If you like the combination of chocolate and hazelnuts, you’ll love these Vegan Chocolate Hazelnut Cookies! A hazelnut brown sugar cookie topped with dairy-feee chocolate hazelnut spread and toasted hazelnuts. They’re soft and chewy in the middle, crisp around the edges and super easy to make!
Baking vegan cookies is one of my favorite holiday pastimes because they’re easy to make and fun to decorate! Recipes like my Nordic-Style Cardamom Sugar Cookies and my Strawberry Chocolate Chip Cookies are two of my favorite vegan cookie recipes on the blog. My Chewy Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies are another seasonal favorite with lots of warming spices like cinnamon, nutmeg and ginger.
But since I’ve always been a fan of chocolate and hazelnut truffles, these Chocolate Hazelnut Cookies are high on my list this holiday season! Rich chocolate, crunchy hazelnuts and a soft and chewy cookie. It’s just heavenly!
Ingredients to Make Vegan Chocolate Hazelnut Cookies
Flour, Baking Powder and Baking Soda – opt for an all purpose flour for best results. For gluten-free sub an all purpose gluten-free flour such as Bob’s Red Mill 1:1.
Old Fashioned Oats – Good old fashioned oatmeal is the way to go here. It gives these cookies a delicious sweet and nutty flavor that pairs so well with brown sugar and chocolate.
Ground Flax Seeds. Instead of using chicken’s eggs in my baking, I mix ground flax seeds with water to make a flax “egg” which binds the cookies together and keeps them from falling apart. A big bag of ground flax seeds is inexpensive and available at stores like Kroger, Publix, Target, Walmart, Sprouts, Aldi, Trader Joe’ and Thrive Market.
Vegan Butter – In this video I tested a bunch of vegan butters for baking and now recommend using sticks instead of the kind that comes in a tub for best results. My go to is Earth Balance Salted Buttery Sticks.
Cane Sugar and Brown Sugar – the mix of cane sugar and light brown sugar creates a tender, flavorful and chewy cookie.
Vanilla Extract – brings out the flavor in the chocolate, hazelnuts and brown sugar.
Kosher Salt – You’ve probably heard that adding salt to sweet foods like cookies adds “balance” and it couldn’t be more true. Do not skip the salt. It’s what sharpens all of the other flavors and makes these cookies taste incredibly rich and buttery!
Dairy-Free Chocolate Chips. My go to for the last few years – and pretty much the only chocolate chips I use for making vegan desserts – is Enjoy Life Semi-Sweet Mini Chocolate Chips. They’re delicious and perfect in these cookies!
Hazelnuts – toasted and chopped hazelnuts for an elegantly nutty flavor that pairs so well with chocolate!
Vegan Chocolate Hazelnut Spread – I use and recommend Nutiva or Nicciolata. Both brands are rich and delicious and taste just like the classic chocolate hazelnut spread I loved as a kid!
How to Make Chocolate Hazelnut Cookies Vegan
Prep:
Start by placing the vegan butter on the counter to soften while you gather the other ingredients. Pre-heat the oven to 350 degrees and line two large cookie sheets with a nonstick baking mat if desired.
Combine the ground flax seeds and water in a small bowl and stir to combine. Set aside to thicken.
Finely chop the hazelnuts and then toast until lightly golden brown and fragrant in a dry frying pan without oil set to medium heat. Toasting the nuts should take about 2-3 minutes. Once toasted, transfer the hazelnuts to a dish and set aside to cool.
Mix the Dry Ingredients:
Next make the oat flour by adding the oatmeal to a blender and pulse 5 to 6 times until it resembles a coarse flour. Add the oat flour to a mixing bowl along with the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt and mix well. Set aside.
Mix the Wet Ingredients:
Place the softened vegan butter in a large mixing bowl along with the cane sugar and brown sugar. Beat for 1 minute using an electric mixer or for 2 minutes if mixing by hand. Once light and fluffy, add the vanilla and the thickened flax seeds and mix for one more minute.
Combine:
Add half of the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and mix just until no more flour is visible. Then add the remixing dry ingredients and stir to combine.
Fold half of the toasted hazelnuts and mix until incorporated. Be careful not to over-mix.
Bake:
Use a medium-sized ice cream scoop like this one to portion the dough into balls and place on a lined cookie sheet. Bake for 12-15 minutes and then cool on the cookie sheet for 5 minutes.
Decorate:
Transfer the cookies to a wire cooling rack like this one and cool completely debone frosting. Once cool, spread chocolate hazelnut spread onto each cookie and sprinkle with the remaining chopped hazelnuts. Serve with a glass of your favorite plant-milk and enjoy!
Tips for Holiday Cookie Baking
Try using an oven thermometer! All ovens are a little different and sometimes – if your oven is anything like mine – it will say it’s at 350 degrees before it actually is. Baking at the wrong temperature can effect the outcome of the cookies so an inexpensive oven thermometer like this one will be your best friend this holiday season!
Mix the wet ingredients well – when mixing the butter and sugar together, make sure to take your time and mix well. This ensures that the cookies will have a soft and chewy bakery-style texture.
Don’t over-mix the dry ingredients – the opposite is true for the dry ingredients. You’ll want to mix well to incorporate but be careful not to continuously beat the cookie dough once the wet and dry ingredients are combined or the cookies will be hard and tough.
Use vegan butter sticks instead of the tub and make sure it’s softened to room temp. The stick variety works better for baking. Here’s a fun video where I compared different vegan butters for baking to show how different the result can be! After lots of experimenting I’ve found that using Earth Balance sticks (salted) is a winner when baking cookies so that’s what I recommend. Make sure t’s softened but not melted.
Recipe FAQs
How do I keep leftover cookies soft? I recommend letting the cookies cool completely on a wire rack. Then transfer the cookies to an airtight container with a slice of sandwich bread. The bread helps keep the cookies soft. Store at room temp for 2 days. Alternatively, you can refrigerate the cookies for up to 5 days.
Can I freeze the cookie dough? Yes! Scoop the unmaking cookie dough onto a cookie sheet or plate and freeze until solid. About 1 hour. Then place the frozen cookie dough in an airtight bag and store in the freezer for up tp 6 months. When ready to bake, place the frozen cookie dough balls on a baking sheet and simply add 1-2 additional minutes to the original bake time as needed.
Can I use quick cooking oats? I didn’t have good results with quick cooking oats so I wouldn’t recommend it.
Can I use gluten-free flour? This recipe has not been tested with gluten-free flour so I can’t guarantee results, however my recommendation is to use a gluten-free all purpose flour such as Bob’s Red Mill 1:1. Avoid subbing coconut, brown rice or almond flour.
Chocolate Hazelnut Cookies
Ingredients
- 1 tbsp ground flax seed
- 2 tbsp water
- 1 cup all purpose flour
- 1 cup old fashioned oats
- ½ tsp baking powder
- ½ tsp baking soda
- ½ tsp kosher salt I use Morton's
- 1 stick vegan butter 1/2 cup, sticks work better than the kind in the tub
- ½ cup cane sugar
- ½ cup light brown sugar
- ¼ cup applesauce unsweetened
- 1 tsp vanilla
- 1 cup chopped hazelnuts divided
Frosting
- ¾ cup vegan chocolate hazelnut spread such as Nutiva or Nicciolla
Instructions
Prep
- Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Line 2 large cookie sheets with a non-stick baking mat or parchment parper and set aside. Finely chop the hazelnuts and toast in a dry frying pan over medium heat for 3 minutes or until lightly toasted. Transfer to a bowl and set aside. Combine the flax seeds and water in a small bowl. Stir and set aside to thicken. Measure the oats into a blender and pulse a few times to finely chop. See photo above for texture reference.
Mix the dry ingredients
- Add the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt into a large bowl and use a whisk to combine. Then add the oats, mix again and set aside.
Mix the wet ingredients
- Add the softened butter, cane sugar and brown sugar to another large mixing bowl and beat until light and fluffy. We're talking verrrry light and fluffy. I usually do this for at least 1 full minute…which isn't that long but kinda feels like overkill when you're doing it. Trust me, this is what makes the cookies have that soft, tender center we all love!Then add the vanilla, applesauce and thickened flax egg and beat for 30 seconds.
Combine
- Add half of dry ingredients to the bowl with wet ingredients and use a wooden spoon to combine. Then add the remaining dry ingredients and mix until only a little bit of flour is visible. Then add 1/2 cup of chopped hazelnuts and reserve the remaining nuts for the topping. Mix just until evenly combined and then stop. Do not overmix or you'll have tough cookies.
Bake
- Use a medium sized ice cream scoop or large rounded tablespoon for each cookie and place 12 cookies on each tray. Press the dough 1/3 down before baking.Chill the cookie dough in the fridge for 10 minutes and then bake for 8 minutes. Then bang the pan on the oven rack or counter to release some of the air and continue baking for 4-5 more minutes.
- Then remove from the oven let the cookies cool on the tray for 5 minutes before moving – annoying I know but it important. The residual heat is still baking the cooking and helping it set up properly. Again, trust me, this is a texture thing and so worth it for that bakery-style cookie you're about to end up with!
Decorate
- Allow the cookies to completely then spread a thin layer of chocolate hazelnut spread on top of each cookie. Sprinkle with the reserved hazelnuts and enjoy!
Notes
Hey! I’m Nicole and I make practical vegan recipes for REAL life. I cook with simple, easy to find ingredients and I’m passionate about creating delicious plant-based meals that everyone will love!
I hope you enjoy my recipes and videos :) Happy Cooking!
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