Bringing all the Christmas vibes with warming ginger and good cheer! A vegan version of the quintessential holiday cookie, these wholesome Ginger Snap Cookies are loaded with aromatic spices and amazing texture of crunchy goodness on the outside and chewy loveliness on the inside, Mmmmmm. Easy to make, these cookies will quickly become your new family favorite! Lightly sweetened with maple syrup and robust molasses makes for the perfect healthy cookie. Guaranteed to get rave reviews these cookies will be gone in a flash!
Whole Food Plant Based, vegan, plant based, oil free, refined sugar free, gluten free, no highly processed ingredients.
Hi there, Ameera here!
Want to hear something funny? Mom and I never made Ginger Snap Cookies for our holiday cookies trays. Yep, you read that right . . . never . . . made . . . them!
Mom was never a huge fan and because of that, we always passed them over. She had had them as a young girl, and said the spices were so overpowering that she just didn’t like them, and I guess that was that. LOL
Reader Requests
So, Mom and I set out to remedy that when we started to get floods of emails requesting Ginger Snap Cookies from our Readers. Mom was kinda hesitating on this one. LOL I guess she just really REALLY didn’t like them. Notice the use of the past tense verb “didn’t”.
When we began our adventure of WFPBing Ginger Snap Cookies, it wasn’t difficult to develop a great recipe. Our first few kitchen tests tasted awesome. We both looked at each other and wondered why we waited so long to create this wondrousness!
Snaps vs Chewy
The big dilemma that we found was whether to make them “snappy” or “chewy.” Traditionally, a ginger snap is called a snap because it is a “crunchy,” kind of like a drier cookie with great flavor, otherwise they just call them Ginger cookies.
Since our Readers were specific in their requests of Ginger “Snaps.” We decided to kind of split the difference.
This cookie has a crunchy exterior with a slightly chewy interior. The baking soda gives it that crispness. So, if you want a chewier cookie, then scale back the baking soda.
This post contains affiliate links, and we may receive a very small commission if you purchase through those links at no additional cost to you. Thank you for supporting Monkey and Me Kitchen Adventures! For more information, see our disclosures here.
Almond Flour
Most of you know we are a Celiac (gluten free) family so the almond flour is the key flour here. We get tons of questions on almond flour substitutes. We don’t have a substitution to offer since this recipe was designed to use almond flour. Just wanted to get ahead of the questions. *smile* However, if you give them a try with a different flour, we’d love to hear how it went.
I’ll let Mom tell you more!
Hi! Robin here!
It’s true, Monkey and I have never baked Ginger Snap Cookies prior to receiving multiple Reader requests for them. I had had Ginger Snap Cookies when I was small because my dad loved them, but I never enjoyed them, so I had been avoiding them all my life up until this point.
Kinda makes me sad that I allowed that one Ginger Snap Cookie experience deprive me of this deliciousness for the past 60 years. I was really missing out and didn’t even know it. A big THANK YOU to multiple Readers who wanted Ginger Snap Cookies. They are delightfully delicious! We loved developing the recipe!
Official Taste Tester
TP109 enjoyed them with his coffee on multiple occasions. He said they were the perfect coffee cookies. He even ate all the kitchen tests including all the ones that were stored in the freezer.
Dang the man can eat and never gain a pound. He was just bragging to me last week that since he has gone Whole Food Plant Based, he had dropped another pants size and wanted more cookies. Mind you he is 5’ 6” and barely 130 pounds soaking wet. LOL
He went to his doctor recently and his numbers were FABULOUS!!! Yay for the Whole Food Plant Based Diet!
Any who, I got side-tracked, these cookies are TP109 approved and he wants you to know that he loved them! And we can’t wait for you to try them.
If you try these tasty cookies, we would love to know if you enjoy it as much as we do! Please leave us a review! Post a picture on Facebook or Instagram and tag us! We would love to hear from you.
Products Used:
- Baking sheet
- Parchment paper (or silicone baking mat) We used silicone baking mats
- Wire cooling rack (optional)
Ginger Snap Cookies
- Prep Time: 8 Minutes
- Cook Time: 10 Minutes
- Total Time: 18 Minutes (+1 Min. Rest)
- Yield: 14-16 Cookies 1x
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Oven
Description
Bringing all the Christmas vibes with warming ginger and good cheer! A vegan version of the quintessential holiday cookie, these wholesome Ginger Snap Cookies are loaded with aromatic spices and amazing texture of crunchy goodness on the outside and chewy loveliness on the inside, Mmmmmm. Easy to make, these cookies will quickly become your new family favorite! Lightly sweetened with maple syrup and robust molasses makes for the perfect healthy cookie. Guaranteed to get rave reviews these cookies will be gone in a flash!
Whole Food Plant Based, vegan, plant based, oil free, refined sugar free, gluten free, no highly processed ingredients.
Ingredients
Dry Ingredients:
- 1 ½ cups almond flour *
- 1 teaspoon baking soda *
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- 1 ½ teaspoons ground ginger
- 1 ½ teaspoons ground cinnamon
- 1/8 teaspoon ground cloves
- 2 Tablespoons cornstarch *
- ¼ teaspoon sea salt *
Wet Ingredients:
- ½ cup unsalted almond butter, softened
- 1/3 cup organic maple syrup
- 2 teaspoons molasses
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 F. Place oven rack in the center position, avoiding the lower oven rack placement.
- Line a baking sheet with a silicone mat (or parchment paper).
- Place all the other Dry Ingredients into a bowl, whisk to combine.
- Add the Wet Ingredients to the dry ingredients, stir well to combine (no electric mixer required).
- Take 2 tablespoons of cookie dough and roll it in your hands to form a ball, then place the ball onto the silicone mat (or parchment paper) lined cookie sheet. Try to keep the cookie size uniform. Continue until you have rolled all the dough into balls and placed on the baking sheet.
- Then flatten each ball into a round disk about ½ inch thick, then place the baking sheet (space them far apart as they spread) into a preheated 350 F oven and bake for 10 minutes.
- After 10 minutes, remove from the oven, allow the cookies to sit on the baking sheet(s) undisturbed for 1 minute to firm up, then transfer to a wire cooling rack.
- Enjoy warm, soooo delicious!
Notes
*Almond Flour: This recipe was specifically designed to use almond flour. We have no substitutions for the almond flour. Additionally, spoon the almond flour into the measuring cup, do not pack it in.
*Cornstarch/Baking Soda: If you want a chewier cookie, then scale back on the cornstarch or leave it out completely. Additionally, scale back on the baking soda. Baking soda creates a crispier cookie.
*Sea Salt: Please adjust the sea salt based upon your family’s sea salt preferences and/or based upon dietary needs.
*Serving: Makes approximately 14 to 16 cookies.
*Storage: Use within 5 days. Freezes well.
This post contains affiliate links, and we may receive a very small commission if you purchase through those links at no additional cost to you. Thank you for supporting Monkey and Me Kitchen Adventures! For more information, see our disclosures here.
If baking soda makes the Ginger Snap crispy, will increasing that ingredient make it crispy throughout?
Hi there Carol 🙂
Thank you so much for reaching out to us. It is a delicate balance when baking Whole Food Plant Based no oil and gluten free. In theory, adding more baking soda should increase crispiness. However, baking is a science and since we haven’t tried it, we cannot guarantee that it will come out the way you are intending – like a crispy-snapy cookie.
-Ameera and Robin 🙂
I made these for Christmas Day and they were fantastic!
Hi there Leslie 🙂
Yaaaayyy!!! We are so thrilled to hear that you enjoyed these cookies. We appreciate your awesome feedback and for taking the time to write.
-Ameera and Robin 🙂
Hello!
I made these cookies and loved them, especially the texture (without cornstarch)
I’m craving a chocolate cookie and while I was going to make the Mexican Hot Chocolate cookie I don’t have maple sugar, only SYRUP. Would it be possible to swap out ginger and spices here for cocoa powder to make a hybrid? Help! Lol
Hi there Krista 🙂 Yaaayyy!!! We are so excited that you gave these cookies a try and loved them. We totally understand those chocolate cravings when they hit. We are chocolate lovers through and through. When it comes to baking the Whole Food Plant Based way, plus without gluten, it gets really hard to predict how cookies will turn out when any of the ingredients are altered. Even small changes can make big differences in taste, texture, and overall yumminess. Depending on what your diet permits, we have had readers tell us they were able to use coconut sugar or… Read more »
Just made these cookies again! Third time now! My husband loves them!!
Hi there Leslie 🙂
Yaaaayyy!!! We are SUPER excited you and your husband have been enjoying these cookies for the third time now. Thank you so much for your awesome feedback and for taking the time to write.
-Ameera and Robin 🙂
every time i make these, everyone loves them. I doubled the batch last time and they were loved and enjoyed within a day. We have tried the chocolate icing ones too and man those are delicious!!! Thanks for the recipes.
Hi there KAT 🙂
Woooo hooo!!! We are so thrilled that you’ve enjoyed this recipe multiple times and everyone loves them, as well as our chocolate iced cookies as well! Thank you so much for your kind words, awesome feedback, and for taking the time to write.
-Ameera and Robin 🙂
These cookies are so mouth-watering delicious! The flavor is amazing – just the right amount of ginger, cinnamon, cloves, and we love the texture. All your cookies recipes are so perfect – thanks for the work you put into getting these recipes so right.
Hi there Karen 🙂
Woo hoo!!! Super excited to hear that this cookie delivered on flavor and texture for you and you enjoyed them! We appreciate you sharing your awesome feedback and for taking the time to write.
-Ameera and Robin 🙂
Do you think you think you could use this recipe to make a gingerbread house?
Hi there Debra 🙂
Thank you so much for reaching out to us. This recipe would not make for a good gingerbread house as gingerbread house cookies need to be extremely sturdy and crunchy to withstand the weight of building on it.
-Ameera and Robin 🙂
My husband has declared that these are “perfect”, and I’d have to agree. He doesn’t typically like cloves, but I made them as is and he loved them. Excellent start to the holiday season! Thank you for the awesome recipe!
Hi there Ashley 🙂
Woo Hoo!!! We are so thrilled to hear that you and your husband declared these cookies perfect – *doing a happy dance*. Thank you so much for taking the time to share your wonderful feedback with us. We appreciate your support!
-Ameera and Robin 🙂
Could this recipe be used to make gingerbread men?
Hi there Katie 🙂
Thank you so much for reaching out to us. We do not think this cookie recipe would work well to make gingerbread men. Gingerbread men cookies need to be rolled out then cut into shapes, this cookie would not work well in that manner. We hope this helps.
-Ameera and Robin 🙂
Could I substitute arrowroot powder or tapioca starch for the cornstarch?
Hi there Bonny 🙂
Thank you so much for reaching out to us. We have not tried any substitutions for the cornstarch, but we think that arrowroot powder would work.
-Ameera and Robin 🙂
Soooo yummy! My husband and I enjoyed these cookies very much! Saw this posted on Facebook and since I had all the ingredients it was a spur of the moment decision to make them. The flavor was perfect as how we expected a ginger cookie to taste! Need to check out more of your cookie/dessert recipes since we enjoy many of your dinner recipes!
Hi there Marlo 🙂
Yaaaay!!! We are so thrilled to hear that you and your husband enjoyed these cookies! We appreciate your support, kind words, and wonderful feedback! Thank you so much *hugs*
-Ameera and Robin 🙂
May be a silly question, but I have never baked with cloves…. does this recipe call for ground cloves?
Hi there Erica 🙂
Thank you so much for reaching out to us. Not a silly question at all. We used ground cloves in this recipe. We appreciate you bringing this to our attention, and we’ve updated the recipe.
-Ameera and Robin 🙂
I made those today and they are so good!
I made some substitutions/changes that others might find helpful: I replaced half of the almond flour with brown rice flour and used arrowroot starch instead of cornstarch. I added a little bit more of the molasses as I like the taste and also used date syrup instead of maple syrup. The dough was a dream to handle. I prefer smaller cookies so I measured one teaspoon of dough for each cookie. The recipe yielded 70+ bite-size giner snaps.
Highly recommend this recipe. 🙂
Hi there 🙂
Yaaaayyy! We are so thrilled that you enjoyed this recipe. Thank you so much for sharing your awesome review with us. We appreciate you taking the time to write.
-Ameera and Robin 🙂
Are you using regular molasses or Blackstrap molasses in the Gingersnap Cookies?
Hi there Claudia,
Thank you for your question. The molasses is regular molasses.
-Ameera and Robin
Thank you!
These cookies weren’t bad, but they are in no way crisp. I thought I could cook them thinner and longer and perhaps get a snap, nope.
IMO You should change the name to Ginger Cookies.
And remind people they can adjust the spices, I found I needed to ump them up a bit.
Hi there Wendy,
Thank you so much for giving these cookies a try. We are sorry they were not exactly what you were looking for. We do talk about the texture of these cookies in the description which notes: “…texture of crunchy goodness on the outside and chewy loveliness on the inside.” Since we bake Whole Food Plant Based, these cookies are a “nod” to the Ginger Snap cookie and not an identical style cookie. As for spices, they can easily be decreased or increased to your personal taste preference.
-Ameera and Robin 🙂
is there a substitute for almond butter? I love it but I use it in so many recipes that I wanted to try something else.
Hi there Christine,
Thank you so much for reaching out to us. We apologize for the late response. You could try a neutral nut butter like cashew butter as a substitute.
-Ameera and Robin
The bomb for someone who won a contest with my version of ginger cookies years ago. I am now dairy and gluten free due to allergies and these were it! And I am picky because my grandfather was a professional pastry chef. Cannot wait to try more recipes.
Hi there Nancy,
Woo hoo! We are thrilled that you enjoyed this recipe especially with your background. We appreciate your kind words and review! Thank you so much for taking the time to write.
-Ameera and Robin
Love ginger! Just let the first batch cool and tried one while still warm! So dang good!!
I will try to let them totally cool now. Lol.
And so quick to make!
They will be a lovely treat after dinner. (Made your Italian Pasta Fagioli soup. It’s a rainy day here and called for soup.)
Hi there Sandra,
WOOT!!! We are so happy that you gave these cookies a try and enjoyed them! We appreciate you taking time to leave us an awesome review. Also happy to read that you made our Italian Pasta Fagioli Soup! 🙂
Thank you so much.
-Ameera and Robin
Just did a trial run of these before making cookies for Xmas gifts. I was skeptical after tasting the raw dough (c’mon- who doesn’t try the raw dough when making cookies?!?) But they came out of the oven spicy, chewy, and with just the right amount of sweetness. I did have to make the cookies slightly smaller than described in order to get 15 cookies out of the batch: 1.5 tbsp vs 2 tbsp. Will send this test batch to work with dear husband, and make another batch for my work crew closer to Christmas. Thanks again, Monkey and Me!
Hi there Tracy,
We are happy that you did a trial run on these cookies. We are hoping your test batches came out as you planned. Thank you so much for the lovely comment review. We appreciate it.
-Ameera and Robin
Hi, Im wondering if I can substitute pumpkin pie spice for the individual spices
Hi there Mary,
Thank you for your question. Yes, you can substitute with pumpkin pie spice with the understanding that the ginger flavor will be slightly compromised.
-Ameera and Robin
I have made these cookies several times over and always make a double batch! They are FABULOUS-raw, baked, frozen–any way at all! Wondering if almond powder could be substituted for the almond butter to decrease the fat content?
Hi there Linda,
YAYYYYY!!! We are thrilled that you gave this recipe a try and enjoyed them. You could try almond powder; however, you will need to find a suitable textured substitute for the almond butter. Thank you for the awesome review.
-Ameera and Robin
When you say “freezes well” do you mean the cookies? The batter? Both? I’ve made these cookies before and love them. I was thinking of prepping the batter ahead of time and was wondering if that would work.
Hi there Amy,
Thank you for your question. The cookies, made, not dough batter, freeze well. I hope this helps.
-Ameera and Robin
I’ve made these several times and they are wonderful.
Question: When you say “freezes well,” are you referring to the cookies? dough? Both? I’m considering mixing up the dough ahead of time to make Baking Day easier.
Hi there Amy,
YAYYYY!!! We are thrilled that you enjoyed this recipe.Thank you for your question. The cookies, made, not dough batter, freezes well. I hope this helps.
-Ameera and Robin