This vegan cookie cake is such a perfect crowd pleaser! This recipe is super simple and easy to make, filled with vanilla flavor and studded with dark chocolate chips. Plus you can top and decorate it the way you want! 100% vegan, egg-free and made without added oil or butter.
Have you ever tried making a vegan cookie cake? This version is like a giant chocolate chip cookie shaped like a pie. Or a pizza. It's essentially half pizza half cookie. Also called "pizookie". How fun! You can decorate your giant cookie as you wish, slice it like a pizza and serve a fun treat to your guests!
Who doesn’t like cookies anyway? I am always up for those quick 3-ingredient peanut butter cookies or a warm batch of matcha white chocolate cookies when I need a sweet snack. But, my most common husband's request is by far oatmeal chocolate chip cookies, so needless to say that this sliceable giant chocolate chip cookie didn’t last for very long in our house.
And this vegan cookie cake isn't the usual kind. Other than a little brown sugar, this plant-based version is definitely healthier than most cookie cake recipes. It is made without eggs or coconut oil (no vegan butter either), plus completely dairy-free!
This cookie cake is sweetened mostly by the dark vegan chocolate chips and also, there is some almond butter to replace the oil, making the giant cookie tender and rich while using less processed fats.
The batter takes 5 minutes to come together and then baked to perfection to create crispy edges and a sweet soft chocolatey middle cookie. The vanilla-flavored cookie dough is studded with tons of chocolate chips, so delicious!
You can decorate the cake with any toppings you like, although I highly recommend my vegan dark chocolate frosting, which was a perfect match!
Makes for a perfect secretly healthier epic dessert to serve to a crowd, but also great everyday sweet treat to make for your family. This recipe is so simple and quick, no need to wait for a special occasion to make it!
Let me know if you gave it a try! ❤️
Why you will love this recipe
- Easy and simple cookie recipe
- Perfect crowd pleaser or to serve to your family
- Fun to decorate
- Quicker recipe: no need to chill the dough before baking
- Crispy edges and chewy centers
- Healthier recipe without any processed fat
- Easy to serve like pizza
- Fully plant-based (vegan), eggless and dairy-free
Ingredients you will need
- Flour: I used all-purpose unbleached flour. Although I haven't tried it yet, if you want to boost the recipe with more fiber, then you can swap up to 50% of the amount of regular flour for whole wheat flour, that usually works well!
- Baking powder: leveling agent. Make sure it is fresh and not expired for best result.
- Brown sugar: I tried using maple syrup, but it didn't give the cake a typical chocolate chip cookie texture. Brown sugar worked out better! Do not swap for other sweetener.
- Plant milk: I like to bake with oat milk, but almond milk or soy milk work too.
- Almond butter: brings a little fat to help create an amazing chewy texture to the cookie. I haven't tried it, but I'm thinking peanut butter should work too. Do not swap for refined oil!
- Vanilla extract: you will need 2 whole teaspoons to give a delicious vanilla flavor to the cookie dough.
- Chocolate chips: choose vegan dark chocolate chips. I love the chocolate chips from the brand Enjoy Life. Mini chips, regular chips or larger chunks all work well.
- Salt: helps balance the sweet flavor.
How to make a vegan chocolate chip cookie cake
Making a cookie cake is actually quicker, easier and less messy than making actual cookies! All you have to do is make the batter, press the dough in a baking dish and bake until golden brown.
Before starting, pre-heat the oven to 350º and cover the bottom of a 9 inch springform pan (cheesecake dish) with parchment paper.
Make the batter
In a medium bowl, add the plant milk, almond butter and vanilla extract. Then, whisk until the mixture is super smooth without any clumps of almond butter left, which can take one whole minute. Set aside.
In a large bowl, add the flour, brown sugar, baking powder and salt. Stir to combine.
Pour the the wet ingredient mixture over the bowl with the flour and stir until combined. I recommend using a spoon and press on the dough to help combine it. It will look too dry for a while, but keep going and it will eventually come together.
When mostly together, then add the chocolate chips and keep mixing to incorporate them. The dough is ready when there are no dry pockets of flour visible.
Transfer to baking dish and shape
Shape the dough into a ball in the mixing bowl and transfer to the prepared baking dish. Then, use your hands and fingers (wet them first if needed) to press the dough into the dish: you want the top to be as smooth as you can and the thickness of the cookie as even as possible all over the cookie.
Bake and decorate
Bake in the oven for 18-21 minutes, which will vary a lot depending on your oven: you are looking for golden brown edges, but the center can still be soft and tender when you take it out of the oven, it will keep setting as it cools down.
Then, let the cookie cake completely cool down before unmolding and decorating with frosting, whipped cream, etc (see below).
Slice in triangles like a pizza and enjoy!
Top baking tips
- Dipping your fingers in a little water really makes a difference when pressing on the dough. Otherwise, the dough sticks to them too much and it is tricky to make a smooth surface.
- I highly recommend measuring your flour following the scoop and level method for best results.
- For an easy unmolding, don't forget to add a piece of parchment paper to the bottom of your baking dish (just cut a circle that fits the bottom).
- Make sure the cookie cake is all about the same thickness to ensure even cooking.
- For best result, choose an almond butter that's smooth with a pourable consistency.
- Don't overbake the cookie cake! A little underbaked is better than overbaking it. You can take it out when the edges are slightly brown, but the middle still a little soft. Then, let it cool down for the cookie cake to finish cooking.
Favorite toppings and serving suggestions
And now the best part: decorate your cookie cake!
I topped mine using this vegan dark chocolate frosting that you can find on my blog. But, you can use whatever you like and be creative! Here are more topping ideas:
- Vegan vanilla glaze
- Salted tahini caramel or maple date caramel spread
- Healthy peanut butter frosting
- Coconut whipped cream or store-bought oat whipped cream
- Vegan chocolate sauce
Then over the frosting, you can sprinkle some coarse sea salt, shaved chocolate, colorful sprinkles, shredded coconut, crushed nuts or even fruits, especially raspberries or strawberries
You can also serve with vegan vanilla ice cream for a nice treat and our kids absolutely loved it with a chilled glass of milk. Pair it with a hemp chocolate milk for an amazing treat!
Variations to the recipe
Like in most baking recipes, there is not much room to swap the ingredients without changing the outcome too much.
But, here are a few changes or swaps you can make:
- Add some cinnamon or chai spices mix to the batter.
- For a nice crunch, then include chopped nuts, such as macadamia, almonds or walnuts.
- You can swap the regular dark chocolate chips for vegan white chocolate chips or vegan peanut butter chips.
Storage tips
Keep the cookie cake at room temperature for up to 2 days. Make sure to cover well as it will dry out quickly. For longer storage, then cover and keep in the fridge for up to 5 days. You can pre-slice the cake for easy grab and go.
Before enjoying, you can warm up the cookie cake just for a few seconds so it softens and the chocolate slightly melts.
FAQ's
You can use a tart pan with a removable bottom for easy unmolding. A regular pie dish should work well too, although probably difficult to completely unmold in one piece (you can slice the pieces straight in the dish). In any case, if your dish is larger or smaller than what's recommended, then you might need to adjust cooking time.
Yes you can! Swap the all-purpose flour for a 1:1 certified GF flour such as the one from Bob's Red Mills. I do not recommend using other kind of GF flour, like a almond flour or coconut flour, it won't work as well!
Yes you can! Pre-slice the cake and cover the pieces well. Then, freeze for up to 3 months. Let them thaw at room temperature for 30 minutes or so or use the microwave to speed up the process.
More recipes like this
- Vegan lemon cookies
- Pumpkin chocolate chip cookies
- Oatmeal cinnamon cookies
- Sweet potato breakfast cookies
- Vegan sandwich cookies
- Almond flour thumbprint cookies
- Vegan coffee cookies
- 5-min vegan cookie in a mug
- Raw cookie dough bites
- Vegan red velvet cookies
I hope you like this vegan cookie cake recipe as much as we do! If you try it, please leave a comment below and rate the recipe to let me know how it was. Your feedback is so helpful!
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📖 Recipe
Vegan Chocolate Chip Cookie Cake
Ingredients
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- ⅔ cup brown sugar
- 1 tsp baking powder
- ⅛ tsp salt
- ½ cup plant-based milk - I used oat milk
- ½ cup almond butter - stir well before measuring
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- ½ cup vegan chocolate chips
Instructions
- Pre-heat the oven to 350º and line the bottom of a 9 inch springform pan with parchment paper.
- In a medium bowl, combine the plant-based milk, almond butter and vanilla extract. Use a whisk and keep stirring until the mixture is all smooth without any clumps of almond butter. Set aside.
- In a large mixing bowl, combine the flour, brown sugar, baking powder and salt.
- Then, pour the wet ingredients over the bowl with the flour and stir until a dough forms. You will have to stir for at least a minute: the dough will look a little dry at first, so use a spoon or your hands to press on the dough to help make it come together and keep going until uniform.
- Add the chocolate chips and incorporate them into the dough. Shape the batter in a large ball and transfer to the prepared dish.
- Use your fingers to press on the dough and spread it out all over the baking dish. You can wet your fingers so the dough isn’t too sticky and try to create a cookie cake that's the same thickness all over the surface for a more even baking.
- Bake in the oven for 18-21 minutes. Do not overbake the cookie cake: it is ready to take out when the edges are golden brown and the middle still a little soft. Then, let the cookie cake cool down to allow the cooking process to finish and then unmold.
- You can serve as is or decorate the cookie cake the way you want before slicing. I decorated mine using my vegan dark chocolate frosting, but a vanilla icing, peanut butter frosting, vegan ice cream or simply whipped cream are all great.
Video
Notes
- Storage: keep covered at room temperature for up to 2 days, then transfer in the fridge for longer storage. You can also freeze the cookie slices for up to 3 months.
- You can add some cinnamon, walnuts or vegan white chocolate chips to your cookie dough if you prefer. Check out my blog post for more ideas!
- Nutrition: please note that the nutritional information is an estimate per serving provided for informational purposes only (calculated by software) and accuracy is not guaranteed. Consult with your healthcare provider or a registered dietitian if you need precise nutrition calculations for health reasons.
NUTRITION
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The vegan Chocolate Chip Cookie recipe doesn’t say to add the brown sugar to mixture it was left out in the instructions.
Hi Karen, thank you so much for pointing this out, I appreciate you took the time to comment. It is corrected now! 😊