Candy Cane Chocolate Chip Cookies (Gluten-Free & Vegan)
What do you get when you cross candy canes with chocolate chips? If you didn’t guess these bomb diggity candy cane chocolate chip cookies you are clearly on the wrong baking blog (wink wink.) Loaded with holiday mint and delicious chocolate, these vegan and gluten-free candy cane cookies are going to be a Christmas repeat!
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The Best Gluten-Free & Vegan Candy Cane Chocolate Chip Cookies
Without a doubt, these are the best gluten-free vegan candy cane chocolate chip cookies you’ll ever eat. A thick bakery-style cookie with a soft slightly chewy center and crisp golden edges. Loaded with crushed candy canes and all the mini chocolate chips make these cookies a Christmas flavor party in every single delicious bite.
Why These Candy Cane Chocolate Chip Cookies Are The Best
No chill time is needed with these amazing gluten-free dairy-free candy cane chocolate chip cookies. Simply mix them up and bake them away! Cookies don’t get much easier than that! Better yet, the dough freezes like an absolute dream. Mix up a double, heck, even triple batch and pop any extra straight into the freezer for those last-minute holiday cookie needs. These candy cane chocolate chip cookies are hard to beat!
Candy Cane Chocolate Chip Cookie Ingredients & Substitutions
As always this recipe is gluten-free and vegan. That said, I do test each recipe with “regular” ingredients and make notes of alternatives or swaps so that everyone can enjoy it.
Here are a few key ingredients for these cookies but make sure you scroll all the way to the bottom recipe card for the complete ingredient list.
- Gluten-Free Flour: Check to see if your blend contains xanthan gum and omit it from the recipe below if it does. Note that gluten-free flour blends can vary in weight so I recommend measuring by the cup. I made these cookies with XO Baking Co. all-purpose flour blend. If you are not gluten-free, swap the flour with regular all-purpose flour and omit the xanthan gum.
- Vegan Butter: I enjoy baking with Becel plant-based bricks but any vegan butter substitute will work. You can also use regular butter if you are not vegan/dairy-free.
- Vegan Yogurt: Instead of eggs, I used vegan vanilla yogurt in this recipe. It works like a charm! Vegan sour cream would also work and so would regular vanilla yogurt or sour cream.
- Candy Canes: Fortunately, I was able to locate pre-crushed candy canes. talk about a time saver. If you can’t find crushed candy canes you can simply crush them yourself with a food processor or rolling pin and a Ziploc bag. Double-check to make sure the candy canes are gluten-free.
- Vegan Chocolate Chips: EnjoyLife makes these fabulous vegan mini chocolate chips. These could easily be replaced with regular dairy-free or dairy-full chocolate chips as you please.
How To Ensure Gluten-Free Vegan Candy Cane Cookie Success
Let’s double-check all our cookie bases to ensure we have the most incredible life-changing gluten-free and vegan candy cane chocolate chip cookies.
- Cream the butter & sugar: To create thick bakery-style cookies, creaming the butter and sugar together until light and fluffy is so important. Tiny little microscopic air pockets are being formed, which creates leavening and will help achieve that lift.
- Big cookie scoop: We’re going for bakery-style and that means extra big. Use a 3-tablespoon cookie scoop to scoop your cookie dough.
- Parchment paper: Candy canes, when baked, are going to melt, and this will cause two things. First, the cookies will stick to a cookie sheet if parchment paper is not used. Second, the cookies may come out of the oven a bit wonky looking. With a butter knife or spoon, gently push the melted candy cane cookie edges back into a perfectly round shape when they are fresh out of the oven.
- Don’t overbake the cookies: These gluten-free and dairy-free candy cane chocolate chip cookies are gloriously chewy and soft because they are ever-so-slightly underbaked when removed from the oven. The heat from the cookie pan will continue to bake these cookies after they come out so don’t worry about them being raw.
Can I Freeze The Cookie Dough?
Yes! Woohoo! You can absolutely freeze this cookie dough for when that cookie craving hits. I recommend scooping each cookie dough ball and placing the dough into a large Ziploc freezer bag. This will allow you to pull out however many cookies you desire to bake at any time. And no need to thaw, simply preheat your oven, pop them in the oven, and bake for approximately 1 minute longer than the time listed below on the recipe card.
How To Store Gluten-Free Candy Cane Chocolate Chip Cookies
Store these amazing Christmas minty chocolatey cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 7 days. Likewise, they can be frozen in an airtight container for up to 6 months.
The Easiest One-Bowl Gluten-Free Dairy-Free Candy Cane Chocolate Chip Cookies
Chewy and soft, packed full of Christmas candy canes and chocolate chips, these fun cookies will become your new go-to holiday recipe. Gluten-free and vegan, these candy cane chocolate chip cookies are everything yummy with flavors of peppermint and chocolate!
I would love to know if you make these fantastic candy cane cookies. If you do, tag me on social media @cakedbykatie and leave this recipe a rating and review below. Can’t wait to see it!
Other Cookies Recipes To Try
- Gluten-Free Chocolate Chip Cookies
- Dairy-Free Chocolate Chip Cookies
- Funfetti Sugar Cookies
- Cherry Oatmeal Cookies
- Dairy-Free Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies
- Key Lime Pie Cookies
- Gluten-Free Sparkle Cookies
- Gluten-Free & Vegan Coconut Orange Cookies
- Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Cookies
Candy Cane Chocolate Chip Cookies (Gluten-Free & Vegan)
- Total Time: 25 Minutes
- Yield: 18 Cookies 1x
- Diet: Gluten Free
Description
Loaded with crushed candy canes and mini chocolate chips, these thick and chewy gluten-free and vegan candy cane chocolate chip cookies are a Christmas must-bake!
Ingredients
Candy Cane Chocolate Chip Cookies
- ½ cup (113g) salted vegan butter
- ¾ cup (150g) brown sugar
- ½ cup (100g) granulated sugar
- ½ cup (120g) vegan yogurt or sour cream, room temperature
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 ¼ cups (288g) gluten-free flour 1:1 baking blend *
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon coarse sea salt
- ½ teaspoon xanthan gum **
- ½ cup (90g) crushed candy canes
- ½ cup (120g) mini vegan chocolate chips
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350ºF and prepare two large cookie sheets with parchment paper.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer or in a large mixing bowl with electric beaters, cream the butter and sugars together on high for 2 minutes or until light and fluffy.
- Add in the yogurt and vanilla and mix on high for another 2 minutes.
- Add in the flour, xanthan gum (if using), baking soda, and salt and turn the mixer on low and allow to mix until a dough forms.
- Add in the crushed candy and chocolate chips and mix until just combined.
- With a large 3-tablespoon cookie scoop, scoop the cookie dough and place it on the prepared cookie sheet approximately 2 inches apart from each other. Press down on each cookie dough ball slightly if you desire a flatter cookie.
- Bake for 10 minutes or until the edges are a light golden brown and the center of the cookie appears to be just slightly underbaked.
- Remove from the oven and, with a butter knife or spoon, gently push any melted candy cane bits back to form a perfectly round cookie if desired. Allow the cookies to cool on the cookie sheets fully. Enjoy!
- Store leftover cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 7 days or in the freezer for up to 6 months.
Notes
* Check to see if the gluten-free flour blend contains xanthan gum.
** Omit xanthan gum if your gluten-free flour blend already contains it or if you are using regular all-purpose flour.
- Prep Time: 15 Minutes
- Cook Time: 10 Minutes
- Category: Cookies
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Keywords: candy cane chocolate chip cookie, candy cane cookies, gluten free candy cane chocolate chip cookies, vegan candy cane chocolate chip cookies
I made these with white chocolate chips, turned out great!
★★★★★
Gosh, I need to try this stat!
These are awesome and taste like Christmas! We don’t have gluten concerns and aren’t vegan so I used regular flour, butter, etc…. Perfect level of chewy and soft for my tastes.
★★★★★
That’s so awesome to hear Megan. Thanks for sharing.
Wow! So simple, and sooo delicious !! I’m not sure who loves these more, me or the kids ?
So nice to have a festive and inexpensive holiday cookie. Will definitely be making these many times over.
★★★★★
Haha I may have hidden a few in the freezer just for myself ?