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Lazy Cat Kitchen

A food blog with plant-based recipes from all over the world

Easy vegan chocolate cookies

November 16, 2019 by Ania - 50

aquafaba, baking, chocolate, comfort food, easy, gluten-freego to recipe

go to recipe

vegan chocolate cookies tray

This past week has been very emotionally draining and I really feel the need to take it easy this weekend. After a week of freezing cold downstairs, we now finally have two working radiators in our newly opened up living space, so spending time in my kitchen is a pleasure again and having painted the wall the radiators hang on, we are finally able to get a glimpse of what our living room will eventually look like. It’s motivating to keep going despite some short term discomfort.

What’s been hard, apart from constant cleaning and DIY, was squabbling with the builders. They have done a decent job overall, but there was some drama as they left a lot of mess around the newly opened space, knowing I will need to get it cleaned off before I decorate and despite me reminding them to do it well before they clocked off for the day. I ended up cleaning some of it myself and only painted behind the radiators as a result, as they promised to put it right when they install the radiators on Thursday. They did clean it, but their heart was clearly not in it and so I will now have to go over it again. Sigh.

They also broke one of the original floorboards while prising an adjacent floorboard up in order to install the heating and then lied to me about it! Apparently, it wasn’t them, even though curiously out of an entire floor of 100 year floorboards, only one floorboard was shattered to pieces right next to the place where you can see a chisel has gone in! I mean, come on… How naive do you think I am?

I think where I went wrong is I was too nice to them, on standby to guide them when their boss clearly did not brief them well enough, to make them hot drinks, to clean alongside them when the dust has settled and they started thinking that I was working for them, not the other way round. I also feel that there was an inherent element of good old sexism involved – would they have the cheek to tell a male customer to clean the surfaces right next to the opening they’ve just made and failed to protect from dust themselves? I very much doubt that! Anyway, lesson learnt, next time I will make sure to keep a distance and make my demands clear.

Today’s recipe is a tray of delicious brownie-like chocolate cookies as that’s all I could muster in my slightly frazzled mental state, to be honest. They are delicious – soft, fudgy and intensely chocolatey. They are naturally gluten-free too as they are made without any flour (almond flour is only a flour by name). They are ridiculously easy to make and come together in just about 20 minutes (plus some necessary cooling time) so you could be enjoying them a mere half an hour after an impromptu cookie hankering strikes you all of a sudden 😉 . Do you get those too?

PS: If you make my easy vegan chocolate cookies, don’t forget to tag me on Instagram as @lazycatkitchen and use the #lazycatkitchen hashtag. I love seeing your takes on my recipes!

vegan chocolate cookies making

vegan chocolate cookies side

vegan chocolate cookies macro

vegan chocolate cookies stack

vegan chocolate cookies cross section

5.00 from 11 votes
Print
  • makes: 12
  • prep: 10 min
  • cooking: 10 min

Ingredients

  • 100 g / 3.5 oz vegan 70% cocoa dark chocolate
  • 80 ml / 1/3 cup aquafaba (chickpea brine), from a tin or from homecooked chickpeas
  • 140 g / 2/3 cup sugar (caster sugar gives you the crispiest outer shell, but coconut sugar works well too!)
  • 80 g / 1/3 cup 100% natural nut or seed butter of choice (I used this almond butter)
  • 100 g / 1 cups finely ground almonds / almond flour
  • 40 g / heaped 1/3 cup cocoa powder
  • ¼ tsp salt OR coarse sea salt for sprinkling
  • ½ tsp baking soda (GF certified if needed)

Method

  1. Melt the chocolate very slowly over a bain marie / water bath. Make sure the bowl with chocolate does not touch the water underneath.
  2. Preheat the oven to 175° C / 345° F. Line a large baking tray with a piece of baking paper.
  3. Whip aquafaba with an electric whisk until foamy (no need to achieve stiff peaks for this recipe).
  4. Gradually add sugar to the aquafaba, whisking well after each addition.
  5. Using a spatula, fold warm melted chocolate into the aquafaba and sugar mixture.
  6. Fold in almond butter.
  7. Add in all the dry ingredients (skip ¼ tsp salt if you intend to sprinkle the cookies with coarse sea salt!) in small batches, mixing well until no cocoa or almond meal pockets remain. The batter should be very thick.
  8. Dollop approx. 2 tbsp of batter per cookie on the prepared baking tray, making sure to leave plenty of space around each cookie. Sprinkle with coarse sea salt if using.
  9. Bake on the middle shelf for about 10-11 minutes, allow the cookies to cool off completely before eating.
If you want more info on some of the ingredients that we use in our recipes, check out our glossary.
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This recipe has been written by Ania. She is the cook, stylist and photographer behind Lazy Cat Kitchen. You can read about her journey into food blogging here. You can also check her out on Pinterest and Instagram.

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    Comments

    Leave a comment

  1. Irma says

    November 17, 2019 at 7:15 am

    Sorry to read about your experience. I was shaking my head as I was reading about the way they treated you and your home.
    You still managed to bake these delicious looking cookies though?? Amazing!
    Any chance I can still use regular all-purpose flour to make them nut-free? Allergies! They won’t have the same delicious taste as almond flour, but as long as I won’t mess them up completely…
    Thank you and I hope all your construction-next-times are positive and uplifting 🙂

    Reply
    • Ania says

      November 17, 2019 at 1:40 pm

      Thanks Irma! Yes, it was a bit more stressful than it needed to be and ironically my builders aren’t even as bad as they get – they turned up on time, did what was asked of them to a good standard…oh well, I won’t be hiring them again, I don’t think – lying about the floor really took the biscuit! Speaking of baked goods, here is the answer to your question – the batter for these is really thick so it will be hard to incorporate plain flour without overworking it, I think. I think that a gluten-free mix or perhaps oat flour will be a safer bet as there is no risk of overmixing the batter. You may also not need as much flour, go by feel! Hope that helps! Ania

      Reply
  2. Melina says

    November 17, 2019 at 11:22 am

    Sorry Anya, I know how it feels when you come out of something feeling a little taken advantage of. It leaves a sour taste.
    Question: If I don’t have a chocolate bar on hand, do you think I could make this using cocoa powder? If not, I’ll just wait till Monday to go buy some good vegan choc. I live in Greece and I know you know how it is…. got to wait for the Bio store to open 😀

    Reply
    • Ania says

      November 17, 2019 at 1:28 pm

      Hi Melina,

      Thank you – yes, it’s been a bit stressful and emotional, but it’s almost over fortunately. You do need a chocolate bar for these to work, I am afraid. Oh yes, I remember well, everything is closed on Kyriakí, isn’t? x Ania

      Reply
  3. Afrodyta says

    November 19, 2019 at 5:55 pm

    Sooooo goood

    Reply
    • Ania says

      November 19, 2019 at 6:20 pm

      Thank you, I so happy to hear that! x Ania

      Reply
  4. Where is Jakarta says

    November 23, 2019 at 3:55 pm

    It looks really great. Can I do this? I am not sure. Thanks.

    Reply
    • Ania says

      November 23, 2019 at 4:54 pm

      Sure you can, they are dead easy! Ania

      Reply
  5. Ashley says

    November 26, 2019 at 8:01 am

    Can you replace the aquafaba with another egg replacement? I cannot have the brine of legumes.

    Reply
    • Ania says

      November 26, 2019 at 1:06 pm

      You may be okay using whipped flax or chia eggs, but I haven’t had the time to test this so I cannot be 100%. Hope that helps! Ania

      Reply
  6. Ainsley says

    November 26, 2019 at 9:06 am

    Hi there these look delicious! Can I ask what the chickpea brine is for? And what can I use as an alternative if I don’t have any on hand right now?

    Reply
    • Ania says

      November 26, 2019 at 1:05 pm

      Hi Ainsley,

      It acts as an egg substitute. You may be okay using whipped flax or chia eggs, but I haven’t had the time to test this so I cannot be 100%.

      Reply
  7. Emily says

    November 27, 2019 at 5:37 pm

    Too bad about the rotten experience you had!! I hope things are better in the future 🙂

    These were AMAZING!! I am terrible at making gluten-free treats although I have a close family member who is gluten free loves and treats as much as we all do 🙂 so these were a Godsend really. They were so quick to make and everyone loved them. Only change I made was left out a bit of the sugar. Otherwise followed the recipe exactly. These cookies are perfection! Your recipes deliver EVERY TIME! Thank you!!

    Reply
    • Ania says

      November 27, 2019 at 5:57 pm

      Thanks so much Emily! I am delighted to hear that you enjoyed them (and some other of my recipes too). Thank you for taking the time to leave such a lovely and encouraging comment, much much appreciated! x Ania

      Reply
  8. Heather says

    December 6, 2019 at 2:36 am

    Can I substitute cacao for the cocoa powder? I just realized that’s all I have on hand.

    Reply
    • Ania says

      December 6, 2019 at 12:42 pm

      Hi Heather,

      Sure thing, *i think* it may be a touch more bitter so please be aware of that – you may want to add a bit more sugar to compensate. Ania

      Reply
  9. Airpod says

    December 6, 2019 at 3:55 pm

    Hi Ania, these look delicious. Will give it a try!

    Reply
    • Ania says

      December 6, 2019 at 7:27 pm

      Great to hear, I hope you’ll enjoy them. x Ania

      Reply
  10. Joshua Howard says

    December 7, 2019 at 4:21 pm

    These are hands down THE BEST chocolate cookies I EVER had! Like, seriously. Thank you so much

    Reply
    • Ania says

      December 7, 2019 at 6:03 pm

      Aw thanks so much, Joshua! That’s really nice to hear! x Ania

      Reply
  11. Lyda Dyda says

    December 9, 2019 at 1:25 pm

    Ania can I just use eggs instead of aquafaba as I don’t have any ready and really wanted to make these cookies. If yes how many eggs? Thank you. P.S. Sorry about the experience you had to go through, some people are just not professional at all.

    Reply
    • Ania says

      December 10, 2019 at 2:14 pm

      Hi Lyda,

      Thank you for your kind words, it’s all good – they finished the job and the standard is good enough so I am okay. As for your question, I have no idea, I am afraid, as I do not use eggs, my guess is one but I may be wrong. Ania

      Reply
  12. Wendy says

    December 31, 2019 at 9:47 pm

    Do these taste almonds or does the chocolate cover it up? Oh yes, builders are fun.

    Reply
    • Ania says

      January 1, 2020 at 8:41 pm

      Hi Wendy,

      No, I don’t think they taste of almonds at all, chocolate is the dominant flavour. Ania

      Reply
  13. Antonia says

    January 5, 2020 at 1:44 am

    Hi, just wondering how long these will last how to store them?
    They look amazing!

    Reply
    • Ania says

      January 5, 2020 at 4:39 pm

      Thanks 🙂 At least 2-3 days in an air-tight box should be fine.

      Reply
  14. John says

    February 2, 2020 at 5:27 pm

    These cookies are the best cookies I’ve ever tasted. Amazing! Thanks so much Ania for sharing this recipe.

    Reply
    • Ania says

      February 2, 2020 at 6:48 pm

      Wow, that’s some compliment, thank you! I am so pleased and thanks for taking the time to let me know that you enjoyed them so much too. Ania

      Reply
  15. Melanie Pickering says

    February 6, 2020 at 4:48 pm

    I made these and they’re really nice. I had to make a chocolate bar to use for it as I had none in the house and to buy one would have taken me over budget this week – seemed kind of crazy, making the chocolate, setting it so that I could melt it again but I couldn’t be sure what weight it would come out at!!!
    I was expecting them to spread so made the mistake of just leaving them in heaps on the baking tray – I’ll know better next time!

    Reply
    • Ania says

      February 6, 2020 at 5:00 pm

      Hi Melanie,

      Glad you liked them! They do spread, but if you made your own chocolate (which is wow, committed to having choc cookies!! 🙂 ) then that would have affected the recipe, I am pretty sure. Ania

      Reply
  16. Julian Douglas says

    February 20, 2020 at 2:37 pm

    Hi, these look wonderful! Do I have to use almond flour or can I use a more conventional flour like plain flour?

    Reply
    • Ania says

      February 20, 2020 at 3:23 pm

      Hi Julian,

      You can use conventional flour, but it will render the texture a bit more cakey (rather than wet and brownie-like). Hope that helps! Ania

      Reply
  17. LiLo says

    March 20, 2020 at 1:51 am

    OMG these cookies are sooooo gooood….. and so easy to make. Thanks again for a great recipe….
    LiLo

    Reply
    • Ania says

      March 20, 2020 at 1:13 pm

      Thank you, I am delighted to hear that you enjoyed them so much! x Ania

      Reply
  18. Rachel says

    March 25, 2020 at 12:47 pm

    These are delicious and so chocolatey! I was a bit worried because I struggled to fold in the almond butter and ended up losing most of the volume of the aquafaba, but they came out perfectly with an amazing squidgy texture inside. They freeze and defrost well too. Thanks Ania!

    Reply
    • Ania says

      March 25, 2020 at 1:57 pm

      I’m so pleased to hear that, Rachel. These do not require AF to be particularly fluffy actually but glad it all went well and that you were able to enjoy these. Stay well in these crazy times. xx Ania

      Reply
  19. Thuy says

    June 11, 2020 at 7:10 pm

    I’m not thur best bake in the world, made these but wondering if I’ve done something wrong? They still tasted nice but was a bit dry and they didn’t flatten out. Could it be 1) I didn’t put quite enough aquafaba in, or 2) I didn’t whisk it enough? Also does it matter if I use smooth or crunchy nut butter? Many thanks

    Reply
    • Ania says

      June 11, 2020 at 7:29 pm

      Hi,

      I’m glad you still enjoyed them. There could be a few reasons for them not spreading out, either too little liquid (and that includes aquafaba) or too much flour. The latter can happen if you use cups rather than scales and your measuring technique is not quite down pat. As for them being try, perhaps your oven runs hotter than mine or they have been baked for too long. If you did end up with too much flour in the batter then they would not need to be baked for a long as normally. Hope that helps! Ania

      Reply
  20. Viola says

    July 8, 2020 at 8:29 pm

    Love these cookies. They are like a brownie in cookie form. I didn’t have any almond butter and used vegan chocolate spread instead.

    Reply
    • Ania says

      July 9, 2020 at 3:07 pm

      Great to hear that you enjoyed these, Viola and thanks for letting me know! Ania

      Reply
  21. Jungyeon Han says

    August 12, 2020 at 11:19 am

    Would aquafava leave any chickpea smell to the cookies? I have used aquafava to make chocolate cake and the smell was too strong even after baking.
    Otherwise these look great and I would definitely love to make These soon!

    Reply
    • Ania says

      August 12, 2020 at 12:45 pm

      Hi,

      I don’t think so. I use aquafaba widely in my cooking, including subtler flavoured dishes (like this one) and none of my dinner guests (including non-vegan) have been ever able to detect the taste or smell of chickpeas. It may be that your aquafaba was off or that you are you are particularly sensitive to its smell, but I really don’t think you could tell what is in these cookies other than chocolate. Hope this helps! Ania

      Reply
  22. Mei says

    October 9, 2020 at 4:27 am

    These were amazing! But mine didn’t spread though and was wondering how did you achieve the flatten and lovely cracks in your cookies? 😊 thanks!

    Reply
    • Ania says

      October 9, 2020 at 11:56 am

      Hi Mei,

      I’m glad you enjoyed these. The cookies in my photos are based on exactly this recipe so there is no further secret I can share, I’m afraid. I always make sure to use scales (rather than cups) when baking as even small discrepancies in the quantity of ingredients will affect the texture. Hope this helps! Ania

      Reply
  23. stephanie moore says

    October 13, 2020 at 3:19 am

    Oh my goodness these were AMAZING. My new favorite vegan cookie. I didn’t have almond flour so I subbed all purpose but only used 80grams instead of 100 so it would stay gooey and it worked fantastic. My family all loved them. We froze the extras and I think the best way to eat them is straight out of the freezer. Oh and I used cashew butter intead of almond butter and it was fantastic.

    Reply
    • Ania says

      October 14, 2020 at 12:15 am

      I’m so happy to hear that you and your family enjoyed these so much, Stephanie. And thanks so much for taking the time to let me and other readers know – appreciated! Ania

      Reply
  24. Benny says

    February 5, 2021 at 12:26 am

    Thanks. Tasty. Tried them tonight before I had to give a talk. Ever so quick to make. Good use of the aquafaba in the fridge. Used salted peanut butter and no additional salt. Tried to speed and melt chocolate in the microwave but burnt the middle so I don’t recommend that!! I used 2 large trays and they ended up looking like yours!

    Reply
    • Ania says

      February 5, 2021 at 1:11 am

      Glad you enjoyed them! Chocolate is a very heat sensitive ingredient so I do not recommend using a microwave unless you have a method that definitely works. Ania

      Reply
  25. Izzy Davis says

    February 8, 2021 at 4:39 pm

    Yet another great recipe, thanks for sharing, perfect little treat with a cup of tea working from home!

    Reply
    • Ania says

      February 8, 2021 at 7:58 pm

      Thanks so much, Izzy! I’m so happy you’ve enjoyed these and thanks for letting me know. x Ania

      Reply

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Ania Marcinowska
Hi, I'm Ania. I love good food but I love animals more! Adopting a plant-based diet has been the best decision I've made and that's how this blog was born. It's a space where I want to show you that creating delicious plant-based food isn't actually hard at all.
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