15 Christmas cookie recipes, and a few classic candies, that are all vegan-friendly.

Just like Halloween candy, there are plenty of Christmas treats that are easy to make vegan versions of at home, which means you don’t have to miss out on gingerbread, and all the other seasonal delights. And even if you’re not vegan, your vegan friends will be happy that you made them a range of tasty holiday sweets.

1. Sugar Cookies

Would it be Christmas without a round of baking out sugar cookies? Hardly. Which is why you should put these on your holiday baking list.

2. Peppermint Patties

Like a candy cane dunked in chocolate. And these ones happen to be no-bake.

3. Rum Balls

Made with walnuts, these are a creative twist on the holiday classic.

4. Thumbprint Cookies

With a center of jam, these cookies always look festive on a holiday platter, this time made with a base of roasted almonds.

5. Muddy Buddies

Also known as puppy chow, this classic Christmas candy is a party staple that’s a sweeter version of chex mix. Make it with dark chocolate, coconut oil and a dash of cardamom for good measure and you have a sweet treat that’s sure to be a crowd pleaser.

6. Pfeffernusse

This German gingerbread – “pfeffernusse” translates to “pepper nuts” – is spicy and full of the rich flavor of molasses.

7. Fruitcake

While many people joke about it, this rum infused one is sure to be dense, moist and hard to pass up.

8. Soft Ginger Cookies

Big, candied ginger filled cookies paired with a hot mug of tea? You’ll never want December to end.

9. Red Velvet Crinkle Cookies

Crinkle cookies are fun because of how they look. It’s hard not to want to bite in.

10. Raspberry Filled Butter Cookies

Essentially a tasty gluten-free and vegan shortbread filled with raspberry jam. Yes, please.

11. Gingerbread Cookies

This mostly raw version gets all the gingerbread spices into one simple and tasty cookie.

12. Fudge

Vegan fudge? Oh yes, it can be done, and with only five ingredients you will probably be making several batches.

13. Florentines

This delicate and crispy almond cookie (which is vegan and gluten-free) is laced with chocolate and infused with orange zest.

14. Snickerdoodles

Topped with cinnamon, this a good go-to cookie that almost everyone loves, and in a vegan version, even more people will love it!

15. Raw Vegan Egg Nog

You have to have something to go with your cookies after all, right?

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Vegan Peanut Butter Bars

Image: mnolte, Anna Brones, Jennifer Barckley, VeganBaking.net

The post 15 Vegan Christmas Cookie Recipes (and Other Treats) appeared first on EcoSalon.

Almost every family has its own chocolate chip cookie recipe scratched on a piece of paper, smudged and smeared by flour, eggs, and butter, handed down through generations. But what’s that delicious baked-good doing to your insides?

My grandmother always added a pudding flour mix to her batch, which gave her chocolate chip cookies a special flavor I still dream about. While there are many variations, most chocolate chip recipes have one thing in common: they aren’t good for your physical health.

Not that a cookie has to be good for you in order to enjoy it fully, but if you are the kind of person who loves cookies and would like to eat them as a regular treat, making a few ingredient tweaks could be the difference between a cookie every week or a cookie every day. I’m all about the latter. Before we get into the chocolate chip cookie recipe that will make this dream come true, let’s breakdown the nutrition of this timeless treat.

What’s In A Traditional Chocolate Chip Cookie Recipe?

One medium-sized traditional chocolate chip cookie has about 60 calories, 2.7 grams of fat, 3 milligrams of cholesterol, 8 grams of carbohydrates (with only .2 grams in the form of dietary fiber), and not much else going for it, nutritionally speaking. Sure, there it’s got eggs and milk, which have their host of health benefits, but their positive contribution ultimately drowns in the empty nutritional value of white flour, sugar, and chocolate – to say nothing of the detrimental effects of low-quality eggs and milk.

On the whole, a traditional chocolate chip cookie recipe isn’t the end of the world. Even with all those calories a chocolate chip cookie isn’t going to ruin your dietary goals if eaten every once in awhile. And the comfort of warm chocolate chip cookies fresh out of the oven is such a source of calm and happiness for the soul, the gratification almost outweighs the health setback.

If only we could bring the two together – to get the warm, bubbly feeling of chocolate chip cookies without that looming sense of having to hold back after one bite? Well, I’m here to tell you that we can.

This chocolate chip cookie recipe is vegan and replaces white flour with whole-wheat flour and white sugar with turbinado sugar, which is a minimally-processed with more texture and a taste akin to brown sugar. The result will surprise you, as the cookies are firm but soft on the inside and give you all the satisfaction of having had a cookie, but all in good conscience. Enjoy!

Vegan Chocolate Chip Cookie Recipe

Makes 15-20

Ingredients:

• 2 cups whole-wheat flour
• 2 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/2-3/4 cup carob chips
• 1 cup turbinado sugar
• 1/2 cup canola oil
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 1/4 cup water

Directions: Mix the dry ingredients with the carob chips. Add the oil and vanilla and then mix until evenly combined. Roll into tablespoon-sized balls and bake at 350 degrees Fahrenheit for 12 minutes. Dip in almond milk!

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Vegan This: Gluten-Free Raspberry-Filled Butter Cookies

Sunday Recipe: Peanut Butter Cookies

EcoSalon Recipes: Oatmeal Harvest Recipes

Image Credit: GlowKitchen

The post Finally! A Delicious, Guilt-Free Chocolate Chip Cookie Recipe appeared first on EcoSalon.