Vegan Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Avocado Cookies

Vegan Avocado and Peanut Butter Cookies from Veggie and the Beast

I’ve had a huge sweet tooth lately. HUGE. Recently I’ve been just going to Pinterest, typing in “Desserts,” and seeing what happens.

Note: I do NOT recommend doing this.

Per usual, my sweet tooth hones in on two things: chocolate and peanut butter. I don’t even care what the context is; if the party includes chocolate and peanut butter, I’m there.

Vegan Avocado and Peanut Butter Cookies from Veggie and the Beast

Take these cookies, for instance, which were the result of a few rounds of kitchen experimentation and dumb luck. I’ve been wanting to make vegan cookies for a while, but felt a bit intimidated by the idea, because there are many things to consider. To help you navigate vegan baking, here are the usual non-vegan ingredients, and their vegan solutions.

  • Butter: Since butter is a dairy product, it’s clearly not vegan. Vegan cookies require a different source of fat and moisture. Solution: Earth Balance (or other buttery spread) and avocado*.
  • Sugar: White sugar is often not vegan-friendly, because many US cane sugar refineries use animal bone char in the manufacturing process. Solution: Sucanat (stands for Sugar Cane Natural) is a great substitute for white sugar. It is a bit sweeter than regular sugar, so in these cookies I added extra salt to balance out the sweetness.
  • Eggs: In non-vegan cookies, eggs bind the ingredients, add moisture, and add some leavening. Solution: Flax eggs for moisture and binding, and a touch of baking powder to help the cookies rise.
  • Chocolate chips: Most chocolate chips are made with milk or non-vegan sugar. Solution: Buy vegan chocolate chips! Simple.

*After using avocado as a partial butter substitute for cookies last year, I knew it could do the job, but you’re probably looking at me like I’m a crazy person right now, so let’s break it down. Most importantly, these cookies do NOT taste like avocado. The avocado simply takes the place of half the butter/margarine, adds good fats, and fills the cookies with moisture and richness.

Vegan Avocado and Peanut Butter Cookies from Veggie and the Beast

Now that we’re done with all the explanations, let’s get to the good stuff; I love a fat cookie, and these fit the bill. They’re super soft, thick, fluffy, cakey, packed with dark chocolate and peanut butter. Prrrrrfection.

I suspect that these cookies can make a believer out of anyone who is wary of vegan baked goods. The Beast, my very non-vegan coworkers, and The Beast’s mom all devoured these cookies, despite their vegan-ness. Whether you are vegan, have a friend who is vegan, or just want a slightly healthier option for your dessert cravings, you must, MUST try these.

Vegan Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Avocado Cookies
 
Prep time
Cook time
Total time
 
Simple vegan cookies that are super soft, thick, fluffy, cakey, and packed with dark chocolate and peanut butter.
Author:
Recipe type: Cookies, Dessert, Vegan
Serves: 36
Ingredients
  • 1 avocado
  • 1 stick (1/2 cup) vegan buttery spread (I used Earth Balance)
  • ¾ cup Sucanat (sugar cane natural)
  • ½ cup plus 2 tablespoons natural peanut butter
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla
  • 2 tablespoons ground flaxseed mixed with 5 tablespoons lukewarm water (2 flax eggs)
  • 1 cup all-purpose flour
  • 1 cup whole wheat pastry flour (or use only all-purpose flour if you wish)
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1½ teaspoons baking powder
  • ¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • ¾ teaspoon salt
  • 1½ cups vegan chocolate chips
Instructions
  1. Preheat oven to 350.
  2. In a medium-sized bowl, combine the flours, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt. Set aside.
  3. Pulse the avocado in a food processor until smooth. Meanwhile, cream the butter in a large bowl. Add the avocado to the butter, and beat on high for 2-3 minutes. At first it will look lumpy, but eventually it will be whipped and smooth. Beat in the peanut butter, then add the Sucanat, mixing until smooth.
  4. Pour in the flax eggs and vanilla, mixing until combined.
  5. Gradually add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients, using a spatula to wipe down the sides frequently. Fold in the chocolate chips.
  6. Use a heaping tablespoon to scoop the batter, then roll into balls and place on a greased/parchment-lined cookie sheet. Press down lightly with your fingers on each cookie, flattening out slightly. Bake for 9 minutes. After removing from the oven, let the cookies sit on the baking sheet for a couple of minutes before moving them to a cooling rack.

Vegan Avocado and Peanut Butter Cookies from Veggie and the Beast

Just look at these. What’s not to love? I’m kind of obsessed. For about 110 calories per cookie, I’d say that’s a smart way to kick those ridiculous dessert cravings.

   

19 Responses to “Vegan Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Avocado Cookies”

  1. Tiffany @thyme of taste — March 27, 2013 @ 2:47 pm (#)

    Wow… looks amazing, and who knew there was avocado in these little gems! I have a chocolate cupcake recipe to try out still that uses avocado as the chocolate frosting!
    I love to see “sweet” recipes that add vegetables in the ingredients, genius!
    Cheers~

    • Veggie — March 27, 2013 @ 3:01 pm (#)

      Thank you! I’ve seen avocado frosting recipes before and I’ve definitely been tempted, because I can eat avocado any time of day, and pretty much on anything. You’ll have to let me know how it turns out!

  2. Katrina @ Warm Vanilla Sugar — March 28, 2013 @ 10:24 am (#)

    I love the look of these!! Yum!

  3. Sarah @ Making Thyme for Health — March 28, 2013 @ 10:30 am (#)

    I am always looking for ways to make dessert healthier because I love it so much and you have certainly done that with these cookies! My oh my, do they sound good. I will have to give these a try for sure!

  4. Tonya Albers — May 17, 2013 @ 11:55 am (#)

    These look so good & I CANNOT wait to make them! (I also could eat avocado in pretty much anything) :)

  5. Wendy T — May 17, 2013 @ 5:36 pm (#)

    These were AWESOME! I doubled the recipe, used real eggs (we have happy ducks in the backyard!), used 1/2 cup sugar (just cause), and almond butter (’cause apparently I am out of peanut butter). Soooooo goood! Thank you! My boys chowed through them and I took them to a pool party and they were very thrilled! This recipe needed no changes, but it’s nice to see that it’s flexible!

    • Veggie — May 17, 2013 @ 11:42 pm (#)

      Those sound like good changes – I LOVE almond butter. I’m glad they were a hit! :)

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  7. Rebecca — July 23, 2013 @ 10:32 pm (#)

    This wasn’t my first time making vegan cookies, but it was my first time using avocado in a sweet. I was hoping it wouldn’t make a difference, but it really did make a difference– for the better! It made them so thick and cakey without sacrificing any softness, and I also think decreasing my typical 1:3 flax/water proportion to your 2:5 helped too. Thank you for this! I just discovered you and can’t wait to try out so much more! I’m an amateur cook/baker and a wanna-be vegan and yours is the most yummy approachable recipe compilations I’ve found. :)

    How would you recommend storing them to keep them soft?

    • Veggie — July 24, 2013 @ 8:50 am (#)

      Thank you so much for the sweet comment! I’m happy you enjoyed them :) I usually store my cookies in an airtight container with a slice or two of bread – it keeps the cookies soft for days!

  8. Emilie Canuel-Langlois — September 19, 2013 @ 1:44 pm (#)

    What a nice idea to add some avocado instead of another “greasy” ingredient !! Thanks to share !! Can’t wait to try.

  9. Jeni — September 30, 2013 @ 4:25 pm (#)

    These looking amazing! I will definitely be making these soon!

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  11. Molly — May 19, 2014 @ 9:05 am (#)

    Super super yummy!! i added coconut oil instead of earth balance and came out great!

  12. Jessica — October 26, 2014 @ 10:26 pm (#)

    Thanks for sharing this recipe! I omitted the Earth Balance component completely and doubled the avocado quantity. Worked really well – the cookies are moist, soft, and NOT green :)

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  15. Ciaran — February 23, 2015 @ 2:34 pm (#)

    Just wondering how long would these cookies last before they go off? Just so if they last long I could make a bigger batch. Thanks

  16. David — November 15, 2015 @ 2:52 am (#)

    Just tried this recipe.  It’s my first time ever making cookies and it turned out to taste like the real thing

    Some minor changes I did
    1. Use 1/2 cup of brown sugar instead of 3/4
    2. Replace the vegan butter with coconut oil
    3. Removed the peanut butter since the coconut oil has a flavour very similar to peanut