Why you’ll love these dairy free chocolate chip cookies!
Baking is one of the hardest things to do once you’ve gone dairy free. There are so, so many recipes out there that require milk, butter, or – my least favorite to replace – yogurt.
But, I’ve got your back. I’ve tested out many of those dairy free chocolate chip cookies, and we’ve decided that these are our favorite.
They’re texture is most like the butter-based cookies of our childhood and they flavor is the closest we can find. In fact, I’d say it’s dead on.
That’s mostly because of the vegetable shortening I replaced the butter with – it’s my favorite substitute for butter when baking – and allergy friendly chocolate chips.
Ingredient notes:
- Dairy free butter – I’ve used both vegetable shortening and dairy free chocolate chips for this recipe. You can easily swap vegan butter or coconut oil for the shortening if that’s what you have on hand just be sure to let it soften a bit.
- Dairy free chocolate chips – These are usually available at most grocery stores, but sometimes they are located in the organic section rather than the baking aisle. If you’re unsure, just read the label and look for milk listed as an ingredient.
Making changes to a recipe can result in recipe failure. Any substitutions listed are simple changes that I believe will work in this recipe, but results are not guaranteed.
How to make chocolate chip cookies without butter
Mise en place. Preheat your oven to 350˚F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Measure out all of your ingredients before you begin mixing. This helps make sure you don’t miss anything.
Whisk your dry ingredients. Whisk the flour, baking soda and salt together in a large bowl. Set the bowl aside for later.
Mix the wet ingredients. In a large bowl with an electric mixer, beat the shortening and sugars until the mixture is light and fluffy. Add the vanilla and the eggs, one at a time and beat until they’re incorporated.
Combine the dry and wet ingredients. Add the flour to the mixing bowl, about 3/4 cup at a time, scraping the sides as needed.
Once that is all mixed, you’ll need to stir in the chocolate chips. You can also add about 1/2 cup chopped nuts if you want.
Scoop the cookies. Use a cookie scoop to shape the dough into 2 tablespoon sized balls and place them on the cookie sheet about and inch or so apart.
Bake for 11 – 13 minutes – or until the tops of the cookies have set. They should still be super soft when you take them out, especially if you want them to be chewy.
Let them cool. Remove the cookies from the oven and leave them on the baking sheet for a few minutes. Then transfer them to a cooling rack to finish cooling.
More dairy free cookies: rocky road cookies / chocolate chocolate chip cookies / soft sugar cookies / sprinkle cookies / almond crescent cookies / no bake chocolate oatmeal cookies
Frequently asked questions
If you want to replace butter in chocolate chip cookies, you have several options. Since chocolate chip cookies typically use softened, but not melted butter, I recommend using vegetable shortening, vegan butter, or softened coconut oil for a 1:1 replacement.
Traditional Nestle chocolate chips aren’t dairy free, but they recently came out with a line called Simply Delicious that are top 8 allergen free, which means they are dairy free. If you’re unsure, be sure to check the ingredients list.
More dairy free chocolate recipes: dairy free fudge / olive oil brownies / dairy free chocolate pudding / dairy free hot chocolate / chocolate zucchini muffins / chocolate raspberry tart
Eggs are not dairy.
But, if you thought eggs were a dairy product, you are not alone. It’s common misconception that stems from the fact that eggs are sold in the dairy section at the grocery store and they usually need to be refrigerated, which is something we often associate with dairy. See more: Are eggs dairy free?
The Best Dairy Free Chocolate Chip Cookies
Ingredients
- 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 cup vegetable shortening*
- 3/4 cup dark brown sugar
- 3/4 cup sugar
- 2 eggs
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 1 cup dairy free chocolate chips
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350˚F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda and salt. Set aside.
- In a large bowl with an electric mixer, beat shortening and sugars at medium speed until light and fluffy – about 2 minutes. Add eggs and vanilla, beating until combined. Add flour mixture, about 1/2 cup at a time, mixing until incorporated, scrapping sides as needed.
- Stir in chocolate chips.
- Using a medium cookie scoop, drop 2 tablespoon balls of dough onto cookie sheet. Bake for 10 – 11 minutes.
- Remove from oven and allow cookies to cool on baking sheet for about 5 minutes before transferring to a cooling rack.
- Repeat steps 6 – 7 to bake remaining cookies.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Like this? Leave a comment below!
This is one of the best dairy-free chocolate chips I’ve had in a while!
I LOVE these cookies!
My son and mom didn’t know they were gluten-free. They were a little taller than “normal” chocolate chip cookies but otherwise, the texture was good.
Somehow, these tasted like they were made with browned butter instead of Earth Balance. Used a pinch of Fleur de Sel sea salt on each cookie before baking…they are divine! Baked 12-13 minutes in my oven and they were really soft and gooey inside. I also used 1 cup bread flour, the rest AP; always helps the cookie texture.
I’ve noticed that other people are having the same problem I have had, which is how cake-like they are. They taste great, but they are very cake-like. And yes, I’m using Baking Soda and brown sugar. I haven’t switched any of the ingredients. I even reduced the amount of flour and they are still cake-cookies. My next step is to just get rid of items and buy newer ingredients to see if that’s the problem (?). If I have an update I will come back and post it.
My 4 year old daughter and I made these this rainy afternoon. We used coconut oil, and they were delicious! They will not last long! Will make again, thank you!
Storing the cookies with a piece of bread keeps them soft! I learned the hack a few years ago and it works great.
Oh that’s a great tip! Thank you for sharing!
Do you have to use vegetable shortening or is there a substitute?
You can substitute equal parts vegan butter at room temperature.
Thank you for sharing! I just recently removed dairy from my diet and I’ve been having trouble finding delicious recipes. I used Coconut oil instead of vegetable shortening and I added walnuts and these were the best version of chocolate chip cookies I’ve made. Holding tight onto this recipe! Excited to explore more of your recipes.
These are the best chocolate chip cookies I have ever made and I have tried many recipes!! Using the butter flavored Crisco has been my go to. I am now being asked to give these cookies as bday presents to my family!
Just a few more tips. Either aerate before measuring or weigh your flour. That makes a big difference and scales are not expensive. Fresh baking soda, remember to pack down the brown sugar. If you are making multiple batches the dough can dry out waiting in your bowl. Either use 2 trays and rotate half way through or cover your bowl with a damp towel in between batches.
Just made these for my son who is allergic to milk and eggs. Used half cup for each sugar, used flax eggs, Enjoy Life mini chips, and coconut oil. They were so good! They taste like my “regular” chocolate chip cookies. Thanks for the recipe!