These ultra chewy chocolate chip cookies are hands down the best! They also just happen to be healthy, gluten free, paleo, dairy free and vegan too. This family favorite is a go-to whenever you’re craving a good homemade chocolate chip cookie, and they’re perfect to bring to a party or serve to guests!
Making chocolate chip cookies NEVER gets old. Even after testing 3 or 4 batches, I’m usually still ready for more.
Okay, that might be an exaggeration – I usually need about a day to come out of that cookie coma before I’m ready to get back in and bake another batch 🙂
Anyway, I’m thrilled to share this cookie recipe today for so many reasons. Number one being that yes – they are my own personal favorite which is why they are labeled the “best” chewy chocolate chip cookies.
These cookies are loosely based on my original vegan + paleo “oatmeal” raisin cookies. When I made those cookies for the first time I knew I’d hit on something extra special!
My family devoured them and couldn’t believe they weren’t actual oatmeal cookies, for one.
I started bringing them to people’s houses whenever we had to go somewhere and the feedback was consistently “wow!” which only encouraged me to experiment further.
Since then, I’ve made countless variations of that cookie – all paleo and vegan – including chewy lime coconut cookies, cranberry orange chocolate chip cookies, and double chocolate chip cookies.
Each time, I tweak the recipe a bit to get the flavor and consistency I’m going for. Testing out these cookies was really fun – I wanted to see if I could make the ultimate chewy egg-free, paleo, and vegan chocolate chip cookies!
In the original recipe I always used almond butter in combination with refined coconut oil, but for these I experimented with cashew and was very happy with the results!
Since cashew butter is so creamy and neutral, it gives the cookie great texture without any almond flavor. That said, they’d be delicious with almond butter as well, so use what you have – you can even sub in tahini if you prefer!
To sweeten them, I deiced to go with both maple syrup AND maple sugar – though you can sub in coconut sugar here if you prefer – the cookies will appear darker but the overall flavor won’t be affected much.
The benefits of maple sugar in my opinion are all about the appearance, flavor, and texture. Since maple sugar is light in color with a fine texture, it works more like white sugar in recipes, which is great when you’re trying to mimic a traditional cookie!
I highly recommend trying out maple sugar for baking if you haven’t yet – you’ll be hooked in no time! You can see the exact one I use myself linked below the recipe.
As you can see above, these chewy chocolate chip cookies are awesome and versatile! You can serve them plain or go fancy with an ice cream sandwich for an extra special treat!
(If you want to make your own paleo vanilla bean ice cream, you can find the recipe here!)
These cookies also happen to hold up well at room temperature (unlike some paleo cookies) making them great for parties and gatherings – they travel with perfect ease!
Lastly, a note on the chocolate chips I use. I love using Enjoy Life Chocolate Chips even though they contain cane sugar and therefore are not technically paleo. I use them because they’re free of dairy, soy, and any additives and I’m find with a little cane sugar for the ease of use.
That said, you can use any chopped dark chocolate or chocolate chips that you like, OR you can even make your own paleo chocolate!
If you use the recipe for the chocolate in my truffle recipe, you can simply chill the chocolate in a shallow parchment lined pan and then chop it into chunks to use in this recipe or any recipe that calls for chocolate chips.
I hope you’re ready to make your new favorite cookies! May they become a favorite that you go back to again and again. Now, let’s bake!
Best Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies {Paleo + Vegan}
Best Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies {Paleo + Vegan}
Ingredients
- 1/4 cup coconut oil solid but softened
- 1/4 cup smooth nut butter almond or cashew butter - the creamier, the better
- 3 Tbsp pure maple syrup
- 3 Tbsp pure maple sugar or coconut sugar
- 1/2 tbsp pure vanilla extract
- 1 flax egg = 1 Tbsp ground flaxseed + 2 1/2 Tbsp water, allowed to sit 15 minutes
- 1 cup + 2 Tbsp blanched almond flour
- 1/4 cup arrowroot flour or tapioca
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1/4 tsp sea salt
- 1 cup dark chocolate chips or chopped dark chocolate - see notes for a paleo chocolate recipe to make your own*
Instructions
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Prepare your flax egg as described above and set aside. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees and line a large baking sheet with parchment paper.
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Whisk together the almond and arrowroot flours, baking soda, and salt, then set aside.
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In a separate bowl with an electric mixer or whisk, cream together the nut butter and coconut oil until smooth, then add the maple syrup, maple sugar, and vanilla, continue to mix until very smooth.
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Add in the flax egg and continue to whisk (or beat on low) until fully combined.
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Slowly mix in the flour mixture (with a spoon) until a sticky cookie dough forms. Fold in the chocolate chips, then chill the mixture in the fridge for 10 minutes if the dough is very sticky. If it's scoopable, there's no need to chill.
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Using a medium cookie scoop, drop the mixture onto a cookie sheet, about 2 inches apart since they will spread a bit.
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Bake in the preheated oven for 11-12 minutes or until cookies are set in the center and beginning to brown around the edges. They will be very soft but don’t over-bake to maintain a chewy texture.
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Remove from oven and allow to cool on the baking sheet for about 5 minutes, then carefully transfer to wire racks to cool completely. Makes 14 cookies. Enjoy!
Recipe Video
Recipe Notes
*Make your own paleo chocolate chunks with this recipe
Nutrition
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Want More Paleo + Vegan Cookie Recipes? Try One of These!
Cranberry Orange Chocolate Chip Cookies
Edible Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough
Soft Chewy Date Sweetened Chocolate Chip Cookies
Lemon Almond Thumbprint Cookies
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Oh my goodness…words can’t describe. These cookies have been out of the oven for less than 5 minutes and my family and I ate half the batch.
Wonderful!
These were delicious! I was wanting a chocolate fix suddenly and checked on this site because I have good results with baking here. These were as good, if not better than regular chocolate chip cookies, thank you!
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These are some of the best cookies I’ve ever had, allergen friendly or not! I use this recipe all the time and people are always surprised when I tell them the ingredients! Thank you !
Love the recipe. So chewy and delicious! Mine didn’t turn brown, but I baked the recommended time and they were perfect. I used the Artesian brand cashew butter. Yum!
I have made this recipe several times now. We LOVE it! I have been Paleo for one year now and my boyfriend a bit longer. We have a fairly active lifestyle and I have lost over 80#! FYI- I am 66 and my boyfriend is 79! I attribute our good health to Paleo and having a good outlook on life!
These are absolutely amazing cookies – I usually get 20/21 cookies out of the batch which makes the nutritional panel even better!
Excited to try this! How big is your medium cookie scoop? A tablespoon? Two tablespoons? Something in between? I searched the interwebs and it seems there are a zillion (or at least 9!) different cookie scoop sizes and I don’t own any, so not sure where to start. Thank you!
The texture on these babies is DIVINE. Coming from someone who’s not even vegan! So happy I finally found a go to cookie recipe after years of trying countless other ones.