These vegan oatmeal chocolate chip cookies are soft, chewy, and irresistible. The warm combination of dark chocolate chips, rolled oats, vanilla, and cinnamon will have the whole family rushing to the cookie jar. Whether for a post-dinner dessert or an afternoon snack, it will quickly become one of your favorites!
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Oatmeal and cookies have always been one of my favorite combinations, making dessert time feel a little more guilt-free. Check out my banana peanut butter oatmeal cookies and vegan oatmeal raisin cookies to see more ways to incorporate oats into your sweet treats. Or, if you prefer a more classic vegan chocolate chip cookie recipe.
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❤️ Why you’ll love it
This vegan oatmeal chocolate chip cookie recipe will not just be one of the best you have ever tried, but it will surely be one of the most delicious! In addition to nutritious rolled oats and decadent dark chocolate chips, these cookies use just a few ingredients that help to pack in the flavor and moisture. The good news is that all the ingredients are simple pantry items you likely already have at home.
This recipe is also very straightforward, with less than ten steps before you have warm vegan oatmeal cookies sitting at your table. The best part is that both the dough and the baked cookies are freezer-friendly and easy to store, so you can continue to enjoy them for days to come!
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🧾 Key ingredients
Rolled oats and dark chocolate chips – Most chocolate chips are not vegan, so make sure to look for vegan chocolate chips such as Enjoy Life or Callebaut. For results similar to mine, do not quick oats or steel-cut oats.
Sugar – A dark brown and white sugar mixture will add sweetness to the cookies. I have also tested this recipe using white cane sugar and turbinado sugar as a substitute for brown sugar and found that they work just as well.
Apple sauce is a vegan egg substitute in this recipe. Use unsweetened applesauce to keep the sugar levels the same in the cookies.
Vanilla extract and cinnamon help to enhance the flavor of the cookies. The cinnamon is optional, but it does make a difference!
Flour – I use all-purpose flour in the recipe. However, I have also tested this recipe using a gluten-free flour blend and found it an acceptable substitute.
🛒 You can find detailed measurements for all ingredients in the printable version of the recipe card at the bottom of this post.
🥘 Equipment
While you can beat the ingredients by hand, an electric hand mixer or stand mixer makes combining the elements much easier. If it is not beaten hard enough, the texture of the cookies will not be the same.
Silicone baking sheets help to distribute the heat more evenly. They are also nonstick and easy to clean. You can use parchment paper if you do not have silicone baking sheets.
Ice cream scoop will help create even, perfectly-sized cookies. You can also use a cookie scoop.
I love my hand-crafted olive wooden spatula from Forest Decor for making cookies.
👩🍳 Instructions
Making vegan oatmeal chocolate chip cookies
STEP 1
Combine the wet ingredients (e.g. vegetable oil, sugars, apple sauce, and vanilla extract) in a large mixing bowl. Using a hand mixer on low speed, beat the ingredients together for a couple of minutes until they are well emulsified.
STEP 2
Add the dry ingredients (e.g., flour, rolled oats, cinnamon, salt, and baking soda). Stir until completely incorporated. The mixture should be thick but soft. If it is too stiff, add 1-2 tablespoons of non-dairy milk, such as oat, almond, coconut, or soy milk.
STEP 3
Use a spatula to fold in the chocolate chips. Then, cover the bowl and allow it to chill for at least 30 minutes to prevent the dough from spreading.
STEP 4
Preheat the oven to 375°F/190°C and line a baking tray with parchment paper or a silicon baking sheet. Scoop two tablespoons of dough using an ice cream or cookie scoop. Roll each scoop into balls and place them on the lined baking tray. Make sure to leave 2-3 inches between each.
For soft, pillowy cookies, leave the dough as-is. For thin, chewy cookies, use a small glass to flatten them until they are at most 1-inch thick.
STEP 5
Place the baking tray in the oven and bake for 8-12 minutes until the color of the edges is barely golden brown. The baking time can vary depending on your oven. I need 12 minutes in my oven (no fan) before they reach the perfect color and texture.
STEP 6
Remove the cookies from the oven and let them cool on the tray for at least 10 minutes before transferring them to a wire cooling rack. Although the cookies puff up more in the oven, they will collapse slightly as they cool down.
💡 Expert tips
Precise measurements are the key to making the best vegan oatmeal chocolate chip cookies. I highly recommend using a digital scale to weigh the ingredients versus estimating with a scooper. Even the slightest variation in the ingredient quantity can significantly change the texture and appearance of the cookies.
🔄 Variations
There are several ways to customize your vegan chocolate chip oatmeal cookies to your preferences using different add-ins and toppings.
You can eliminate the chocolate chips and add raisins as I do in my vegan oatmeal raisin cookie recipe, or add extra crunch and protein by adding walnuts or pecans.
Add a touch of sweetness by throwing in some cranberries. Or, replace the chocolate chips with a swirl of homemade peanut butter.
To make your cookies more decorative for special occasions or the holidays, you can add food coloring or colorful candies to the batter, as I do in my Funfetti, dark Halloween cookies, and Christmas cookie recipes!
❄️ Storing tips
To store: Keep the cookies in an airtight container to keep them fresh, soft, and chewy. They will last for 1-2 days at room temperature. After two days, it is best to move them to the refrigerator for storage.
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. The cookies will not stick together, so you can stack them if necessary. Thaw at room temperature.
🤔 FAQs
Although I recommend first chilling the cookie dough slightly to prevent it from spreading, I have tested it at room temperature as well as for an extended period and did not see a significant difference in the outcome of the cookies.
One of the major culprits of hard and dry cookies is overmixing. Overmixing the dough causes gluten to develop in the flour, resulting in hard cookies. To prevent this, mix the dough just until the ingredients are combined.
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Vegan Oatmeal Chocolate Chip 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
- ½ tsp Cinnamon optional, but recommended
- 2 cups All-purpose flour or GF flour blend
- 1+½ cup Rolled oats
- 1 tsp Baking soda
- ½ tsp Salt
- 1 +½ cups Dark 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, oatmeal, cinnamon, 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 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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