I know a lot of people who struggled to give up baked goods like cookies when they switched to a plant-based diet. I suggest looking up vegan cookie recipes to make their own when they couldn’t find what they wanted in a grocery store.
Vegan protein cookies break the mold by being both delicious and nutritious.
I am going to share a few of my favorite vegan protein cookies recipes, and I’ll also share some advice on how to make your own vegan cookies.
Eating vegan should never be an ‘all or nothing’ effort. Don’t worry about labeling your diet or long-term commitments. Instead, just have fun with vegan cooking when it’s available to you.
- Chloe Coscarelli, Vegan Chef
Our Top Vegan Protein Cookie Recipes
1. Chocolate Chip Protein Cookies
The classic chocolate chip cookie remade into a vegan and healthy option. It’s also gluten-free.
I thought it had a lot of ingredients, but it’s nothing too crazy and most, if not all, of the ingredients are already in your pantry.
It’s a soft and chewy cookie which can store for up to a week, but they taste so good that I don’t know if they will last that long.
Here’s the ingredient list for these protein cookies.
- 1/2 cup coconut oil
- 1 cup coconut sugar
- 1/4 cup almond milk, unsweetened
- 1 tbsp vanilla extract
- 1 cup gluten-free all purpose flour
- 1 cup almond flour
- 5 tbsp chocolate protein powder
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/4 cup dark chocolate
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Method:
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper
- Mix the coconut oil and coconut sugar together. Then add the almond milk and vanilla extract
- In a separate bowl, mix the all-purpose flour, almond flour, protein powder, baking soda, baking powder, and salt
- Combine all of the ingredients in one bowl and fold in the dark chocolate chips
- Chill mixture in the fridge for 20 minutes
- Roll mixture into about 18 balls and place them on baking sheet
- Bake for 9-12 minutes
2. Chocolate Coconut Protein Cookies
Coconut has some notable health benefits including possibly boosting heart health, aids digestive health, and supports weight loss. So I was interested in trying out this chocolate coconut protein cookies from Simply Quinoa.
They are healthy, gluten-free, and have a lot of nutrition but still manages to make people with a sweet tooth happy. I would recommend making a double batch because it’s hard to not share this with everyone.
The almond butter gives it a nice nutty flavor without being overwhelming. The hemp hearts are a great source of protein, and adding a scoop of protein powder makes this a great protein cookie.
Here are the ingredients that you will need to make these protein cookies.
- 1/2 cup almond butter
- 1/4 cup maple syrup
- 1 flax egg (or 1 tablespoons flaxseed meal + 3 tablespoons water)
- 1 scoop vanilla protein powder
- 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/4 teaspoon sea salt
- 2 tablespoons hemp hearts
- 1 tablespoon chia seeds
- 1/4 cup coconut flakes
- 1/4 cup vegan chocolate chips
Method:
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
- Line baking sheet with parchment paper. Beat the almond butter, maple syrup, and flax eggs until the mixture is smooth and creamy. Add protein powder, baking soda, and sea salt.
- Fold in the hemp hearts, chia seeds, chocolate chips, and coconut flakes
- Scoop out about 1 tablespoon of mixture on a baking sheet and gently flatten the dough
- Bake for 13-14 minutes or until the cookies are a light golden brown. Cool for 5 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to finish the cooling process.
Bonus tip: For an extra-strong chocolate taste, add a teaspoon of Navitas Organics cacao powder.
3. Vegan Protein Cookie Dough
You can skip the “Instructions: preheat oven”. Cookie dough is a guilty pleasure whether or not you are vegan. You’ll have a hard time finding this in a store.
What I really like about this recipe is that you only need 2 ingredients to make it, and then you can customize it to mimic your favorite cookie flavor.
The texture is a little thicker compared to regular cookie dough, but it still has a great taste especially if you add a little bit of salt and baking soda.
The 2 ingredients are 500 grams of cooked and peeled sweet potato and 3 scoops (126 grams) of vanilla protein powder.
This recipe gives six different variations of cookie protein dough flavors you could make.
The 2 ingredients are:
- 500 grams of cooked and peeled sweet potato
- 3 scoops (126 grams) of vanilla protein powder
Method:
- Prepare the sweet potatoes for baking by piercing them a few times with a fork.
- Bake them in a 350-degree oven until done. You know it’s ready when you’re able to poke through it with a fork or knife.
- Let it cool for a few minutes and then peel them. The skin should come off easily.
- Put the cooked sweet potato in your food processor.
- Add in your favorite vanilla protein powder.
- Mix the two until you get a smooth, doughy consistency.
- Add some nut butter, stevia, or any other flavoring of your choice (totally optional).
- Eat it right away or freeze the mixture for a few hours for the best taste!
This recipe gives six different variations of cookie protein dough flavors you could make.
- Peanut butter cookie dough - use peanut butter instead of protein powder
- Gingerbread cookie dough - mix in some cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, a little bit of salt and molasses
- Oatmeal raisin cookie dough - add your favorite oats, some raisins and cinnamon
- Double chocolate cookie dough - use chocolate protein powder instead of vanilla, add some cocoa powder and mix in chocolate chips
- Snickerdoodle cookie dough - add a generous amount of cinnamon, a little bit of maple syrup and some vanilla extract
- Coconut macaroon cookie dough - use unsweetened shredded coconut as a replacement for one serving of protein powder and add in a few drops of coconut extract
I like to keep it simple and just add vegan chocolate chips. The biggest perk of this vegan cookie dough is that you don’t have to worry about your mom’s warning about getting salmonella since there are no egg products.
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4. Flourless Almond Butter Cookies
This recipe impressed me with not using any kind of flour but still managing to get a great chewy texture.
It says the recipe has 4 grams of protein, but I used Transparent Labs protein powder and got 24 grams of protein. It definitely packs a protein punch, and it makes a great post-workout snack or mid-afternoon treat.
Here are the ingredients and instructions that you will need for this recipe..
Here are the ingredients that you will need for this recipe:
- 1 cup rolled oats*
- 1/4 cup roasted almonds
- 1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt
- 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/4 cup protein powder
- 3 tablespoons coconut sugar
- 1/2 cup creamy almond butter
- 1/4 cup brown rice syrup
- 3 tablespoons non-dairy milk
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1/2 cup non-dairy chocolate chips
- 1/4 cup shredded unsweetened coconut (optional)
- 2 tablespoons hemp seeds (optional)
Method:
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Cover a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- In a food processor, combine the rolled oats and roasted almonds. Process until it a fine crumb. Add the coconut, coconut sugar, sea salt, baking powder, protein powder, and hemp seeds.
- In a microwave-safe bowl, combine the almond butter and brown rice syrup. Melt in the microwave for 20 seconds. Add the vanilla extract and non-dairy milk and microwave for 15 seconds. Stir until the mixture is smooth.
- Combine the dry and wet ingredients and stir until a dough forms. Let the dough cool for a few minutes before adding chocolate chips.
- Roll mixture into balls and place them on the baking sheet. Gently press down until they are about ½ inch thick.
- Bake for 11-13 minutes until it has lightly golden brown edges.
- Cool for 5-10 minutes
How Can I Make My Protein Cookie Recipe Vegan-Friendly?
Even though there are a lot of vegan protein cookie recipes out there, you may already have a favorite recipe.
The problem is that it has eggs or dairy.
You can easily substitute these with vegan-friendly ingredients although it may take some trial-and-error to get it just right.
Here are some of the substitutes that you could use the next time you make cookies.
REPLACE BUTTER WITH:
- Avocado
- Applesauce
- Pumpkin puree
- Coconut oil
- Vegan butter spreads
REPLACE EGGS WITH:
- Flax
- Silken tofu
- Mashed banana
- Soy or coconut yogurt
REPLACE MILK WITH:
- Soy milk
- Almond milk
- Rice milk
And while you're at it, you can make your meal all vegan too with these awesome vegan recipes that are also great for building muscles. Here is also a list of 6 vegan egg substitutes that you might want to see.
We have included several chocolates on this recipe, so if you'd want to learn more about it, check this article here.
And if you don't have time to cook, check out our list of the best vegan store-bought cookies.
What Flavor Of Protein Powder Should I Use?
Some recipes have their own specific protein powder flavor to use. However, if you are experimenting or making a regular vegan cookie recipe into something with more protein or nutrition, then I would recommend trying the vanilla flavor of Transparent Labs protein powder.
The vanilla flavor isn’t overwhelming and will compliment different ingredients. You could also use the chocolate version if you have a bit more of a sweet tooth.
What Protein Powder Do We Recommend?
You don’t have to completely give up baked goods when you’re vegan. It’s easy to find recipes or use alternatives when a recipe calls for eggs or dairy products.
If you’re a vegan athlete, then I would suggest adding protein powder to cookie recipes to help boost your protein intake while still satisfying your sweet tooth.
My favorite protein powder for baking is Transparent Labs vegan protein powder.
The flavors are great and it has 24 grams of protein per scoop, perfect for adding to your favorite cookie recipe.
You can also see our main page for more vegan protein powder options.
Enjoyed this article? You might also like this article about the best vegan recipe blogs so you can enjoy more delicious vegan meals. Or, check out our article on vegan protein ball recipes too.
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