Vegan Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Cookies (also Gluten-Free!)

I’ve been wanting to find some vegan cookie staples to have in my recipe book so we can start some weekend baking rituals with my toddler Lola. I keep reading how good it is to get them started helping in the kitchen at young age and I wanted to find some seasonally appropriate treats to make with her "helping" us along. I definitely crave the pumpkin/chocolate combination around this time of year and I thought if I could also make a gluten-free cookie too, then that would be a double bonus as well, since I’ve been trying to cut down on that lately. It took a few different recipes with a few different tweaks, but I finally found the right combination!
Vegan Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Cookies, makes about 18 cookies
adapted from My Darling Vegan
1 3/4 cup gluten-free flour (I use this blend)
a little less than 1/2 teaspoon xanthan gum*
1 tablespoon flaxseed meal
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup pumpkin puree (not pumpkin pie filling)
1/2 cup vegan butter, melted
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 cup maple syrup
1/3 cup coconut sugar
1 tablespoon almond or cashew nut butter (can sub peanut butter but you may taste that a little more than other nut butters)
3/4-1 cup vegan chocolate chips
*you can also use 1 3/4 cups of this gluten-free flour blend that already has the xanthan gum mixed in if you like and skip the additional xanthan gum.
First, preheat the oven to 350° and line a baking tray with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat.
Add the gluten-free flour, xanthan gum, flaxseed meal, baking soda, and cinnamon in a large bowl. Whisk to combine until all lumps are removed and set aside.
In a separate bowl, combine the pumpkin puree, melted vegan butter, vanilla extract, maple syrup, coconut sugar, and nut butter with a hand held mixer. Add the wet ingredients to the dry and mix with a spoon until just combined.
Sprinkle in and gently fold in the chocolate chips. Give your dough about 5 minutes to thicken up a little as the flaxseed thickens a bit over time.
Use a tablespoon or small ice cream scoop (I like to use a scoop) to scoop a ball of dough about 2 tablespoons in size onto your baking sheet. Place your dough balls about 2″ apart. You can grease the back of a spatula (I just used some coconut oil) to flatten down the cookies a bit before baking as well so they don’t puff up into a mini mound. Bake for 13-15 minutes or until they are set and beginning to brown a bit and cool on a baking rack.
I like that these cookies are a little bit more fluffy and cakey and they almost taste like a cross between a muffin top and a cookie—yum!! So far everyone I’ve given these cookies to have loved them (they have the official Emma seal of approval!) and they are kind of the perfect way to end the day for me either with a mug of hot tea or with a cold glass of macadamia milk (my favorite non-dairy milk at the moment). Whether you are trying to avoid certain ingredients or you have some friends that are, I think this cookie recipe will please even the pickiest of eaters! xo. Laura

Vegan Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Cookies

  • 1 3/4 cup gluten-free flour
  • a little less than 1/2 teaspoon xanthan gum*
  • 1 tablespoon flaxseed meal
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1 teaspoon cinnamon
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1 cup pumpkin puree (not pumpkin pie filling)
  • 1/2 cup vegan butter (melted)
  • 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 1/4 cup maple syrup
  • 1/3 cup coconut sugar
  • 1 tablespoon almond or cashew nut butter (can sub peanut butter but you may taste that a little more than other nut butters)
  • 3/4-1 cup vegan chocolate chips

*you can also use 1 3/4 cups of this gluten-free flour blend that already has the xanthan gum mixed in if you like and skip the additional xanthan gum.

  1. First, preheat the oven to 350° and line a baking tray with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat.
    Add the gluten-free flour, xanthan gum, flaxseed meal, baking soda, and cinnamon in a large bowl. Whisk to combine until all lumps are removed and set aside.
  2. In a separate bowl, combine the pumpkin puree, melted vegan butter, vanilla extract, maple syrup, coconut sugar, and nut butter with a hand held mixer.
  3. Add the wet ingredients to the dry and mix with a spoon until just combined.
  4. Sprinkle in and gently fold in the chocolate chips. Give your dough about 5 minutes to thicken up a little as the flaxseed thickens a bit over time.
  5. Use a tablespoon or small ice cream scoop (I like to use a scoop) to scoop a ball of dough about 2 tablespoons in size onto your baking sheet. Place your dough balls about 2″ apart. You can grease the back of a spatula (I just used some coconut oil) to flatten down the cookies a bit before baking as well so they don’t puff up into a mini mound. Bake for 13-15 minutes or until they are set and beginning to brown a bit and cool on a baking rack.

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