Does anyone else love fun holiday-inspired drinks? I know I love festive flavored drinks and treats as the weather gets cooler. One of my favorites is a peppermint mocha. And what’s better than a festive drink in cookie form? A while ago, I made my Vegan Espresso White Chocolate Cookies, so today I thought I’d make an adaptation of those. So, here are the best, easy vegan peppermint mocha cookies!
The Ingredients
The cookies are so easy to make and can be made in one bowl! The main ingredients in this recipe are:
- Candy Canes
- Instant Espresso (or instant coffee)
- Vegan Marshmallows
- Vegan Butter
- Ground Flaxseed
- Sugar (white and brown)
- Cocoa Powder
- Flour
- Baking Soda & Powder
Making the Dough
The first step in making the dough is to cream your vegan butter and sugars together. In this recipe, I’m using softened Earth Balance buttery sticks. Earth Balance vegan butter has been a go-to of mine for forever. It’s the perfect replacement for normal dairy butter! I prefer the sticks over the tub for baking.
To cream the vegan butter and sugar, you could use a hand mixer or just a fork and some elbow grease (which is what I did). You’ll then add in the instant espresso, vanilla extract, and flax egg. Next, you’ll fold in the cocoa powder, flour, baking soda, baking powder, and crushed candy canes.
In this recipe, I’m using a flax egg as my binding ingredient. To make a flax egg, all you need to do is mix together 1 tablespoon ground flaxseed and 3 tablespoons of water. I let my mixture sit for about 5 minutes to thicken up before adding it to the dough.
Baking the Cookies
Because these cookies are so soft, chewy and a little fudgy, the dough is sticky and soft. To make the dough easier to work with, you’ll want to chill it for about 30 minutes before baking the cookies. This chill time is important to keep the dough from spreading too much when baked, plus it makes shaping the cookies much easier!
To shape the cookies, scoop about 1 tablespoon of dough at a time into your hands and roll the dough into a ball. Place the cookies about 2 inches apart from each other on the baking sheet. This will help the cookies bake more evenly and keep them from spreading into each other!
These cookies only take a short 10-12 minutes to bake, so keep an eye on the timer! (I baked mine for exactly 11 minutes.) After removing the cookies from the oven, you’ll want to let them cool for a few minutes (4-5) on the baking sheet before transferring them to a wire cooling rack.
Decorating the Peppermint Mocha Cookies
I chose to decorate my cookies with a drizzle of vegan white chocolate and a sprinkle of crushed candy canes. Of course, this is completely optional, but decorating the cookies makes them feel extra festive! (And it’s fun!)
If you’re looking for more holiday baking ideas, check out these fun recipes!
- Vegan Cranberry Almond Shortbread Cookies
- Classic Vegan Snickerdoodles
- Vegan Espresso White Chocolate Cookies
~ Happy Baking! ~
Easy Vegan Peppermint Mocha Cookies
Soft, fudgy, and rich, these easy vegan peppermint mocha cookies are the perfect holiday, winter, or Christmas cookie. Topped with vegan white chocolate, infused with espresso flavor, and sprinkled with crushed candy canes these are the best cookies for holiday baking!
Ingredients
Cookies
- ½ cup vegan butter, softened
- ¼ cup white sugar
- ¼ cup brown sugar, loosely packed
- 1 flax egg, 1 tbsp ground flaxseed mixed with 3 tbsp water (let sit for 5 minutes to thicken)
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 2 tsp instant espresso
- ¼ cup of cocoa powder
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- ¼ tsp baking powder
- ¼ tsp baking soda
- 1/8 tsp salt
- 3 tsp crushed vegan candy canes, about 3 candy canes
- 3 tbsp mini vegan marshmallows, chopped small (optional)
Topping
- ¼ cup vegan white chocolate
- ½ tbsp coconut oil
- crushed vegan candy canes
Instructions
Making the Dough
- In a medium-sized bowl, cream the vegan butter, white sugar, and brown sugar together until the mixture is lighter in color.
- Add in the flax egg, vanilla extract, and instant espresso. Add in the cocoa powder and mix to combine.
- Add the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt on top of the wet ingredients. Sift the dry ingredients together with a fork and then fold them into the wet ingredients. The mixture should form a sticky dough.
- Fold in the crushed candy canes.
- Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and chill in the fridge for at least 30 minutes. This will help keep the cookies from spreading too much when baked and make the dough easier to work with.
Baking the Cookies
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
- After chilling the dough, fold in the chopped mini vegan marshmallows if using.
- Using a cookie scoop, roll 1 tbsp of dough at a time into a ball. Place on a nonstick or greased cookie sheet about 2 inches apart from each other.
- Bake the cookies for 10-12 minutes. (I baked mine for 11 minutes)
- Once removed from the oven, let the cookies cool on the baking sheet for 4-5 minutes. Then transfer them to a wire cooling rack.
Decorating
- To decorate the cookies, melt the vegan white chocolate and coconut oil together in a small bowl in the microwave. Microwave the chocolate for 2 minutes, stopping every 30 seconds to stir.
- Drizzle the chocolate on top of the cookies. Immediately top with crushed candy canes while the chocolate is still wet. Let the chocolate cool & set, and enjoy!
Notes
- I found the easiest way to crush my candy canes was in a mini food processor.
- Make sure to not over bake the cookies! They should appear just baked right out the oven but will continue baking some as they cool on the baking sheet.
Nutrition Information:
Yield: 14 Serving Size: 1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 169Total Fat: 9gSaturated Fat: 5gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 3gCarbohydrates: 20gFiber: 1gSugar: 11gProtein: 2g
Nutritional info is an estimate.
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I would love to read the comments, but they seem to be hidden….
How long do these cookies last?
How is the best way to store them?
I definitely want to make these!
Hi Jo! These cookies will stay fresh at room temperature for about 2 days. I typically store them in an air-tight container (like a Tupperware) or a ziplock baggie. After 2 days I usually freeze them so they stay moist. You can place them in a freezer-proof ziplock or wrap them very well in plastic wrap to freeze them.