Having my mom here for the last several days was such a treat. I’ve felt a bit like a basket case lately as we’re dealing with some behavioural issues (the munchkin, not the mom!), and having her here made the world of difference. As I’ve written about in my birth story, the presence of other women who’ve been through it before (childbirth, raising a family, etc.) is a comforting feeling. There is strength to be found in hearing someone else’s child-rearing war stories (which are often hilarious in hindsight…seriously hilarious!). Sometimes you just need someone to tell you that everything is going to be ok, despite feeling like you’re doing most things wrong, unable to find solutions to ongoing issues, or worse yet, creating lifelong bad habits. I’m starting to realize that it’s ok not to have an immediate answer, to sift through the highs and lows of parenting, to do my best each day while troubleshooting through it all, and know that in the end love wins. We have so much love and laughter in this house—I have to remind myself not to lose sight of that. When my mom says to me that soon she’ll be grown and past these phases I find myself welling up with tears because I don’t want this time to pass, yet some days I’m at a loss as to how to get through them. “We are given what we’re able to handle,” she reminds me. Parenting is a humbling experience, and I laugh at my former self who had a long list of “things I’d never do as a parent”. Well, that list has been a running joke around here of late.
Cookies have felt so right lately, in every way possible. I’ve gotten lost in the testing of this recipe, probably 12 times in a few weeks (as you may have witnessed on Snapchat and Instagram!), and I’m so thrilled with how they turned out. I can’t even deal with how delicious these are, and how much joy they’ve brought into our lives. Total comfort food, right here.
Here are some things I love about these cookies:
+ They are jumbo (so glad I didn’t go with my original idea—mini cookies…temporary lapse in judgement, clearly.), chewy, and gooey (thanks to big chunks of chocolate and a short bake time) with a crispy edge (aka: my cookie nirvana).
+ They are vegan and gluten-free with a perfect texture…so pretty much unicorns of the cookie world given how amazing they taste.
+ Much like my beloved Crispy Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies, they have a wholesome base made up of oats and almonds.
+ They are sweetened with pure maple syrup rather than cane and brown sugar (this is a big request I’ve had!).
+ You only need ONE bowl! And everything is stirred by hand—no electric mixer required!
+ They only contain a few tablespoons of virgin coconut oil—there’s no vegan butter to speak of, but the flavour isn’t compromised one bit.
+ They are bursting with gooey chunks of dark chocolate! I started my testing with 100 grams, then tried 125 grams, and finally settled on 150 grams of chocolate in this recipe. Trust me on this one. Normally, I gravitate toward this 70% dark chocolate, but we all preferred a slightly milder bar in this recipe—Camino 55% dark chocolate bars. Feel free to experiment and find your perfect chocolate in this recipe!
+ Arrowroot flour/starch helps bind these cookies rather than a flax egg (some of you requested a vegan/gf cookie without flax due to flax allergies so I’m happy you can enjoy them too!).
+ They are super fun to photograph (hence, the million pictures). Try it yourself and tag them #ohsheglows on social media so I can see!
+ Did I mention they’re the cookies of my dreams? Ok, I’ll stop now.
Jumbo Chocolate Chunk Cookies
Yield
13 jumbo (4-inch) cookies
Prep time
Cook time
Total time
These vegan and gluten-free chocolate chunk cookies will blow your mind! The cookie dough is sweetened with pure maple syrup—you'd never know they don't contain any granulated cane or brown sugar (aside from the chocolate, of course). Almond butter, oats, almond flour, and a small amount of coconut oil form the hearty and nutritious base of these irresistible cookies. Prepare yourself for an addiction. We love these warm, but they're also great straight from the freezer or fridge! This recipe is inspired by The Bojon Gourmet.
Ingredients
For the wet ingredients:
- 1/2 cup (120 g) natural smooth almond butter (no subs)*
- 1/4 cup plus 3 tablespoons (105 mL) pure maple syrup
- 3 tablespoons (45 mL) virgin coconut oil, softened but not hot**
- 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
For the dry ingredients:
- 1/2 cup (50 g) gluten-free rolled oats
- 1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons (50 g) gluten-free oat flour
- 1/4 cup (33 g) arrowroot flour/starch
- 1/4 cup (25 g) almond flour
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon pink Himalayan salt
- (150g) 55% non-dairy dark chocolate (about 1 1/2 bars)***
Directions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F (180°C) and line a very large (approx. 21 by 15 inch) baking sheet with parchment paper.
- In a large bowl, stir together the wet ingredients (almond butter, maple syrup, oil, and vanilla) until completely smooth.
- Stir the dry ingredients (oats, oat flour, arrowroot, almond flour, baking soda, and salt) into the wet mixture, one by one, until thoroughly combined. The dough will be a bit wet/oily, but this is normal.
- Chop the chocolate into small chunks. Set aside 3 tablespoons (for topping the cookie dough later), and stir the rest of the chocolate into the batter until combined.
- Using a large retractable cookie scoop (or simply a spoon and your hands), scoop mounds of dough (about 2 1/2 tablespoons of dough per cookie). Add each onto the baking sheet, about 3 inches apart, as they'll spread a lot while baking.
- Press the remaining 3 tablespoons of chocolate onto the tops of the cookie dough mounds, evenly distributed. (Reshape the cookie dough mounds if they flatten a bit.)
- Bake for 8 to 10 minutes (I prefer 8 1/2 to 9 minutes for gooey and soft cookies), until the cookies are spread out. If you prefer a crispy cookie, bake for about 12 minutes.
- Cool the cookies directly on the baking sheet for about 5 to 6 minutes. The cookies will be super delicate until they are cooled. Using a spatula, gently transfer each cookie directly onto a cooling rack for another 10 minutes, where they'll firm up even more. (It's normal to have a small amount of oil on the bottom of the cookies due to the almond butter. If this bothers you, simply place them on a couple sheets of paper towel.) Serve and enjoy! Allow the cookies to cool completely before storing.
Tip:
- * It's important to use natural smooth almond butter that has a fairly "drippy" consistency. Be sure to stir it very well before measuring and avoid using the dry/hard nut butter at the bottom of the jar as it's too difficult to mix with the other wet ingredients. Some readers have also said that using peanut butter resulted in cookies that didn't spread out and didn't hold together, so I wouldn't recommend subbing the almond butter.
- ** What is softened coconut oil? During the warm summer months, coconut oil is the perfect "softened" consistency at room temperature; it's neither solid nor completely melted. If you do need to use melted coconut oil, just be sure that it's not hot/warm or it could melt the chocolate.
- *** I prefer Camino 55% dark chocolate bars in this recipe, but feel free to use the chocolate of your choice.
- Tip: These cookies spread out a lot and are fairly thin. If you prefer a thicker cookie you can try chilling the dough before baking. (I haven't tried this yet myself.)
Nutrition Information
(click to expand)
COOKIE FAQs:
I posted this recipe to the Oh She Glows Recipe App over the weekend, and I’ve already had some questions about these cookies that I will share here:
Can I sub natural peanut butter for almond butter? Some readers have commented that they tried this swap and it didn’t work out so well. The cookies didn’t spread out and they were very crumbly. So I wouldn’t recommend it.
Can I make these nut-free? I haven’t tried a nut-free version yet, but if I do it will likely involve trying out sunflower seed butter and finely ground toasted sunflower seeds. Obviously the flavour will change a lot and might be overpowering. The cookies might not spread out, too. If you try anything out, please leave a comment and let us know how it turns out!
Can I swap the arrowroot for another starch? Arrowroot flour is a starch and it helps bind these cookies together. I haven’t tested this recipe using another starch yet (such as tapioca or potato starch), so I can’t say for sure. Again, if you try anything out please report back!
Can I make regular-sized cookies as opposed to jumbo? You sure can!
How do you store these cookies? After cooling completely, I typically store these cookies in a zip bag or container in the fridge (where they’ll firm up even more thanks to the coconut oil solidifying) for a few days. You can also store them in a freezer-safe bag in the freezer (likely for up to 1 month, but we’ll probably never be able to verify this).
Wow!! These look amazing and I so resonate with you on the behavioural issues from a two year old (and I’ll add an 8 year old in there too)
All I can say is enjoy that cuteness before the attitude days start ;)
ps. you’re making me miss my mom too… it will be months until her next visit. Grandmas are just the best and even better WITH a plateful of chocolate chunk cookies! :)
*hugs* ella
So glad you went with jumbo and not the mini’s!! I don’t know what it is but I have sad SUCH a sweet tooth lately when I’m normally a salt person. Cannot wait to try these babies out.
I hope they hit the right spot Caitlyn. :) (They definitely do for me!)
Wow they look amazing!
I will defiantly have to try them! :)
Izzy | https://plantbasedizzy.wordpress.com/
I hope you enjoy them when you do, Izzy!
Um can I have one of these for breakfast? They look to die for and especially loving those huge chocolate chunks. Would love to try it with some flaky sea salt on top too!
www.sprinklesandsaturdays.com
Haha go for it Julia! ;)
Hi. I am trying to eat healthy but watch calories/fat after having baby#4. Do you post nutritional information anywhere? Also I would like to refer patients to you but many are diabetic and also watching weight so they need to keep track of macros.
Thank you!
My Fitness Pal has a feature where you can copy and paste a recipe URL or the actual recipe ingredients, and it will calculate the nutritional information and macros breakdown. Login to My Fitness Pal, click the Food tab, then click the Recipes tab, and either enter the URL or manually enter the recipe. On the next screen, you will hit “match ingredients.” Just make sure to double-check their suggestions for ingredients and number of servings as sometimes they get it wrong. For example, for whatever reason, it thought the almond butter was basil (haha). Hover over the ingredient you want to edit, and the ability to do so will appear. Save and you can use it for daily food tracking.
Hi Lori, Big congrats on baby #4! What an exciting time for you and your family (and slightly busy, I imagine!). With respect to your question, you’ll find some older recipes have nutritional information available. I’m also happy to let you know that the nutritional info for all of the recipes in my second cookbook, Oh She Glows Every Day, will be available on my website by the time the book launches this September. For recipes on the blog and in my first cookbook that don’t currently have nutritional info available, I recommend using a free online tool like NutritionData.com or CalorieCount.com, or an app like MyFitnessPal.
So…if she does what you want (adding nutritional info), you will refer people to her page? Interesting way to put it.
When made with peanut butter it was 217 calories per cookie.
i’ve been waiting (not so patiently!) for this recipe since i first saw the cookies on snapchat! thanks for putting in all the hard work of perfecting them ;) definitely going to make a batch this week, hooray!
I hope you enjoy them, Sara!
I’ve been waiting for this blog post so I can comment on how good these cookies are! I made them as soon as it was posted in the app. Time saver: I used Enjoy Life chocolate chunks so I could skip the chocolate-chopping step :)
Thanks for the lovely comment Heather! It’s so great to hear you’ve been enjoying them. :)
Can we omit the coconut oil in this recipe? I’m allergic to coconut, I’d love an alternative!
Vegan buttery spread would probably work.
I used ghee (not vegan) when I made these for my sister who is allergic to coconut, and they turned out great. If you still want to make it vegan, I agree with Heather J. that vegan buttery spread would do. I recommend using Earth Balance Vegan Buttery Sticks (Soy-Free) for baking as I’ve had good results with these in the past.
Hi Jenna, I’d suggest trying a vegan butter like Earth Balance. (I buy the soy-free buttery spread.)
You could try 3 tbsp apple sauce/puree, I haven’t tried it yet but that’s what I’m going to use when I make mine!
Also, I made regular sized cookies (I got 22 using just a single dollop from a cookie scoop) and baked them for 9 minutes… still good!
These look amazing! Is there anything that would work as a substitution for arrowroot powder?
I wonder that, too–can we use corn starch, or make a flax egg?
Hi Vanessa, I haven’t tested this recipe using another starch to bind the cookies together yet (such as tapioca or potato starch), so I can’t say for sure. If you try something, I’d love it if you’d report back!
I tried these with tapioca starch (all I had) and they worked out perfectly!
I also used cashew butter instead of almond as I was all out of that too… I could have gone to the supermarket but couldn’t wait any longer for these babies.
They were delicious. I had one in my lunch bag for work today and ate it on the way in for breakfast. I have no willpower at the moment (I have a daughter around the same age as you Angela and I’m sure we’re going through the same things!) Plus she’s not a fan of sleeping at the moment so there’s that too :) Thankyou for your mum’s reminder that “we are given what we’re able to handle” makes me feel so much better.
And thanks for the recipe, it’s my new favourite cookie.
Hey Louise, That’s great the tapioca starch swap worked out well for you! It’s something I’ve been wanting to try myself, so thanks for letting us all know! I’m glad these cookies put a smile on your face during what sounds like a challenging time (oh, toddlers). I had to laugh at your mention of eating the cookie on the way in for breakfast. I’ve definitely done the same! Wait. Is it even possible not to eat one the next morning?!
I just made these and used corn starch, all I had in the cabinet. They came out perfect!
I subbed in tapioca flour today and they came out great! ❤️
I accidentally missed the arrowroot powder all together one time and it didn’t matter. The recipe still came out great.
Every time I make a batch of your cookies they always end up being the best cookies ever! You’re amazing.
www.whenhealthymettasty.com
Aw, you’re too sweet Caroline! I hope you love these cookies just as much when you give them a try.
Caroline, I completely agree! One of my all-time favorite of Angela’s cookies are the Nutcracker Cookies from 2011. An oldie, but a goodie!
These look amazing! Question though… is there a difference when subbing chocolate chips? I never quite understand the difference between chocolate chunks and chocolate chips.
In my opinion, the main difference between chips vs. chunks vs. chopped is the chocolate distribution. Chips are classic small bits of chocolate vs. chunks being a massive chocolate flavor in the middle of the cookie vs. chopped resulting in the most even distribution of chocolate throughout the cookies, making it taste richer, though not too chocolatey.
My son is only a few months older than your daughter. And I totally get what your saying. I never know if I’m doing it right or not. If I’m being too strict or not strict enough. Other parents say not to worry about it so much. This one mom from my park has a son who is in grade 1. I asked her about what she did. She said she does t even remember the stage were in anymore. But said now that her son is I school it’s a lot easier. She said when you can rationalize with them it’s not as bad and it’s easier to get them to listen. So now I keep that in mind. I don’t think you can really mess up too much at this stage. Just do what you think is right. And as they’re language develops and you can rationalize a bit more I think clarity in parenting becomes more Apparant. At least that’s what I think. I’m sure your doing great! Just like those cookies you posted! Yum!!!
Could one use peanut butter instead of almond butter?
Hannah, the answer to this question is included in the COOKIE FAQ at the end of the recipe right before the comments begin.
Hi Hannah, I wouldn’t recommend it: a number of readers have commented that they tried this swap and it didn’t work out so well! The cookies didn’t spread out and they were very crumbly.
These cookies are absolute perfection! I made these the day you uploaded to the app because I’ve been drooling over them on Snapchat. I used the Enjoy Life brand of chocolate chunks to skip the step of chopping the chocolate. So delicious!!!
So glad you like them, Lori!
Thank you so much for posting this recipe on the blog as well, I follow your snapchats and was afraid to not be able to get the recipe!! And boy you were torturing us with the pictures;))But I knew you wouldn’t have the heart to do that to your die hard fans who cant buy the app!!;)))
I hope you love the cookies when you try them, Cecile!
Thank you for this recipe! I made these last night from your app using half the batter with cocoa nibs instead of chocolate chunks to make it refined sugar-free for me – delicious.
Hi Stephanie, I’m so glad you like the recipe (and it’s great to hear it works well with cocoa nibs!). Enjoy! :)
I just made a batch with a few substitutions, so I thought I’d report back! I used potato starch instead of arrowroot, used regular butter instead of coconut oil (we are not vegan) and chilled the cookies while preheating the oven. They have the best texture of any non-refined-sugar-sweetened cookie I have ever made! They are still a bit on the crumbly side, which could be due to using potato starch or to having thicker cookies after chilling. Nevertheless, they tasted delicious!
These pics had my DROOLING! i NEED to give these a go!!!
Love Holly jade at http://www.thelittleblogofvegan.com
Hey Holly, I hope you love them if you give them a try!
I was going to work out after work but…..I think I will make these instead!! Recipe looks divine :)