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These Vegan Snickerdoodles are perfectly puffy, soft, and slightly chewy. All you need is 10 simple ingredients and 20 minutes to make. No chilling required!
These Vegan Snickerdoodle Cookies are the fuss-free holiday cookies you need in your life. They’re thick and buttery, rolled in a coating of cinnamon sugar, then slightly underbaked to make the best melt-in-your-mouth snickerdoodles. Don’t sleep on this recipe!
Table of Contents
The Signature Snickerdoodle Ingredient: Cream of Tartar
If you’re new to snickerdoodles or never baked them yourself, you may be wondering what exactly is a snickerdoodle? A sugar cookie? Why are they called snickerdoodles?
Snickerdoodles are essentially sugar cookies with cream of tartar. While it’s not 100% known where the snickerdoodle name originates, we do know this signature ingredient gives snickerdoodles their irresistible tangy flavor and is worth the trip to the grocery store.
Snickerdoodles are my all-time favorite cookie and I’m so happy with this plant-based version! They’re perfect for gifting, bringing to parties, and making for loved ones during the holiday season.
What You’ll Need for the Best Vegan Snickerdoodles
These vegan snickerdoodle ingredients are as pantry-friendly as it gets. All you need is 10 affordable ingredients. Here are a few ingredient notes to ensure perfect results:
- Vegan butter sticks: As a general rule of thumb, you always want to opt for butter sticks over buttery spreads in vegan baking. They’re more akin to the consistency of dairy butter and easy to measure.
- All purpose flour: I have not tested a gluten-free version of these snickerdoodles. If you’d like to experiment with it, I’d recommend substituting a 1:1 gluten-free flour blend.
- Baking soda: This leavening agent is activated by the acidity in the cream of tartar and is what makes them so soft and puffy!
- Cinnamon: Arguably the second most important ingredient in making snickerdoodles. Make sure to use the full tablespoon.
How to Make Vegan Snickerdoodles
- Mix the cinnamon and sugar together in a small bowl for coating. Set aside.
- Cream the butter and sugar. In a stand mixer or using a hand mixer, cream the butter and sugar together until smooth. Add the milk and vanilla and mix again until combined.
- Whisk the flour, cornstarch, cream of tartar, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon together in a separate bowl.
- Add the dry ingredients to the butter mixture and mix until a dough forms.
- Scoop 2-tablespoon sized cookie balls and roll in the cinnamon sugar.
- Transfer the dough balls to a baking sheet, 2” apart. Slightly flatten each cookie to help them spread.
- Bake for 9 minutes, then cool completely on a wire rack.
- Enjoy immediately while the vegan snickerdoodles are soft and puffy!
Caitlin’s Cooking Tips
- Don’t skimp on the butter! While I love a good healthy, oil-free cookie, this snickerdoodles recipe requires a full cup of butter. Attempting to adjust this to make these cookies healthier isn’t worth it. Now’s the time to indulge in pillowy cookies.
- Spoon and level your flour. Digging the measuring cup in the flour is convenient, but often packs up to 30% too much flour into the measuring cup and ends with dry cookies. Use the spoon and level method, or better yet, use my weighted measurements!
Serving Suggestions
I highly recommend serving these vegan snickerdoodles with a glass of your favorite nut milk, vegan nog, or vegan hot chocolate. You may even be interested in my Ultimate Guide to making your own nut milk from scratch!
If you’re looking for more vegan Christmas cookie recipes, you’ll also love these Vegan Chai Sugar Cookies, Chocolate Stuffed Peanut Butter Cookies, Vegan Thumbprint Cookies and these Double Chocolate Peppermint Cookies!
How to Store and Freeze Vegan Snickerdoodles
Homemade vegan snickerdoodles will keep for up to 5 days when stored in an airtight container at room temperature. Refrigeration is not recommended because they will lose their softness!
Freezing options: These vegan snickerdoodles can also be frozen before or after baking. When freezing baked vegan snickerdoodles, ensure the cookies are cooled completely before flash freezing, then transfer to a freezer safe container and store for up to 2 months.
If freezing cookie dough, I highly recommend rolling the dough into individual 2-tablespoon sized cookie dough balls for easy future baking. This way, you can bake as few or as many cookies at a time as you’d like!
If following this method, follow recipe steps 1-4, but skip rolling them in cinnamon sugar (you’ll do this later right before baking!). Place each cookie dough ball on a lined baking sheet, then stick the baking sheet in the freezer for 2-4 hours, or until the cookie dough balls are frozen solid. Transfer the dough balls to a freezer safe container and freeze for up to 2 months.
When ready to bake, remove the desired number of cookie dough balls from the freezer and pick back up with recipe step 5. Bake straight from frozen for 1-2 minutes longer, or until soft and puffy.
Substitutions and Variations
- Butter substitutions: Unsalted vegan butter sticks or coconut oil will work as a salted vegan butter substitution. If substituting, increase the salt measurement to ¾ teaspoon. I’d recommend refined coconut oil so there is no coconut flavor.
- Cornstarch substitution: Arrowroot powder will work, too.
Recipe FAQs
If you accidentally skipped cream of tartar, your vegan snickerdoodles will still be delicious, but they will taste more like a sugar cookie with cinnamon. Cream of tartar is the sole ingredient that gives these snickerdoodles their classic tangy flavor.
If your vegan snickerdoodles came out hard and crunchy, chances are they were over baked or the ingredients weren’t measured correctly. The key to soft-baked snickerdoodles is underbaking them slightly and using the correct fat ratio. For best results, use my weighted measurements.
Yes. If you’d like to prep your cookies in advance, follow recipe steps 1-3, then tightly cover the dough bowl with plastic wrap or vegan-friendly wax wrap. The next day, place the bowl on the kitchen counter and allow the dough to warm to room temperature for 30 minutes before resuming the recipe.
Enjoy! If you make this recipe and decide to share it on Facebook or Instagram, don’t forget to tag me @FromMyBowl + #FromMyBowl! I would also love it if you could leave a comment below with a recipe rating! Thank you for the support 😊
Vegan Snickerdoodles
Ingredients
For the Cookie Dough:
- 1 cup salted butter or 2 sticks, softened to room temperature
- 1 1/3 cup cane sugar
- 3 tablespoons non-dairy milk
- 1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
- 3 cups all-purpose flour spooned and leveled
- 2 teaspoons cornstarch
- 2 teaspoons cream of tartar see note
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
For the Cinnamon Sugar Topping:
- 3 tablespoons cane sugar
- 1 tablespoon cinnamon
Instructions
- Prep: Preheat the oven to 375F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone baking mats and set aside. Make the topping by mixing the cinnamon and sugar together in a small bowl; set aside.
- Cream the Butter: Add the softened butter and sugar to a large bowl. Use a hand mixer or stand mixer to cream the butter and sugar together until smooth, about 1 to 2 minutes. Add the milk and vanilla and mix again until well combined.
- Dry Ingredients: Add the flour, cornstarch, cream of tartar, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon to the bowl. Use a spatula to mix the dry ingredients together, then incorporate them into the butter mixture to form a dough. The dough may look slightly dry, but should stick together when you pinch it. If the dough is too dry add more milk in 1 tbsp increments.
- Make the Cookies: Use a cookie scoop or tablespoon to divide the dough into 2-tablespoon sized balls. Roll the cookie dough together to form a smooth ball, then roll each ball in the cinnamon sugar topping and place 2 inches apart on the baking sheet. Lightly flatten each cookie dough ball onto the sheet as they will not spread much when baking. (Note: if you want your cookies extra thick, don’t flatten them!)
- Bake: Bake for 9 minutes; the cookies will appear puffy and soft. Let the cookies cool on the baking sheet for 10 minutes, then transfer them to a wire rack and let them cool completely.
- Storage: Store the cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 5 days. You can also freeze the cookies (or cookie dough!) for up to 2 months.
Recipe Notes
- Cornstarch can be replaced with arrowroot powder.
- Vegan butter can be replaced with softened coconut oil. I recommend using refined coconut oil, as it has no coconut flavor.
I’m in australia and we don’t have these here. I’ve always been intrigued by them so I thought I’d finally make them. They are so easy to make! And so yummy. I love cinnamon so they’re perfect. Not overly sweet either which I like.
So happy you loved it!
Very yummy! Mine were definitely more fluffy than your pictures, but still a delight to eat!
These were so easy to make and so yummy. The whole family loved them ❤️
So happy to hear that, Heather! ♥
Absolutely delicious! They stayed soft until they were gone by the end of the next day. My co-workers loved them! Most of them asked for the recipe and people who weren’t even there the day that I brought them somehow knew about them, too!
What a success! Thank you for sharing it with your co-workers, MacKenna! We’re so happy to hear everyone loved the recipe.
Hi!! Just made last night and they were spectacular. I did freeze some little cookie balls for the future. How long should I bake from frozen? Thank you!
You can cook them for 11-13 minutes from frozen 🙂
Yum! I haven’t made snickerdoodles before and these are perfect! Love the chew, and the cream of tartar really is the secret ingredient. This recipe will save many days ahead when there’s no chocolate to be found in the house.
Glad you gave it a try!
Just finished the recommended cooling off period and tried one out. Delicious! Great recipe – using a 2 tablespoon cookie scooper worked perfectly – somehow there was no left over dough! I love the crackled appearance when they come out of the oven. Thanks again for yet another great recipe! Everyone I have made so far has turned out great – thanks for all your hard work!
We’re happy to know every recipe has turned out great for you, Rebecca! Thank you so much for making them! ♥
I am sometimes skeptical of desserts that do not contain chocolate lol, but these cookies came out sooo delicious and were a big hit on Christmas. They are buttery and melt-in-your mouth. They’re possibly even better a day or two later after sitting at room temperature in an airtight container. I ended up using tapioca flour instead of cornstarch because I was out, but it worked out totally fine. 🙂
Great to know tapioca flour worked as well! Glad you loved them 🙂
Really good!! Just a bit crumbly ? Maybe more milk or applesauce? Thanks again awesome flavor!!!
If your Vegan Snickerdoodles are a bit crumbly and you want to adjust the texture, try adding a little more non-dairy milk to the dough. Add it gradually, 1 tablespoon at a time, until the dough reaches the desired consistency. Ensure the dough holds together well without being too dry. Also, consider checking your flour measurement and, if you prefer, experimenting with a small amount of unsweetened applesauce for added moisture. Enjoy your cookies!
Can confirm these are delicious with an all purpose gluten free flour! Soft and not crumbly. Yum!!
Great! Glad you enjoyed 🙂
vegan?
with butter?
vegan butter 🙂
These cookies melt in your mouth! The recipe was very straightforward and produced the most decadent snickerdoodle cookies that I have ever tasted! I was contemplating making a double batch but was happily surprised that this recipe yielded 26 cookies.
So happy you enjoyed these, Emily!