough I made today is no exception, so I felt this was the perfect recipe to test out this product.

When preparing my cookies, the first thing I noticed was I didn’t need any additional preparation to the baking trays other than lining them with the baking paper – as it’s non-stick no extra butter is needed for greasing as I do with standard baking paper.

I waited with anticipation as my cookies baked, but I needn’t have worried as they came out of the oven looking perfect. After allowing my cookies to have a few minutes to cool on the baking tray, I took a spatula and lifted them off the tray with ease. Nothing had stuck, so I declared it a cookie triumph!

When I had finished baking my batch of white chocolate cookies, I pressed a few extra chocolate chips onto the top of each cookie for decoration purpose and then I simply removed the Bacofoil® Non-Stick Baking Paper from my baking trays and discarded it and returned my still clean baking trays to my baking cupboard.

My baking trays were pristine with no greasy marks as the baking paper prevented any of my cookies sticking and me having to use force to attempt to remove them the baking tray and causing a tear in the paper, which could lead to grease or oil seeping onto the baking tray/s making them dirty.

I love the fact it was hassle free and saved me another less enjoyable chore of washing up!

All in all, Bacofoil® Non-Stick Baking Paper has really impressed me and the other bakers in my household, as it’s ideal for all kinds of baking jobs and is super convenient and easy to use. I’m looking forward to using it to create many more tasty recipes!

For more information about Bacofoil® and all of their products, check out their website www.bacofoil.co.uk

(Makes 18-20)

Ingredients:

150g butter (salted or unsalted), softened

80g light brown sugar

80g caster sugar

1 large free-range egg, at room temperature

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

225g plain flour

Pinch of salt (add 1/4 teaspoon if using unsalted butter)

1/2 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda

200g white chocolate chips, plus extra for decoration

Method:

Preheat oven to 190°C / 170°C Fan / 375°F / Gas Mark 5. Cream the butter, brown sugar and caster sugar together until pale and creamy.
Add the egg and the vanilla extract and beat until completely incorporated.
Sift the flour, salt and bicarbonate of soda together over the top of the mixture and gently fold in until a few specks of flour remains.
Now add the chocolate chips and fold them through until evenly distributed throughout the cookie dough.
Cover and chill the dough for 15 minutes (this is an optional step).
Divide the cookie dough into 18-20 equally sized pieces (approx. 40g each), roll into balls between your palms. Evenly spread on two to three large baking trays lined with Bacofoil® Non-Stick Baking Paper (leave a gap between each cookie to allow for spreading).
Bake the cookies for 8-10 minutes until they’ve turned a light golden colour. When the cookies come out the oven they will appear under baked, however, as they cool they will firm up.
Allow the cookies to cool on the baking trays for a few minutes. As the cookies cool you can press a few extra chocolate chips on the tops if desired, then gently transport the cookies to a wire rack to finish cooling completely. The cookies will store in an airtight container for up to one week, but they’re best eaten on the day of baking or the day after.

Keep up to date with me on:

Like my Facebook page here

Instagram: @whatjessicabakednext

Twitter: @jessbakednext

Pinterest: @jessbakednext

Baking · Biscuits and Cookies · Chocolate

Chocolate Chip Cookies

December 1, 2017October 7, 2021 What Jessica Baked Next13 Comments

Master homemade chocolate chip cookies with this simple recipe. You’ll love the crisp outside and chewy centre!

Finding the perfect chocolate chip cookie can be a difficult task for many bakers to master. But don’t fret, I have this easy chocolate chip cookie recipe ready to share with you just in time for the start of the festive season. Everyone has their idea of the perfect cookie, but if you’re a fan of crispy, yet soft and chewy textured cookies, then you’ve come to the right place.

You can never have enough chocolate chip cookie recipes in your life. I’ve already shared a basic CCC recipe with you and I wanted to share this new recipe I recently discovered and ended up thoroughly enjoying because of its ease and amazing taste.

As soon as these cookies leave the oven you’ll be reaching for one almost straight away! There is nothing more tempting than the aroma of a freshly baked cookie!

But hold on, before you go ahead and devour the cookies, for a pretty presentation that’s easy on the eyes as soon as the cookies have finished baking and are out of the oven I like to press a few extra chocolate chips on the tops. The reason for this is sometimes when you’re rolling the cookie dough you can’t choose how the chocolate chips are dispersed, so to guarantee every cookie has a generous helping of chocolate I decorate the top of each cookie with even more chocolate chips.

I also thought I’d share some of my tips for freezing and making the cookie dough in advance. Rolled cookie dough freezes well in a sealed sandwich/ziplock bag for up to 3 months. The perks of having cookie dough in the freezer is you can bake how ever many cookies you want ready for unexpected guests or for when a craving for cookies strikes! When you’re ready to bake the frozen cookies just take how ever many you want out, then once your oven has heated up all you’ll need to do is to bake the cookies for a couple of extra minutes more than the recipe states.

Lastly, if you have ever had any problems occur when baking cookies, below I’ve rounded up some of my top tips, which I hope you’ll find helpful.

Tips For Baking Perfect Chocolate Chip Cookies:

Always use room temperature butter. I use room temperature butter in most recipes, having the butter nice and soft will make creaming it easier. I tend to leave my butter out at room temperature for one hour before using, however, in the summer months when it gets really hot it doesn’t take that long to soften up! To test your butter is soft enough and ready to bake with, it should still be cool to the touch, but when pressed using little pressure your finger will leave an indentation. Please don’t be tempted to microwave butter to soften it!
Use two different types of chocolate. I love all kinds of chocolate, so I like to use a mix of dark and milk chocolate in my cookies. You’ll love the rich, slightly bitter flavour of the dark chocolate in contrast to the creamy, sweet milk chocolate.
I’ve found since testing out several cookie recipes that chilling the cookie dough for a length of time isn’t always necessary. I don’t personally believe it changes the flavour too much, only the texture very slightly. Chilling will produce a slighter thicker cookie, but not much more than that. I like that this recipe only requires an optional 15 minutes chilling time, which is great over the busy holiday period! I’ve baked many cookie recipes which have suggested the dough should be chilled for a minimum of 24 hours, however, there’s never been any instruction on what you do when you need to roll the dough ready for baking, as after overnight chilling it’s usually rock hard and impossible to roll.
Try shaping the cookies by hand. I used to use an ice cream scoop, however, I now prefer to individually divide and then roll the dough into balls, shaping between my palms to get a nice round shape.
You’ll be able to tell the cookies are ready as they’ll brown slightly around the edges. Cookies often appear uncooked, however under baking is the secret to a soft centre.

(Makes 24)

Ingredients:

150g butter (salted or unsalted), softened

80g light brown sugar

80g caster sugar

1 large free-range egg, at room temperature

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

225g plain flour

Pinch of salt (add 1/4 teaspoon if using unsalted butter)

1/2 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda

200g chocolate chips (I use a mix of dark and milk chocolate chips and chunks), plus extra for decoration

Method:

Preheat oven to 190°C / 170°C Fan / 375°F / Gas Mark 5. Cream the butter, brown sugar and caster sugar together until pale and creamy.
Add the egg and the vanilla extract and beat until completely incorporated.
Sift the flour, salt and bicarbonate of soda together over the top of the mixture and gently fold in until a few specks of flour remains.
Now add the chocolate chips and fold them through until evenly distributed throughout the cookie dough.
Cover and chill the dough for 15 minutes (this is an optional step).
Divide the cookie dough into 24 equally sized pieces, roll into balls between your palms. Evenly spread on two to three large baking trays lined with parchment paper or silicone baking mats (leave a gap between each cookie to allow for spreading).
Bake the cookies for 8-10 minutes until they’ve turned a light golden colour. When the cookies come out the oven they will appear under baked, however, as they cool they will firm up.
Allow the cookies to cool on the baking trays for a few minutes. As the cookies cool you can press a few extra chocolate chips on the tops if desired, then gently transport the cookies to a wire rack to finish cooling completely. The cookies will store in an airtight container for up to one week, but they’re best eaten on the day of baking or the day after.

Recipe from Bake Play Smile

Get your apron and mixing bowl at the ready, it’s now your turn to bake these divine chocolate chip cookies!

Keep up to date with me on:

Like my Facebook page here

Instagram: @whatjessicabakednext

Twitter: @jessbakednext

Pinterest: @jessbakednext

Baking · Biscuits and Cookies · Chocolate

Classic Chocolate Chip Cookies

September 1, 2015January 7, 2017 What Jessica Baked Next72 Comments

Classic chocolate chip cookies. Soft, chewy and totally addictive!

Cookies are one of my food guilty pleasures, I love going back-to-basics and I thought it was about time share my go-to cookie recipe, jam packed full of gooey chocolate chips! I cannot think of anything more delicious!

Chocolate chip cookies are the ultimate treat. I think we can all pretty much agree on that? The perfect cookie in my opinion has to be soft and with chewiness to it. I’m not a fan of big cake-y cookies, I like a slight crisp outside, but a chewy interior.

I found the recipe for these delicious cookies when I was reading my friend Lilly’s blog post. She baked these cookies from Sally’s Baking Addiction (one of my fave blogs!) – they looked so delicious, that I had to try them out for myself! These cookies are simply the BEST chocolate chip cookies I’ve ever made and eaten.

I’m so happy to finally find a great chocolate chip cookie recipe! Most the cookies I’ve made before have either been dense, flat and greasy from too much butter and way too sweet. I once even added too much chocolate – yes, you can go overboard with the chocolate! I don’t even want to admit the amount of cookie dough and cookies I’ve munched my way through to find this brilliant recipe!

I love the addition of brown sugar in cookie dough – this brings a gorgeous caramel flavour to each bite. The other “secret” ingredient is cornflour (cornstarch), this guarantees the cookies are ultra chewy and soft – you must add it for the best CCC’s! Just a few teaspoons will make a whole lot of difference.

Preparing the cookie dough is really simple, it’s an all-in-one method with no mixer required! The hardest part is definitely resisting eating spoonful after spoonful of the uncooked dough! I’m sure we’re all guilty of doing this? 😉

I did my research and most sources suggested resting and allowing the cookie dough to chill in the refrigerator overnight. Overnight chilling not only adds to the flavour, but it will produce a thicker and far chewier cookie. It’s really tempting to bake the cookie dough straight away, but it is definitely worth the wait. Try it and you will see!

With this recipe I sometimes use a mix of milk and dark chocolate chips – this balances the sweetness and richness but if you prefer you can swap the chocolate chips for chunks of chocolate. When I visited New York last March, I was lucky enough to visit Jacques Torres chocolate factory in Brooklyn and have tour around the factory by Jacques himself. It was great to watch all the chocolate being crafted ready for Easter and see behind-the-scenes. I even got the chance to try his famous chocolate chip cookies. They were simply to die-for-good, the memories of biting into that chocolatey cookie…

I hope enjoying making and eating these as much as we did! Enjoy!

(Makes 16-20 depending on size)

Ingredients:

280g (2 and 1/4 cups) plain flour (all-purpose flour)

1 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda (baking soda)

1 and 1/2 teaspoons cornflour

1/2 teaspoon salt

170g (3/4 cup) unsalted butter, melted (not boiling hot, cooled slightly)

135g (3/4 cup) light brown sugar

100g (1/2 cup) granulated sugar

1 large egg

1 large egg yolk

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

180g (1 cup) chocolate chips – I used a mix of milk and dark chocolate

Method:

In a small mixing bowl toss together the flour, baking soda, cornflour and salt until combined.
In a smaller bowl melt the butter. Add the sugars to the butter along with the vanilla and mix together until combined, this will take about 2 minutes.
Add the egg and egg yolk to the mixture and beat in to combine fully.
Fold the flour in, and mix until the dough starts to clump together. Finish by folding through the chocolate chips. Be careful not to over mix!
Place the cookie dough in a small bowl, cover with plastic wrap and leave to chill in the refrigerator for at least 2 hours. I made mine ahead of time and chilled the dough overnight – this is recommended.
When you’re ready to bake the cookies, preheat your oven to 325°/160 Fan assisted. Take the dough out of the refrigerator and allow to come up to room temperature – this will take about 10 minutes.
Portion the dough into balls – weigh for accuracy. Approx. 40g for each cookie. Now roll the cookie into an elongated shape – this will stop the cookie spreading out too much during baking.
Line 2-3 large baking sheets. Spread the cookies out on the baking sheets. Bake for 10-13 minutes, or until the cookies are a light golden colour.
Allow cookies to cool on the baking sheets for 2-3 minutes, then carefully transport to a wire rack to finish cooling completely.
Best enjoyed with a glass of milk or sandwiched together with ice cream! Enjoy!

Recipe Notes:

If using salted butter, reduce the salt to 1/4 tsp.
You can use a mix of milk and dark chocolate chips, if preferred.
Chill cookie dough for at least 2 hours prior to baking, overnight will produce the best results.

Recipe inspiration from Sally’s Baking Addiction