Candy Cane Chocolate Chip Cookies (Gluten-Free & Vegan)
Thick and chewy, these easy candy cane chocolate chip cookies taste of holiday delight in every bite. Crushed candy canes and rich chocolate chips give this cookie the perfect combination of yummy festive fun. Bonus: The recipe can be made gluten-free, vegan, or regular.
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The Best 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 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
Here are a few key ingredients for these cookies but make sure you scroll to the bottom recipe card for the complete ingredient list.
- Flour: Use either all-purpose flour or a gluten-free flour 1:1 baking blend.
- Butter: Any type of block-style butter, plant-based or regular, will work.
- Yogurt: Plain yogurt or sour cream. This too can be either plant-based or regular.
- Candy Canes: Crushed candy canes make this recipe easier but if you can’t find them, you can crush them yourself in a ziploc bag and rolling pin.
- Chocolate Chips: Use whatever type, plant-based or regular, you prefer. White chocolate chips would be a tasty twist too.
How To Ensure Candy Cane Cookie Success
Let’s double-check all our cookie bases to ensure we have the most incredible life-changing 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 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 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 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.
No need to thaw, simply preheat your 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 candy cane and chocolate chip cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 6 days. Likewise, they can be frozen in an airtight container for up to 6 months.
The Easiest One-Bowl 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. 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 Holiday Cookies Recipes
The holidays are made for cookies. Or are cookies made for the holidays? Either way, here are a few of my favorite holiday cookie recipes.
- Gluten-Free Peanut Butter Blossoms (Vegan Option)
- Vegan Red Velvet Cookies (Gluten-Free)
- Gluten-Free Whipped Shortbread Cookies (Vegan)
Candy Cane Chocolate Chip Cookies (Gluten-Free & Vegan)
- Total Time: 25 Minutes
- Yield: 18 Cookies 1x
- Diet: Gluten Free
Description
Loaded with peppermint candy canes and rich chocolate chips, these thick and chewy candy cane chocolate chip cookies are a holiday must-bake! Bonus: The recipe can be made gluten-free and/or vegan if desired.
Ingredients
Candy Cane Chocolate Chip Cookies
- 1/2 cup (113g) salted vegan butter *plant-based or regular
- 3/4 cup (150g) brown sugar
- 1/2 cup (100g) granulated sugar
- 1/2 cup (120g) plain yogurt or sour cream, room temperature *plant-based or regular
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 1/4 cups (270g) all-purpose flour *can sub gluten-free flour 1:1 baking blend
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon coarse sea salt
- 1/2 cup (90g) crushed candy canes
- 1/2 cup (120g) chocolate chips *plant-based or regular
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350ºF and prepare two large cookie sheets with parchment paper.
- In a stand mixer or in a large mixing bowl with electric beaters, cream the butter, brown sugar, and granulated sugar together on high for 2 minutes or until light and fluffy.
- Add the yogurt (or sour cream) and vanilla and mix on high for another 2 minutes.
- Add the flour, baking soda, and salt and mix on low until a dough forms.
- Add in the crushed candy cane 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. Press down on each cookie dough ball slightly if you desire a flatter cookie.
- Bake for 8-10 minutes or until the edges are a light golden brown and the center of the cookie appears to be 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. Allow the cookies to cool on the cookie sheets fully. Enjoy!
- Store the leftover cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 6 days or in the freezer for up to 6 months.
- Prep Time: 15 Minutes
- Cook Time: 10 Minutes
- Category: Cookies
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
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 ?
Just made these, they were amazing! I made them gluten-free but they taste like gluten 👌 chewy and delicious.
Oh Jackie! That absolutly thrills me to hear. I’m so very glad you enjoyed them.
These were a huge HIT at our home this Christmas! Very baker friendly as my daughter and I both made them! Thank you for helping me meet the gluten free dairy free tree nut free needs in our home 🥰
I’m so glad you included them in your Christmas baking.
Just curious. Where does the green and red colour on the top of the cookies in your photos come from? They don’t look like candy cane pieces.
They are classic red, white, and green candy canes crushed up.