Soft & Chewy Gingerbread Cookies (Vegan, Gluten-Free)
These soft and chewy gingerbread cookies are warmly spiced, vegan, gluten-free, and refined sugar-free. Perfect for your Christmas cookie tray!
Looking for the perfect soft and chewy gingerbread cookie recipe? You’re in the right place! But these aren’t your classic cut-out gingerbread men…these gingerbread cookies are soft, fluffy, chewy, and so much easier to make. No cookie cutters required, and no artistic decorating skills needed (phew!).
I slightly tweaked my iced gingerbread cookie recipe for a simpler cookie. Sometimes you just want a plain ole gingerbread cookie. No fuss — just warm spices and soft, chewy goodness. These are just that.
Naturally sweetened with coconut sugar, perfectly spiced with warm gingerbread flavors, and made with almond flour and oat flour for a melt-in-your-mouth texture. I like to drizzle a little white chocolate for extra holiday flair, but that’s totally optional.
Perfect for cookie exchanges, holiday gifting, adding to your Christmas cookie tray, or (let’s be honest) enjoying straight from the oven.
Why You’ll Love These Gingerbread Cookies
Is there anything better than that first bite of a soft, spiced gingerbread cookie? Here’s why I know you’ll love these cookies:
- Soft, chewy, and perfectly spiced
- Filled with warm cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, and cloves
- Vegan, gluten-free, and refined sugar-free
- Easy to make in one bowl
- Perfect for holiday gifting and cookie exchanges
Ingredients You’ll Need
- Almond Flour: Provides a soft, melt-in-your-mouth texture. Be sure to use blanched almond flour for the best texture.
- Oat Flour: I recommend using store-bought oat flour as opposed to homemade for the softest texture. Use certified gluten-free oat flour if needed.
- Coconut Sugar: Adds natural sweetness and a touch of crispiness to the cookies.
- Vegan Butter: Slightly melted vegan butter makes these cookies soft.
- Flaxseed Meal: Mixed with water to create a flax egg to help bind the dough together.
- Vanilla Extract: A cookie staple.
- Baking Powder & Baking Soda: This recipe uses both baking powder and baking soda to achieve that soft, plump, and chewy texture.
- Spices: A mixture of ginger, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, and salt provides that cozy gingerbread flavor.
How to Make Vegan Gingerbread Cookies
Scroll down to the recipe card to get the full recipe with measurements.
- Preheat the oven: Preheat the oven to 350°F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Prepare the flax egg: In a large bowl, whisk together the flaxseed and water. Let sit for 5 minutes to thicken.
- Mix the ingredients: Add in the coconut sugar, vegan butter, flax egg, and vanilla extract and whisk until combined. Fold in the almond flour, oat flour, baking powder, baking soda, and spices. Mix until a sticky dough forms.
- Scoop and bake: Use a cookie scoop to scoop the dough onto the prepared baking sheet, roll into balls, and flatten slightly with your hands. Bake for 12-15 minutes (13 minutes is usually perfect for me).
- Let cool: Let the cookies cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes to set properly. Since the cookies are made with almond flour, they need to cool in order to set properly. Then, transfer the cookies to a wire rack to cool completely.
- Optional: Drizzle the tops of the cookies with some melted white chocolate for a little holiday flair.
Megan’s Tips
- Use slightly melted vegan butter: A quick 10–15 second warm-up in the microwave is perfect. Fully melted butter can make the cookies too flat, but slightly melted blends beautifully with the coconut sugar and gives you that soft, cohesive dough. It also helps the cookies spread just the right amount.
- Spice it up: Fresh spices = best flavor. If you like a bold gingerbread flavor (hi, same), feel free to add an extra ¼–½ teaspoon of ginger or any other spice.
- Tap the tray after baking for perfectly round cookies: This is my little cookie hack! When the cookies come out of the oven, gently tap the tray on the counter. It helps them settle into perfectly round, crackly-edged gingerbread perfection.
- Let them cool on the tray for 5 minutes: This part isn’t optional! Almond flour is more delicate than regular flour, so letting the cookies set on the tray helps them firm up without crumbling.
These vegan gingerbread cookies are simple, cozy, and full of warm holiday flavors. Serve them with my gingerbread hot chocolate to really get your gingerbread fix in.
If you make this recipe, please be sure to leave a comment and ★★★★★ star rating below letting me know how you liked it! This helps others find my recipes. I appreciate your support, as always. xo, Megan
Soft & Chewy Gingerbread Cookies (Vegan, Gluten-Free)
Ingredients
Wet Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon ground flaxseed, for the flax egg
- 3 tablespoons water, for the flax egg
- ½ cup coconut sugar
- ¼ cup vegan butter, slightly melted *see note
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Dry Ingredients
- 1 cup almond flour
- 1 cup oat flour, use certified GF as needed
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon ground ginger
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- ¼ teaspoon ground cloves
- pinch of salt
- vegan white chocolate, for drizzling
Instructions
- Preheat the oven: Set the oven to 350°F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Prepare the flax egg: In a large bowl, whisk together the flaxseed and water. Let sit for 5 minutes to thicken.
- Mix the ingredients: Add in the coconut sugar, vegan butter, flax egg, and vanilla extract and whisk until combined. Fold in the almond flour, oat flour, baking powder, baking soda, and spices. Mix until a sticky dough forms.
- Scoop and bake: Use a cookie scoop to scoop the dough onto the prepared baking sheet, roll into balls, and flatten slightly with your hands. Bake for 12-15 minutes (13 minutes is usually perfect for me).
- Let cool: Let the cookies cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes to set properly. Since the cookies are made with almond flour, they need to cool in order to set properly. Then, transfer the cookies to a wire rack to cool completely.
- Optional: Drizzle the tops of the cookies with some melted white chocolate for a little holiday flair.
Equipment
Notes
- Use slightly melted vegan butter: A quick 10–15 second warm-up in the microwave is perfect. Fully melted butter can make the cookies too flat, but slightly melted blends beautifully with the coconut sugar and gives you that soft, cohesive dough. It also helps the cookies spread just the right amount.
- Spice it up: Fresh spices = best flavor. If you like a bold gingerbread flavor (hi, same), feel free to add an extra ¼–½ teaspoon of ginger or any other spice.
- Tap the tray after baking for perfectly round cookies: This is my little cookie hack! When the cookies come out of the oven, gently tap the tray on the counter. It helps them settle into perfectly round, crackly-edged gingerbread perfection.
- Let them cool on the tray for 5 minutes: This part isn’t optional! Almond flour is more delicate than regular flour, so letting the cookies set on the tray helps them firm up without crumbling.
Hi! These are delicious! Just wondering if they can be put in the freezer. I’d like to make a bunch and serve them for Christmas.
Thank you,
Susan
Hi Susan, I’m so happy you loved the cookies! Yes, they freeze really well (I actually have a few batches in my freezer for Christmas too). Just pop them in an airtight container or ziplock bag. I recommend putting parchment paper between layers so the cookies don’t stick together. Merry Christmas!
Yum! These are amazing!
#happyholidays
So happy you loved these Adalyn! Merry Christmas 🎄