These vegan matcha cookies are made from freshly ground green tea leaves and are bursting with color and matcha flavor! This recipe combines matcha powder with white chocolate chips and a hint of vanilla to make irresistible cookies that are soft and chewy on the inside with the perfect amount of crunch on the outside.
Cookies are one of my favorite dessert go-tos. Be sure to check out some of my other unique and colorful vegan cookie recipes, such as my vegan red velvet cookies, vegan blueberry cookies, and vegan funfetti cookies!
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❤️ Why you’ll love it
This delicious vegan matcha cookie recipe uses 100% matcha powder from finely ground green tea leaves. Not only does it add a unique and delightful taste to the cookies, but it also gives them a vibrant and fun green color!
This recipe is incredibly easy to make, requiring simple, easy-to-find ingredients and essential kitchen equipment. It takes less than ten steps and a total time of less than an hour to make these cookies, so you can quickly whip them up and serve them fresh for a special occasion or after-dinner dessert.
You will also love the versatility of these vegan cookies. In this recipe, I provide several substitutes as well as variation ideas to make this a delicious treat that the whole family will love! They may be the best vegan matcha cookies you have ever tasted!
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🧾 Key ingredients
Matcha powder and white chocolate chips – Use culinary matcha and avoid ceremonial matcha and green tea powder for the best results. Yes, there is a difference. Since not all chocolate chips are vegan, choosing a vegan-friendly brand such as Pascha is crucial. Optional, but the vanilla extract helps to enhance the flavor.
Sugar – This recipe combines dark brown sugar and regular granulated white sugar. I have also tested this recipe with cane sugar and turbinado sugar instead of brown sugar and found that the cookies were just as delicious!
Apple sauce is used as a vegan egg replacer. However, it is important to use unsweetened applesauce to keep the sugar levels in the recipe the same.
Flour – I use all-purpose flour for this recipe. However, I have also tested this recipe with a gluten-free flour mixture instead, which I have tested and found to work just as well.
🛒 You can find detailed measurements for all ingredients in the printable version of the recipe card at the bottom of this post.
🥘 Equipment
An electric hand mixer or stand mixer makes combining the elements much easier than beating by hand. You need all liquid ingredients properly incorporated. Otherwise, the texture of your cookies will not be the same as mine.
Silicone baking mats are nonstick, easy to clean, and help distribute heat evenly. If you do not have one, use parchment paper instead.
Ice cream or cookie scoop will help create even, perfectly-sized cookies.
Wooden spatula – I personally recommend the hand-crafted olive wooden spatula from Forest Decor for folding the white chocolate chips into the dough.
👩🍳 Instructions
Making vegan matcha cookies
STEP 1
Combine the oil, brown and white sugar, unsweetened applesauce, and vanilla extract in a large bowl. Using a hand mixer, whisk the ingredients together on low speed until well-emulsified (approximately two minutes).
STEP 2
Stir in the remaining dry ingredients (flour, matcha powder, salt, and baking soda) until thoroughly blended. The mixture will be very thick yet soft enough to manage. Add 1-2 tablespoons of dairy-free milk if it is too stiff.
STEP 3
Fold in the white chocolate chips, then cover and chill for at least 30 minutes to prevent the dough from spreading.
STEP 4
While the dough chills, preheat the oven to 375°F/190C. Line the baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat. Scoop two tablespoons of dough, roll it into a ball, and place it on the lined baking tray. Repeat until all the dough is gone, placing each ball 2-3 inches apart.
For pillowy, soft cookies, proceed to the next step. For thin, chewy cookies, use a small glass to flatten the cookie dough balls until they are at most one inch thick.
STEP 5
Place in the preheated oven and bake for 8-12 minutes until the edges are barely golden brown. The baking time can vary depending on your oven. In my non-fan oven, it takes 12 minutes to produce perfect cookies.
STEP 6
Remove the cookies from the oven. Let them cool on the baking tray for at least 10 minutes, then transfer them to a cooling rack. Although the cookies puff up in the oven, they will collapse slightly as they cool.
💡 Expert tips
Use a digital scale to weigh the ingredients for the most delicious, bakery-quality vegan matcha cookies. A scale provides more precise, accurate measurements than simply estimating with a scooper. The slightest variation in the ingredients can result in a significant difference in the texture and appearance of the cookies.
🔄 Variations
There are many variations to customize these vegan matcha cookies and make them even more delicious!
If white chocolate is not your favorite, you can replace the white chocolate chips with vegan-friendly milk chocolate or dark chocolate chips. I recommend using Enjoy Life or Callebaut. Or, remove the chocolate chips altogether to make matcha sugar cookies.
Add extra crunch and protein to your cookies by adding chopped almonds or macadamia nuts. You can also replace ¼ flour with almond flour to give your cookies a nutty flavor.
To make your cookies more decorative for special occasions such as birthdays or the holidays, you can add colorful candies or sprinkles to the batter, as I do in my funfetti, orange-brown Halloween cookies, and Christmas cookie recipes!
❄️ Storing tips
To store: Store the cookies in an airtight container to keep them fresh, soft, and chewy. They will last for 1-2 days at room temperature; however, it is best to move them to the fridge after two days.
To freeze: Once the cookies have cooled to room temperature, move them to an airtight container or freezer-safe bag, then place them in the freezer. Thaw at room temperature.
🤔 FAQs
I recommend first chilling the cookie dough slightly to prevent it from spreading. However, I have tested this recipe, keeping the dough at room temperature as well as for an extended period, and did not see a significant difference in the results.
Matcha is from finely milled green tea, but there is a slight difference between premium, ceremonial, and culinary. And not just in price. I recommend using culinary. It is the least vibrant but still adds a strong, aromatic green tea flavor to the cookies.
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Vegan Matcha Cookies
Ingredients
- ½ cup Vegetable oil I used sunflower
- ¾ cup Dark brown sugar
- ½ cup Granulated sugar
- ⅓ cup Apple sauce unsweetened
- 1 tsp Vanilla extract
- 2+½ cups All-purpose flour or GF flour blend
- 1 Tbsp Matcha powder
- 1 tsp Baking soda
- ½ tsp Salt
- 1 +½ cups White chocolate chips
Instructions
- In a large bowl, combine oil, sugars, apple sauce, and vanilla. Use a hand mixer to beat together on low speed for 2 minutes until well emulsified.
- Stir in the flour, matcha, salt, and baking soda until completely incorporated. The mixture should be very thick but still soft. If too stiff, add 1-2 Tablespoons of non-dairy milk.
- Fold in the white chocolate chips.
- Cover and allow to chill for at least 30 minutes to prevent spreading.
- Preheat oven to 375°F/190C. Line baking sheets with parchment.
- Scoop 2 Tbsp amounts of dough. Roll into balls and place 2-3 inches apart on a lined baking sheet.
- If you want pillowy, soft cookies, don’t flatten them. If you want chewy, thinner ones, flatten them with a small glass, at most 1 inch thick.
- Bake for 8-12 minutes until just barely golden brown around the edges. I need 12 minutes in my non-fan oven to get them perfect.
- Remove from the oven and cool them on the baking sheet for at least 10 minutes before moving to a cooling rack. Cookies will puff up more in the oven and collapse slightly as they cool.
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