These vegan cowboy cookies are made with brown sugar and oats, and packed to the max with delicious fillings like chocolate chips, pecans and coconut!
It's always hard for me to pick a favorite cookie. Chocolate chip cookies owe their deliciousness largely to their chewy texture and rich, sweet chocolate chips. But then again, oatmeal cookies also have their own amazing texture. But also, I love cookie with nuts, like a snowball! Oh, and let's not forget the all those delicious coconutty cookies, like coconut macaroons.
Do you feel the same? Well then today I've got your new favorite cookie.
Vegan cowboy cookies have all the delicious elements of the cookies mentioned above: chocolate chips, oats, pecans, and coconut. Plus they've got a sweet, unique flavor because they're made with a generous amount of brown sugar.
They're absolutely delicious, take about twenty minutes to make and perfect with a glass of almond milk!
Ingredients You'll Need
- Non-dairy milk. You can use any type of milk that's unflavored and unsweetened. My guide to dairy-free milks can give you some guidance if you're not sure which type to choose.
- Ground flaxseeds. We'll be mixing these with the non-dairy milk to create a couple of flax eggs, one of my favorite vegan egg substitutes.
- Flour. We're using all-purpose wheat flour, also known as white flour. The recipe may work with other flour types like whole wheat or gluten-free, but I haven't tested any of them, so no promises!
- Baking soda.
- Cinnamon.
- Salt.
- Vegan butter. Earth Balance and Miyoko's are my preferred vegan butter brands for baking.
- Brown sugar. Make sure your brown sugar is organic. Conventional sugar is sometimes processed using animal bone char, so it's not vegan.
- Sugar. This also needs to be organic, for the same reason.
- Vanilla extract.
- Apple cider vinegar. We're using this to give some acidity to the cookie dough, which, in combination with the baking soda, will make your cookies rise. If you need a substitute, see my guide to apple cider vinegar substitutes.
- Rolled oats. You can substitute quick oats if needed, but your cookies may not turn out as chewy.
- Shredded coconut. Ideally you'll want to use sweetened shredded coconut, but make sure the package indicates that it's vegan (it may not be, depending on how the sugar used to sweeten it is processed). Unsweetened shredded coconut will work just fine as a substitute if needed.
- Chopped pecans. Prefer a different type of nut? Go for it! Chopped walnuts, hazelnuts, and almonds would all be delicious.
- Vegan chocolate chips. Enjoy Life chocolate chips are vegan and available in chunks, morsels and mini morsels. I used morsels to create this recipe, but any variety will work.
How They're Made
Below is a detailed photo tutorial on how to make this dish. Scroll all the way down if you'd like to skip right to the recipe!
Begin by mixing your non-dairy milk and flaxseeds. Let the mixture sit for a few minutes. During this time it will form a gel. This is your flax egg!
Whisk the dry ingredients together in a large bowl: flour, baking soda, cinnamon and salt. Set this mixture aside for a minute.
Now place your vegan butter (room temperature!) into a large bowl, along with the brown and white sugars, flax egg, vanilla and apple cider vinegar. Cream everything together with an electric mixer.
Begin adding the flour to the bow, a bit at a time. Beat each addition in at low speed. You can ditch the electric mixer and switch to a spoon at any point if the mixture becomes too thick.
Tip: Remember to set your vegan butter out a few hours in advance to bring it up to room temperature. If you forget, try this butter softening method.
Stir in the oats, coconut, pecans and chocolate chips.
Drop the dough by heaping rounded tablespoonfuls onto a parchment paper lined baking sheet. Pop them in the oven to bake!
Tip: A cookie scoop is a great tool for getting nice, evenly sized dough balls.
Place the baking sheets on cooling racks when they come out of the oven, at least until the cookies are fully set (this should only take a few minutes!)
Your vegan cowboy cookies are ready to enjoy and share!
Shelf-Life & Storage
Vegan cowboy cookies cookies will keep in an airtight container at room temperature for about 3 weeks, or in the freezer for about 3 months.
More Vegan Cookie Recipes
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📖 Recipe
Vegan Cowboy Cookies
Ingredients
- ¼ cup unflavored and unsweetened non-dairy milk
- 2 tablespoons ground flaxseeds
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 cup vegan butter, room temperature
- 1 ½ cups organic brown sugar
- ½ cup organic granulated sugar
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar
- 2 cups rolled oats
- ¾ cup shredded sweetened coconut (Note 1)
- 1 cup chopped pecans
- 9 ounces vegan chocolate chips
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F and line a couple of baking sheets with parchment paper.
- Stir the non-dairy milk and flaxseeds together in a small bowl or container. Let the mixture sit until it gels, about 5 minutes.
- While the flax mixture sits, whisk the flour, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt together in a large bowl.
- Place the butter, brown sugar, sugar, cider vinegar, vanilla and flax mixture into a separate large mixing bowl. Use an electric mixer to beat the ingredients together for about 1 minute, until creamy.
- Begin beating in the flour mixture in about four increments, beating each addition in at low speed. (Note 2)
- Stir in the oats, coconut, pecans, and chocolate chips.
- Drop the dough by rounded heaping tablespoonfuls on the prepared baking sheets, spacing them about 2 inches apart.
- Bake the cookies for about 10 minutes, until they've completely spread out and darkened slightly around the edges.
- Place the baking sheets on cooling racks and let the cookies cool for a few minutes, until fully set, before removing them from the baking sheets.
Notes
- Unsweetened shredded coconut can be used if that's what's available.
- You can switch to a large spoon to mix the ingredients if the dough becomes too thick for your mixer.
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These look wonderful. But I’m wondering if I can eliminate the coconut? My husband can’t have it. What would you suggest? Thanks!
Thank you! I think you should be fine to make the cookies without the coconut. If the dough seems too soft you could try adding about a quarter cup of additional oats or a couple of tablespoons of flour, but I don't really think either will be necessary. You could also try using my oatmeal raisin cookie recipe (https://www.connoisseurusveg.com/vegan-oatmeal-raisin-cookies/) and just swapping out the spices and stir-ins with those from this recipe. Enjoy!!
Used 1 overripe banana in place of flax egg and it worked.
Really good big batch recipe!
Delicious, chewy cookies! Made about 5 dozen, perfect for sharing.
Completely delicious! The recipe is for keeps! Thanks.