Chewy & Soft Vegan Chocolate Chip Cookies (Better Than Tollhouse!)
These are the best vegan chocolate chip cookies you’ll ever make thanks to using dairy free yogurt as the vegan egg replacement!! Chewy edges and soft, warm molten middles studded with melty chocolate chips. Easy to make with ingredients you probably already have, absolutely no one will know these cookies are vegan, no dairy and no eggs!
This cookie recipe is so good, it’s the same recipe I used to develop my small batch chocolate chip cookies (for when you just need 3 or 4 chocolate chip cookies) AND my single serve chocolate chip cookie!
My latest video:
Quick Look: Vegan Chocolate Chip Cookies
- Method: One bowl, a whisk, and a silicone spatula. Whisk the wet ingredients, fold in the dry, scoop, chill, & bake!
- Why Make THIS Version? Crisp, golden edges meets soft, chewy centers with molten chocolate chips- all without eggs & dairy!
- Secret to Success: Using dairy-free yogurt as the vegan egg replacement for the perfect chewy & soft texture.
- Key Ingredients: All-purpose flour, light brown sugar, granulated sugar, vegan butter, dairy free yogurt.
- Baking time: 12-15 minutes.
- Freezer-Friendly: Yes. Freeze your finished cookies for up to 3 months (and even the cookie dough!)
Table of contents
- My latest video:
- Quick Look: Vegan Chocolate Chip Cookies
- Reader Review:
- Why my vegan chocolate chip cookie recipe works:
- Key ingredients:
- How to make the best vegan chocolate chip cookies:
- Figuring out baking time for this vegan cookie recipe:
- Common mistakes when making this cookie recipe:
- Vegan Chocolate Chip Cookies FAQ’s:
- Other vegan cookie recipes you’ll LOVE:
- Chewy & Soft Vegan Chocolate Chip Cookies (Better Than Tollhouse!) Recipe
Reader Review:
Why my vegan chocolate chip cookie recipe works:
These vegan chocolate chip cookies should just be labelled as the best chocolate chip cookies. Because they’re not amazing for being vegan. They’re amazing. Period.
Not flat, like other vegan cookies, not too puffy, just right chewy edges with soft, warm molten centers.
It’s the top vegan cookie recipe on my blog (along with these amazing vegan double chocolate chip cookies, which made it into my first cookbook!) and is the base cookie dough I use for all of my cookies (including my chewy vegan peanut butter chocolate chip cookies!).
My secret ingredient: dairy free yogurt. The absolute best vegan egg replacement to exist for cookies. The result is identical to eggs, it’s uncanny.
I rigorously tested this recipe over the years with multiple vegan egg replacements, and I swear (and readers agree) this is what makes them taste like Tollhouse cookies: crispy, chewy edges with a molten, SOFT center. Ugh, YUM. In fact, the dough is so good, I even used it to create my edible vegan cookie dough recipe!
And did I mention, it’s easier than traditional cookies?? 😉 Just a bowl and a whisk is needed- no fancy equipment nor methods!
Key ingredients:
- Vegan butter: Some vegan cookie recipes on the internet suggest coconut oil, but I’m not a fan of this. This is because coconut oil is 100% fat, whereas traditional dairy butter is about 80-82%. That means the rest is water, which adds moisture. KEY. The more fat you have, the “shorter” the cookie (think shortbread: crumbly), but we want soft and chewy, so coconut oil just doesn’t work here. That’s why I recommend using a good vegan butter. Currently, I make my own (coming soon!), but Plant Crock is a great option.
- Dairy-free yogurt: the secret ingredient to making these vegan cookies irresistibly gooey and perfect! It might sound weird to make vegan chocolate chip cookies with yogurt, but trust me this is the key (check out my vegan egg replacements guide here for more on that).
- Vegan Chocolate chips: The chocolate you use in your CHOCOLATE chip cookie matters! And using multiple varieties REALLY boosts depth of flavor. My go-to combination is: Enjoy Life dairy free “milk” chocolate chip with Valrhona Oriado chocolate feves.
- All-purpose flour: Like any classic chocolate chip cookie recipe (including my vegan double chocolate chip cookies!), all-purpose flour is a must! For my gluten-free bakers, I have tested this recipe with gluten-free 1:1 flour (specifically King Arthur Measure for Measure gluten-free flour), and it works wonderfully!
- Light brown sugar: I’ve spent so many years developing this recipe and playing around with different ratios of sugar (because that’s another key driver of texture in a cookie recipe!). What I’ve found is that a ratio with higher light brown sugar to granulated in a vegan cookie recipe gives the proper chewy texture while also helping the cookies spread just enough.
- Granulated sugar: My biggest note here is using vegan sugar. Not all granulated sugar is vegan in the U.S. due to processing with bone char. A brand that’s certified vegan (like Florida Crystals or Wholesome Sweets) OR is certified organic will be naturally vegan.
- Baking soda: Seems like an odd ingredient to need to talk about, but I’ve seen SO many chocolate chip cookies call for both baking soda AND baking powder. In my testing, I’ve found that this recipe only needs one– baking soda. If I used baking powder, the cookies would puff up way too much.
How to make the best vegan chocolate chip cookies:
1. Chop the chocolate (if using! Or you can just use chocolate chips). A mix of both vegan milk chocolate and dark chocolate produces such a good, rich flavor!
2. Next, whisk together the wet ingredients. This is your melted vegan butter, light brown sugar, sugar, vanilla extract, and sea salt. Then whisk in the baking soda.
3. Add in the flour and cornstarch, and fold JUST before the dry ingredients are fully incorporated.
4. Add in both your chopped chocolate and chocolate chips. I’ve found this gives my chocolate chip cookies more flavor depth and texture variety with pockets of mixed chocolate!
5. Fold the chocolate into the dough JUST until incorporated. This prevents over-mixing of the dough. You want to make sure you don’t over-mix the dough!
6. Scoop the dough onto a baking sheet.
7. Chill the dough for 2+ hours.
8. When ready to bake, space about 2 inches apart on several baking sheets (or bake in batches!) at 350F for 12-15 minutes.
Figuring out baking time for this vegan cookie recipe:
A trick I learned years ago is to use the baking time of cookies more as guidelines for the literal recipe you’re baking in the moment. Why? Because honestly, every oven is a bit different. In my oven, I’m baking this cookie recipe for 14 minutes. This same recipe bakes for 16 minutes in my mom’s oven because it’s 30 years old, isn’t QUITE 350F when set, and it’s just different.
I always look for the doneness in the edges of the cookie. Look for the crisp slightly golden brown edges, and allow your cookies to rest after removing them from the oven.
Common mistakes when making this cookie recipe:
Swapping out the fat. I use a vegan butter that’s homemade (recipe coming soon!), but I also really like these cookies with Country Crock’s vegan butter sticks. Earth Balance has a very strong flavor, so I try to avoid that. But swapping in ingredients like coconut oil may dramatically change both the flavor and texture of your cookies, as I mentioned above.
Reducing the sugar. Using sugar isn’t just for flavor- it’s also for the science of developing the texture and the look of your cookie. If you want a moist, chewy, and soft cookie with just crisp edges, you need to keep the sugar ratio the same. Altering with the sugar ratio completely alters your texture AND flavor of the cookie (like in my chewy vegan pumpkin oatmeal chocolate chip cookies!).
Not weighing the ingredients. This is one of those traditional baking tips that is paramount to any baking recipe. Weighing your ingredients will ensure that you’re not using too much flour (which will prevent your cookies from spreading properly!). Usually a cup of sugar consistently weighs what we would use for the metric measurements, but flour in particular is tricky because you can easily put way too much flour into a cup. This drastically alters your baking results!
Over-mixing the dough. This is true even if you’re using a gluten-free flour blend! Over-mixing the dough creates a tough texture in your cookies. I try to stop JUST before the dry ingredients are incorporated. Then add in the chocolate chips and fold JUST until the chocolate is evenly distributed throughout the dough.
Vegan Chocolate Chip Cookies FAQ’s:
100%. I actually really question recipes that don’t call for chilling your cookie dough for this vegan chocolate chip cookie recipe because I’ve found in testing my recipe, not only does chilling the dough help with texture or look, but it also helps develop the flavor of your cookies! I recommend chilling my vegan chocolate chip cookie dough for at least 2 hours to really lock in flavor and texture.
Absolutely! I sometimes stir in vegan candy bits (like vegan candy-coated gems that mimic M&Ms, crushed chocolate creme cookies (like my homemade vegan Oreo cookies!), or even chopped nuts (toast them in the oven first!). It’s also why I created my vegan s’mores cookies with crushed graham crackers and gooey vegan marshmallows from this very dough!
Yes, absolutely! I do this all of the time actually. Make sure to pre-scoop the dough and then let it chill for 5 minutes in the freezer unwrapped. This helps the dough set so you can then properly wrap and chill the dough without squishing the form. I’ve baked the dough from frozen before, but 5 minute on the counter as the oven preheats will give these cookies the perfect amount of spreading in the oven.
Easy- too much flour. If you’re using US Cups, it’s so easy to over-measure the flour (I’ve done it!). I highly recommend using a kitchen scale and the metric system when baking this recipe.
Other vegan cookie recipes you’ll LOVE:
Vegan Stuffed Nutella Chocolate Chip Cookies
🌟MADE THIS RECIPE & LOVED IT?🌟I’d love it if you’d like a comment and a rating ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ below! This helps others to find the recipes! As always, I absolutely love to see your beautiful creations on Instagram and Pinterest, so be sure to tag me there as well!
Print
Chewy & Soft Vegan Chocolate Chip Cookies (Better Than Tollhouse!)
- Prep Time: 7
- Cook Time: 15
- Total Time: 22 minutes
- Yield: 18 1x
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
- Diet: Vegan
Description
These are the best vegan chocolate chip cookies you’ll ever make!! Chewy edges and soft, molten middles studded with melty chocolate chips. Easy to make with ingredients you probably already have, absolutely no one will know these cookies are vegan, no dairy and no eggs thanks to our secret and simple ingredient!
Ingredients
- 2 1/4 cups (280 g) all purpose flour or gluten free 1:1 baking flour , sifted and spoon & leveled*
- 1 tbsp cornstarch or arrowroot starch
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1/4 tsp sea salt
- 2/3 cup (150 g) salted vegan butter, melted and cooled to room temperature
- 1 cup (200 g) light brown sugar
- 1/2 cup (100 g) organic granulated sugar
- 1/3 cup (85 g) dairy-free yogurt, room temperature
- 1 tbsp vanilla extract
- 1 cup (170 g) vegan chocolate chips* (semi-sweet or your choice!)
Instructions
- Prep: Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper, and measure out all ingredients.
- Whisk: In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, cornstarch baking soda, and sea salt. Set aside.
- Make the dough: In a large bowl, whisk together the vegan butter, sugar, brown sugar, dairy free yogurt, and vanilla. Then add in the flour, baking soda, and sea salt. Use a rubber spatula to fold together. Stop just before all of the flour is mixed in.
- Add in the chocolate chips: Fold in chocolate chips until evenly distributed.
- Scoop: Using a cookie scoop, and roll about 1.5 tablespoons of dough per cookie for regular sized cookies, or 3 tablespoons of dough for large cookies onto the sheet.
- Chill: Chill the dough for at least 30 minutes, but preferably 2 hours. The longer, the better, as the flavor will develop even more. When the dough is nearly done chilling, preheat the oven to 350F.
- Bake: Place into oven and bake for 12-15 minutes (my oven, I bake them exactly 14 minutes each time for large cookies) or until the edges are lightly golden and are “set.” The middles shouldn’t be dough-y looking, but if they’re still soft, that’s perfectly fine.
- Cool: Remove from the oven and let cool for 10 minutes. This allows the cookies to firm up to hold together.
- Enjoy: Sprinkle with extra sea salt and enjoy! Store these cookies at room temperature in an airtight container for up to 4 days, a week in the fridge, or a month in the freezer.
Notes
Gluten free: I really only recommend using King Arthur Measure-for-Measure Gluten Free Flour or a similar blend with xanthan gum that also weighs 125 g per cup. Please note that Bob’s Red Mill 1:1 GF Flour will NOT work here.
Dairy free yogurt: I really recommend using dairy-free yogurt here, but if you can’t access it, you can use unsweetened applesauce.
Baking times: baking times will vary based on your kitchen and oven temperatures. Be sure to watch your cookies and bake according to your own oven. Read my tips in the post for how to ensure your cookies are done.
Vegan Chocolate Chips: I recommend Enjoy Life and some of the Valrhona feves are naturally dairy free and vegan (like the Oriado blend- my favorite!).
- Room temperature: Store the cookies at room temperature on a plate and wrapped in plastic wrap or in an airtight container. They’ll last for about 5 days at room temperature.
- Fridge: Store the cookies in an airtight container (this will keep them from drying out). They’ll last for about 7-8 days, depending on how cold your fridge is.
- Freezer: Store them in a plastic airtight bag or container for up to 3 months.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 cookies
- Calories: 258
- Sugar: 23.9 g
- Sodium: 113.4 mg
- Fat: 9.8 g
- Saturated Fat: 3.8 g
- Carbohydrates: 39.2 g
- Fiber: 1.8 g
- Protein: 5.1 g
- Cholesterol: 0.7 mg
What is your trick for applesauce in the recipe? I’ve used applesauce in the past and have found it to be too cakey. I’ve used store-bought Trader Joe’s applesauce before. Will homemade applesauce by grinding apples work better?
I actually recommend dairy free yogurt! Applesauce will yield a flatter cookie I’ve found (and sometimes has a weird tang, I think because applesauce is a bit more acidic! Which also explains why it’s flatter, the acid reacts with the baking soda, but because it’s a different dry to wet ratio than say a cake, you’re not going to get a sturdy enough rise, so it collapses after!).
Hello! In your newest YouTube video, you mention adding cornstarch.
I do not see it listed in the recipe? How much would I add? Thank you and I look forward to baking these cookies!
Yes!! 1 tbsp 🙂
Hello! I am confused about if we need to chill the dough or not? I saw at the top, it says not to chill but then the instructions near the bottom said the longer you chill the dough, the better. Just checking which is accurate or the most updated. Can’t wait to try and thank you!
Hi Andrea! So sorry about that! Updating the post now, but for the most updated recipes you can always follow the recipe card at the bottom of the page. So in this case, you’ll chill the dough for at least 30 minutes. 🙂 Can’t wait to hear how they turn out!
can I replace the yogurt with an egg?
Hi Natalie! Yes, you can – 1 egg = 1/4 cup (62 g) yogurt. Hope this helps!
Just baked these but they don’t flatten in the oven. Any recommendations?
Hi Nosheen! So sorry about that! My first thought would be that maybe you used too much flour? That can cause the cookies to not spread! Make sure you’re spooning and leveling the flour- not scooping! If you used a dark baking sheet, this also prevents them from spreading as much. I hope this helps! 🙂
I just attempted this recipe, however was slightly disappointed to find that the cookies ended up being more cake-like than cookie. For reference, the only alteration I made was that the yogurt was still chilled instead of room temp, and I added one scoop of protein powder to the mix. Was I suppose to flatten the balls when I put them on the tray? I’m not sure where I went wrong.
Hi Samone! Sorry to hear this! My first thought would be that maybe you used too much flour. Make sure you’re spooning and leveling the flour- not scooping. 🙂 If you used a dark baking sheet, this also prevents them from spreading as much and could make them appear more cake-like. Hope this helps!
OMG!!! AMAZING AND BEST COOIES EVER!! Hubby and I had a chocolate chip cookie bake off and these won hands down! Thank you! This is the first recipe from your website I’ve made but will not be my last. Followed the recipe exact using the apple sauce instead of yogurt as it’s to hard to find a good tasting vegan yogurt in our area – Will make again for sure!
This is so wonderful!! Thank you so much for such a wonderful review!! So glad to have you here 🙂 Enjoy!! Can’t wait to hear what you try next!
Delicious cookies!!! Do you think this recipe could make one huge chocolate chip cookie baked in a cast iron skillet?
Yes you can!! I’ve done it a few times 🙂 Enjoy!!
Just incredible!!! Stayed soft (very soft) even the next day. I used Trader Joe’s dairy free cashew plain yogurt. The dough really does taste like toll house. Love the non-complicated ingredients, overall very easy to make. I let my dough sit in the fridge for approx 4 hours before baking. Thanks for another win banana diaries!
Hi Aliese! Amazing! So happy you found it to be not only delicious, but easy too! Thanks so much for being here!
I’m not sure what I’m doing wrong but these cookies spread and the edges become very crunchy (not like your photos). I follow everything exactly, including cooling time. The flavour is still delicious but they are not doing what I expect them to? I’m not sure if I should reduce my oven to 325 or reduce bake time but was seeing if you had any insight!
Hi Clare! So sorry about this! Did you use a piece of parchment paper on the baking sheet? This helps the cookies not spread SO much on a light colored baking sheet! You can also use a silpat! A darker colored baking sheet prevents them from spreading as much too! I hope this helps!
Hello,
Just to confirm, do we need to add cornstarch or not? It’s not listed in the ingredients, but it says to add it to the flour in the instructions. Thank you!
Hi Rachel! Just updated this, thank you! No cornstarch needed here. 🙂
Hello, I am in the middle of making them and noticed that in the ingredients it only listed flour, baking soda, and sea salt, but in the directions it mentions adding cornstarch as well! I came back to the page and started watching the video and now I am even more confused! In the recipe it says 280g of flour. But in the video you say it’s 180g of sour. You also say you are adding baking soda and baking powder, but baking powder is not mentioned anywhere in the recipe! I did not go through the rest of it because I am stuck in the middle of it and don’t know what I am supposed to be adding or not adding! I already mixed 280 g of flour with the salt and baking soda 🙁
Hi Rachel! SO Sorry about this! We just updated this and removed the cornstarch altogether. We’re also working on a new video but for the most updated version, always follow the recipe card at the bottom of the page! Thank you for your help!
hello!! i was wondering if it’s possibly use less than the tablespoon of vanilla extract?? it’s just a lot of vanilla and those bottles aren’t cheap😂😂
Hi Sasha! I personally don’t know if it would taste quite as good but you’re welcome to give it a shot, and I totally understand! 🙂
hi there!! so i was wondering if this recipe would be good to make one of those giant cookie cakes in a round pan, and if so, do i need to double the batch or not, and also how to bake it pretty please!!!
Hi Sasha! I’ve done this in an 8×8 pan, I recommend about 23-26 minutes at 350! Not sure what size pan you planned on using? You may have to double the recipe!
This woman is a genius! Loved this recipe. Only advice I would give is to bake it for longer, my oven isn’t hot enough I guess I had to bake them for 14 minutes. Make sure they are lightly golden in the sides before taking them out.
You are just so kind 🙂 Seriously thank you!! So so appreciate you! Enjoy, and thanks for being here!