These dairy free chocolate chip cookies are soft and chewy with perfectly crisp edges. These are the ultimate classic choc chip cookie and you would never know that they are dairy-free! Made using simple ingredients and good quality dark chocolate, it is the perfect cookie recipe to make at home for everyone to enjoy.
For more dairy free cookie recipes, try these vegan chocolate chip banana cookies or these classic dairy free snickerdoodles next!
Featured Comment
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ The best choc chip cookies I have ever made. Absolutely delicious!!! – Sandra
There is something so wholesome about a classic chocolate chip cookie. They are something that everyone loves, and everyone seems to have their own recipe that is their definition of the perfect cookie. So this is mine!
It’s a simple recipe that produces cookies that are chewy yet have crisp edges that just give you that perfect (in my opinion) texture. And of course, like most chocolate chip cookies, you should definitely underbake them!
These dairy free cookies are so good, it’s dangerous for me to have them in the house because I can’t stop eating them. And as someone who needs to deal with a lot of baked goods being in the house at any point in time, that is saying something.
This cookie recipe does need a little time to chill to ensure that we get the absolute best taste and texture, but keep reading for why it’s very worth it.
Key Ingredients
You don’t need anything fancy to make these dairy free chocolate chip cookies, just your usual pantry staples and some dairy free chocolate.
Note all ingredients and their quantities are laid out in the recipe card at the bottom of this post.
- Plain flour – also known as all purpose flour in the US.
- Bicarbonate of soda – also known as baking soda in the US. Don’t substitute with baking powder as the result will not be the same.
- Dairy free butter – any good quality vegan butter will work here. This is going to help give the cookies that classic, buttery taste. I like to use Nuttelex Buttery which is an Australian product.
- Brown and white sugar – this recipe uses a combination of both sugars, the brown for moisture and a richer flavour and white sugar to help the cookies spread and give us the crispy edges.
- Egg – when thinking about what a perfect chocolate chip cookie is for me, it’s one that has a lot of chew. Using a whole egg plus an extra egg yolk is the key to achieving this texture.
- Vanilla extract – for flavour.
- Dairy free chocolate – you can use either dairy free chocolate chips or cut up a dark chocolate bar into chunks (70% or more chocolate is usually dairy free). I prefer to use the chopped chocolate chunks because they melt when cooked and usually have a better taste.
Step-by-Step Instructions
Chocolate chip cookies are actually really easy to make with everything coming together in the same bowl. I like to use my stand mixer because it makes easy work of incorporating all of the ingredients into a soft dough, however you can also just use a wooden spoon if that is what’s available to you.
Start by mixing together the sugars and the melted butter until well combined. It’s important that we have allowed the melted butter to cool as if it’s too hot, this will start to cook the eggs.
Add in the eggs and vanilla and continue to beat well.
Add in the dry ingredients and mix through until you have a delicious soft cookie dough. Finally add in your chocolate chips, setting aside a few chunks of chocolate to press into the cookie dough balls right before baking as well.
Now at this stage the temptation to eat the cookie dough is real and I am not going to lie and tell you that I don’t sample a little myself juuusst to make sure I remembered all the ingredients and it’s tasting delicious!
From here, we need to put the cookie dough, covered, in the fridge for at least 2 hours to chill.
Chilling the cookie dough
Letting the dough rest and chill is essential as it’s going to give the dough time to set. Because we used melted butter, if we baked the cookies immediately they would just spread into a thin mess and that’s not what we want to achieve here with these thick and chewy cookies.
When the cookie dough rests, the dairy free butter will firm back up and the flour starts to absorb all the liquid in the dough which results in the cookies baking more evenly, having a better texture and creating a more pronounced flavour.
My original recipe asked that you chill the cookie dough overnight. While this is a great option, my testing found not a lot of difference in flavour between chilling for 2 hours and overnight so do what works for you.
Once you’re ready to bake, preheat the oven and line a couple of baking trays with baking paper.
Scoop out balls of the cookie dough and place onto the tray and press one or two extra chocolate chunks into the top of the dough ball. The length of time you bake your cookies comes down to two main factors, personal preference and your individual oven. I like mine baked for 10 minutes which leaves the centres just slightly underbaked and super soft and chewy. But if you want them a little more cooked through try 12 minutes.
When the cookies come out of the oven, they will still be soft. Let them cool on the tray for 5-10 minutes to firm up before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely. Sprinkle a little flaky sea salt over the top for that extra crunch and salty sweet combo.
Tips for perfect choc chip cookies:
- Bake the first cookie on its own. This will allow you to monitor how much the cookie spreads and also adjust your cook time as each oven is different. If the cookie spreads too much either make your cookie dough ball taller or chill the dough for 30 minutes and bake again.
- Press a few extra pieces of dark chocolate into the top of each cookie dough ball before baking so you get that pretty, melted chocolate top.
- As soon as you remove the cookies from the oven, use a dessert spoon to gently press around the edges of the cookie to push any misshapen bits back in so you get a perfectly rounded cookie.
Storing and Freezing Instructions
I love this recipe as the cooled dairy free chocolate chip cookies will lasting an airtight container for around 4 days without going soft.
If you don’t feel like cooking and eating all of these cookies at once, then the easiest option is to freeze the cookie dough balls so that you can just grab one or two out at a time and enjoy freshly baked cookies whenever you want.
To do this, it’s easiest if you flash freeze the balls on a baking tray in the freezer for 30 minutes and then you can place the balls in a zip lock bag and freeze for up to three months.
To bake, grab the dough balls out of the freezer and place on a baking sheet and bake – no need to thaw first. You’ll just need to cook them for a few minutes longer from frozen.
You can also freeze cooked and cooled cookies in an airtight container or zip lock bag for up to 3 months. Let them thaw at room temperature or zap in the microwave for 15-30 seconds.
If you do make this recipe, please be sure to leave a comment and ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ rating below! And tag any of your creations on Instagram with @eightforestlane as I would love to see.
More dairy free cookie recipes:
Chocolate Crinkle Cookies
ANZAC Biscuits
Double Chocolate Chunk Cookies
Rocky Road Cookies
Giant Chocolate Chip Cookies
Dairy Free Chocolate Chip Cookies
Ingredients
- ½ cup (125 grams) dairy free butter melted & cooled
- ¾ cup brown sugar
- ½ cup white sugar
- 1 egg + 1 egg yolk room temperature
- 2 teaspoons vanilla
- 2 cups plain flour
- ½ teaspoon bicarbonate of soda
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 cup chocolate chips/chunks
- flaky sea salt optional
Instructions
- In a large mixing bowl, or the bowl of your stand mixer, add the melted butter (making sure that it’s not hot), vanilla and the brown and white sugars. Mix with the paddle attachment of your stand mixer or with a wooden spoon. Add in the egg and extra egg yolk and continue to mix until smooth.
- Add flour, bicarbonate of soda and salt and mix until a soft cookie dough forms. Mix through most of the chocolate chips or chopped up chocolate saving a few pieces to press into the top of the cookies before baking, and stir through to combine.
- Cover and chill the cookie dough in the fridge for 2 hours minimum, up to overnight.
- Preheat the oven to 180°C and remove the cookie dough from the fridge and allow it to come to room temperature. Line 2 baking trays with baking paper.
- Using your hands, roll balls of cookie dough using approximately 1.5-2 tablespoons of the mixture and place the balls on the prepared baking trays leaving space between each cookie for them to flatten out. Press a few extra chocolate chips or pieces into the top of the cookie balls.
- Bake the cookies for 10-12 minutes. Allow the cookies to cool slightly on the tray to firm up before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely. Finish the cookies by sprinkling the tops with a little flaky sea salt if desired.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutritional information is provided as a guide only and is calculated using automated online tools, therefore we cannot guarantee the accuracy. We encourage you to make your own calculations based on the actual ingredients used in your recipe.
This post was originally published on the 17th May 2020 and has been republished to include better instructions, more helpful information and new photos.
Ellie says
Love these cookies. I haven’t made many dairy free cookies as I haven’t had great results but these work really well and taste great!
Sally says
So glad you enjoyed these Ellie!
Lauren says
These were great! Did half the batch in the fridge overnight and the others after a couple of hours. Wasn’t any difference. Kept them super small and used a combination of pana dark and milk choc chips to keep dairy free. Best cookies I’ve made with nuttelex. Trick was to get them out just as the edges turned golden to keep them soft and chewy. Will make again. Thanks!
Sally says
So glad you enjoyed these Lauren and thank you for leaving such a detailed comment!
Sandra says
The best choc chip cookies I have ever made. Absolutely delicious!!! 😊🍪
Sally says
So amazing to hear you loved them as much as I do!! Thanks so much for coming back and leaving a comment 🙂
Cath says
Which chocolate chips do you use which are dairy free? Thank you
Sally says
Hi Cath! I don’t usually use choc chips, but rather just chop up a block of 70% dark chocolate into chunks and use that in place of choc chips.
Sylvie says
These cookies look absolutely perfect – between chewy, crunchy and gooey; just how I like them! I completely agree with you, using a quality chocolate really makes the whole difference!
Sarah says
We’re making chocolate chip cookies about once a week atm in iso, we will have to try these out. Plenty of time for baking projects atm!
Sally says
Yes, its the perfect time for it!
Robyn says
These sound so delicious, and worth that time in the fridge! I can’t wait to bake a batch with my son!
Sally says
Thanks Robyn, such a great activity to do together!
Andrea says
Oh, yum! I LOVE chewy cookies and these ones are absolute perfection. So pretty too! I can’t wait to try these with my kids.
Sally says
Chewy cookies are the best!
Alex says
Cookies are something I always love to have on hand – I am not sure if it is a nostalgic childhood feeling I am always keen to recreate, but I just love having a jar of cookies on hand. These are so delicious 🙂
Sally says
I love that!