Stick a pair of googly eyes on anything and it looks cute, but when it’s something edible, the cuteness increases tenfold. Trust me, it’s been scientifically proven. (Well it hasn’t, but as a scientist in the making, you can take my word for it!)
These vegan Halloween cookies are soft and fudgy, almost brownie-like, and oh so perfect with a warming cup of masala chai. Not to mention they are super simple to make!
The cookies themselves only require 8 ingredients, so they are great for making and decorating with children. You can even make mini ones to hand out to trick-or-treaters!
How to make vegan Halloween cookies step-by-step:
Firstly, prepare a flaxseed egg (photo 1). This is a simple mix of 1 tbsp ground flaxseed and 2.5 tbsp water. A flaxseed egg helps to bind our cookies and acts as a vegan egg replacement!
Then we’ll cream together some vegan butter, white sugar and coconut sugar until soft and fluffy (photo 2). If you do not have coconut sugar, you can substitute soft light brown sugar.
Next we’ll mix the flaxseed egg into the creamed vegan butter and sugar. At this point the mixture may look a little curdled, but don’t worry! We’ll also add a dash of vanilla extract at this stage for extra flavour.
Then we’ll mix in some plain flour, cocoa powder and baking soda (photo 4). The cookie dough is less of a dough consistency and more wet, almost like a thick cake batter. This is what yields soft and fudgy cookies!
The baking soda is key here for giving our cookies that gorgeous crackled surface. As the cookies bake, the baking soda produces air bubbles inside the cookie. The outer surface of the cookie then bursts producing these beautiful cracks! (photos 5 + 6)
You could just stop here – we’ve just made some pretty awesome cookies. I mean, look at them:
Gah. They’re so beautiful. I wish I could marry these cookies.
Anyways, as I was saying, you could just stop here. But if you want to go the extra (festive) mile, decorate your cookies to turn them into Halloween mummy cookies by simply drizzling on some white icing and adding a pair of googly eyes!
You can find edible googly eyes in the baking section of most large supermarkets. And as for the white icing, it’s easily made at home using icing sugar and water!
And if you like Halloween treats, you’ll love my matcha monster energy balls!
Tips for making these cookies perfectly:
- Leave space between the cookies. I like to space the cookies quite far apart (3-4 cm) on the tray as they do spread when baking.
- Bake them one tray at a time. The heat distribution in your oven varies between shelves, so if you want your cookies to all look similar, I’d bake them on the middle shelf only and work in batches. This recipe makes 9 cookies, so you’ll only need to make 2 batches!
- Don’t add too much water to your icing. If you use too much water, your icing will become runny and you won’t see any definition.
Storing and serving these cookies:
When fresh from the oven these cookies are slightly crisp on the outside and fudgy in the middle. As they cool they will soften slightly and have more of a dense brownie texture (I personally really like this texture!)
Be sure to store the cookies in an airtight container. They will last for 4-5 days, but they will soften.
And as for serving your vegan Halloween cookies, I love them fresh out of the oven with a cup of tea. You can also reheat cooled cookies in the microwave for 15-20 seconds, and they’ll take on a fudgy brownie texture which is to die for! If you’re feeling extra decadent, add a scoop of vegan ice cream!
I hope you enjoy this recipe, friends! And as always, if you make this recipe or any other recipe on the blog, let me know by leaving a rating/comment below. You can also follow me on Instagram, Facebook and Pinterest for more vegan recipes!
Vegan Halloween Cookies
Ingredients
- 1 tbsp Ground Flaxseed
- 1/2 cup/ 90 grams Vegan Butter or Margarine I use Vitalite
- 1/3 cup/ 50 grams Coconut Sugar can sub soft light brown sugar
- 1/3 cup/ 65 grams White Sugar
- 1/2 tsp Vanilla Extract
- 3/4 cup + 3 tbsp/ 125 grams Plain All-Purpose Flour
- 1/2 tsp Baking Soda
- 2 tbsp Cocoa Powder
For decoration (optional)
- 1/2 cup/ 50 grams Icing Sugar (Powdered Sugar)
- 18 Edible Googly Eyes
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 180 °C/ 350 °F. Line a large baking tray or cookie sheet with greaseproof paper.
- Prepare the flaxseed egg in a small bowl by mixing 1 tbsp ground flaxseed with 2.5 tbsp water. Set aside to thicken.
- In a medium-sized mixing bowl, cream together the vegan butter/margarine, coconut sugar and white sugar until soft and fluffy.
- Add the flaxseed egg and vanilla extract to the vegan butter-sugar mixture and mix to combine. If at this stage the mixture looks a little curdled, don't worry!
- Add the plain flour, cocoa powder and baking soda to the bowl. Fold in with a spatula until combined. The mixture should be quite wet, like a thick cake batter consistency.
- Add heaped tablespoons of the cookie mixture to the lined baking tray. Place the cookies quite far apart (no more than 6 on one tray) as they will spread in the oven. Also try to keep your cookie balls as round as possible – if you have an ice cream scoop it is great for this task.
- Bake the cookies for 10 minutes until slightly golden at the edges. I'd check the cookies at the 8 minute mark as ovens vary.
- Leave the cookies on the tray for a few minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.
Decoration (optional)
- Prepare the icing by mixing the icing sugar with a little water, gradually adding water so as to not make the icing too runny. You want the icing to be a thick but pourable consistency.
- Using a small spoon or fork, drizzle the icing over the cookies in a zig-zag motion to look like mummy bandages. Decorate each cookie with 2 edible eyes.
- Transfer the vegan Halloween cookies to the fridge for a few minutes until the icing sets. Enjoy!
Shivani’s Tips
- Store in an airtight container for 4-5 days (the cookies will soften over time)
- For an extra treat: reheat a cookie in the microwave for 15-20 seconds and serve hot with a scoop of vegan ice cream!
NUTRITION
Serving size: 1 cookie Calories: 221 kcal | Fat: 10.5g | Saturated Fat: 1.8g | Cholesterol: 0mg | Sodium: 190mg | Carbohydrates: 30.9g | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 20g | Protein: 1.8g Recipe adapted from Foodsguy 
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