1 bowl, 10 ingredients, 30 minutes and you have yourself easy chewy vegan molasses cookies! These cookies are crisp on the outside and chewy on the inside, bursting with ginger and molasses, making them the perfect Christmas cookie.
Out of all of the desserts in the world I think cookies are my favourite... well that and my confetti cake... and my pumpkin pie... ok I just like dessert. But cookies definitely rank up there in the dessert world as one of the most perfect sweet treats. Handheld, perfect for dipping, sharing, gifting, what's not to love?
These vegan molasses cookies are a classic Christmas staple. With the combination of spices and molasses, they taste almost like gingerbread, but SO much better. Not only are these easy to make and addictively scrumptious, but they store well for up to a week or you can make them ahead of time and freeze them. If a guest pops by or you need to bring something to a party, you can have these gorgeous treats ready to go!
To make vegan molasses cookies:
In a large bowl, use a mixer to beat the vegan butter and brown sugar together until fluffy.
Add the molasses and vanilla extract and mix in. Then add the flour, pumpkin pie spice, baking soda, ground ginger, and salt and mix until a cookie dough forms.
Pour the white sugar into a small bowl. Take about 2 tablespoons of the cookie dough and roll into a ball, then slightly flatten the ball. Take the flattened cookie dough ball and roll it in the white sugar then place on the prepared baking sheet. Repeat with the remaining dough to make about 18 cookies.
(The cookies don't spread a ton, so by flattening them slightly it will prevent them from being too thick).
Bake for 10 - 15 minutes until the cookies are cracked and the bottoms are browned. Remove from the oven and let cool on the pan. Store in an air-tight container at room temperature for 5 - 7 days, or freeze for later.
Bon appetegan!
Sam
Easy Chewy Vegan Molasses cookies
Ingredients
- ¾ cup vegan butter
- ¾ cup brown sugar
- ¼ cup fancy molasses
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 ¼ cups all-purpose flour
- 2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice
- 1 ½ teaspoons baking soda
- 1 teaspoon ground ginger
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ¼ cup white sugar (for rolling)
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 350F (180F) and line two large baking sheets with parchment paper.
- In a large bowl, use a mixer to beat the vegan butter and brown sugar together until fluffy. Add the molasses and vanilla extract and mix in. Then add the flour, pumpkin pie spice, baking soda, ground ginger, and salt and mix until a cookie dough forms.
- Pour the white sugar into a small bowl. Take about 2 tablespoons of the cookie dough and roll into a ball, then slightly flatten the ball. Take the flattened cookie dough ball and roll it in the white sugar then place on the prepared baking sheet. Repeat with the remaining dough to make about 18 cookies. (The cookies don't spread a ton, so by flattening them slightly it will prevent them from being too thick).
- Bake for 10 - 15 minutes until the cookies are cracked and the bottoms are browned. Remove from the oven and let cool on the pan.
Notes
Nutrition
Anna Groeger says
Oh my gosh! These are officially my new favorite cookie recipe! Made them yesterday, and I’m about ready to hide what’s left to keep them all for myself! They are the perfect texture, so soft, and they taste absolutely perfect!
Deb says
Not only do I love these as a cookie, but I use it as a crust for my vegan pumpkin pie.
Love Love Love this recipe!
Sharon Blaskovits says
I made these and the shortbread cookies AND the banana chocolate chip squares. My fiancée is gluten-free so I used gluten-free flour. All three are so good! Great website! Thank you for the wonderful recipes!!
Medically Required Vegan says
I was excited to try these but how do they work with other sugars? White sugar isn’t vegan unless it’s chard free- I’m assuming that would work right?
Stacy Wilder says
I have never made molasses cookies before, but they are one of my favorite holiday cookies. I always rely on my MIL to make them, but because of Covid she will not be able to see us this year. Not to mention, this is my first vegan Christmas, so I wouldn't have eaten hers anyway. So I was super excited to find this recipe. These are so good and they were EASY! I may or may not have already eaten 4 of the 18 😉
KArenina says
Can I ask, if i dont have pumpkin spice? is there something else i can put instead? Thank you!
Sam Turnbull says
I would recommend making your own pumpkin spice blend. You can follow my recipe here.
Claire says
I didn't have pumpkin pie spice and wanted to make a spicy gingerbready flavoured cookie, so I took some inspiration from Sam's gingerbread cupcake recipe and used (all these are dry, ground spices):
1 Tbsp ginger
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1/4 tsp allspice
1/4 tsp cloves
a few twists of freshly ground black pepper
This is my new go-to Christmas cookie recipe! Quick, easy, tasty, and such a great texture. I let the dough rest before baking and flattened the cookies more than in the picture and was very pleased with the result.
When the dough was mixing up, I was highly skeptical. It looked way too dry, but I needn't have worried. It came together beautifully in the end. <3
Megan says
LOVED this recipe. So easy and tasty!
Heather says
I used Earth Balance but my dough never formed, it stayed a dry crumbly sandy texture.
Heather says
I ended up adding a splash of soy milk after this initial comment. I made these, the sugar cookies, and the oatmeal chocolate cookies as part of my Christmas cookies. These were so easy to make, so delicious, and I can't recommend this enough.
Sam Turnbull says
Yay!
Sam Turnbull says
When that happens you can always add a splash of non-dairy milk or water to reach the desired consistency. Flour can sometimes be more or less absorbent depending on the weather.
Mary-Alice DeSpain says
Oh my gosh!!! These just came out of the oven a half hour ago and they are wonderful. I made them for my granddaughter who is vegan. I wanted her to be able to enjoy some Christmas cookies too. They are so good and flavorful. I made one mistake though. The second batch that went in the oven I forgot to start the timer! They are hard but still delish. I hope I can figure out how to soften them up again.
If you are on the fence about trying these don't be. They are worth it. Your non-vegan friends or family will not know the difference. So yummy!
Sam Turnbull says
Thrilled you enjoyed them so much, Mary-Alice!
Mommy55 says
Late reply but I’ve heard bread softens them up. Just put a slice of bread in the jar or container with them for a little bit.
Nicole says
I can't find any butter I can use, due to food allergies. Is there anything I can substitute? I have tons of allergies but can't have dairy, corn or coconut. Anyone have any suggestions outside of those?
Sam Turnbull says
Other than coconut oil, I'm afraid I do not know. Sorry I can't be more help!
Mommy55 says
Maybe Avacado butter? I’ve heard bananas or applesauce might work. Best of luck.
Eliana says
Try substituting flax seed for butter. That is what I am going to do.
Flax Substitution tips
For Fats & Oils -
3 tbsp (45 mL) ground flax seed for each 1 tbsp (15 mL) of margarine, butter, or cooking oil (3 to 1).
Flax can be substituted for all or some of the fat, depending on the recipe. Note that baked goods substituting ground flaxseed for cooking fats and oils will cause baked goods to brown more rapidly.
Also you may have to add less flour so that the dough will not be too thick.
For Flour -
A general rule of substitution for flour is to reduce the flour by 1/2 to 3/4 cup and add the equivalent in flax flour. The fiber content of flaxseed flour may require some additional liquid when converting recipes.
For Eggs -
This is especially for those who cook Gluten Free food!
Substitute ground flax seed & water mixture for eggs in recipes such as pancakes, muffins, and cookies.
Use 1 tbsp (15 mL) ground flax plus 3 tbsp (45 mL) water - left sitting for several minutes - for each egg.
Note that this will result in a chewier version of the recipe with less volume.
Substitute Flax in Your Recipes
Elly Russell says
I just used canola oil (it’s all I had available) and they came out great!
Maggie says
I used Earth Balance butter and my cookies came out tasty but really hard...I’m not sure what happened? The butter was cold since I didn’t see anything about it softening it....should I have softened first? Thanks!
Sam Turnbull says
The butter would be fine, more likely they got overcooked a bit. Cookies get hard when cooked longer. Next time try taking them out a few minutes earlier.
Kathryn True says
Yum! I didn't use ground ginger since there's already some in the pumpkin spice but that probably would have made them even yummier. Walmart had Grandma brand molasses (in the US) which seems to work just fine.
Sam Turnbull says
Wonderful! So happy you enjoyed 🙂
Tiffany says
Looking forward to trying this recipe!!
What is fancy molasses, and how does it differ from black strap molasses?
Sam Turnbull says
Thanks Tiffany! You can read more about the different types of molasses here. ENjoy!
Lisa says
This is a great ginger cookie recipe. I substituted apple sauce for some of the vegan butter and am very pleased with the texture and taste!! Will make again for the holidays.
Love your recipes! First came to this site for seitan recipes but have found so many more including this yummy cookie recipe. Thank you
Sam Turnbull says
Aww that's wonderful, so happy you're enjoying my recipes, Lisa 🙂
Lorie says
Just made these tonight and they are delicious. I couldn't resist adding a pinch of cloves and an extra pinch of cinnamon. I also made them last year and they were a hit by all, vegan and non vegan.
Sam Turnbull says
So happy you enjoyed!
Amanda Kaye says
Made these last night........ Tasted one, for quality control Just as well you can freeze them, otherwise, there may not be any left for Christmas. They are very yummy.
Sam Turnbull says
Haha! Glad you enjoyed, Amanda 🙂
Des says
Made the recipe exactly as written. I found they did spread but our oven runs hot. They were amazing! Can’t wait to serve them to my omni family this Christmas
Sam Turnbull says
So happy you enjoyed!!
Sirpa says
Just made a test batch of these to see what they were like (for the holidays) and they’re dangerously addictive. Another corker of a recipe! ❤️
Sam Turnbull says
Yay!!!
Yulca says
Made these today with omnivore friends & everyone loved them, asking for seconds and thirds - vegan baking for the win!
Although they did spread out quite a bit (I guess the oven was too hot from another batch of cookies we had made right before), they still remained both crispy and chewy. Yum!
Sam Turnbull says
Glad you enjoyed! The spreading could be if you used a different brand of vegan butter, as some are softer than others.
Chris says
Has anyone tried making these with a gluten free flour and/or sugar substitute such as exthirol
Sam Turnbull says
I haven't but I know that Bob's Red Mill 1 to 1 generally works for my recipes. 🙂
Genie says
Is there a specific type of molasses that's best to use? I have black strap molasses.
Brigitte says
I’m wondering the same thing. Fantasy or blackstrap?
Sam Turnbull says
Yes, apologies, I used fancy molasses 🙂
Chris says
I’ll give it a go. Thanks for your reply Sam
Sharon Sawdon says
Does the molasses act as the egg substitute? Thanks! Will be making these over the holidays.
Sam Turnbull says
Nope, I find you often don't even really need an egg substitute in most cookie recipes. This one included!
Bethery says
Who said anything about sharing with Santa?
Sam Turnbull says
Bahahaha!
Del says
I love this recipe! My grandmother used to make these (not vegan of course) so I am so happy to have them again! I have made the recipe twice now and both times I needed to add 1/4 cup almond milk for the dough to come together. Both times they came out moist and delicious. Great recipe! Thank you!
Adrienne Harding-Jacques says
i also had to add almond milk to mine. I really think it depends on the brand of flour you use. I think some are more dry. Really liked this recipe too!
Sam Turnbull says
Oh good to note! Different vegan butters may be the reason you need more or less liquid. Glad it worked for you 🙂
Liz says
Love your recipes Sam! Can’t wait to include these cookies in my holiday baking!
Sam Turnbull says
Yay! Happy holidays!