by If you love chocolate and peppermint as much as I do, you’re going to be a huge fan of these Vegan Peppermint Chocolate Cookies.
If I had to pick a favorite holiday flavor combination, it would definitely be chocolate and peppermint.
There’s something about the sweetness of the chocolate and the coolness of peppermint that just instantly reminds me of the holidays. Of course, you can enjoy these cookies any time of year, but I always forget about chocolate and peppermint until December rolls around (anyone else?).
I really wanted to create a holiday cookie recipe that was simple enough to throw together in just 30-minutes, but that wasn’t the typical gingerbread or sugar cookie. Little did I know that these cookies would turn into one of my all-time favorite vegan dessert recipes– Seriously, they’re that good.
If you’re as big of a fan of delicious one-bowl cookie recipes as I am, you need to try my Easy Vegan Snickerdoodle Cookies next!
There’s something so special to me about taking the time to bake during the holidays since it’s usually such a hectic time. But taking an hour to create something festive and delicious while listening to holiday music and enjoying a hot chocolate is such a great way to take some time for you this holiday season.
I’ve used part almond flour and part all-purpose flour to make these peppermint chocolate cookies, but if you don’t have almond flour on hand you could try using sunflower seed flour- I often do this as a replacement for almond flour in recipes- or I’m sure just using all-purpose flour would work, too!
Why I love these peppermint chocolate cookies:
- They’re quick and easy- they come together in less than 30-minutes, which is perfect if you need a last-minute dessert!
- They’re the perfect balance of chocolate and peppermint. I’ve found that other peppermint chocolate cookies may not use enough peppermint, or enough chocolate, but these are the perfect balance of both.
- They’re so festive! If you don’t feel like making the typical gingerbread or sugar cookies, these are a welcomed change while still being festive
- They’re great to make with kids. Give them the job of sprinkling the candy cane on afterward and they’ll love helping!
- Did I mention they’re delicious?
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Main ingredients
Almond flour: I’ve used part almond flour, part all-purpose flour in this recipe because I love the slightly nutty flavor and moist texture that almond flour lends to baking. Plus, it’s packed with fiber, plant-based protein and calcium! If you don’t have almond flour on hand, you could make sunflower seed flour by blending raw unsalted sunflower seeds in a high-speed blender, food processor or even coffee grinder until you get a fine, flour-like consistency. Although I’ve never tried this recipe using all all-purpose flour, I’m sure it would turn out great!
Flax egg: One of my favorite baking hacks is using a flax egg instead of regular eggs! If you’ve never made a flax egg before, it’s super easy. Just mix 1 tablespoon of ground flaxseeds with 2.5 tablespoons of warm water. Let the mixture sit for about five minutes until it has gelled. If you don’t have flax seeds on hand, you can sub for chia seeds! Both flax and chia are a great source of healthy fats, omega-3s, and fiber!
Peppermint extract: I always thought peppermint extract was a hard-to-find ingredient, but little did I know most grocery stores sell it! It’s usually found in the baking aisle next to the vanilla extract and usually costs less than $5. With that being said, if you don’t feel like running out to the store, you could forgo the peppermint extract and just use candy canes n top of the cookies, but note that they won’t be very pepperminty.
Recipe Notes
- This recipe uses part almond flour and part regular all-purpose flour, but feel free to use all all-purpose flour. I haven’t tested them this way, but I’m sure they’d turn out great! I’ve never tried them using 100% almond flour, but let me know if you try it out!
- Feel free to increase or decrease the amount of peppermint extract in these cookies based on your own taste preference.
- If you don’t have pre-crushed candy canes, add them (unwrapped) to a small plastic bag and use a heavy object to crush them. You can also add them to a high-speed, high-powered blender for a few seconds.
- Avoid overcooking these cookies.
Vegan Peppermint Chocolate Cookies
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
- 3/4 cup almond flour, can be subbed with sunflower seed flour or more all-purpose flour
- 1/2 cup white sugar
- 1/2 cup vegan butter
- 1 tbsp ground flax seeds, can be subbed with chia seeds
- 2.5 tbsp warm water
- 1/3 cup cocoa powder
- 1 tsp peppermint extract
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1/4 tsp baking powder
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1/3 cup vegan chocolate chips, I used PC Brand semi-sweet
- 1/4 cup crushed candy cane
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 F. Lay parchment paper or grease a large baking sheet.
- In a small bowl, mix ground flax seeds and warm water. Let sit for 5 minutes, or until gelled.
- In a large bowl, cream together vegan butter and sugar.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together almond flour, all-purpose flour, cocoa powder, salt, baking soda, and baking powder.
- Add flour mixture to the creamed vegan butter and sugar, along with the flax egg, peppermint extract and chocolate chips. Mix until combined.
- Spoon cookie dough mixture onto the lined baking sheet (about 3 tbsp per cookie). The recipe should make about 12 cookies.
- Bake for 10-11 minutes, until edges look cooked but not burnt. Remove from oven, sprinkle crushed candy canes on top, and let the cookies cool on the baking sheet. Serve and enjoy!
