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You Can’t Stay Out of These Vegan Molasses Cookies

These vegan molasses cookies are a recreation of a Fall flavors classic from my childhood. But just because I associate it with Fall doesn’t mean you can’t have them anytime you want! 🙂

The thing I don’t like about Fall in New England is the fact that Winter comes next. The thing I do love, however, are the flavors of fall. With cooler days and holidays coming, the baking resumes. Pies and cookies spiced with cinnamon, ginger and cloves fill the kitchen with comforting smells and, for me, childhood memories.

The Vegan Molasses Cookies Story

Since becoming a vegan, I have worked with family recipes to recreate flavors and textures without using any animal products and I love the challenge. Of course, some attempts are more successful than others. A childhood favorite for me, and my children, has always been molasses cookies, rich with spices, and the perfect balance of a little chewy inside and a little crunchy outside. I do believe this recipe for vegan molasses cookies checks all the traditional boxes, with a taste and texture indistinguishable from their non-vegan counterpart.

The original recipe box

The Back Story of the Vegan Molasses Cookies

I love to hear the stories of where recipes come from, so I am going to share mine about this one. Back when bridal showers were more like house parties and less like coronations, my sister threw me a shower.

She took the time to copy recipes that she had collected, each hand written, including a recipe for Marriage Stew (tips for a successful marriage) and gave me the recipe box as a gift. I have carried it with me through the years and have pulled out some real gems. This recipe for vegan molasses cookies is one of them (“veganized” of course). I hope you enjoy it as much as we have. Scroll down for the full recipe!

Vegan Molasses Cookies, fresh from the oven on cooling racks
Vegan Molasses Cookies, fresh from the oven!
Vegan Molasses Cookies held close to camera with an out of focus rack of cookies in the background
Careful, they’re hot! Can’t resist these Vegan Molasses Cookies
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close view of molasses cookies on a cooling rack

Vegan Molasses Cookies

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  • Author: Georgia @ fullofbeans.us
  • Yield: 24 1x

Description

Perfect cookies for the holidays or a lunchbox. Crunchy on the outside, soft on the inside – you can’t eat just one. 🙂


Ingredients

Units Scale
  • 2/3 cup salad oil (Sunflower, safflower, corn etc)
  • 1 cup sugar
  • 1/4 cup molasses
  • 1 chia “egg” (see notes)
  • 2 cups flour (I use unbleached organic white flour)
  • 2 tsp baking soda
  • 1 tsp cinnamon
  • 1/2 tsp ground cloves
  • 1/2 tsp ground ginger
  • 1/2 tsp salt

Instructions

  1. Combine all ingredients in a mixing bowl.
  2. Using a hand mixer or electric mixer, blend thoroughly.
  3. Shape into a large ball
  4. wrap in plastic, (or wax paper) and refrigerate for at least one hour
  5. Remove from refrigerator and form into 1″(2.5cm) balls
  6. roll in granulated sugar
  7. place on greased cookie sheet (or parchment paper) 2″ (5cm) apart
  8. bake at 375° F (190°C) for 8-10 minutes
  9. yield: 2 dozen good sized cookies

Notes

  • Chia “eggs”: 1 T ground chia seeds to 3 T water. Mix well. You can use it immediately but I find it works best if you allow it to sit in the fridge for about 30 minutes.
  • You can use flax “eggs” but I find that chia works better for this recipe.

Georgia is an unpretentious foodie who, at 50, transitioned from a vegetarian diet to a whole foods plant based diet and is loving it. She works as a nurse, plays as a quilter, loves to run, hates to race.
She thinks dogs are actually angels (in dog suits).

Comments (27)

  1. These are the best cookies EVER!!! I sub’d out the oil for cannabutter and the cookies were just so darn good!!!

  2. Wow. These are amazing! I subbed coconut sugar and even made them gluten free with 1 and 1/2 cups almond flour and 1/2 cup cassava flour. I rolled them in cane sugar, and was too eager to put them in the fridge, so they flattened out and ran into each other, as you might expect when you don’t follow instructions. Lol. They tasted AWESOME though, totally satisfied my craving for molasses cookies, and I don’t even feel guilty for eating half the flattened batch. Thank you for sharing! I’ll refrigerate next time 😉

    1. Hey Laura,
      You get the “Made Us Laugh Comment of the Week” award! So glad you liked the taste. Let us know what you think when you refrigerate them next time 😉

      Peace, Georgia & Greg

  3. Oh my. Followed this recipe to the T. Yet batter is so runny you’d think it’s a muffin batter. So frustrating, ended up tossing most of it in the trash, not manageable at all even after adding a 1/4 cup more flour :/

    1. Hi Vanessa,

      So sorry that you had difficulty and were disappointed. This recipe is a long-time household fav and I have made it literally dozens of times. Just checked the recipe (sometimes we have typos!) and it is all as it should be. Are you absolutely sure you followed the recipe? There is barely 1 cup of liquid (including the 3T in the flax egg) to 2 cups of flour and 1 cup of sugar – its hard to imagine that being runny. Can’t imagine what happened. 🙁

      Peace, Georgia

  4. Hey I want to make some of these! Could I use coconut oil instead of salad oils? I don’t mind if they taste coconuty 😊

  5. I followed the recipe precisely but the dough was really crumbly and dry. I added a couple of tablespoons of water – hopefully they turn out ok

    1. Hi Sylia,
      Sorry to hear that you had that trouble with the recipe. We haven’t had that experience, except when we have reduced the oil or tried gluten-free flours (which often can be a little crumbly). Hope everything worked out – please let us know.
      ~ Georgia

    1. Hi Tara,

      So glad that you gave them a try! I totally understand just rolling with what is available – happens all the time with us. 🙂
      Happy that you enjoyed them – they are a real favorite for us.

  6. Just made these and I used coconut sugar . These are sooooooooooooo good! I ate a lot … A LOT…. of the dough before these even 1. made it to the fridge 2. made it to the oven. Now…. I ‘have” to make a second batch.

    Been craving molasses cookies for so long. This hits the spot!
    Thanks for sharing

    1. LOL!!
      That’s just about how the family responds to a batch of those! So glad that they “scratched the itch” for molasses cookies – they are unquestionably a favorite around here.
      🙂

    1. Hi Jae,

      That would be any vegetable oil, like canola, corn, etc. As opposed to olive oil, for example, which has a distinct taste.
      🙂

  7. Do you use black strap molasses or regular molasses and do you know if coconut sugar can be used? Can’t wait to try these

    1. Hi! Regular molasses, and coconut sugar is just fine. I tried blackstrap (because I love it) but the taste was too strong for the cookies. We can’t wait for you to try them, too! ?

  8. The crackled top, the crumbly sugar coating, the abundance of spices, these look insanely good! Like they would be gone in a day good! I can’t resist ginger molasses things, makes the chilliness of fall/winter worth it 🙂

    1. Natalie, what a lovely comment! ? We agree completely – that’s exactly what these cookies are. Greg & Georgia

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