These dairy free chocolate chip cookies are everything you could ever want in a chocolate chip cookie. They are soft, gooey, with slightly crispy edges and a buttery flavour you would never expect from non dairy cookies. Loaded with chocolate chunks, these cookies are thick and so delicious.
I’m going to be honest with you: I avoided creating my own recipe for dairy free chocolate chip cookies for a long time. Chocolate chip cookies are the most classic, simple, go-to dessert out there, and that means there are thousands of the “best chocolate chip cookie” recipes. I think the reason it’s so hard to find the “perfect” chocolate chip cookie is because what makes it perfect it’s so subjective!
I have tried many recipes for chocolate chip cookies throughout my life. Many of them have been underwhelming – and a few have been delicious!
So when I finally nailed this recipe for dairy free chocolate chip cookies – wow was I ever proud. I think they hit all the important factors that make a chocolate chip cookie universally delicious. These cookies are SO good, I can easily sit down and eat 8 of them. Not that I’m speaking from experience or anything… 😉
How to make dairy free chocolate chip cookies
Chocolate chip cookies are an interesting thing. They are so easy to make, and almost everyone has made them at least once in their life. But at the same time, we all know finding a good chocolate chip cookie recipe and having the recipe turn out as planned can be so tough.
Luckily, I’m going to give you step by step instructions to make these non dairy cookies in a way that’s foolproof and very hard to mess up!
First, begin by adding the butter, granulated sugar, and brown sugar to the bowl of a standing or handheld mixer. A quick tip for measuring brown sugar: pack it down! Brown sugar should always be packed down in the measuring cup with your fingers or the back of a spoon until it is flat on top and aligns with the rim of the measuring cup.
Beat the sugar and butters until combined, about a minute. Add in the eggs and vanilla extract, then continue beating, making sure to scrape down the sides of the bowl.
Add the dry ingredients and continue mixing until a dough forms, then add in the chocolate chunks. This recipe is loaded with chocolate, and uses dairy free chocolate chunks instead of chocolate chips. You wouldn’t think this simple swap would make much of a difference, but I’m telling you, it’s a game changer. I’m a big fan of using chocolate chunks over chocolate chips in most of my recipes; you can read here to learn why.
Use a medium cookie scoop or make 1.5-2 tbsp sized balls of dough and place them on the baking sheet, roughly 3-4 inches apart. Bake the cookies for around 8-11 minutes in the preheated oven.
Now here’s a tip I wish I learned long ago. If you want soft cookies, you need to make sure they aren’t left in the oven too long. As soon as the edges of the cookies look even the slightest bit set, you should take them out. They will continue to bake on the baking sheet. What I’ve learned with cookies is when in doubt, under-bake them. They will taste much better under-baked than they will if they’re over-baked!
Can I use white sugar instead of brown sugar?
Short answer is yes, you can if you need to. However, the long answer is that I wouldn’t recommend it. Although brown sugar and white sugar (also called granulated sugar) can often be easily substituted for each other in some recipes, the different sugars absolutely affect texture and flavour in chocolate chip cookies.
Brown sugar contains more molasses that white sugar, and it is also softer than white sugar. Using all white sugar in chocolate chip cookies will result in cookies that are less soft, and more crispy throughout. The flavour also changes slightly. Light brown sugar is definitely the key to deliciously soft chocolate chip cookies. This leads us to the next question:
Are light and dark brown sugar interchangeable?
There are two kind of brown sugars used in baking: light brown sugar and dark brown sugar (or demerara). Dark brown sugar has even more molasses in it than light brown sugar. Using dark brown sugar will give your cookies a deeper molasses flavour, make them extra chewy, and also darker in colour.
Dark brown sugar is typically used in recipes that require that deep molasses flavour like spiced cookies and gingerbread. For these dairy free chocolate chip cookies I still recommend light brown sugar but if you don’t have any, the dark brown sugar will work, the cookies will just have a slightly different flavour and texture.
Help! My brown sugar is hardened!
We all know brown sugar does this sometimes, and it’s super annoying. To prevent this from happening, I use brown sugar bears. I got a few of these in my stocking at Christmas a few years ago and I swear by them! All you do is place one of these into your sealed jar, container, or bag of brown sugar and they keep the brown sugar super soft. Plus, they are reusable! I have no idea how but all I know is these work.
If you do have brown sugar that has hardened, and you need to soften it quickly (hey I get it, sometimes cookies just can’t wait), transfer the brown sugar to a microwaveable bowl. Place a damp paper towel over top of the brown sugar and put the bowl in the microwave for 10-15 second increments, pausing in between to poke the sugar with a spoon. Continue to do this until enough of the sugar has softened and it becomes usable.
When Should I Eat These Cookies?
I’m sure we can all agree that cookies taste best the day they are baked. Once you’ve let them cool on a cooling rack for a few minutes, that is when these cookies will SHINE. That being said, it isn’t always realistic to eat a full batch of cookies in a day.
If you want to replicate that fresh out of the oven texture of these cookies a day or two after baking them, pop one in the microwave for 5-10 seconds. They will now be gooey and warm and the chocolate will be meltey again!
MORE RECIPES YOU’LL LOVE
- Apple Loaf with Cinnamon Cream Cheese Glaze (Dairy Free)
- Stuffed Cookies and Cream Cookies (Dairy Free)
- Sugar Cookie Chocolate Ice Cream (Dairy Free)
If you make this recipe, tag me on Instagram @cookiedoughdiaries so I can check it out! If you want to save this recipe for later, you can also pin it using the Pinterest button below.
Dairy Free Chocolate Chip Cookies
Equipment
- Standing or handheld mixer
- Baking Sheet
Ingredients
- 1 cup vegan or regular butter (220 g)
- ½ cup granulated sugar (110 g)
- ¾ cup light brown sugar (130 g)
- 2 eggs
- 1 tbsp vanilla extract
- ¾ tsp salt
- ¾ tsp baking soda
- ½ tsp baking powder
- 2¾ cup all-purpose flour (390 g)
- ¾-1 cup dairy free chopped chocolate chunks or chocolate chips
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 325°F and line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper.
- In a medium bowl, combine flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.
- In the bowl of a standing mixer with the paddle attachment or a handheld mixer, combine butter and sugars, mixing until smooth.
- Add in the eggs and vanilla extract, and beat until just combined (do not over-mix!).
- Mix in the dry ingredients until a dough forms. Toss in the dark chocolate and mix until just combined.
- Bake the cookies one sheet at a time for 8-11 minutes. Remove them from the oven when the edges look set. They will look under-baked in the middle! Remove from the oven and leave them on the baking sheet for 5 minutes, then transfer to a cooling rack to cool completely. Enjoy!
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Move over gma because THESE are the BEST chocolate chip cookies i’ve ever had!! Honestly nothing tops them!
Hi Shylo! Yay! I’m so happy you loved the recipe so much! Thanks so much for giving it a try 🙂
Thanks for the cookie recipe.Please can I skip the eggs?
Hi Marist! Thanks for stopping by 🙂 I have never made these cookies without eggs so I can’t say how they will turn out. You could try replacing them with flax eggs or with a few tablespoons of vegan milk! If you’re using milk I would try a little bit at a time and add it at the end so that you can see how each addition affects the consistency of the dough. Good luck!